Chapter 81: The Scent Left Behind
“Eve… what are you doing?”
Armand swallowed instinctively as he looked at Evelia's strange outfit. She walked toward him step by step, the bell on her neck jingling with a crisp sound.
“I need to leave my scent on you, Mr. Armand.”
Soon, Evelia stood right in front of him. One of her hands rested on the table, the other on Armand’s chair. As she leaned forward, her long pink hair slid off her shoulder and brushed against Armand’s chest.
“Leave your scent?”
The sight of the soft, white skin in front of him made Armand panic a little. His eyes darted around nervously as he tried hard to push his thoughts away. Not just his thoughts, but his feelings too.
“Just like a cat. Isn’t that okay?” Evelia leaned in closer. “Unless… you really hate me?”
“That’s not a fair question...”
With the mood like this, how could Armand say “I hate you”? Although he still stayed alert around Evelia, he couldn’t honestly say he hated her.
Besides, if he really did say he hated her... there's a chance that whole incident from before would repeat itself. This time, Armand had learned his lesson. Evelia didn’t exactly show her emotions on her face, but he had to learn to read them anyway.
“Just for a little while.”
Evelia leaned in and pressed herself against him. The softness of her body pushed into Armand’s stomach. Maybe because he was only wearing a bathrobe, the feeling was even more obvious than usual. If he moved even a little, the robe that tied only with a belt and not buttoned would open right up. He was actually thankful that he wasn’t completely naked underneath. At least he was wearing a pair of shorts.
“Don’t move, Mr. Armand.”
Evelia shifted upward a bit and sniffed around Armand’s neck. Just like she had guessed earlier, he smelled completely clean, no scent of soap or anything else. She had even sprayed on extra perfume today, the one Anna had given her, hoping the scent would stay on him.
“Eve... That’s enough, isn’t it?”
Armand was being pushed backward in his chair, almost tipping over, but Evelia still didn’t let go. Her whole body was leaning onto him, her knees pressing into the gaps on the chair, as if she wanted to put all her weight on him.
Evelia’s breath was warm and gentle in his ear, every breath landing directly on his chest. Drops of water from her hair dripped onto her fingers. Even though she had just taken a bath, her body was already starting to sweat lightly again.
“Don’t move, Mr. Armand. Just stay like this for a little while.”
Evelia rested her cheek on Armand’s chest. Under the open bathrobe was the ugly scar that marked his battles on the field, Armand was no soft-skinned young man. In contrast, Evelia’s face, still round and soft like a doll’s, felt smooth and delicate against him.
“Mr. Armand, your heart is beating really fast.”
“Ah—well, I wonder whose fault that is...”
Thump, thump.
Even Armand could hear his own heartbeat loud and clear. Evelia was considered tall among women, but now she felt so small, curled up in front of him. The two fluffy pieces of her hairband looked like cat ears. With her movements, they swayed from side to side like real ones.
Jingle jingle.
The bell between their chests kept ringing every time they moved. Armand tried not to move at all to stay calm, but even the tiniest tremble made the bell ring, like it was announcing the tension between them.
“I actually prepared a tail too, Mr. Armand.”
Noticing Armand staring at the cat-ear hairband on her head, Evelia looked a little disappointedly at her bare back.
“...A tail?”
While they were having this short conversation, the little bell between them rang a few more times.
“Yeah, but I didn’t understand what the cone-shaped metal piece at the front of the tail was for, so I didn’t bring it. Mr. Armand, do you know how that thing is supposed to be used?”
“That’s not something you need to know…”
“I see.”
Since Armand said it wasn’t necessary, Evelia didn’t ask more about it. She just quietly lay on top of him again, occasionally rubbing her head against his chest to make sure her scent stayed on him.
“Eve… isn’t that enough already…?”
Having a beautiful girl in his arms, trying not to lose control was way too difficult. Armand had strong self-control, but with Evelia being this aggressive, even if he wasn’t completely knocked over, the defenses around his heart were starting to crack. If this went on much longer, Evelia might completely break down his resistance.
“Just a little more, Mr. Armand.”
Even though the position they were in was so suggestive, Evelia’s tone and way of speaking stayed completely serious and proper. If she were really a cat, she would be the proud type, curling up in someone’s arms but still refusing to show any weakness.
“But…”
“It’s like marinating pickles, you have to soak it for a while so the flavor sinks in.”
“That’s not the same at all…”
Knock knock knock.
“?!”
Just as Evelia was rubbing herself on Armand’s chest, maybe even planning to rub somewhere else to make sure her scent stuck better, the door to the office was suddenly knocked on. Armand was so startled that he quickly picked Evelia up and pulled her off him.
