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LOS 43
He was a man with sharp features beneath dark ash-blonde hair. He was handsome enough to be called a beauty, but beyond that appearance lay a twisted soul that diminished every advantage his looks provided.
In a word, he was a snake of a man. The kind of person who could make you freeze in place the moment your eyes met.
“Vincent.”
“I only wanted to pay my respects to my esteemed Captain, so why are you running away? You're making me feel awkward.”
However, just by looking at the delinquent smile on his face, I could tell immediately that he didn't respect Giles at all. He was deliberately putting Giles in a difficult position and enjoying the situation.
Vincent's gaze shifted to me. Without realizing it, I tightened my grip on Giles's hand. Even without Giles explaining it, I could tell that this man was dangerous.
“What a beautiful lady. Please, introduce her. It's fate that we've run into each other like this.”
“......This is Miss Anna Keating, who is attending as my partner. Anna, this is Agent Vincent Monagan.”
“Ah, Anna Keating? The pianist?”
Vincent acted surprised upon hearing my name. His eyes looked as if he hadn't expected 'that pianist' to attend a party holding hands with Giles.
However, the look of surprise soon vanished. Vincent looked at me with eyes full of interest and kissed the back of my hand. He didn't take his eyes off me for a single second, to the point where I began to feel a bit frightened. I couldn't tell what Vincent wanted from me.
“Miss Keating. May I call you Anna for the sake of convenience?”
“Do as you wish.”
“Captain, I'd like to ask your partner for a dance. Please join me for a song, Anna. I promise you won't regret it.”
“Anna is.......”
“I asked the lady.”
Giles, who had been trying to shield me, fell silent. Now, everything depended on me. In my heart, I wanted to refuse, but it wouldn't be polite to reject a dance request from someone who was essentially Giles's colleague without a good reason.
I thought that if I refused, he might use this as an excuse to pick a fight with Giles again. After all, my partner was Giles. I decided that I would just dance one song and then send him away.
“Very well, Agent Monagan.”
“Please call me Vincent.”
He took my hand. I whispered to Giles over my shoulder.
“I'll be right back.”
Giles nodded. His eyes, as he grew more distant, seemed full of concern. I tried not to overthink it. I just had to dance one song. There was no need to think about anything else.
Vincent wrapped one arm around me. We moved together. Both he and I remained silent for a while. However, he was focused entirely on me. His piercing gaze was so overwhelming that I ended up turning my eyes toward where Giles was.
“Anna.”
He drew my attention back. Vincent wore a cool smile.
“You should focus on me. You're dancing with me right now, aren't you?”
“I'm sorry if I offended you.”
“There's no need to apologize. Rather, I couldn't help but be surprised. To think that Giles Hessen was connected to such a beautiful and talented pianist. How long have you known each other?”
Before I knew it, he was calling him Giles Hessen instead of Captain Hessen. He seemed unwilling to use honorifics when the man couldn't hear him. On the other hand, contrary to his first impression, he treated me with a relatively polite and soft tone.
“It hasn't been long. We met while attending concerts.”
“A concert. What a romantic place for a first meeting. But how did you end up participating in that incident? You're merely a pianist. Did he ask someone who is practically a civilian to jump into such a dangerous operation?”
I had nothing to tell him. I chose to be vague.
“I don't really want to talk about that. It's not a good memory...... and you can talk about such things directly with Giles.”
“My apologies. But I simply had to ask. Thinking that such a beautiful person could have been seriously injured, I couldn't help myself. Please forgive me.”
I answered with a smile. It was called dancing, but I felt as if I were being held captive. I desperately wanted to be released, but the damn music showed no sign of ending.
“......No matter how I think about it. If it were me, I don't think I would put a beloved lover on such a dangerous train.”
“Love?”
“Hessen loves you, doesn't he? Surely you weren't unaware of that.”
Of course, there was no way I didn't know. Giles had confessed to me first in this very place. He told me he loved me. And he kissed me. Yet, not long after receiving Giles's confession of love, I was dancing with another man in the same spot.
