The General's Wife Wants to Leave-Chapter 159: Precious trip

There were so many times that, among the sides that he showed her, Joanna wanted Canillas to approach her with his serious side, as at that moment, he would not make her perplexed over what to do to respond to him, as what she needed to do was listen to him and watch him convey what he wanted to tell her with his serious demeanor.

Joanna also frequently wished for him not to approach her with his melancholic side, as when he came to her with those pensive emotions, Joanna felt that she had no power to ignore him, letting him go deeper into that sentimental occasion, especially when she had to see his facial expression and hear his voice that brought emotions that were hard for her to ignore and made her want to comfort him.

And when Canillas approached her with his mischievous side, it was when Joanna felt like she was having a headache, as she did not know how to respond to his teasing remark.

But there were so many times as well where it was still hard for her to define on what side he was when he flattered her with the honeyed praise or approached her with affectionate gestures that made her heart flutter.

It was just like what he was doing at the moment when he suddenly asked her the question and made a worrisome approach that brought her memory back to what he did to her on the bed in the inn.

If she did not leave any trace that showed the hidden part of her body in the end, aside from the reflection that she saw in the mirror the same day she returned from the Powel Orphanage, Joanna would not feel worried at the moment, no matter what kind of intimacy gestures he made to approach her.

As the memory surged in her mind, although she had just considered that she could only trust him and that he would not do anything irreversible without her consent, remembering that he would not agree not to touch her on any occasion, Joanna could not help but feel worried if he would embrace her again anytime soon inside the carriage.

If she was desperate enough, she would scream for help if he kept embracing her while she refused. But then, who would come to help if her father’s entourage departed behind schedule because of her and the man who did not once feel bothered by what they thought about them?

Perhaps they would think that she and her husband were in the middle of playing something, and her scream was part of the game that they were playing.

Joanna sighed inwardly at the thought.

Then, if she could not do the first option, she considered doing the second option that she had in mind, which was to point the dagger that she strapped to her thigh at his neck. But then, how could she still do that after what they had experienced so far?

In the deep forest, when she pointed her dagger at his neck, she would reckon it was normal conduct to do to defend herself from a stranger—a person that she met only once before they met again in the forest—and from someone who had made her have an urgency to end their marriage as soon as possible because of the dream that was still strongly lingered and haunted her mind at that time.

What also mattered that she could not avoid at that time was that it was a form of her defensive response to protect her innocence from the sudden threat and invasion, as no man had ever touched any of her body parts. Therefore, she could not do anything but make him stop giving her any peculiar sensations in her body that scared her at that moment.

But now, after all the things he had done for her and from all the actions and behavior that she had seen in him with her own eyes all this time, added to all the words that were packed into a heart-touching confession she had heard with her own ears last night in the inn, and even before that, wouldn’t it be too much for her if she still responded to him as if he were a stranger, although he was probably the same yet different man that she saw in the dream that night?

She had even voluntarily stood for him, defending him from that womanizer Viscount, who had no heart to love his own daughter. How could she point a dagger at him or scream for help after what she did for him? And how could she do that to him when he had stood up for her, defending her honor from the very same imbecile old man while he ignored the insult directed at him?

However, regardless of any consideration she had for him, she could not let him embrace her again, particularly after she heard the pale words coming from his sweet-speaking lips a few moments ago. She was just grateful not to be choked by the bread she ate when he surprised her with those words.

Overall, she could not let him feel her body anymore.

Trying to calm her nerves, Joanna shifted her gaze from the window.

Ignoring the man who sat in close proximity beside her, Joanna leaned forward to lift the seat across from her to reveal a compartment where some stuff was kept.

Taking one book, Joanna closed the compartment with the seat that rested on top of it. She then reached out her hand to hand in the book, which she just took, to Canillas without looking at his face.

"Reading. That’s all we can do in the meantime," Joanna said, trying to look calm despite her thumping heart.

But the book she offered him was still in her hand, as Canillas did not take it. Instead, what came into her sight was another book that he swayed before her eyes.

"I am tired of reading. All thanks to my wife’s kindness in lending me this thick book to make me focus on reading and not disturb her," remarked Canillas. And a chuckle slipped out of his lips when he saw Joanna subtly fluster as if his words had hit the bull’s eye.

It was not hard for Canillas to guess the purpose of his beautiful wife’s lending him the book, which contained more than double the pages of Dear Mister Camel.

He could just refuse it and ask her to lend him a thinner book. But he refrained from doing that as he also considered comforting her mind by not making any objection and not disturbing her, as he already had enough time to indulge with her during this current trip and he felt full of bliss.

Although he disliked attending any banquets, at this special moment, he wanted to thank the King of Terra for making him an honored guest so that he could have a long trip to enjoy the moment of togetherness with his cold wife.

Canillas wondered, without this trip, when he would have a moment to have a deep and intimate talk with her, to tell her what she needed to know, remembering how hard it was for him to get her attention solely at him.

Without the King inviting him, although it had to make his father-in-law and his wife urge Mr. Simone to make a suit for him, he wondered when he would have a precious moment to have her in his arms the whole night, feeling the softness and warmth of her body and having his mind soothed by her calming scent.

And Canillas wanted to make sure that he would not throw away any seconds that he could make to get to know her and get closer to her.

He would also remember this precious trip where he could witness her give him another surprising response that gave warmth to his heart after finding her defending him from that impudent Viscount. It was when she did not object to him sitting by her side, not chasing him away as he had guessed she would do, so that he could sit side by side in close proximity with her.

She also did not react like she did the day before when she found her head lying on his shoulder a few moments ago.

Was it a sign that she had opened her heart to him? Canillas was not sure yet, but it would be blissful to him if the answer was yes.