Chapter 1554:
“Huh?” Rachel was startled back to awareness, lowering her gaze awkwardly as she murmured, “I shed a few tears while chopping onions this afternoon.” Catching the deepening furrow of his brow, she hastily added, “I’ll be more careful next time,” dreading the thought he might perceive it as a bid for sympathy.
Feeling her discomfort, Jules exhaled heavily. “You’ve been sheltered since childhood. Let the staff handle these tasks. Don’t attempt things beyond your skill and make yourself suffer unnecessarily.”
Rachel lowered her gaze, masking the sting of his words beneath her lashes.
He truly felt nothing for her.
No effort of hers could ever win his favor.
She bit her lower lip and whispered, “I understand.”
Jules observed her sudden deflation and felt an unexpected twinge of bewilderment.
The female emotional landscape remained a mystery to him.
She had radiated happiness mere moments ago, now sadness clouded her features. The transformation perplexed him.
In the study, Corrine fidgeted restlessly before the chessboard, her concentration fractured. Perhaps Nate was the cause.
Her eyes darted repeatedly to her phone, anxious not to miss any incoming messages.
She regretted her hasty acceptance of her grandfather’s chess invitation.
Carl noted Corrine’s distracted expression and smiled knowingly. “Something weighing on your mind?”
“No,” Corrine replied reflexively, moving a chess piece without thought. Only afterward did she recognize her tactical error, a flicker of dismay crossing her features. Unwilling to betray her mistake to Carl, she maintained a facade of calm deliberation.
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Suddenly, the servant’s announcement of Jules’ arrival provided a welcome reprieve. “Jules is here. I should go greet him,” she said, already rising from her seat.
She slipped her feet into her waiting slippers and hastened from the study.
Carl watched her retreating figure and then averted his gaze with a knowing sigh. “She wears her heart so plainly, silently begging others to notice, yet remains too proud to ever admit it.”
He spoke with a mix of affection and resignation.
Leland approached, offering Carl a glass of water while surveying the abandoned chessboard. “You appeared to enjoy tonight’s match, sir. Perhaps you’ll find peaceful rest now.”
“What makes you think that?” Carl questioned, his eyes lingering on the scattered pieces. “Corrine’s mind was elsewhere entirely.”
Leland’s lips curved into a discreet smile, but he offered no comment. Raising his gaze to study Carl’s expression, he added, “Sir, Fragrance Garden has extended an invitation. They intend to visit in the coming days.” Everyone understood the true purpose behind this visit.
Carl remained silent, his face betraying nothing of his thoughts.
He fixed his gaze on the chessboard, his brow creasing deeply as he watched the pattern of white pieces in steady retreat. “Can the white pieces reverse their fortune without intervention?” he murmured.
Though framed as a question about the game, his words carried the weight of Corrine’s impending marriage.
Carl harbored no desire to see Corrine wed into the Hopkins family.
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.
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