Ch#189
Episode 189
For the past few days, he had been forced to sleep alone because of a wolf that began bristling every time it saw him. Consequently, while he welcomed her decision, a part of him was filled with apprehension.
He wondered if he could truly maintain his patience until the end.
Gazing down at the woman breathing evenly in his arms, Barkas let out a heavy sigh and stepped toward the door.
“Here… please use my raincoat.”
The healing sorceress, who had followed him in a flurry, snatched a robe hanging on the wall and held it out. He took it, wrapped her body snugly, and immediately stepped out of the hut.
Gray darkness had already settled deeply over the castle backyard. He slowly made his way along the hazel grove path, shrouded in black.
He felt the raindrops, which were beginning to subside, soaking his back and shoulders. Yet, he felt no cold. All his senses were focused on the warm breath brushing against the crook of his neck. Careful not to let the rain touch her, he slightly pulled back the hood he had drawn deep over her head.
He could see her thick golden lashes casting long shadows over her pale pink cheeks.
As he carefully wiped away a droplet of water with his thumb, her thin eyelids fluttered, revealing a glimpse of vividly glowing blue eyes.
“Barkas…?”
“Yes, it is I.”
A low, raspy voice mingled with the damp air.
He cleared his throat and added, “Sleep more. I will take you to your chambers.”
As if the effects of the medicine hadn’t worn off, she gave him a dazed look before leaning her face against his chest.
Barkas tightened his hold on her back.
The warmth felt through the wet fabric and her sweet scent, entwined with the smell of grass, brought on a sudden wave of vertigo.
He pulled the raincoat tight around her and moved quickly through the dark, raining forest.
By the time they reached the main castle, he was as drenched as if he had gone for a swim. However, his insides were burning hot.
Barkas strode up the stairs, passing servants who ran toward him with startled eyes.
“No assistance is needed.”
He spat out the words like a warning to the servants trailing behind and kicked open the bedroom door.
The room was brightly lit with candles. Stepping inside, he carefully removed the raincoat wrapped around her. Fortunately, she wasn’t very wet.
Tossing the soaked robe carelessly onto the floor, Barkas laid her gently on the neatly arranged sheets.
It was then that her slender arms wrapped around his neck. As he tried to pull away, a rough breath escaped his lips. A strangely husky voice tickled his ear.
“Don’t leave. I’m cold.”
“…My clothes are wet.”
“Then take them off.”
She looked up at him with her eyes half-closed. Her soft, flushed fingers brushed the wet hair away from his forehead.
In that instant, his heart hammered heavily against his ribs.
He stared down at her parted lips as if nailed to the spot, then slightly turned his head away. He tried to untangle her arms, but her hot lips covered his.
At the touch of her small tongue slipping through the gap, his defenses crumbled helplessly.
Barkas immediately cupped the back of her head and deepened the kiss.
Her tongue, thick as honey, carried a faint scent of herbs. He sucked at it obsessively while pulling her small, delicate body into a tight embrace. The moisture from his clothes seeped into her dress in an instant.
The wet silk clung to her smooth skin, revealing her elegant, flowing curves without reservation. As he slid his fingers along those exquisite lines, Talia pulled her lips away slightly and murmured in a hoarse voice.
“I’m soaked too.”
She then slipped her fingers under his tunic and lightly stroked his tensed abdominal muscles.
A desire so intense it blurred his vision surged within him. Barkas gritted his teeth and caught her wrist.
“Do not touch me so carelessly.”
An immediate look of dissatisfaction flashed in her eyes.
“Why?”
He frowned, not immediately understanding what she was asking.
She continued in a petulant tone, much like when she used to trouble him with her stubbornness during their childhood.
“You touch my body however you want, so why do you stop me every time I try to touch you?”
He looked down at her defiant face through narrowed eyes.
Did she truly not know?
This woman would scatter temptation everywhere as if provoking him, yet at times, she acted as if she knew nothing about men. Barkas took a long breath.
“It is because I find it difficult to restrain myself when you touch me.”
When he confessed in a blunt tone, her sharp eyes widened.
She slowly lowered her gaze. Only then did her cheeks flush scarlet, as if realizing his heavy, heated state.
“If it’s hard to restrain… then you don’t have to.”
Talia, who had pulled his tunic up, smiled suggestively as her fingertips brushed against his taut waist muscles.
Barkas swallowed hard.
His body felt like it would explode from the urge to give in to her temptation. However, he could not risk her life on a reckless gamble again.
Musterng all his willpower, he pulled his body away from her.
“…First, it would be best if you changed your clothes.”
“For what?”
She sat up and glared at him with provocative eyes.
“You can just take them off.”
At her blunt demand, the faint smile he had barely managed to keep on his lips vanished.
Barkas met her gaze with eyes full of tension.
They hadn’t had much time together due to the raiders, the heathens, and the interference of that damned beast, but he had shared sweet caresses and kisses with her whenever the chance arose.
He felt that if he revealed the fact that he did not want a child, everything would vanish like a mirage, making it difficult to speak. But he couldn’t keep pushing her away with obvious excuses forever.
Roughly raking back his dripping hair, he let out a voice heavy with emotion.
“I do not want to put a burden on your body.”
“What does that mean?”
She asked back in a rasping voice.
Seeing the warmth in her eyes turn cold, Barkas hardened his mouth in frustration. He spoke with a hint of anxiety.
“It means I wish to avoid the risk of Your Grace becoming pregnant.”
The color drained from her face instantly.
“Do you… also think I cannot have a child?”
Barkas’s gaze turned icy in an instant.
“Who told Your Grace such a thing?”
“What does it matter who said it?! You’re thinking the exact same thing in the end!”
Glaring at him with resentful eyes, she spoke in a trembling voice.
“You also think I can’t produce a proper heir, don’t you? That’s why you’re rejecting me. Then just say so. Why make me hope? Do you pity me?”
Looking down at her with a frozen expression, Barkas bent over the bed. He grabbed her slender, trembling shoulders and swallowed the lips that were pouring out such nonsensical words.
The woman, looking startled for a moment, pushed him away roughly.
Ignoring her resistance, he cupped her delicate nape and thrust his tongue into her mouth, which was trembling with tears.
Soon, the hands that had been pounding on his chest clung to his wet clothes like glue.
He pulled her waist toward him, pressing their bodies together until there was no space between them. Then, bringing his lips to her reddened ear, he spoke each word with emphasis.
“Do you think I get like this out of pity?”
She kept her mouth shut tight and glared at him with bloodshot eyes.
Kissing the corners of those eyes, he continued in a soothing tone.
“In the Sheikan family, there are two others besides myself to carry on the line. There is no need for Your Grace to go as far as harming your health to bear a successor.”
“…But I want to have a child again.”
She murmured in a voice filled with longing.
“I’ve become much healthier thanks to Tiuran. This time, I’m confident I can give birth safely.”
