“Your Grace.”

As Cherryl touched his firm shoulder with hesitation, her fingers accidentally grazed a scar under the thin fabric of his clothes.

She scanned it with her fingertips, estimating the size of his thick scar.

Cherryl was so surprised to see Cade’s naked physique that she forgot about them.

He had multiple scars from deep stab wounds on his left shoulder and she also knew what these atrocities resulted from.

When Cade noticed where Cherryl’s hand was touching, his straight mouth twisted into a smile.

“Do you want to see the rest?”

She seemed eager to find his scars and examine them.

The instant Cherryl nodded, Cade unbuttoned his shirt without interrupting her even gaze.

The Grand Duke was simply showing her his scars but why did her heart have to beat so fast?

Cherryl saw Cade’s naked upper body for the second time that night.

Sharp arrowheads had carved horrible marks on his skin a long time ago but these scars had already turned white after healing over time without further mishaps.

However, it would be impossible for him to recover completely from the emotional wounds in his heart along with the dreadful iron arrow stuck in his chest until this moment.

“Did it hurt a lot?” Cherryl asked cautiously as she scrutinized his scar.

“I think I was angry at first rather than being hurt. It happened a long time ago so my memory is faint.”

“Even if you say so, this particular wound would have taken a long time to recover.”

Cherryl found it difficult to discuss this sensitive topic, but Cade replied simply. “It’s all right, My Lady. The man who left this mark on me is already dead.”

Then, Cade settled his cheek in Cherryl’s arm so that he could slowly rub his face against her skin.

Cherryl didn’t witness it herself, but the terrible scene was depicted vividly in her mind.

The previous Duke’s eldest son had laughed as he aimed his hunting bow at Cade.

His arrow was originally aimed at Cade’s left eye but he missed, piercing him on the shoulder, instead.

Cade brutally killed the bastard on the spot.

According to the plot development Cherryl knew, Cade would have killed himself on the day he triumphed over his stepfather in this endless war.

However, there was no such thing as victory since no wars were fought in the world they currently lived in.

After years of goodwill, the previous Grand Duke Blkanov, his eldest son, and the rest of his potential successors were all killed at once without any warning.

An arrow might have shot the man sitting in front of her but at least he was still alive to take back everything he had to own.

“Your Grace.”

Cherryl swept Cade’s jawline with her delicate hands.

He certainly had a habitual dry look but she couldn’t help but notice the strong heat in his gaze and the warmth of his handsome face underneath his fingertips.

“I chose you because I wanted to be happy, my Lady.”

Cherryl’s beautiful image was reflected in those brilliant golden orbs.

“My life in the future is more important to me, Your Grace. I hope it’s the same for you. Maybe we can choose to bury the past without reflecting on it for too long.”

What was so important about asking him about his terrible past, anyway?

She shouldn’t be interested in the people he killed, what he did and how he did it.

Even Cherryl didn’t want to dwell on her past life too much so that she could focus more on her future journey.

Cade glanced down for a moment, lost in his own thoughts.

He looked like he had something else to say, but he couldn’t seem to speak of it.

“Can I hug you?”

This question was no different from the previous one.

Still, Cherryl relaxed her countenance and smiled. “You’re hugging me right now, Your Grace.”

“That’s not what I mean.”

The moment she felt a subtle force in her hand, Cade pulled Cherryl down to sit on his lap.

It was the same position as last time, but the location was different now.

Both were in bed rather than on the couch.

“I want to hug you.”

Cade stared at her, whispering in her ear as if asking for permission.

His melted honey eyes didn’t give her a clue of what he was thinking at all but they made him appear as if he was on fire.

Cherryl’s half-lidded gaze lowered to his lips before going back to his eyes.

He seemed to be longing for something——-

Only then did Cherryl realize the hidden meaning of Cade’s repeated questions.

She breathed in but her exhale was replaced by a hiccup.

Cade’s cheekbones reddened with blatant lust.

“Uh—-”

“I want to go deep inside you——your heart.”

Cade buried his lips in Sarah’s white neck.

Didn’t he just say that this was an animal’s way to express affection when she saw the wolf biting Cole as if he was about to eat him at the Coming-of-Age Ceremony?

Cade was acting no differently than that.

So that Cherryl wouldn’t be surprised, Cade’s lips even clasped her flesh with a groan before preparing his canines to bite.

He gently licked the spot afterward when he was satisfied enough.

As he tightly clamped his lips on her skin before he began to suck, Cade’s affectionate contact was already losing patience.

She became dizzy every time Cade touched her sensitive yet stimulating areas.

The delicious sensation caused her loud moans to reverberate in the wide space of his bedroom.

“It tickles, Cade.”

Cherryl unconsciously shrugged her shoulders and Cade thought she was struggling to escape from him.

He bit her shoulder harder.

At the same time, Cade couldn’t retain the innocence he tried to keep in his gaze anymore.

This present deed made it vanish but his sin of easily falling into temptation was a thing he could never get rid of.

His focused yet intense glares made him look like a predator who just captured a moving prey.

Cade held onto her even more tightly to prevent her escape and kissed her with passion.

His overwhelming desire to chase and grab a running creature by the neck was a hunting instinct he had that rose during his expeditions at the border.

Before meeting Cherryl, he couldn’t even imagine his tenacious nature had manifested into something darker.

This wasn’t just a shallow desire that produced a mediocre flame before it faded away and turn into ashes.

Cade just wanted to pour all of his feelings, rising day by day, into her.

Since it was what she wanted, Cade aimed to match Cherryl’s slow pace despite him thinking she really had no idea about these things.

Tap the screen to use advanced tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.

You'll Also Like