The Alpha Prince's Purchased Maid
Chapter 293: Beginning of a Lie

Chapter 293: Beginning of a Lie

“What if he starts to suspect that this is all just an act? Won’t we get punished for this?” I asked.

“He won’t find out. Just keep telling him that it hurts and that you’re so sorry. The trick for him not to blame you for anything is for you to overly blame yourself. It’s simple, really. If you blame yourself enough, he won’t blame you and will start defending you. Try it and you’ll see for yourself just how simple men can be...” she said with absolute confidence.

How simple men can be...?

“I’ll stand by the side to see how things turn out at first. If things start to go well between you two, I’ll take my leave immediately so you two can have some alone time, ok?” she said before giggling a little.

I was sure that she was imagining some sweet and touching reunion between us, but I couldn’t seem to share her thoughts. Being alone with the prince while putting on an act just to get his attention felt so wrong to me and it made me scared about being alone with him.

“He should be here any moment now...” the duchess said as she looked toward the door.

As if practiced beforehand, she naturally took my hand into hers before she began patting the back of it comfortingly with her other hand. The regretful look that she had in her eyes as she stared into my face made my heartache in response.

“Oh dear, this is simply just too horrible...” she exclaimed.

Although I knew that she was just acting and that she was an amazing actress, I was still shocked to find tears swimming in her eyes. Her nose had turned a pinkish color and it truly looked like her tears were on the verge of spilling.

So much acting and the prince wasn’t even here yet...

Suddenly, the door to the dance studio opened with a loud bang that almost made me jump up from the bench. The duchess’s hand tightened slightly around mine before the sound of her regretful words turned into wails of sorrow.

“Tell me where it hurts, Mila. This is all my fault. I should have been more careful!” she wailed before bringing up a hand to wipe at her eyes.

I didn’t have much time to pay attention to the duchess’s outstanding acting because my attention was quickly absorbed by Prince Leonard’s sudden appearance. Even though I had expected Prince Leonard to come to the dance studio, I still found myself feeling surprised by his sudden appearance. My entire body stiffened and for a moment and I forgot to breathe as I watched him strode into the room. The cold look that he had in his eyes as he stared my way made my toes curl and I wasn’t sure if he was worried about me or simply angry.

“Prince Leonard! You’re finally here...” the duchess said as she quickly got up to her feet.

I felt so thankful that the duchess was still able to play her part because I had lost my wits and didn’t know what to do apart from stare at the prince in silence. Prince Leonard was dressed in a grey suit, white shirt, and the deep blue tie that he had around his neck was loose. I could imagine him rushing over here while tugging at his tie in annoyance and he clearly wasn’t in the best of moods.

The duchess took a few steps forward to approach the prince, but he ignored her existence completely by striding past her without even sparing her a glance. The duchess had a slightly shocked expression on her face as she turned around to stare after Prince Leonard. All the while, I wanted to diffuse away into thin air to escape the prince’s sharp stare.

“Mila...” Prince Leonard called my name in a surprisingly tender voice.

My eyes widened in astonishment at the sweetness of his voice as he called my name and the apparent worry that graced his facial features. He was standing right in front of me and although I was happy that he was here in front of me once again, I was scared that he would find out that this was all just a lie. I didn’t know how to act or how to respond to him as an overwhelming sense of guilt overcame my senses.

“I got a call from Duchess Flavia, so I came over to see you. How are you feeling? Where does it hurt?” the prince asked with a concerned look.

My silence must have made him worry about me even more than before although there really was nothing for him to be worried about. I stared up at the prince’s worried face as I tried my best to hide my panic.

“Umm...it hurts...” I mumbled softly while averting my gaze from his.

The duchess’s simple instructions proved to be useful when I became tongue tied. Just as she had instructed, I simply told the prince that it hurts when he asked me a question. However, the moment that that lie slipped past my lips, the weight of my guilt multiplied. Unlike before when the duchess was the only one putting on a performance, I had officially joined in with her by telling Prince Leonard a lie that was all for my own benefit.

“Where does it hurt?” the prince repeated his question again.

I bit down hard on my lip when he knelt down in front of me, and I could feel his intense gaze on my exposed ankles. That was when I was reminded that my ankle was supposed to be hurting from the imaginary accident that I experienced during my dance practice.

Which ankle is supposed to be hurting exactly?

“My right ankle...” I replied in barely a whisper.

“This one here? What happened exactly?” he asked with evident concern.

I knew that the prince could hear every word that I had said but I wondered if he could hear the mad racing of my heart. Slowly, the prince’s hands reached out and softly landed on my calf as he avoided touching my ankle directly.

--To be continued...

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.