“Ah, no… Th, that’s not, ah, it’s not…”
“Then what is it! Is there another guy or something?”
Maxi couldn’t comprehend his words and merely looked up at him with eyes flickering like flames, filled with fear. Then, he thrust his face close in a threatening manner and spat out his words as if chewing them.
“While I was fighting to the death, did you lock eyes with some other bastard?”
“Ah, ah, no! Ah, I didn’t do that!”
She replied in a tone that was almost a crawl, and the strength in his grip loosened slightly. But without easing his scowl, he barked savagely.
“Then why the hell is there talk of divorce?”
“Ev… Everyone… All of them say that when you co, come back, you’ll di, divorce me and ma, marry the pr, Princess… That’s why…”
“Princess?”
He sharply countered, somehow making sense of her jumbled outburst. Maxi swallowed her sobs and nodded with effort. The man blinked in shock, then, grasping the situation, spat curses and roughly raked his hand through his hair.
“Damn fools. Spreading nothing but absurd rumors…”
With that, he scooped her up sheet and all, settling onto the bed. Startled, Maxi kicked her legs. Ignoring her, he positioned her on his lap and cupped her face with both hands. His damp tongue lapped up the tears pooled at her eyes. The sensation of his hot breath teasing her cheeks and lips made Maxi forget her sniffling. He wrapped one arm around her waist and let out a deep sigh.
“I don’t know what nonsense rumor you heard, but I refused that proposal long ago.”
“Ref, refused?”
Her eyes widened in astonishment, and he raised his voice sharply.
“Of course! Did you really think I’d accept such a deranged proposal?”
A deranged proposal? Why was offering a beautiful Princess as a reward to the hero who saved the world considered deranged?
“From the beginning, who in their right mind proposes a match to a married man! When I heard it, I thought the King had lost his mind.”
“B, but…”
“What but? If there’s a scum who’d cheaply trade the sacred vow made before the gods, I’d castrate the bastard myself. How could you even think I’d stoop to something so vile?”
Was he truly sincere? She gazed up at him with a blank expression, her surprise bordering on horror. She’d long known knights prized honor, but did this man hold chivalry like a religion?
To toss away the chance to join the royal family over a forced marriage! Marrying the Princess would grant him a new title, royal prestige, and an immense dowry. And that wasn’t all, his children would even claim rights to the throne.
Yet he’d dismissed it all as lunacy because of his unwanted wife.
‘This man… He’s not right in the head.’
Only then did she realize he took their marriage with utmost seriousness and gravity. There was no hidden agenda. Just as he said, he saw her purely as his wife and intended to take her to his estate. Shocked, Maxi floundered, her lips trembling.
“B, but…”
Was he really content with that? Perhaps he didn’t even realize what he was missing. Forgetting her own precarious position of needing to cling to him, she babbled on.
“Re, really… Is it, okay… even then? A, Agnes the Pr, Princess is ve, very beautiful…”
“Have you met Agnes?”
She flinched. For someone who’d flatly rejected the match, that name rolled off his tongue too casually.
“N, not di, directly met, but…”
“Then how would you know if she’s beautiful or not? I can’t stand a woman as wild and scatterbrained as a colt with fire up its tail.”
Was it proper to speak of royalty so crudely? She looked up in bewilderment, and he wiped the remaining tear tracks from her eyes with his thumb, driving the point home firmly.
“Forget that ridiculous rumor. Palace life is suffocating enough without suiting my temper, and I’ve no desire to cater to the whims of some haughty Princess.”
“B, but…”
“Enough with that ‘but.’ Or what, is the rumor just an excuse, and you’re actually unhappy with this marriage?”
A dangerous glint immediately flashed in the man’s eyes. She shook her head frantically. His face smoothed over at once.
“Then we’re good. Bring up more useless talk like that, and I won’t hold back next time.”
She rolled her eyes. Hold back? After unleashing like that, what nonsense. She grumbled inwardly when suddenly she felt his hand stroking down her back. Her body went rigid. His hand slid slowly downward, delving into the sheet.
“W, wait…!”
Only then did Maxi fully register that she was naked beneath just a thin layer of fabric, and she kicked her legs again. He lifted her hips slightly, yanked the sheet free, and tossed it to the floor. Desperately, she tugged at her tunic to cover her thighs.
