A MELTING FIRE MIND GAME

Chapter 21-Battle of Wits

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LISA felt a familiar kind of warmth in his chest when Jennie ran towards him as soon as she saw at the main entrance.

Before she married him, he was used to his servants' emotionless greetings whenever he would arrive. But this time, his wife was her to welcome him home. And he also noticed that ever since she moved into his residence, the servants had started to treat him more kindly. In the past, it was obvious that they were only doing their jobs. But now, he could see and feel the respect that they had for him.

[It must be Jennie's influence.]

He almost smiled at the thought. But then, he remembered that she was pregnant and shouldn't be running. He went to her as fast as he could and held her by the shoulders.

"Honey, please don't run," Lisa begged her. "I don't want you or our baby to get exhausted."

Jennie pouted because of his light scolding. "Okay."

[God, she's so adorable.]

He cupped her face between his hands and leaned down to kiss her. His urge to do so was so strong that he didn't mind the servants around them. He was sure that they wouldn't watch anyway.

He was about to close his eyes when he caught the figure behind Jennie.

[Duke Prescott?!]

Well, he didn't mind showing affection to Jennie in front of the servants. But her father was a different case. To be honest, that duke still made him nervous.

Lisa immediately stopped trying to kiss Jennie. He even pulled his hands away from her face. Then, he stood straight and bowed at the duke who was throwing daggers at him with his eyes. "Good evening, Your Grace."

"Good evening, Captain Lisa," Duke Prescott greeted him sternly when he stood beside his daughter. "Do you mind walking me to my carriage? Jennie is insisting to do that but I don't want her to exhaust herself."

"I don't want that to happen as well, Your Grace," he said. "Let me accompany you instead."

The duke just nodded before excusing himself to wait by the entrance.

"I'll walk your father to the carriage, Jennie," he said to his wife. Then, he cupped her face again and kissed her on the forehead. "Wait for me."

"Okay," Jennie said. "I'll ask the chef to prepare our dinner. I invited Father to join us but he said he had a dinner meeting with a business partner. Please remind him to take a rest, too. My father is tired of my "nagging" but he might listen to you."

"I will."

After that, he left the mansion to accompany Duke Prescott for a walk.

He knew that they had something important to talk about. Jennie was probably aware of that so she didn't insist to join them.

"Captain Lisa, I know about the tragedy that happened at the Hunt," Duke Prescott started. "But still, I want to congratulate you for catching the replica of the Red Phoenix. I heard that thanks to you, Her Royal Highness was saved by His Majesty in time. Good job."

"Thank you, Your Grace," he said politely. "I wouldn't have done it without your guidance."

An awkward silence ensued after that.

[Uh, why am I not as sociable as my Jennie?]

"Jennie said that you decided to quit your position as the captain of the Black Serpent Knights," the duke said, breaking the silence while they were walking by the rose garden. "Have you made a decision regarding my offer?"