We’re Married, After All - Chapter 68

The original location of the dog was likely the hunting grounds just below the hill. To leave the estate via a path other than the main road, one would have to ride through that area. It was an ideal place to keep a large dog—far enough from the estate that its barking wouldn’t reach the house. If not for today’s incident, I might never have known about it.

Not until I tried to ride a horse down the mountain paths.

Danel lifted me into his arms. In the meantime, the knights calmed the startled horses. The bitten horse and the hunting dog were no longer in sight.

Had Danel trained that dog to recognize my scent as well? The thought crossed my mind briefly but didn’t linger.

Once inside the estate, Danel carried me directly to the bathroom. As always, he gently placed me into the bathtub, but this time, he didn’t leave the room.

Danel’s fingers began to undo the knots fastening my dress. One by one, the fabric, dyed with plant extracts, fell to the bathroom floor. In an instant, my bare skin was exposed.

I leaned my head against the edge of the tub and watched him. Pouring the pre-heated bathwater over my feet, his face bore an almost reverent expression. Was it because this act felt akin to worshipping a deity for him? Or was it simply because it was beautiful?

Whichever it was, the actions he would take from this point on were devoid of any sanctity.

“Ah…hng…”

His long fingers brushed against my c******s. A lethargic pleasure coursed through me, following the careful movements that felt like soothing a child. My legs, submerged in water, naturally parted.

A large hand delved completely between them. Yet even then, his touch was slow, gentle, and tepid. There was no need for intensity; this was an act meant solely to placate me.

When Danel stayed at the estate, the entire day revolved around him. I ate when he wanted, walked at the times he chose, and spent the rest of the day with him in the bedroom if he wished. Most of the time, it was stifling.

Perhaps that’s why there were moments when Danel would console me—when my pent-up desires reached their limit, and I couldn’t reject the hand sliding beneath my skirt. On those days, he came to me.

His smooth fingertips pressed firmly, generating heat as they circled the protruding, sensitive flesh. A moan escaped through my lips.

“Ha… ah… ahh…”

I closed my eyes, leaning against his shoulder. It felt as though my legs were dissolving into the water.

To be honest, I didn’t particularly want this today. Danel knew that as well. His touch, now probing between my legs, was meant to smooth over the earlier incident. Since today’s walk had been shorter than usual, he was compensating in a blatantly physical way.

Knowing this changed nothing. All I could do was writhe and relish the sensations.

“Ah…hng…ah, ah…”

His fingers rubbed my c******s—gently yet persistently. The water rippled with a splashing sound, mixing with the fluids of arousal.

The man holding me upright maintained a statuesque composure as he worked at my most vulnerable spot. He knew my body better than I did. Even m**********g by rubbing my c******s wasn’t as stimulating as when Danel did it for me.

Resistance was impossible.

“Ahh… ahh…!”

The convulsing hole tightened sharply, and the drowsy heat that had bloomed in my lower abdomen spread all the way to my toes. I bit my lower lip, enduring the wave of pleasure as it surged through me, quickly reaching its peak.

My mind went blank, flashes of white filling my vision. I flailed my legs in the water as I let go of the few scraps of reason I had left.

As the climax faded and I emerged from the haze of pleasure, I knew I would be filled with regret again—an almost self-destructive kind of regret. A body that so readily succumbed to desire could accomplish nothing.

At this rate, escaping the estate was impossible. So too was stopping Danel from walking down his path to hell.

Yet, an opportunity came when I least expected it.

When I woke, the room was cloaked in pitch-black darkness, not even a single candle lit. My damp hair brushed against my cheek. It seemed I had dozed off for a short while.

I stared quietly into the darkness. Even though I wasn’t fully awake, I could tell Danel wasn’t in the room. His presence lingered beyond the door.

While the doors and windows leading to the corridor were boarded up, the ones connecting to adjacent rooms were different. Because of the room’s layout, there was no space to install shutters.

This meant that if I listened closely, I could hear noises from the other side of the door. The sound of pages turning, the scratch of a pen on paper shaking the desk, the faint clink of a teacup…

As I thought, he hasn’t finished his work yet.

I carefully climbed down from the bed.