Chapter 307: The Love Everyone Imagined
Ding-ling!
As the crisp sound of the doorbell rang, Evelia and Armand walked into Anna’s clothing shop.
“Ah—Miss Evelia, and Captain Armand!”
As soon as she saw the two arrive as promised, Anna, who had been mopping the floor and tidying the shop, looked absolutely thrilled.
She had been waiting for this day for a very long time.
Although she had secretly made some wedding dresses for Evelia before, this was the first time the newlyweds were officially coming to choose the design they wanted. Of course, her feelings were different this time. She was excited and happy.
Her best friend had finally found a man truly worth spending her life with, and what’s more, it was someone both she and her cousin Carle had already approved of as a “good man.” Naturally, she was overjoyed.
Evelia was lucky that she became friends with someone like Anna, and not one of those stereotypical villainous noble ladies from other stories. If that had been the case, their relationship might not have gone so smoothly.
As for the noble ladies who had been chasing after Armand, Evelia didn’t worry about them at all. She still remembered something she had seen in Armand’s profile—“This guy prefers raising horses over beautiful women.” That one line alone was enough to put her mind at ease. She wasn’t afraid of him being lured away by some young and pretty woman.
And honestly, Evelia might not care much about her appearance, but she was already pretty enough as it was. It was hard to imagine Armand still caring about any other women after seeing her. In fact, Evelia had raised Armand’s standards so high that even noble ladies couldn’t compare anymore.
As for Evelia… the only real threat she felt was the horse.
She no longer worried about humans stealing Armand’s heart. But Luna, that horse, was another matter entirely. Luna had always been a mental hurdle Evelia couldn’t get over.
She was confident Armand would never cheat on her with another woman, but what if, even after getting married, he still spent more time with Luna?
That thought made her feel a little lonely…
What if her husband didn’t stay with her, and chose to spend his time with a horse instead…?
It was a little… sad…
As Evelia thought about this, her expression didn’t change much, but the way she held Armand’s arm tightened noticeably.
She even started wondering whether she should get Armand to sign some kind of agreement, something that would promise he wouldn’t spend all his post-marriage life with the horse. She was even willing to give up some things she could manage, just to make it happen.
On the other hand, Armand had no idea that Evelia was actually seeing his horse as a romantic rival. He just gently rubbed her hand that was hugging his arm tighter, while curiously looking at what Anna was doing with her mop.
He poked his head forward and noticed that there were shattered pieces of beautifully patterned glass thrown into the trash bin.
Ever since they walked in, Armand had smelled something fragrant in the air. It was very similar to Evelia’s scent.
At first, he thought it was just the store’s usual smell. After all, Anna’s clothing shop catered to everyone, but it mostly sold women’s clothes. She herself was a stylish and elegant woman, so it wouldn’t be surprising if she liked to spray a pleasant scent in the shop.
But then he noticed that Evelia also sniffed the air twice, almost unconsciously, and that made Armand feel something was off. That scent might not have been just a shop fragrance.
The broken glass in the trash and Anna cleaning up with the mop only confirmed his guess.
Did she break a bottle of perfume...?
Armand furrowed his brow and instinctively rubbed his nose with his fingers.
Am I just too sensitive to smells...?
The scent felt really strong, almost too much, a little choking…
But Evelia and Anna didn’t seem to mind the smell at all. They just sniffed it lightly out of instinct and didn’t show any other reaction.
‘Maybe it’s just because I’m a man, and I can’t really handle the kind of strong scents women usually like?’ Armand thought.
“Come in, come in! Don’t just stand at the door!” Anna said quickly. “I’ll talk to you about the design once I finish cleaning this up. For now, you can take a look at the drafts.”
Seeing that Armand and Evelia were still standing, Anna hurriedly stopped mopping the floor, set the mop aside, and led them to their seats.
She really cared about welcoming Evelia and Armand properly. After pouring them some tea and preparing some snacks, she walked over to the door, flipped the “Open” sign to “Closed,” and shut the door, so she could personally and privately serve just the two of them.
Normally, this kind of thing would hurt business. Every time Evelia came to the shop, Anna would also close the store just for her. That way, the two could talk and drink tea in peace. It was like their very own private “girls’ tea party.”
Even though Evelia didn’t talk much and was usually quiet, Anna talked plenty for both of them. Evelia also really enjoyed spending time at Anna’s store. Listening to Anna chat or gossip made Evelia feel entertained, and she often stayed for a long time.
Of course, that also meant that every time Evelia came, Anna’s daily income would go down a lot. Luckily, her clothes were stylish and affordable, so they still sold well. She wasn’t losing money yet. But as a businesswoman, Anna felt that “making less money” and “losing money” were pretty much the same.
But Anna was rich.
She didn’t really care about the profit. Managing this family-owned fashion store branch was just her way of proving she could run a business and pursue her hobby. She had already made enough profit before to prove her skills. Now she just didn’t feel like making more money. So she didn’t think too hard about it, she simply enjoyed spending time with Evelia.
Thinking about it this way, Evelia, who always thought she was alone, was actually surrounded by people who loved her.
There was Armand, who loved her as her partner.
There was Anna, who loved her as a best friend.
There was Rachel, who loved her like family, like a child, or even like her “creator.”
And also, everyone at Armand’s manor really liked Evelia too. They often helped her and Armand spend time together in small, thoughtful ways.
In their own way, everyone truly loved Evelia.
She had thought she was all alone in this world, but in truth, she had already been wrapped in love. It was only now that she had finally started to feel and understand how much people cared about her.
She wasn’t alone like she used to believe. She wasn’t just someone who was used by that Second Prince who saw her only as a tool.
And now… she was going to be with Mr. Armand.
To her, the most important love of all was Armand’s love.
That romance, that connection, that love… was Evelia’s treasure.
She looked at the wedding dress sketches laid out on the table. In her mind, she could already picture her wedding day with Armand.
Just like in the storybooks. There would be a priest, flower girls, flowers, doves… everyone clapping and blessing their love.
It would be like heaven.
Just imagining it made Evelia feel that nothing in the world could be more joyful than that moment.
She would be holding her bouquet, waiting for Armand to lift her veil.
Then she would hear the priest say, ‘Now, the groom may kiss the bride.’
Even though they had already kissed many times before. This one mattered the most to Evelia.
In a sacred hall, with everyone’s blessings, under the light shining through colorful stained glass…
Kissing Armand, wrapped in his arms.
That, perhaps, was the one thing Evelia looked forward to the most in her future.