The General's Wife Wants to Leave-Chapter 130: Sing a lullaby

Canillas thought that they would arrive at the inn not far from the predicted time that was informed by the Barasca knight as the answer to the question that was asked by his wife, as he had also felt tired of maintaining his sleeping position.

He really wanted to change his position, stretch his body, and jump on the ground.

But until his wife sighed more than three times, they had not arrived yet. Thus, he decided to stop pretending to sleep, as he also felt he had given his wife more time to calm down—enough time to subside her restlessness after finding out their intimate gesture.

Feeling thirsty, Canillas slid from his seat to the left and took a leather water canteen that lay on the chair across from him, which he occupied before he took a seat beside his wife. With the water canteen in his hand, Canillas then pulled the lid open and took a few sips to wet his dry mouth and throat.

"Do you want some water, Joanna?" Canillas offered Joanna a drink, although he knew she had her own water canteen. But he doubted that she would drink it, as most ladies would refrain from drinking during a long trip so that the use of the powder room could be delayed.

"No, I have had it. Thank you," Joanna answered in a low voice, having her face completely face the window, showing him the back of her head as if she wanted to hide her blushing face from him.

"Aren’t you tired?" Canillas gave another question while massaging the back of his knees after he placed his water canteen back on the seat across from him.

"No, I am not," Joanna simply replied, not changing her position from how she gave the previous answer.

"Do you want me to massage you?" Canillas asked further when he saw his wife still hide her face from him.

Hearing him offer to massage her after she said that she was not tired, Joanna really wanted to sing a lullaby for him to get back to sleep. However, since she was a terrible singer and she was sure that her voice would make him awake more, she could only say, "No. Thank you."

Finding her still hiding her face from him, Canillas shook his head. This shy wife of his always had a way to make him want to poke her more. Canillas thought in his mind. He then slid to move closer to the shy lady.

Sensing the man who currently appeared with his mischievous side coming closer to her side, Joanna let out a sigh that had previously caught in her throat. She said, "Can you please show some respect not to touch me without my permission, especially when I am sleeping, Sir Canillas?"

Joanna turned her head around right after voicing what she had planned to say to him once he woke up like an unleashed bull, only to freeze once again like her previous freezing state after being caught eyeing him, which made her not know where to put her face.

The mischievous man’s index finger poked her left cheek.

Both husband and wife stared at each other, as both seemed to be surprised by what each of them did. The wife just reprimanded her husband not to touch her without her permission, but the husband had already moved to poke her cheek before he completely heard what his wife said to reprimand him.

Clearing his throat, Canillas lowered his index finger, which poked his wife’s dimple as he initially tried to tease her, who had hidden her face from him. But he did not think that she would bring up her objection about him touching her when she was sleeping so early.

"Don’t you think it is too late to make such a request?" Canillas asked while sliding slightly to the back, not to distance himself from his cold wife but to take a relaxed sitting position.

The right side of his body leaned against the back of the chair. His right knee was folded and rested on the chair, while his arms folded over his chest as he sat facing the upset lady, who was about an arm length away from him.

"You said that we can discuss a matter that becomes a problem and disturbs me in our marriage. And what you did to me when I was asleep has disturbed me, Sir Canillas." Joanna kept on arguing despite knowing that he was right that it was too late to make such a request, as there had been a few occasions where he touched her without permission, and she did not utter any complaints about that.

But this time was different. Since she had lost the chance to have their marriage ended, Joanna had an urge that she had to elaborate their boundary clearly before it was really too late. Hence, she would voice her mind, although there was no healthy tea to serve at the moment, which would make the conversation enticing, as he said.

"Can’t I offer my wife my shoulder to sleep on when I see her sleeping with her head hanging in an uncomfortable position?" Canillas responded calmly, aside from the bliss he felt when, for the first time, she used the word our marriage as if she had finally admitted their marriage.

"I am used to sleeping in that position during a long trip. So you don’t need to worry about that, Sir Canillas." Joanna persisted with her argument, eager to be successful in drawing their boundary.

"I am sorry, wife, but I can’t fulfill that request because I can’t ignore the way my wife is sleeping in a position that is not comfortable. So you have to change that habit, as you now have a husband whose shoulder is available for you to lay on." Canillas countered Joanna’s argument indifferently, making her brows furrow.

"Don’t hold my hand." Joanna continued to voice her other objection.

