Just looking into those eyes filled his chest with elation. Andert, who brushed away the fine hair sticking to her damp forehead, whispered softly.

“Call my name again.”

“……Andert.”

“Once more.”

“Andert.”

Chloe answered each request with a thoroughly husky voice despite the unexpected plea, which he loved.

He soon faced a puzzled look as he leaned in again while listening with closed eyes. He smiled knowingly at Chloe’s bewilderment, who seemed to think it was over now.

But unlike the lips drawing a soft curve, what was below was not like that at all. Without time to say anything, Chloe was covered by the tall man’s shadow.

When the eyes gazing at her in his arms sank with a turbid light, Chloe’s parted lips were crushed stickily again. The sensation she felt again in her intimate parts, which had been thoroughly tormented just before, was painfully vivid. As the dazed Chloe slightly closed her eyes, Andert grabbed her trembling knees and spread them.

Chloe tried to cover her inner thighs and intimate parts, all reddened from stimulation, but it was useless. Before that, Andert’s lips and tongue were already climbing the tender flesh inside her knees.

The long night in Larcel, which wouldn’t end easily, deepened.

* * *

The sunlight coming through the window was stinging.

Chloe unconsciously pulled the fabric in her hand toward her face. Though she knew it was time to get up if the day was this bright, she wanted to sleep a little longer.

But she immediately opened her eyes that she had just closed. Through her hazy consciousness, embarrassing memories flooded in like a tide.

But Chloe, who tried to raise her body that had been lying on its side, couldn’t move at all. Not only was her entire body as heavy as a thousand pounds, but also because of the presence approaching gradually.

Andert, in a robe, appeared to have just come out of the bathroom. Chloe, whose eyes met his as he was brushing back his wet hair, only clutched the innocent bedding.

The intense afterglow of last night surged everywhere in the bedroom, making it difficult to pretend to be calm in such a bright place. Andert, who had approached before she knew it, leaned over, causing one side of the bed to sink heavily.

“Did you sleep well?”

The lips of the man who had just finished showering curved up softly. It was a composure incomparable to her, who was silently screaming at the muscle pain penetrating her entire body.

Fortunately, Andert provided cool water first without being asked. Only after moistening her throat with the glass he handed her could Chloe part her dry lips.

“What time is it now?”

“It must be past 9 o’clock. I went to wash about 30 minutes ago.”

“9 o’clock?”

“Yes. You were sleeping so soundly that I tried to move as quietly as possible. Did I wake you up?”

Andert, who asked the considerate question, kissed her forehead and the bridge of her nose in turn.

Chloe turned her head away from some inexplicable embarrassment and moved her body back. The other party, who had washed cleanly, was presentable enough to go out immediately after just changing clothes. Compared to him, she felt self-conscious about her hair and face, which must be completely disheveled, with only a blanket covering her body.

Avoiding his gaze, Chloe looked around the bedroom first. For now, if she could at least put on the robe hanging over the sofa backrest, she might feel a little less embarrassed.

‘I need to get dressed first……’

She was about to ask the man, who unlike her seemed completely at ease, to bring her the robe. But Chloe, who raised her head unconsciously, realized he had completely stiffened.

“Andert?”

He couldn’t say anything at the sudden tension that swept over him. Chloe had turned her head away from him for a moment and was even avoiding eye contact.

Seeing this, anxiety deeply embedded in his unconscious rapidly grew. It seemed like Chloe might draw a line at any moment, saying last night was just a mistake.

Maybe…… was the feeling that we completely wanted each other just my illusion?

He couldn’t make proper judgments in the dizziness of being thrown to the ground after soaring high. After all, when he held Chloe whom he had longed for so desperately, reason had broken free from control.

Perhaps his excessive thirst had made her retreat. Her white nape, barely covered by the blanket, was all red and purple.

If so, they needed to talk before it was too late.

“Chloe, if I did something wrong, please tell me.”

