The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne) novel Chapter 365

Everyone was slack-jawed with amazement.

Just a kiss?

Was it really necessary to chase after Leopold for 15 years just because of a peck on the lips?

This woman was really something!

"Explain, my foot! My BFF told me a kiss is as good as hitting the hay, and you even held me close, swearing you'd marry me when we grew up! Are you even a man? Can't remember your promises?" Griffin fumed, her anger mounting by the second.

That was her first kiss.

And she had held onto it for 23 years, waiting for Leopold to step up and take responsibility.

But this guy!

He was flat-out denying it!

Leopold was hopping mad, "Which of your BFFs said that? Bring her here. I'll give her a piece of my mind! Responsible for a kiss? If that's the case, considering the number of women I've kissed, should I marry them all?"

“Ptooey! Have I lost my mind? Why did I say 'the number of women I've kissed'? I’ve only ever kissed Griffin!” He thought.

And it was that very kiss that had sparked a decade and a half of pursuit, leaving him so terrified that he dared not even think of romance.

"You dared to kiss someone else?" Griffin's face turned a shade of jealous green.

Leopold opened his mouth to explain, but Griffin turned her back, clinging to Vivienne's legs and wailing, "Vivienne, look at this scoundrel! Not only does he refuse to take responsibility for me, but he's also messing around with other women. My life is so miserable, truly unbearable."

Vivienne rubbed her temples as Griffin's ranting gave her a headache.

She grabbed Leopold, swiftly healed his previously dislocated arm amid his cries of surprise, and then shoved him toward Griffin.

"Go and get hitched!" Vivienne said dismissively, her eyes rolling with contempt.

Leopold looked pitiful, on the verge of tears. "Vivienne, it really isn't how she's making it out to be."

"Oh?" Vivienne's gaze sharpened, "So you think you don't have to take responsibility after kissing someone?"

She had never been in a relationship either.

Only Percival had ever kissed her.

So, in her dictionary, a kiss meant responsibility.

And if they slept together, the responsibility would be even greater!

Griffin nodded vigorously. "Exactly, you've got to take responsibility after a kiss."

“Vivienne is so reasonable! A real problem solver!” She thanked Vivienne in her mind.

Leopold was at a loss for words.

“I'm so wronged! If only I had known it would come to this, I would have never kissed her!” He thought.

However, he seemed to forget that he was only ten at the time, and Griffin was a cute seven-year-old, like a porcelain doll, and he just could not resist kissing her.

After the kiss, he had earnestly promised, "Don't worry, I'll marry you when we grow up!"

Leopold turned to seek support from Percival, but then he remembered that this whole situation was Percival's doing. Thus, there was no way he would speak up for him.

He sighed. "Vivienne, can we handle this by ourselves? Marriage isn't child's play; it's supposed to last a lifetime. We can't just rush into it because of something that happened when we were kids, can we?"

After speaking, Leopold turned to Griffin. "Shall we step outside to talk? I promise I won't run away this time."

Griffin pondered for a moment, then agreed, "Fine!"

She did not want her future marriage to Leopold to be plagued with hostility. If they could have a decent conversation, that would be best!