Bonnie’s lips twitched involuntarily.
‘Aren’t I living and breathing? How did the rumor get twisted so badly that I’ve died?’
Ivor noticed that she didn’t respond to him, but he wasn’t bothered by it.
Instead, he continued to voice his theory, “Then why hasn’t she shown herself before the public if she has been living among us? Also, why didn’t she make more paintings? This is the odd part I can’t get behind.”
“What’s so strange about that? Perhaps she wanted to do something else later in life. That could be why she didn’t make a living off her paintings.”
‘It’s true, though. Painting has always been a hobby for me. Actually add piano, computer science, and the other stuff to the list too. All of those are just hobbies that are meant for my betterment. ‘My one and only true passion lies with scientific research.’
It was a casual response, but it managed to draw his attention. “Judging by your tone, you seem to know Master Kieran well.”
She responded calmly, “That’s not it. I’m just taking a guess. Isn’t that what happens most of the time?”
“I guess you have a point.” He didn’t dwell on what she said. “However, I can’t seem to figure out something.”
“What is it?”
“I’m not connected to her in any way. So, why would she give me this painting for no good reason?”
She gave him a calm glance and couldn’t help but tease him. “Perhaps she admires your excellent looks.”
Raising his eyebrows, he asked, “Are you jealous?”
“Do I seem that petty?” She rolled her eyes at him.
“Just admit that you’re jealous of her, Bonnie. There’s no need to feel shy. I’d totally understand that.”
‘There he goes with his smart mouth again,’ she thought.
“You might be onto something there, though. Master Kieran could’ve fallen for me for real. This won’t do. I can’t sell my body for a mere painting. I have to return it to her and tell her that I don’t have feelings for her.”
‘I know how men can be narcissistic sometimes, but I’ve never seen someone as in love with himself as he is.’
She was so speechless that she could only roll her eyes.
“Don’t you need the painting badly now, though? As luck would have it, someone gave it to you in the nick of time. So, you should keep it for yourself. Why send it back to someone who gave it to you in the first place?
“Furthermore, I think she’s just trying to establish a connection with the Knight family. That’s all. She must’ve given you a gift, so it’d make it easier for her to talk to your family.”
A hint of bewilderment flashed in his eyes. Looking at her, he asked, “How do you know that that’s what she planned?”
She continued to make up stories without so much as a flinch. “I’m just taking a wild guess here, but it makes sense. Think of it this way. Master Kieran is the most prestigious traditional master painter within the circle. She’s got moxie as well as her pride.
“Even if she did have a thing for you, do you think she would’ve rashly come between us when she knows I’m your fiancé? How is she different from a lowly homewrecker, then? Do you think someone as prestigious as she would do something like this?”
The more he listened to her, the more it made sense. So, he nodded. “Now that you put it that way, I must’ve read too much into things.”
Pouting her lips, she said, “You did.”
“That’s enough with this topic.” He sat next to her and rested his arm on her shoulder. “Let’s think about what we’re going to have for dinner instead.”
“Dinner? There are a lot of choices here.” Putting up her fingers, she started counting. “We’ve got catfish, lobster rolls…”
She proceeded to name more than a dozen dishes while he wrote all of them down on a note.
He passed her the note and asked, “Is this enough? Do you want more dishes?”
“That’ll be enough.” She looked at the list of dishes on the note and fell into deep thought.
‘It’s a good thing the chefs in the villa are good at cooking a small, but delicate portion. There are so many dishes here. We wouldn’t have been able to finish them otherwise.’
