"I missed you, Claudel."
The woman's lips tasted of the sweet peach puree he'd last fed her. He frantically savored her lips, which carried a tart and sweet scent.
"..."
Claudel pushed at his chest with her fist in petty protest. Instead of being deterred by her delicate hands—like tulip blossoms—Kaian gently cupped the curve that rose above her clothes.
"...!"
He could feel Claudel's body tightening, her back arching slightly in his arms. He was a man with a generous heart, magnanimous enough to reward her strike by caressing the sensitive area.
"This is a dining room."
"So?"
"What if someone sees?"
"Everyone has already left discreetly."
Claudel seemed quite dissatisfied with him, perhaps because she didn't feel grateful for his consideration.
"What will you do when Irena comes back?"
"She won't."
Kaian stood from his seat, pulling her into his arms.
"You're worried you'll seem improper to your guest. Let's go to the bedroom."
"What? I haven't finished eating yet..."
"You're finished."
He kissed Claudel again. His large hands moved from the shell of her ear to the back of her neck, traveling up her body to find the soft spots that held her warmth. The woman, who clearly felt his desire, trembled.
"No."
When he released her slightly, Claudel took a deep breath.
"No, not here."
Kaian picked her up and headed to the bedroom. However, the situation took an unexpected turn after they reached Claudel's room and locked the door.
*Slam!*
Claudel pushed him against the door, wrapped both arms around his neck, and kissed the tip of his chin.
Kaian, unable to respond to her sudden attack, looked down at his wife clinging to him in bewilderment. Even in the darkened room, there was a look of frustration in her soft golden eyes.
"Ah, I can't reach."
Last time she'd been able to manage by floating in the lake. She was apparently comparing that experience to their first kiss.
Kaian's blood rushed to his head.
"You really know how to drive a man wild."
Kaian easily lifted the woman's body, pressed her toward the door, and reversed their positions. Now it was Claudel whose back met the unyielding surface.
"You just have to provoke me so casually."
"Stop talking and hurry."
"...What?"
"Kiss me."
The next moment, urgent movements overlapped as they reached for each other. Kaian lifted the hem of Claudel's dress, pushed his thick, strong thigh between her slender legs, grasped her delicate wrist, and guided it around his neck.
Then, with their lips pressed together frantically, the slender woman wrapped her arms and legs around Kaian's body, as if entrusting herself completely to him.
His wife's lips tasted fragrant and sweet for the first time in two days. After tasting and teasing several times, the peach scent from earlier had faded, but the fresh, distinctive Claudel scent he knew had grown stronger.
For now, Kaian felt he could let go of his anger toward Valquiterre, who'd deceived him, and forgive him. They say the wait is bitter but the reward is sweet.
When he hadn't seen Claudel for two days and blamed it on his wayward cousin, he'd been furious. But there was no compensation quite like this—getting a glimpse of Claudel's sensuality in exchange for that brief separation.
Their physical conditions were vastly different. It was usually Claudel who gasped and collapsed after struggling for a while. That had been the case until now.
But as soon as their lips parted for the first time, Kaian felt as if he were running out of oxygen. His senses felt addicted to Claudel, and a brief dizziness passed through his head.
The hurt feelings from earlier—when the woman had called him "Duke"—had long since disappeared.
"If even half of this had greeted me at the gate earlier, I wouldn't have been rude to your guest."
"You're so mean. I thought you did it deliberately."
"It wasn't deliberate—it came from my heart."
"Are you telling me to cling to you in front of my sister? That was the first time you two were meeting!"
Claudel puffed out her cheeks indignantly and challenged him about his earlier behavior. However, her dainty hands were struggling to unbutton Kaian's clothes one by one.
Seeing that, Kaian felt as if he'd been struck again.
"Why are you like this today? You're so forward."
"Why are you like this? Other times you didn't make me talk this much. Take off your clothes."
Claudel pursed her lips in frustration as the large, tight buttons on unfamiliar men's clothing wouldn't come undone easily. The sight of small hands trying to remove his clothes made Kaian's heart race.
"What will you do once I take off my clothes?"
"I want to touch you."
Claudel muttered longingly.
"Please hold me?"
Kaian embraced her and carried her to the bed. Without even time to properly undress, he hurriedly held Claudel and kissed her.
"As you wish."
Claudel was somewhat different from usual today. It wasn't that she didn't always possess that temptress-like quality—chaste during the day but bewitching at night—but today she was captivating in an indescribable way.
Kaian was dragged into an abyss from which he couldn't escape.
---
Claudel was held tightly against Kaian, her cheek pressed to his chest. When had she grown so accustomed to this man's body temperature and scent?
"I couldn't sleep while you were gone."
"Hannah had permission to sleep here."
"I know. I still couldn't sleep."
There were tired shadows beneath Claudel's eyes.
"Why? You said you could sleep well when Hannah was there."
"I know. But Hannah can't hold me as tightly as you do."
At her words, Kaian laughed softly, a sound like wind.
