In a garden of a certain powerful ducal family, a table filled with pastries, sweets, and five cups of tea surrounded by five girls, could be seen. It was even possible to see from afar that the girls were having a very lively conversation just by seeing how engrossed, four of them, were.
"You had your first kiss!" (X4)
"P-Please do not say that out loud!"
Lysette could only say that with her cheeks dyed red, as the other four girls shouted so with sparkling eyes.
"Nee, nee, how was it? How was it?"
"Were you the one who made the move, or was it Edward-sama?"
"Did it taste like lemon as people say it?"
"How many times did you two kiss?"
"S-Stop it! I-It's too embarrassing t-to talk about it!"
"Ah! Lysette-chan started speaking casually!"
"She must be really flustered!"
"When was the last we heard her talking like this?"
"It has been a year at minimum"
"I said for you girls to stop! If you don't, then I won't talk about me and Edward-sama again!"
"Ah!" (X4)
At that, the four girls went silent, since they didn't want to lose their only source of love talk. And thanks to that, they all managed to calm down a little.
"... ... ... Ahem... I-In any case, today I called everyone here because of Edward-sama..."
At saying his name, Lysette blushed a little more, as the memories from that day resurfaced for a moment.
"... Because Edward-sama asked me to help him find suitable partners for his friends"
"Is that so? I'm fine with it, as long as I can meet your fiancé"
"Me too, I must make sure that this Edward-sama is a suitable partner for Lysette-chan since he needs to be strong enough to protect her"
"I don't see a problem with it, and it'll be a good opportunity to see if Edward-sama has decent connections"
"... Well, I just finished my research, so I think I can spare some time to see if this Edward-sama is as smart as Lysette-chan says he is"
"... ... ... If any of you dare to lay a finger on Edward-sama, or even try to get too close to him, I'll deal with you all myself"
"..." (x4)
The four girls simply stayed quiet, at Lysette's one bad trait, being overly possessive. But that still made them curious, if Lysette was like that, why did she even allow Edward to get a second fiancée? So with that on their minds, Isabelle was the first one to speak
"Nee, Lysette-chan. Can I ask you why allowed Edward-sama to have a second fiancée?"
"... Well, due to circumstances... I thought that was the only solution, and... The person that I picked to be his second fiancée is a girl who is too gentle and nice for her own good"
"... That person is his personal maid and she was in love with him, and even though you're Edward-sama's fiancée, she couldn't bring herself to hate you, isn't it?"
"... ... ... Yes..."
"You had me intrigued, now you have my attention. Please tell us more about that"
"... Sure..."
Although Lysette didn't want to talk about Nanako, she still found it better than talking about her kiss with Edward, or about Edward really, since she still hadn't recovered from the kiss.
.
.
.
Some weeks later
-
"Edward-sama, I apologize for my lack of contact in these past weeks, and I also apologize for my irresponsible attitude and behavior from my last visit"
"Welcome back, Lysette-sama. And don't worry about last time, I also reflected on it, and I decided that I won't repeat the same mistake as last time!"
"I understand... ... ... Edward-sama, may I ask you a question"
"And what would it be?"
"... Do you mean that you will not mistake my intentions or... T-That you w-will not k-k-kiss me anymore?"
"That I won't kiss you anymore, because of your reaction last time, you most likely hated it, didn't you?"
"N-N-No, I didn't! I-In fact, I-I want you to k-k-kiss me more!"
"Ah! Is that so? I'm glad, you didn't come to hate me because of that"
"Fufu, there is no way I can come to hate you Edward-sama... Hm?... ... ... !?"
When Lysette finally noticed what she had said earlier, her face almost immediately turned bright red as she sat down while covering her face from the embarrassment she was now feeling. It took her a few minutes to calm down and return to her usual self.
"... ... ... Edward-sama, about your request from... Last time, four acquaintances of mine agreed to meet with your friends. So all you need to do is bring them to my family's manor, at a date of your choosing"
"I see, thank you, Lysette-sama"
"..." *Nods* "... ... Hm? Edward-sama, where is Nanako-san?"
"Nanako? Well, since the last time you visited me, she appears to be avoiding me, and whenever I'm able to approach her, she blushes and then runs away"
"T-Then y-you t-two h-have not k-k-k-kissed yet?"
"No"
"I-I see..."
"..."
For a moment the two remained silent, as Lysette was feeling too bashful to speak, while Edward seemed to be thinking about something.
"... Lysette-sama, do you perhaps... Want me to kiss you again?"
"!? N-N-N-No! I-I-I-I... ... ... E-Erm... M-M-M-M... M-Maybe... Y-Y-Yes, I-I w-w-would like to"
"... Alright, then..."
Edward then gently held Lysette's head and made her look directly at him, this time because he wasn't doing it on the spur of the moment, his cheeks were also slightly red from shame, but he still slowly brought their faces closer together, Then just as their lips were just a few inches from touching... The door was opened by a bashful Nanako.
"E-E-E-Edward-s-sama! L-Lysette-s-sama! I-I-I b-brought s-some s-snacks a-and t-tea f-for y-you t-two!... Ah!"
When she saw the two, with their faces close to each other, she once again froze on the spot as her cheeks began turning redder from second-hand embarrassment. For a moment, the three betrothed looked at each other with different levels of embarrassed faces without moving a muscle.