But rendering her efforts pointless, he simply hiked up the hem and seized her swollen breasts. She let out a lewd squeak. The touch of his hot, rough hand against her delicate skin was bizarre and intensely overwhelming, beyond words.
“W, wa, wait…”
“Quit with that ‘wait’ already. You do know your husband’s name, don’t you?”
The man, who’d been rubbing the bridge of his nose against her nape, lifted his head with a displeased look. Maxi blinked like an owl. His eyes narrowed faintly, and as if meting out punishment, he roughly claimed her lips. It was hard to believe those lips, which had spewed such harsh and brutal words, could feel so scorching and tender.
“Don’t panic like that. As you said, our marriage wasn’t exactly normal, but it couldn’t be helped. Now, you need to get used to me.”
His firm fingers, radiating warmth, swept back the stray locks from her forehead. Flustered by the unexpected gentleness, she hesitated. His lips brushed ceaselessly against her cheeks, temples, and earlobes. His thighs, hard as stone, shifted beneath her ass, while his hot breath tickled the nape of her neck.
Unconsciously, she clutched at his clothing and squeezed her eyes shut. From past encounters, she knew exactly what he intended, and how much it would hurt. Unable to relax, he sighed softly.
“Loosen up, you’ll only hurt yourself like this.”
“B, but…”
“It’s not our first time together.”
The man, who had been nibbling at the underside of her neck, hesitated for a moment before asking.
“…You don’t like it?”
She only parted her lips at his words, gazing up at him steadily. She couldn’t bring herself to say she disliked it. He had rejected a royal marriage proposal to honor their wedding vows. She couldn’t refuse such a husband in the bedroom.
After a long hesitation, she shook her head, and as if he’d been waiting, he thrust his tongue deep into her mouth, savoring every corner. Unthinkingly, she placed her hand on his chest, then flinched and curled her fingers at the heavy, pounding heartbeat.
His saliva-slicked lips scattered small kisses along her jawline, then slowly descended her nape to linger above her collarbone. The damp breath and wet tongue against her skin made the fine hairs on the back of her neck stand on end one by one.
“Arms up.”
She raised her arms stiffly. With his calloused palm, he stroked from her side up to her armpit, then yanked her clothes over her head. Startled, she clutched her breasts. He wrapped his arms around her back and kissed her shoulder.
“I’ll… try to be as gentle as possible.”
She looked up at him with trembling eyes. She felt his gaze greedily scanning her naked body. Following his eyes, she looked down at herself.
Her round breasts, flat stomach, thighs so white they were pale, and the delicate part between them… Closing her eyes tightly at the raw sight, the touch of his fingers on the protruding tip felt even more sensitive. He nibbled at the hollow below her collarbone, then suddenly engulfed her breast and sucked it in.
Maxi gasped sharply. She felt his lips moistening the sharply peaked nipple. His hot tongue slowly lapped at the sensitive bud, and his firm teeth applied just enough pressure without pain. A tingling thrill ran from her throat to her ears at the strange sensation.
“W, wa, wait… a, a moment…”
“Riftan.”
As if punishing her, he sucked her breast hard enough to feel pain. Maxi let out a small scream. Unable to do anything with her hands, she clutched the fabric tightly, but he pried her hands free and guided them around his neck. The heat from his firm skin and the soft hair tickling her throat made her stomach tingle.
“Say Riftan.”
“Ah, w, wait…”
“Say it.”
He commanded softly. With a trembling voice, she uttered his name.
“Ri… Riftan.”
In that instant, his shoulders heaved violently. The man muttered something incomprehensible roughly, then lifted his head and showered her with fervent kisses. His hot, elastic arms squeezed her waist as if to break it.
Overwhelmed by the passion she was experiencing for the first time, she clung tightly to his neck without realizing it, panting. Then, he let out a low chuckle against her lips.
“Yeah, hold on tight like that.”
Dazed by the smile she was seeing for the first time, he cupped the back of her head with one hand and continued the kisses. His other hand gently stroked her lower abdomen, then suddenly slipped between her legs. She clamped her thighs desperately, but couldn’t stop the hand already firmly in place.
He carefully moved his fingers to caress her below. At the sharp tingle in her belly, she jolted upward with a twitch.
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