I felt that something was going seriously wrong. My desire to leave his side doubled. He looked steadily into my eyes, as if trying to uncover my inner thoughts.
“Do you love him?”
“Pardon?”
“I want to know if you love Giles Hessen.”
Why is this man asking that? But it wasn't even worth wondering. In the first place, Vincent hadn't asked me to dance out of a pure heart. It seemed all too obvious that he had approached me with some other motive.
What exactly was he trying to get from me? Vincent was Giles's subordinate, yet he openly displayed hostility toward him. Did he think he could use me as Giles's weakness? But how could the fact that Giles loved me be a weakness?
Could it be that he knows my identity? As that thought suddenly occurred to me, I lost my composure. Vincent was watching me as if he could see right through me. I felt that he might know something. But Giles said no one knew.......
Even if that were the case, it would be over if I wavered here. I barely suppressed my trembling voice and put on a brazen expression.
“Then what about you? If you knew that Giles loves me and that I would love him back, why go out of your way to ask me to dance?”
He didn't answer immediately. He only looked at me with a strange expression.
I continued to question him. I didn't want to let him seize the initiative.
“Tell me your true intentions. Why did you ask me to dance?”
“Because I like you.”
He used a more direct way of speaking than I expected. Thanks to that, I was speechless again. Vincent emphasized once more.
“I like you. That's why I asked for a dance. Hoping that perhaps you might give me a chance as well.”
It was a brazen remark that would have made any other woman recoil in disgust, but my heart actually softened. It was because I felt certain that he might not know my identity after all.
However, I didn't want to give Vincent any room. I had absolutely no interest in him. To begin with, I wasn't the type of person to open my heart to others easily.
“I accepted because I thought it would be impolite to reject your request for a dance.”
“In that case, tell me again. Do you love Giles Hessen?”
I lifted my head and looked at him. Looking at him, I felt I finally understood my own heart. I spoke the thoughts that came to mind exactly as they were.
“Yes. I like Giles. Is that enough for you?”
He was neither disappointed nor offended. Despite my assertion, the emotion flickering in his eyes became even clearer. It was to the point where I could feel it distinctly. I knew. He wanted me.
Before I could do anything, he pulled me into his arms. I felt his lips invade the space between mine. It happened in an instant. He was kissing me. Not long after I had shared a kiss with Giles, a man I had just met was craving my lips again.
I tried to push him away, but I couldn't because he was holding me tightly. He kissed me as if he wanted to devour me. The intense sensation, which I had never felt in my life, made me lose my mind and feel the strength leave my legs.
Just then, a familiar voice reached my ears.
“Monagan!”
Only then did Vincent let me go. I caught my breath and stepped back from him. Giles, his face pale with rage, strode over and blocked my path. He spoke in a voice that was suppressing anger.
“What do you think you're doing right now?”
Vincent had a nonchalant face even after doing such a thing to me. His attitude was as if nothing were wrong.
“It was Miss Anna I kissed, so why is the Captain the one getting angry?”
“You kissed Anna by force.”
“How does the Captain know whether it was forced or not?”
He wore a vile smile. Vincent had made Giles angry, but he seemed satisfied by that very fact.
I knew I had to shout that it wasn't true, that I had never given permission to be kissed, but my mouth wouldn't open due to the shock. It felt as if something was tightly blocking my throat.
“It seems Miss Anna has been shocked because of me. Please allow me to apologize to her directly.”
“Anna, you don't need to be dragged into this any further.”
“No. I want to talk.”
Having barely regained my senses, I spoke hurriedly. Giles looked back at me. Although he didn't say it explicitly, he was trying to stop me. But my will was firm.
“Let me talk to him directly.”
After hesitating, Giles stepped aside. Now, the one I was facing was Vincent. Looking down at me, he bowed his head slightly.
“I apologize for the rudeness I committed. I simply couldn't control my feelings. Will you accept my apology?”
I didn't answer. I hadn't asked Giles to step aside just to give him generous words. Instead, I raised my hand and slapped him across the face. His body staggered slightly from the unexpected attack. The people watching the scene from around us let out faint gasps.
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