Dion came face-to-face with Aileen. His face was so serious looking at the man, while Aileen looked so friendly at Dion. Jillian was confused as to why Dion was looking at Aileen like that.
"Lian, aren't you going to get some tea for your friend?" Dion asked.
"Lian? Since when did you call me--"
"I'm sure there's a servant hanging around nearby that you can order around," Dion continued as he glanced at Jillian.
The woman sighed and went to find a servant to bring her tea. Actually, Dion said that so that he could be alone with Aileen.
"Greetings Prince Dion, I am Aileen. As Princess Lian said, from today I will be her personal knight," Aileen said while bowing slightly before Dion.
"I've already heard that, you don't need to repeat it."
Aileen smiled and nodded. "Congratulations on your marriage to Princess Lian. I hope you can treat our princess well,"
"Your princess? She is no longer one of you. She already belongs to the Keinheart Kingdom, she is already my wife and I don't think she needs a knight like you because I can protect her myself," Dion replied.
"But I was personally appointed by His Majesty to do so,"
"She's my wife, I have the right to decide anything for her,"
"Why do you say that as if she really belongs to you? Wasn't your marriage something that was arranged and forced?" Aileen approached Dion and whispered in his ear. "If you can't make Princess Lian happy, then I will."
After saying that, Aileen withdrew then smiled kindly back at Dion as if she was going to do her duty and stay by Jillian's side, no matter how much Dion wanted to push her away.
'I'm sure it was him who came that night. But if I tell Lian, she won't believe me,' Dion thought.
Soon Jillian returned and invited Aileen to have tea together. Aileen bowed to Dion to go with Jillian while Dion himself just watched her go.
Dion decided to go to his room again without paying any further attention to them. After all, what Aileen said was true, their marriage was a forced one. So he didn't really care what Aileen would do with Jillian. "Lian seems happier with him anyway."
Later that night when going to bed, Aileen even walked Jillian to her doorstep. Just then, Dion heard someone talking at the door, so he reflexively opened it to find the two of them there.
"Oh good evening Prince Dion," greeted Aileen.
"What are you doing here? It's late, you'd better go."
"I'm still talking to him, you go ahead..." When Jillian tried to protest, Dion pulled her arm into the room and closed the door. "What the hell was that? Why are you?"
"How long do you want to talk to him? In the middle of the night? In a dress like that?" asked Dion. "You're not a child who needs to be accompanied to bed. You should know your time and boundaries."
"Why are you being so controlling? It's none of your business!" Jillian walked over to the bed and lay down and pulled back the covers.
Dion sighed and locked the door to their room and went to his bed by the window.
*****
As the two weeks passed, Jillian continued to spend her time with Aileen. Jillian's days were always filled with smiles since Aileen's arrival. The two of them seemed to have known each other for so long, whatever Jillian liked or disliked, Aileen would know.
The waiters often talked about the two of them, they were seen together more often than Jillian and Dion. Dion himself could only watch them from a distance, seeing his wife close to another man. At first he didn't care much about it, but over time he felt a little disturbed.
Even Theodore, who had just returned to the palace with the intention of seeing his brother, saw Jillian alone with a man he didn't recognize.
"Who is the man with sister-in-law? I just saw him for the first time," Theodore asked when visiting Dion.
Without looking up from the book he was reading, Dion said. "I don't know... Her lover perhaps," he replied in a cold tone.
Theodore knew something was different about his twin brother's words. Dion didn't usually talk like that. But he didn't continue his question because it seemed Dion didn't want to discuss it.
That morning as usual, after breakfast Jillian sat in front of the mirror smoothing her hair. She waited for Aileen to come to ask her out. Dion who was in the room was also watching Jillian with an unusual look. "Dressing up for that date with your boyfriend, huh?"
Jillian turned to look at Dion. "What do you mean?"
The man sighed and looked out the window. "I know our marriage is a forced one, but do you have to date every day in the kingdom without my father and the others knowing?"
"What do you mean I'm dating Aileen? I'm not dating him, he's not my lover either,"
"What an excuse, even everyone here knows that you guys date every day. Spending time together in the park, making out in public. How embarrassing, when you're married..."
"Don't talk so carelessly, I told you we--"
"What a shame, I married a woman who easily gave herself to another man. Do you still have any self-respect for that?"
Jillian's lilac eyes instantly widened at Dion's words to her. Meanwhile, Dion didn't seem to feel guilty at all about what she said. Without saying anything Jillian approached Dion.
She slapped the man hard across the face. Dion, whose face was slapped, reflexively grabbed Jillian's hand and pulled her close, looking at her with an annoyed look.
But unlike Jillian, although she was also annoyed, Dion could see tears in Jillian's eyes.
"If you already know, why do you still want to accept this marriage?! If you think I have no self-respect, then what about you? You consider yourself a husband, but what have you ever done for me? Have you ever made me happy once? Did I ever feel happy around you?!"
"Nonsense, why would I do that? After all, you accepted this marriage for a reason, didn't you? You're the one who put us in this situation!" Dion retorted.
Jillian turned her face away and dismissed Dion's hand that was gripping her wrist. "You should have just killed me back then, that way you wouldn't have to suffer being married to me." After saying that, Jillian ran out of the room leaving Dion behind.
The man could only stand still and look out the window while letting out an irritated breath. He himself did not understand why he could feel so upset when Jillian kept talking about Aileen.
Jillian, who was running outside, ran into Aileen who intended to meet her. However, when Aileen approached, Jillian kept running past her while rubbing her eyes.
Aileen realized that Jillian was crying, so she immediately chased after Jillian.