Chapter 39
Sia was extremely flustered. How could a man’s voice sound so… enticing? She froze, her hand still on his scalp, unable to move.
Nox was even more startled than Sia by the sound he’d made. What shocked him even more was the sensation that ran tingling up his spine—it was pleasure. If he had been undressed, his whole body would have been visibly flushed, but thankfully, only his face and the back of his neck were exposed.
After freezing for a moment, he carefully took her wrist.
Slowly pulling her hand out of his hair, Nox bit his lower lip, trying to suppress another wave of that sensation running up his back.
“Um… I’m sorry.”
Sia apologized immediately. No matter how comfortable she felt with him, he was still her employer. And in a place with a strict class system, getting into trouble with a noble could never end well.
Honestly, even in Korea, which didn’t have a strict hierarchical class system, you’d be in trouble if you accidentally caused a scandal or got sued, especially if it were a harassment case.
Sia, who had neither money nor power, apologized again, more seriously this time, when he didn’t reply.
“I think I got a little carried away with my teasing, Lord Nox. I’m really sor—”
“Enough.”
Nox cut her off. It was an unusually firm tone, unlike his usual self. Sia, even more embarrassed, berated herself inwardly. For someone this well-mannered to be upset…
“I’d hate it more if you distanced yourself from me over something like this.”
“…Excuse me?”
“I mean the teasing. When was the first time you ever played around like that?”
He was still holding her wrist as he slowly raised his head. His jewel-like eyes, slightly moist, glimmered. The corners were red. The look was so decadent that Sia unconsciously parted her lips and then, avoiding his gaze, replied slowly.
“Probably… when I was little, with my friends.”
“For me, today was my first time.”
“……”
“Even laughing out loud. It’s the first time for me, and only because you came to this place.”
Sia was left speechless at his words. She’d thought that, just because she’d gone through similar things for a few weeks, she understood. How arrogant that thought was.
“Falling into the water together like this, eating together, someone picking flowers and bringing them to me, thinking of me… Sia, you’re the first for all of it.”
There were so many other things he wanted to say, but he couldn’t reveal just yet that he was ‘Lips’. Somehow, he wanted to keep that as a secret, just for himself.
“So please, don’t take my happiness away over something so trivial.”
“…I really don’t understand.”
“What do you mean?”
“What’s so wrong with black hair, anyway? Think about it. Black makes every color stand out. With black as the background, white looks crisper, gold looks more luxurious. Even the bright moon and shining stars can only be brilliant because of the dark night sky…”
The longer she spoke, the tighter Nox’s grip on her wrist became. At this rate, there might be a bruise, but he simply couldn’t stop himself. He wanted to pin her beneath him right there. To mark her as his.
Isn’t love supposed to be hope?
No, that’s wrong.
Maybe his love wasn’t hope, but just intense desire—pure instinct.
He wanted this female to bear his offspring.
“I’m not saying this because I have black hair too. Really. To me, black hair is the prettiest.”
“…Your hair looks beautiful to me as well.”
He wasn’t sure about his own, but her hair, even though it was the same color, looked smoother than silk.
With his other hand, Nox gently stroked her hair, which was still in his grasp. It was drier than before and slipped smoothly through his fingers.
“So… you mean I can keep teasing you?”
Sia deliberately brightened her tone, trying to lift the heavy mood.
The truth was, his gaze was overwhelming. Not in a bad way, but because it felt like there was so much packed into it, she wanted to take a step back.
“Pfft, haha… Anytime, you’re welcome.”
He let out a soft laugh and finally released her wrist. Seeing her wrist flushed red, he carefully lifted her hand and brought his lips to the slightly fleshy spot.
“Uh…”
His lips were incredibly soft. And so very warm.
Sia felt a dizzying sensation as her whole body heated up at that brief contact. Taking a shallow, shaky breath, she bowed her head in embarrassment.
In the meantime, Nox pressed a short kiss to the ends of her hair, which he still held in his other hand.
That subtle marking left him swallowing a deep sigh of satisfaction as a feeling of fulfillment welled up inside him.
Just a little of the thirst that had never quite gone away was finally relieved. He had finally found a way to make that thirst disappear.
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