"..."
Then still wanting to avoid showing disrespect to Edward, Nanako forced her way forward and pushed the tray cart to the side of the table they used to eat their snacks. After doing so, she went to stand in front of Edward so that she could bow down to him before leaving, but due to her shaky emotions... She stumbled onto her legs and fell forward right onto Edward, who readily caught her, but as a consequence, their faces were now really close.
"!? *Looks away for a moment*... ... ..."
Nanako closed her eyes and moved just a little closer to Edward, just enough for their lips to touch, after a few moments Nanako got up in a hurry and dashed away as she covered her bright red face with both hands. Leaving behind a frozen Edward, and a shocked and even more embarrassed Lysette, as she couldn't believe the overly bold move made by Nanako.
"..."
But not wanting to lose, Lysette also pressed herself forward and forced herself to kiss Edward's right cheek for a few moments, an action she readily regretted doing as she quickly retreated as she also covered her face with both hands.
This left only Edward as the least embarrassed of the three, but that was only because he was completely frozen due to the surprise kiss given to him by Nanako.
.
.
.
A month later
-
It was a sunny and cool day, perfect for a picnic or a meeting, which was exactly what Edward and Lysette were doing in her family's manor, as they were waiting for their guest to arrive while sharing a table.
"Hm... Lysette-sama? Should I start brewing the tea for the other guests?"
"Not yet, Nanako-san. You will only start brewing it when they arrive because I am sure they will not be sitting down anytime soon"
"I see?..."
Nanako who was also accompanying them both as a maid and as Edward's second fiancée, reacted with a mix of understanding and confusion to Lysette's answer. As the two girls talked with each other to kill time, Edward simply watched them with his usual poker smile, because that was the only face he could make that wouldn't give a bad impression, since the other expression that he could do right now was a cramped one because of the stomachache and headache he was getting from the tension of meeting Lysette's friends, who he was certain that they would all be high ranking nobles.
"..." *Sips the tea brewed by Nanako* <... ... ... My stomach hurt, my brain is killing me, and I can't even feel any taste anymore... ... ... Why do I need to be here?>
Although Edward was making a pretty good performance at hiding his nervousness, a few cracks in his acting did appear, which were noticed by Lysette.
"Are you feeling nervous, Edward-sama?"
"!... Well, I would be lying if I said no..."
"Fufu, you do not have to worry about my friends' requests for the meeting, they are just curious about the person I chose to be engaged with. Most likely, all that they will ask you, is what you think of me, which I am sure you will answer properly and to their satisfaction"
Hearing Lysette's answer about what would most likely happen between him and her friends, Edward could only remain silent, both to keep himself away from puking and to think about her words.
"... ... ... I understand, so basically, I just need to praise my Lysette-sama, like I always do?"
"... Y-You do not have t-to go t-that far..."
Lysette blushed at Edward's straightforward response, but after a few deep breaths, she returned to a more serious look. But, due to his answer, Lysette began to crave a little more intimacy at the moment.
"We still have some minutes, before they arrive *mumbling*..."
" "?" "
Seeing her talking to herself in a low voice and nodding, Nanako and Edward looked at Lysette with curiosity, as they waited for Lysette to speak to them again.
"Hm... Edward-sama, do you mind if I move to sit beside you?"
"Of course not, Lysette-sama"
"Waa *Beams up* Ah! A-Ahem, t-thank you, Edward-sama"
Lysette who had momentarily shown a delighted and bright smile, corrected herself and got up, then with the help of Nanako, she moved her chair closer to Edward. And once it was in place, she sat back down, and gently hugged his right arm.
"..."
Seeing that, Nanako began to pout in jealousy, and just like Lysette, she moved a chair closer to Edward, then sat down on his left side as she gently hugged his other arm. This, in turn, caused Lysette to feel competitive, since she would be presenting Edward to her friends, she wanted to cuddle as much as possible with only the two of them. So in an impulsive desire to show that Edward was hers, Lysette went closer to Edward and gave him a peck on his right cheek...
"Lysette-sama! We have arrived!... Eh!?"
"Lysette-sama, please forgive our sudden arrival, but we couldn't wait to meet your-... Eh?!"
"Good morning, Lysette-sama, I can't wait to-... Eh!?"
"Lysette-sama, can you introduce us to your- Ah?!"
"!?... ... ..."
The moment Lysette's lips had touched Edward's cheek, her friends made their unannounced arrival. Lysette who immediately noticed them, thanks to their loud voices, pulled away from Edward in a panic, but it was already too late, as her friends had clearly seen Lysette's lips touching Edward's cheek.
"... ... ... Waaaaa!!!" (x4)
First silent by the unexpected scene, the four girls immediately began to make excited faces at seeing Lysette acting all lovey-dovey with her fiancée so openly, while Lysette couldn't do anything but intensely blush from embarrassment and feel flustered, as her friends slowly approached to start questioning her.
" "..." "
As for Edward and Nanako, they both kept silent, since they didn't know what to do, and because they were also too confused to know what to do in that situation. While at the same time, Nanako tightened her hug on Edward's left arm, as she began to feel protective of him towards the new girls, as she was also slowly becoming more possessive of him, just like Lysette.