Second Time's a Charm (MxM)✔

Chapter 5 - Seducing the Butler

Gideon stood over the black-haired girl with a strained look on his face. Duchess Lena would be furious once she heard the news, and the girl would be fired on the spot while Gideon himself would get reprimanded for not keeping a closer eye on her. 

"I can fix it!" The girl wept as she cut herself on the pieces. "Please, I need this job. I promise I can do better! Let me fix it!"

Cain was reminded of a time when he had foolishly dropped a priceless piece of stolen jewelry through the cracks of a suspended bridge. It had been washed away in the river below, and he went hungry for weeks afterward. It took months before anyone would hire him to steal anything again. 

Taking pity on the girl, he knelt beside her and grabbed her hand. 

"Master Cain, please refrain from touching the pieces." Gideon immediately scolded. "The maid will be dealt with once this mess is cleaned up."

"It's fine." He took a handkerchief from his breast pocket and wrapped the young girl's hand with it. "Tell my stepmother that I was the one who broke the vase."

It was highly unlikely that he'd be kicked out of the house for breaking something, so this should be fine. 

Gideon observed Cain with a blank expression, almost dropping his stuffy disposition in the face of the Marquess's random act of kindness, but he quickly recovered. "Nonsense, I cannot lie like to my masters."

The young girl's eyes welled, knowing she was going to lose her only source of income over this, but once Cain was done with her hand, he stood and glared at the butler. "Fine. I'll go and tell her myself so you don't have to lie." And then he left. 

He did what he said he would, and was immediately confined in his room for the remainder of the week. It was annoying, but he could endure that much. Plus, as the days went by, he noticed that Gideon's expression had gone from disgusted to blank. Not exactly what he wanted, but quite an improvement, one which he would take advantage of. 

Once he was finally free, he started planning another trip to the capital for a key event he refused to miss. Had his punishment lasted longer, he would have even sneaked out for it. 

"Fetch me a carriage and a servant to accompany me," Cain ordered the butler, and Gideon complied without question. 

The man no longer scowled when spoken to, and he didn't dig for information on what Cain planned to do.  

In the city, Cain and his company got out of the carriage to walk along the roads. As the pair wandered, he could feel the annoyed gaze of the manservant behind him.

Cain knew that everything he did today would be reported directly to Gideon who would, in turn, report everything to his father. Which was exactly what he was counting on.

"By the way, what is your name?" He turned and asked the manservant.

"Elliot...Sir." 

The man was the same height as Cain, with messy brown hair and freckles. He was missing a front tooth and wore a disheveled grey servant's coat and vest. Appearances were very important to nobles, which was twice as true for dukes. Usually, he'd have a proper guard following him around, or his servants would be well groomed and somewhat dressed up, however it was evident that his father didn't take such care as to what kinds of servants accompanied Cain.

Well, there would be no use complaining about his servant's dress code. If he wanted to earn their trust, he'd have to get them on his side, and judging them for their appearance would certainly not bode well, especially since Cain himself wasn't much to look at.

"It's nice to make your acquaintance Elliot." He smiled at the man as warmly as he could. "And thank you for putting up with me for the evening. I promise this will be quick."