Even though nothing really happened between them, and Armand hadn’t dared to move a single bit the whole time, imagine what it would look like to someone walking in. A maid with cat ears and a bell collar, and the master of the manor with his robe nearly falling off, only wearing shorts underneath. Anyone would get the wrong idea.
“Captain, I’m the finance secretary of His Highness the Second Prince. Are you available right now?”
Of course, Armand wanted to say he wasn’t available. But the person didn’t even wait for a reply.
Hearing the doorknob start to turn, Armand panicked. He looked around, and in the end, he had no choice but to shove Evelia under the desk. He was clearly in a rush, Evelia ended up being pushed under in a half-fallen position, lying on her back. Her body was inside the desk, but her legs were still sticking out, resting on Armand’s lap.
“Ah—please, come in!”
Armand said while quickly pushing her legs down. One of her shoes even flew off, and he swiftly kicked it under the desk too. Evelia looked totally flustered and messy.
“Sorry to bother you so late, Captain. His Highness the Second Prince sent me to go over the celebration budget with you. Some numbers aren’t matching up. As you know, for accountants, even one coin can’t be off. We’re about to submit this, so can you take a look and see what doesn’t match?”
“Alright, let me see.”
Just before the man came in, Armand fixed his robe and face, putting on a calm and collected look to greet the Second Prince’s finance secretary.
“So the Second Prince is in charge of the ball this time?”
Armand took the report and looked at the man wearing half-rim glasses. He wanted to see if there was anything suspicious in his expression, but it was hard to focus. Evelia’s foot was now moving like she was struggling, rubbing all over his thigh.
“His Highness the Second Prince and the First Prince are handling it together. But their records don’t match, so we’re coming to you for clarification.”
“I see.”
While looking at the form in his hands, Armand could feel the sole of Evelia’s foot rubbing against his lower leg. From the way she was moving, it seemed like she wanted to cover his leg with the scent of her perfume too.
“Ah, it’s normal if the numbers don’t match. Some of the Knights’ expenses were paid out of our own pockets—uh…!”
In the middle of talking, Armand suddenly trembled a little, clearly uncomfortable.
“Captain?”
The secretary looked at Armand in confusion, noticing that his head was suddenly lowered.
“N-no problem. I mean… our vice-captain paid out of his own pocket—uh… he bought… some supplies for the knights to use in the celebration…!”
From the secretary’s point of view, Armand’s words were becoming broken and shaky, like he was struggling to keep himself composed.
“Captain, are you alright?”
“I’m fine… huff… really, I’m fine. Some of the things in your report were sponsored personally by Carle. We didn’t plan to use government funds, so some prices and quantities won’t match. It’s such a small issue, and you still had to… come to me about it. If you’re trying to get reimbursement, I’ll have Carle give you a full—uh… a more complete report tomorrow…”
“Then, Captain, should I—”
“I’ve already said everything I need to say—!”
Armand slapped the table and returned the report to the secretary.
“If you want to sit here and drink tea too, I’ll arrange it for you!”
“Ah—no, no! That won’t be necessary!”
The secretary, who had been glancing around Armand’s office out of curiosity, quickly stopped after seeing Armand look like he was about to explode. He hurriedly accepted the report, gave a quick bow, and rushed out.
Armand slumped over the desk and breathed heavily in frustration. Only after he heard the man’s footsteps fading away did he reach under the desk and pull out Evelia, who had been lying there awkwardly, only able to stretch her legs and rub them around.
“Eve!!” He stood up and put some distance between them. “W-what were you doing just now?!”
This time, not only were Armand’s ears red, but his whole face was blushing, and he couldn’t hide it even if he wanted to.
“I just wanted to rub my scent on your leg.”
“Still, you can’t just…” Armand started to say something but stopped. Evelia’s innocent-looking eyes made it hard for him to scold her seriously.
“Mr. Armand, could I maybe… rub it on your back too—”
Before she could finish, just like what happened at the bathroom door before, Armand picked her up and threw her out. This time like someone tossing a naughty kitten. He grabbed her by the collar and tossed her outside the door, then shut it behind her.
“…?”
Just as Evelia was trying to figure out what had happened, she heard a click, Armand opened the door again, reached out, and removed the cat ears and bell collar from her head and neck.
“These are confiscated.”
Then he shut the door again with another click.
“……”
Evelia stood there at the door, deep in thought.
Could it be… cats aren’t allowed?
Maybe… Armand actually likes dogs?
That’s what Evelia thought to herself as she sniffed the scent lingering at Armand’s door.
At the very least…he smells like her now.