“Have you ever kissed someone, Leland?”
“Let me show you…”
Before Leland could react, Winifred’s wet foot that landed on his shoulder slowly slid down, the arch hooking around his waist and pulling him forward with force.
The place where she brushed with her foot felt like it was electrically burning, his muscles tensed subconsciously, and Leland’s breathing hitched, his heart rate inexplicably quickening. His initial movement was to kneel on one knee, not fully on the ground yet, but Winifred’s pull made him kneel directly on the floor.
Winifred’s heel landed on his thigh, separated by a layer of clothing, her toes occasionally grazing his sensitive waist, a strange sensation emanating from below. Leland felt at a loss for a moment, his breathing erratic, wanting to move back, but Winifred had already leaned in closer to him.
Winifred was wearing a white palace-style nightgown, with lace on the neckline and sleeves. As she leaned forward, revealing her collarbone, her hair flowing out, with a mischievous strand brushing against Leland’s Adam’s apple, teasingly ticklish, making one irresistibly want to scratch.
Winifred exuded a faint sweet scent, probably from the fruity body wash she used during her bath. As she approached, the fragrance on her body became stronger, enveloping Leland as if he were lost in mist, with no way to retreat, inevitable.
With fluttering eyelashes, just as Winifred was about to get close to his lips, she abruptly stopped and moved to his ear, her voice crisp, “Just joking, did you really think I was going to kiss you?”
With that, Winifred laughed out loud, delighted to see Leland’s stunned expression, able to discern a barely perceptible embarrassment in his eyes.
Only this version of Leland didn’t resemble the robot who obeyed her every command.
Winifred stood up straight, hands resting on the bed’s edge, her eyes filled with pleasure, that conspicuous irony never changing, whether at nine or seventeen. Her character remained as wicked as ever, delighting in teasing and looking down on Leland. She no longer called him trash, but she still treated him as disposable, a toy to play with and discard at will.
Yet, it was this Winifred, under her provocation, that made his body uncontrollably heat up, his heart rate accelerating.
Winifred’s foot still rested on his waist, and he reached out to grab it. Winifred lifted her foot to press against his left chest where his heart beat rapidly, giving him a light kick.
Caught off guard, Leland stumbled, his upper body swaying, and his other leg also knelt down, toppling the water basin over, water spilling everywhere. Leland braced Winifred against the bed, holding her firmly in front of him, creating the furthest distance they had been recently.
Despite his sudden closeness, Winifred showed no signs of displeasure. She raised her right hand, fingertips against her heart.
“Leland, this is the feeling of love. You will only love me for the rest of your life.”
Once you fall in love with me, you can never leave. The household servants leave for lack of money, fathers leave for other women, people at school leave over time, pets die quickly and leave. Only Leland won’t leave, he has been by her side for eight years, and in that time he fell in love with her. She was accustomed to his presence, to love and habit. Which is more terrifying, love or habit, Winifred couldn’t figure out.
Almost flustered, Leland cleaned up the mess on the floor, then escaped outside, leaning against the wall, trying to catch his breath and calm his emotions.
He absentmindedly touched his heart, was this the feeling of love?
At the age of ten, when both his parents had passed away, he was kept by Winifred like a dog by her side. Winifred taught him to love her, and he learned quickly, like learning anything else with a reference point.
What does it mean to love someone? He saw duty in Mr. Hamilton, learned feigned care from Gregory, learned cooking from the chef, and how to organize Winifred’s room from the servants.
Adolescence is the most sensitive period to love, and when Leland was in high school, he had his first wet dream, a normal physiological reaction.
Sexual fantasies are produced during sleep, but he never clearly saw who the figure in his dreams was, until tonight, he dreamt and saw clearly.
Winifred hooked her waist with her foot, calling out to him repeatedly, “Leland, let me teach you how to kiss, okay?”
Waking up in the morning and seeing the sheets even wetter than usual, Leland’s expression turned blank. He didn’t want to recall, but the dream Winifred kept entering his mind, wanting to teach him how to kiss.
Leland stripped the sheets and threw them in the washing machine, changing into clean clothes and going downstairs to prepare breakfast for Winifred.
He learned his skills from a five-star chef and knew Winifred’s taste like the back of his hand.
Halfway through breakfast preparations, he went to Winifred’s room to wake her up. She was in a foul mood upon waking, and the household servants dared not disturb her, but Leland was used to being chewed out by Winifred.
“Miss, it’s time for breakfast.”
Winifred didn’t move from the bed. Leland continued, “You need to eat breakfast and then go to school, or you’ll be late.”
Winifred curled up in the blankets, and Leland went over to pull them back.
Winifred furrowed her brows, eyes tightly shut, her skin pink and glowing, with long, curled eyelashes leaving a shadow beneath her eye sockets.
However, Leland couldn’t help but stare at her lips, a pink shade that beckoned to be bitten.
He had always known Winifred was beautiful, her beauty undisputed. He had seen it so much, thought he was accustomed to it, but due to the peculiar dream last night, Leland now found it hard to control the dryness in his mouth and tongue whenever he looked at Winifred.
He even entertained the idea of asking Winifred to complete yesterday’s lesson, to beg her to teach him how to kiss.
But if he truly begged… it would be too demeaning. He could imagine Winifred’s tone of ridicule, saying he wasn’t worthy.
Winifred suddenly opened her eyes and threw a pillow at Leland, who reflexively caught it. Used to this, he had a natural response.
Winifred was finally awake.
“So noisy.”
“Miss, breakfast is ready.”
“I know, go away!”
Winifred told him to leave so she could get her hot water prepared in the bathroom.
Leland put down the pillow, went into the bathroom to prepare the hot water and toothpaste, finished his tasks, and went out, finding Winifred ready to leave her bed.
At this point, Leland could safely leave her room and wait for her.
Just the act of freshening up would take Winifred a considerable amount of time, from washing up to fixing her hair and changing clothes.
On the dining table was a steaming bowl of porridge. Mr. Hamilton greeted Winifred kindly, “Good morning, Miss.”
“Hmm,” Winifred replied before sitting down to eat.
Leland wouldn’t eat at the same table as Winifred unless allowed. Servants had to abide by their own rules. Therefore, Leland would eat something simple beforehand, like bread, milk, and an egg.
The driver was already waiting outside in the car, waiting for Winifred to get in.
When there was a driver, Winifred wouldn’t say much to Leland until they got out of the car, and only then did Winifred mention yesterday’s issue with Aubrey.
“Will that crazy lady arrive here on time?”
“I have already arranged it, someone will bring her here.”
Winifred said coldly, “If it isn’t resolved, you’ll have to take care of it yourself. If you get caught, I won’t intervene.”