Chapter 56 The Second Misunderstanding
My heart nearly stopped. I was crouching behind a stack of stinking fishy crates, holding my breath so the people in front wouldn't hear me.
Through a gap in the crates, I could see Gisella talking seriously with Julian Vance.
Good, good, keep it up, I thought. Everything was going according to plan.
Suddenly, the vibe changed. Cold.
Not because of the sea breeze, but because of an aura that made the hair on my neck stand up. Before I could even turn around, my collar was grabbed roughly from behind.
"Hmph—!"
I was yanked back hard. My shoes dragged against the muddy ground. Before I could scream, I was shoved against the damp warehouse wall. The figure in front of me made my eyes bulge.
Claus. Duke Claus d'Alen?on. Staring at me like he wanted to swallow me whole.
"D-Duke? How......"
"Shut up," he cut me off coldly. He cornered me, his hand slamming against the wall right next to my head. "What are you doing here? Spying?"
"I... I was just..."
"Just making sure they were alone?" Claus interrupted again, his voice lower, sounding like a growl. "You did this on purpose, didn't you? You let a Prince fiancé meet another guy so you could be here? So you could stare at that guy?"
I blanked. My brain literally lagged. "What do you mean?"
Claus laughed, but his eyes weren't smiling. "Don't play dumb, Ilse. You studied his family tree, you checked the harbor schedule, and now you're peeping on them like some cheap stalker. Are you that obsessed with Julian Vance?"
"Duke, it's not....."
Claus leaned in closer, leaving zero space between us. I could feel his breath on my forehead. "What's so interesting about him, anyway?"
I blinked, confused as hell. "Huh?"
"What's interesting about Julian?" his voice grew colder, but there was a hint of jealousy...
wait, jealousy? "He's rough, he's got no ethics, all he does is shout. what's your plan?"
He gestured to himself with his chin. "I'm a Duke, I've got power, and I'm way cleaner than that guard dog. But why are you so obsessed with him?"
I wanted to explain that this was all just a mission to set Gisella up, but that's imposible because he is Didier's brother. He looked at me like I'd just chosen trash over gold.
"You've got seriously shitty taste, Ilse," he hissed before letting go of me roughly, leaving me shaking against the warehouse wall.
Seriously, this was a disaster. Not only was Gisella's plan in trouble, but my reputation as "Julian Vance's stalker" was permanently stamped on this crazy Duke's brain.