Chapter 109
Sia realized the situation was about to lead into intimacy. Normally, she wouldn’t have minded and would have accepted it, but not now. She shook her head while pointing at the area of Nox’s wound wrapped in bandages.
“No. Even if you make that face, the answer is no.”
“……”
Seeing his cat ears droop enough to touch his head and his tail lying limply on the floor, Sia worried her resolve might weaken. Even his usually sharp eyes had turned sorrowful, which was definitely dangerous. So she deliberately kept her gaze fixed in the air and stood up.
“We need to wash again, so get up.”
“……”
Though he didn’t answer, Nox rose. Sia quickly washed him again and then washed herself as well. She carefully cleaned her face in particular. From the side, a pleading gaze clung to her persistently, but she never turned her head.
After drying herself with a soft towel, she carefully dried him too. She paid extra attention to the bandaged area so it wouldn’t get wet and worsen. When they came out of the bathroom, a shirt, trousers, and a dress were neatly laid out in front of them.
It seemed Cedric and Marie had been there. Without meeting his eyes, Sia first picked up his undergarments. Bending her knees as she sat, she spoke.
“Legs.”
“……”
At her instruction, Nox obediently followed, though he still hadn’t recovered from the shock. Once he was fully dressed, he quietly helped her get dressed as well. After tightening the back ties of her dress neatly, he asked in a tearful voice,
“…Then we can do it later, right?”
Nox, certain she would allow it at night, couldn’t hide his impatience as he waited for her answer.
“Until the wound heals properly… no intimacy.”
“…That’s too harsh.”
Sia had been answering with her back to him, but at the tearful tone in his voice, she quickly turned her head. He really was on the verge of tears.
“Uh, um…”
“If you’re angry because I was too rough earlier, I want to ask for your forgiveness…”
Despite his eyes welling with tears, he apologized sincerely. The sight was pitiful… and extremely cute. Sia blinked, staring blankly for a moment, then cupped his face with both hands.
Wiping the tears gathered at the corners of his eyes with her thumbs, she gave his cheek a brief kiss and whispered,
“Instead… I’ll do it like earlier.”
“…Y-You weren’t angry?”
“Ahem, I wasn’t angry…”
Lowering her gaze, clearly embarrassed since it was her first time experiencing something like that, she added,
“You’re the one who’s hurt, and you’re not even going to take care of yourself? What would you do if I weren’t here, honestly…”
Understanding her feelings clearly, Nox immediately leaned his face into her hands and answered,
“I can’t live without you now, Sia. I’d probably turn into an idiot who can’t even eat properly.”
“…Oh dear, what am I supposed to do with you. I’ll feed you, then.”
“Mm.”
Nox closed his eyes, feeling an indescribable peace. Having someone to rely on was no different from a blessing. Even more so when that person was his mate.
The two of them went out to the sitting room hand in hand. Marie and Cedric, who had been waiting, began placing food on the table. As if determined to keep his word, Nox did nothing.
He simply accepted whatever Sia fed him, quietly, like a baby bird. Resting his face against her small shoulder, he couldn’t keep his eyes still, as if the whole world were shining in vivid colors.
The world he had known was slowly fading, and an entirely new world was spreading wider and wider, centered around his mate. Nox watched that dazzling sight without even blinking, as if he never wanted to forget it.
* * *
“…Are you sure the Duke has really returned?”
Louis asked Dylan while staring out the window, now completely dark. Dylan couldn’t hide his troubled expression and lowered his head as he answered politely.
“One of the palace attendants confirmed that Duke Blois entered the estate around noon.”
“Then why hasn’t he come to meet me?”
“…He may have been injured.”
“Injured? The Duke who has never been defeated by the wolf tribe?”
“……”
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