"Is that why you couldn't sleep—because you felt empty without me?"
"Yes."
His long fingers brushed through her hair repeatedly. Occasionally his fingers caught on tangles and tugged at her hair, but her mind was relaxed enough that she felt no pain.
"I'm glad I came back at least a day early."
"Oh, why did you come early?"
"That's... ha, it was nothing important."
Kaian stopped talking, but Claudel didn't mind either way.
*Ah, this is nice.*
He held her in his strong, muscled arms, letting her rest against him every night. Unless plagued by insomnia, she truly had no trouble sleeping.
It was unclear whether she couldn't sleep because she'd been lying on a soft pillow instead of in his arms, or whether simply holding Hannah's hand hadn't been enough.
"Has your sister seen Rowan?"
"We went to the garden café you took me to the other day. My sister loves flowers."
"Right. When she returns home, we'll give her roses of different colors from the garden as a gift."
"Really? Is that all right?"
"I'll tell the gardener."
"Thank you."
Claudel was so happy that she propped herself up with her hand on his chest and kissed Kaian's cheek.
"Thank you so much."
The disgruntled man quieted as he covered her chattering mouth with his lips.
"Your body feels a little warm. Do you have a fever?"
"No, I'm fine."
Claudel shook her head. There was no pain anywhere.
"Why on earth did you call me 'Duke'?"
"Are you upset about that?"
"No."
*Right, now I know for certain.*
Ever since Kaian had given her permission to use his name, Claudel had never called him Duke. Earlier, she'd met him unprepared—with that frighteningly stern face and unfamiliar hunting clothes—and she'd been so surprised she'd called him that without thinking. It turned out he must have been hurt by it.
"You looked so angry."
"I did? Not at all."
"Liar. You seemed in a terrible mood."
Kaian pressed his lips to Claudel's forehead.
"Why would I be angry with you? Something happened at the hunting ground. You misunderstood."
"...Oh."
When he said it was his fault and that she'd misunderstood, Claudel relaxed completely.
"Did you catch the fox?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Because you came back so quickly. Did you just leave?"
His hand, which had been brushing her hair until now, subtly stroked her shoulder blades and then moved down to her waist.
"Why are you curious about that? Were you looking forward to wearing just the scarf?"
"No!"
Claudel looked at him with a serious expression, turned her body, grabbed the blanket with both hands and pulled it up.
"Good night."
"I caught them."
Kaian nipped at Claudel's ear and pulled her back into his arms.
"I caught three of different colors."
"Wow, three?"
"So you'll have to model the scarf three times tonight..."
Claudel couldn't bear it anymore and covered Kaian's mouth with her hand. But he caught her hand and gently bit it without causing pain.
"Understood."
"You say that shamelessly. If I'm lustful, then you have a taste for lustful people."
"No."
"Yes. After returning from the hunt, you pushed your exhausted husband against the bedroom door and demanded he kiss you first."
"What? When did I do that? And you weren't even hunting much."
*...Even though he wasn't tired at all.*
Claudel could personally attest that Kaian was quite vigorous.
"Did you miss me?"
She wanted to confirm what she'd glossed over in the dining room during their earlier argument.
"Yes."
"How much?"
"Enough that I wanted to disobey the King's command and come home."
Claudel's eyes widened.
"Surely you didn't come back against the King's orders?"
"Of course not. It's His Majesty the King who abandoned his own command."
"...What?"
"I don't know the details. It happens sometimes—don't worry about it."
It was a strange night. They'd only spent one night apart, yet all night long, both Kaian and Claudel became more talkative.
After chatting for a while and sharing breaths, their bodies would grow heated. Then they'd talk some more, feeling each other's warmth until the perspiration cooled.
"Claudel."
It wasn't until early dawn—when the sun was peeking over the distant ridge—that she finally fell asleep, motionless.
"It might be worth leaving occasionally."
Did Valquiterre have some talent for beneficial foolishness? Every time he did something idiotic, Claudel did something endearing. It seemed Kaian might be able to leave without annoyance if he suddenly had to visit the royal castle.
"You're also beautiful while sleeping."
He was very confident in his aesthetic sense. He had eyes trained from growing up surrounded by precious and exquisite things.
Since Claudel's red hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes were all the same color, she seemed especially lovely when the pale, cool dawn light shone on her.
Usually he would wake at this time and leave the bedroom with Claudel still asleep, but he often gazed at the sleeping woman for a while before departing.
"The plan was to return from the hunting ground."
Today should have been the day he returned from Fromhunt to Rowan. In other words, the Lord's work had been left unattended all day.
"I'll have to spend the day devoted entirely to you."
Kaian, determined to be an idle Lord in his wife's bed, embraced Claudel. He closed his eyes, listening to Claudel's soft breathing.
The day's events passed quickly through Kaian's mind as he drifted toward sleep. He smiled as the thought reached the edge of his consciousness.
*I'm glad it was you who was chosen as my wife.*
If possible, it was his preference.
---