Chapter 37
No, that couldn’t be it, Leila had once chased after his appearance like other young ladies. She couldn’t possibly not know that paladins also dated and married like ordinary men.
What he felt from her words was closer to the innocence of an adolescent girl. The naive trust that the one she liked would never perform any crude instinctive acts, even bodily ones.
But was that even possible? Leila Bailey was not an eighteen-year-old girl but a mature woman of twenty-eight.
His brief puzzlement at the slight incongruity ended when Bjorn read a certain ominous sign in Leila’s expression as she opened her mouth to speak again.
No. This was truly not good.
“Perhaps that’s why… when becoming lovers, that aspect… of course it may be important to some people, but I personally don’t mind.”
It was the moment the final plan Allen, Todd, and Bjorn had wrung out together collapsed into failure.
“However, Miss Leila.”
Clinging to the last rope, Bjorn reminded her of his weakness once more.
“Please think again. I have debt…”
“Then let’s work together to repay it.”
“And I cannot give you physical pleasure, Miss Leila…”
“You truly don’t need to worry about that. Um, but if that makes you feel uncomfortable and withdrawn… we could try treatment. Or…”
Before Leila, who was like an impenetrable iron wall, Bjorn felt a despair he had never experienced even on the battlefield.
He also should have expected it. Leila Bailey truly thought and acted in ways beyond his prediction.
The two were sitting face to face at a small table set in one corner of her bookstore. The table was very narrow, only enough for simple refreshments or tea. Therefore, with only a slight lean, their faces could touch. The distance between them was extremely close.
In other words.
“Something like this…”
If either Leila or Bjorn wished, they were close enough to reach each other.
“…could also be tried.”
At those words, strangely, Leila’s thick glasses seemed very close. At the same time, an unbelievable sensation touched Bjorn’s cheek.
Smooch.
A very small sound, yet to Bjorn it rang louder than thunder.
What just happened? His mind lagged behind reality.
What… was that.
What in the world just…
When he barely focused his trembling gaze, Leila’s shyly smiling face came into clear view.
“If affection must be expressed physically, wouldn’t this level of contact be enough? Of course it doesn’t have to be a kiss, a hug would work, holding hands is fine… there must be many other ways.”
The woman smiling innocently had no idea how destructive her words were.
At that moment Bjorn suddenly felt a powerful, uncontrollable urge to shatter that innocence. This woman truly needed to be burned once, badly.
No, perhaps all of that was just an excuse.
“I’m sorry if suddenly touching you like that upset you. I thought if we became lovers this level of contact would be natural, so I tried it… and you seemed very worried about your condition… sir?”
A kiss. When had they kissed?
What had touched and parted moments ago was too clumsy to be called a kiss. Even the High Priest’s blessing kiss would be longer than that childish contact.
Without time to savor it, Bjorn replayed the soft lips that had touched his cheek. At the same time, he felt, for the first time in a long while, a unity where body and mind desired the same thing.
Not a childish cheek kiss, but a real kiss. With none other than Leila Bailey.
Only that thought ruled his mind and body. Having endured far too much, Bjorn finally surrendered to instinct.
“Sir, I will apologize once more…, mmph!”
He swallowed Leila’s lips and voice at the same time as she spoke. The slender wrist resting neatly on the table was now caught in his large hand.
In an instant their lips met. At the same time an intense satisfaction and stability wrapped around Bjorn’s entire body. He even felt it was unfair they had been apart until now.
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