Lying back on the slightly stiff bed, I stared over at the man sharply closing the window. He was in the prime of his life, and his muscular body projected a dependable air. Meanwhile, I couldn’t even run anymore; of course he could pick me up and throw me without a second thought.
As I pondered, not even particularly annoyed at him for grabbing me roughly by the arm and dragging me away, the man pulling the curtains tight—Craig—slowly turned around to face me.
“When will you develop any sense of danger, Your Grace? Showing your face at the window in broad daylight...”
He scolded me in a low, quiet voice. The annoyance on his face was plain to see, and I could feel the irritation radiating off of him. Well, he did have a point—I couldn’t deny that it had been a little careless of me. It’d been a few years since Sig had carried out his rebellion and ended the long years of tragedy; news of the evil duke’s death had been officially released and spread throughout the kingdom, but my face hadn’t changed at all. If I walked around too openly, there was always a risk I’d end up on the sharp end of someone’s misplaced (or perfectly placed) grudge.
Still, though...
“Craig...”
I sat up and called out to him, beckoning him over. He furrowed his brow suspiciously, but he still did as he was told. Once he was right in front of me, just as he crouched down a little to level his gaze with mine, I grabbed him by the collar and pulled his head in close. Peering straight into those emerald eyes at point-blank range, I pressed my forehead against his.
“Cutie,” I teased. “You were letting me get away with it for a little while there.”
He narrowed his eyes sullenly, but he didn’t have anything to say back—he knew I was right.
We didn’t have any particular plans for today, so we’d been idly sleeping away the afternoon. I’d been the first to wake up, but I knew I’d woken him the moment I’d slipped out of bed. Usually, he would have called out to me then and there, but this town was far away from the duchy of Rodvelia, and it was a relatively peaceful place. Even when I’d rested my elbows on the windowsill, he hadn’t scolded me at first, just quietly watched from the bed. If I hadn’t waved my hand, I was pretty sure he would’ve kept on pretending to sleep. In other words, the real reason he’d told me off was probably jealousy. He could be a real pain sometimes, but I meant it when I said he was cute.
On impulse, I started tousling his hair, but he irritatedly shoved my hand away. Spoilsport.
“Well? Just who were you flirting with?” he asked sternly, sitting down next to me with a thump.
“Why’ve you gotta put it like that?” I grumbled. “It was just a kid—a little girl. She was staring really hard at me, so I waved at her. That’s it.”
The girl had been carrying a big paper bag—she’d looked like she was on her way home from shopping. The strange man leaning out the window and spacing out in the middle of the afternoon must’ve caught her eye; she’d been staring up at me, so I’d waved hi. I’d thought it was a better move than acting suspicious and closed-off, but Craig’s severe expression didn’t budge. If anything, I had a feeling he was glaring at me even harder now.
“Well, then... She’s going to remember your face.”
“You think? She only saw me for a moment, and she was pretty far off.”
“No—she’ll definitely never forget you as long as she lives.”
Craig’s words were absolutely packed with certainty.
If he’s that sure, then maybe I did make a bad call, huh... Even setting aside Craig’s possessive streak, the fewer people who know I exist, the better.
I heard a sigh from next to me.
“Well, we’ve just about finished up our work here anyway,” he said. “It’s about time we moved on, don’t you think?”
“Guess I’m causing you trouble again, huh?”
“Indeed. I’d say I’ve earned myself a reward by now...”
The wrinkles in his brow finally smoothed out. He smirked at me, a bit of sadism bleeding onto his face. I slumped my shoulders and leaned in closer; he grabbed me by the waist and pulled me onto his lap. Our faces now nearly touching, I leaned in to close the gap, pressed my lips against his, and slipped my tongue into his mouth. He nibbled at it and slid his tongue along mine; a shiver ran through my leg.
He’s getting better at this, the little twerp.
“Beguiling an innocent youth in such an immodest state...” Craig murmured as I pulled my lips away for a moment to catch my breath. “You wicked, evil man.”
Wicked man. Evil man. In the days since I’d left the tower, Craig would say things like that to me from time to time. He was as terrible an actor as ever, and his delivery was always wooden, but the words would still prick and stab at my heart—and they’d remind me why I needed to go on living.
“Immodest state,” though... He must’ve been talking about me wearing nothing except a shirt, but...
“Nf— You’re the one who...stripped everything...off me— Hwaah!”
“Trying to pass the blame, are you?”
“Sorry— Gh! I said sorry! Wait, not there— Aah!”
Craig pulled up my long shirt and immediately thrust a finger down and into my rear. My head jolted back as he penetrated me. He’d already wrecked me the night before, and the heat inside me still hadn’t fully cooled. His finger kept grinding into me, working me open—in the blink of an eye, I could barely think straight anymore. I clung to his toned body, unable to get away, but his mean-spirited finger pulled out surprisingly soon. In its place, I heard the sound of fabric rustling underneath me. I did my best to catch my breath as much as I could during this momentary reprieve.
I inhaled deeply, and the humid air of the dimly lit room filled my lungs. I sat there in a daze. As my head went fuzzy, my thoughts turned to Craig.
He’d earned himself a reward, he’d said. But I knew I couldn’t give him the one thing he really wanted.
Attachment.
When I’d begun settling my affairs all that time ago, that was the very first thing I’d thrown away. That was what he wanted from me now.
As pleasure ravaged my thoughts, a single fervent wish burned inside me. Even if I couldn’t offer what he longed for the most, I at least wanted to give him everything else I had.