Sensing that he was a person who could not bear sitting inside the carriage for too long, Joanna thought that the chance for her to sit in the carriage for a long journey with him after this moment passed would be rare. So laying her head on his shoulder would be rare as well.

But not with holding hands, which could be done more frequently on more occasions, including when she was sleeping, as they would share a bed in the inn where they would stay for a night.

She still remembered very well that the Tres were still wandering out there. Hence, there would be no way her father and this mischievous man would let her sleep alone in the inn. Besides, she was not desperate enough to dare risk herself in such a dangerous situation.

Dealing with the mischievous man was better than facing an unknown future when she was captured by that tribal group. It was Joanna’s thought.

"Why?" Canillas asked nonchalantly.

"I don’t like my hand being held when I am sleeping," Joanna blurted out.

"So it is fine when you are not sleeping," Canillas muttered while nodding his head.

"No!" Joanna quickly interrupted, waving her hands, as if attempting to make her cunning speaking opponent understand the meaning of her words through the gesture she added. "I don’t like my hand being held when I am not sleeping as well," she retorted.

Looking at the determination painted on Joanna’s face, Canillas hummed. "But that is impossible, my dear wife. What if we have to appear in public? Don’t forget that we are here to attend the royal banquet." He argued further,

"I know I have told you that we don’t need to care about other people’s opinions about us. But don’t you think it is too much to walk like an enemy when we are invited as a special guest by the King?" Canillas reasoned, slightly regretting letting his cold, stubborn wife find out about him holding her hand when she was sleeping.

Instead of walking forward, it was hilarious to find that their relationship was still facing a threat to step backward. Canillas sighed inwardly as he knew how persistently his wife would stand on her ground.

"Before you say it is fine, I would like to remind you that you need to think of your father. What if he is approached by the guests and is questioned about our enemy-like relationship?" And Canillas was also still persistent in refusing to let their relationship go backward, to the point of enemy-like relationships he just mentioned.

"It is not good to let your father not enjoy the banquet and be disturbed by such unnecessary trouble that definitely can be avoided. Don’t you think so, dear wife?"

He was glad that she was willing to talk to him about the matter that disturbed her in their marriage. But her objection would put her father in trouble, as the way they performed in the eyes of the public would define the peace of their family.

The Terran aristocrats who saw them coming with a cold gesture would highly likely dig up information about their relationship from the Duke, especially when they were married by royal decree, which made their future relationship as husband and wife interesting to follow.

Canillas was sure that the guests, who mostly belonged to upper-class society, would not let gossip slip from their hands, as gossip had become part of their leisure and luxurious lives, and it was rare to see them not gossiping, especially when the material for gossip came from the family of the reputable Duke of Barasca, whose downfall might also be a joy to watch.

Hence, aside from trying to persuade his stubborn wife to change the condition of her absurd request, he was also trying to remind her about that matter, as he knew that she cared a lot about her family.

And Joanna indeed cared for her father as she now pondered the reasons she heard. Biting inside her cheek, she really did not want to put her father into such trouble that she created.

"Fine. It will be an exception when we are in public, but still with my permission." Joanna decided. "But please don’t do that when we are in private. I will appreciate it if Sir Canillas will cooperate and respect what I see as right." Joanna asked him to understand the condition she brought up.

Canillas nodded his head. He considered not to make all of her argumentation be countered, as he did not want her to think that discussion with him would be useless if he kept on countering her objection. Besides, he really needed to respect her. He could not force her to accept anything he wanted and saw right, although he could make her do so if he wanted to.

"Fine. I will not hold my wife’s hand without her permission, especially when we are in private or when she is sleeping," Canillas stated, and Joanna took a breath of relief as his cooperation.

But then she remembered the point that she viewed as more important for her wellbeing, which she had brought up before. "And please don’t touch me without my permission, especially when I am sleeping. Let’s maintain our distance, like when we were in the Powel Orphanage. I will greatly appreciate it if Sir Canillas is willing to do so as well," Joanna demanded, elaborating clearly what she thought to be a threat, as she was mindful of what the mischievous man might do when she was defenseless.

Hearing her never-ending requests, Canillas could not help but burst out laughing. "Have you ever been grateful to have such an understanding, capable, and handsome husband like me, Joanna?" Canillas questioned her instead of offering a reassuring statement of answer as he did before.

One corner of his lips tugged up as he stared straight at her, making Joanna clear her throat and look back at the window as her answer.

This time, Canillas was glad to receive such a silent answer from her, as he hoped she would forget about the last rule she tried to set with him.