Wow, this one was so dumb and rushed. Even more so than others.

I think it was 'cuz it was trying to match the pace with the other story, which is slightly better than this one (imo) tho that's not saying much either. ╮(￣▽￣)╭

I figured it out. Manga adaptations of Harlequin novels must stay at one volume, i.e. 5 chapters. So they can't include everything that is in the novels, and thus, quite a LOT gets cut out. Usually towards the end, unfortunately. It is bad enough to cause a lot of the pacing issues that these stories have, but even worse when it feels that the cuts created massive plot holes or skipped important information/parts. It causes a massive disconnect like the one we see here, thus the rushed feeling.