Rather, it was Chloe who was surprised by the sudden statement. Suddenly talking about doing something wrong. There was no way that could be true.

“What do you……”

Trailing off as she questioned, Chloe realized what kind of misunderstanding Andert was having. It was after understanding the meaning of his thoroughly shaking gaze. That wasn’t it.

As the seasons changed, watching the man who retreated in an extremely gentlemanly manner, she had thought about it. Perhaps he might be somewhat indifferent to this aspect.

So she hadn’t known. The depth of the thirst Andert had been suppressing.

Accordingly, the wave of passion she encountered yesterday was unfamiliar. Like him, she had been completely shaken by the breaths and touches that, unlike usual, didn’t hide what he wanted.

“Andert, don’t misunderstand. I was just feeling shy. You look so perfect and have even finished showering. But I haven’t even dressed and probably look a mess. That’s all it was.”

Chloe gently stroked his arm covered with the robe.

It was after a few seconds of silence that the man who hadn’t moved let out a low sigh. Relief simultaneously spread across his frozen eyes and lips.

He pulled the hand stroking his arm and rubbed his cheek against her palm.

“Don’t worry about that. You’re still plenty beautiful right now.”

“……”

Chloe shrank at the lips tickling her palm, unable to say anything.

No matter how favorably one looked, she couldn’t possibly appear beautiful right now, but if Andert wanted to compliment her, she didn’t want to contradict him. Chloe, who had been wearing a faint smile, was startled to see him suddenly close.

“Andert, I think I need to get up now. Could you please get me those clothes over there?”

“I will.”

Chloe reflexively blocked the shoulder filling her vision as she changed the subject. But contrary to his compliant answer, Andert didn’t get up.

He wanted to take in Chloe like this a little longer. The disheveled hair and the small shadow under her eyes layered with fatigue. And even her reddened cheeks—everything was lovely. His heart, swollen to the brim, overflowed entirely with Chloe.

Of course, he couldn’t express that ardor as he wished, so he had to hold back. Chloe looked very tired for that.

But this much he didn’t want to restrain. His lips, which traced down the delicate earlobe, whispered in the breath that had already touched.

“Just a kiss.”

The husky voice was sweet enough to neutralize Chloe’s embarrassment.

* * *

The vacation in Larcel passed infinitely leisurely yet helplessly quickly.

Though the caretaker couple came and went, they didn’t show themselves until there was a separate request. However, the meticulously arranged interior and neatly prepared table revealed careful hands. They seemed to be taking extreme caution not to make any noise.

Although Andert had never mentioned it separately, Chloe also knew. That the unnatural silence was his consideration, telling her to rest comfortably without worrying about anyone’s gaze.

Andert, whom she had observed for several days, basically didn’t sleep late. Unlike in the capital, even without any special matters, he woke up early every day.

“Don’t get up, sleep more.”

At the gentle whisper, Chloe did close her eyes a little longer, but soon raised her body.

The day that began like this continued with leisurely boat rides or aimless walks. Chloe enjoyed the time they spent walking endlessly on the empty beach. During today’s picnic, they even discovered a towering cliff.

Of course, Andert shared all those moments with her.

“Shall we climb up there?”

When she first asked, he chuckled as if he’d heard a silly joke. But when Chloe seriously looked up at the cliff, he slightly bowed his head toward her.

“Chloe, shall we make a bet?”

The man who made this unexpected proposal smiled with the corners of his lips slightly raised. Chloe responded playfully to his perfec smile.

“Are you serious?”

“If you want, I’m willing to take it seriously.”

“Andert, wouldn’t that be unfair to one person, no matter who looks at it?”

“Chloe, isn’t that something we won’t know until we try, regardless of who the opponent is?”

Chloe’s eyes filled with bewilderment as she watched him mimic her speech pattern exactly. The Andert she had newly memorized, one piece at a time through their accumulated moments, was too numerous to count.

The man who had been strangely serious in front of the dart game board at the amusement park, and the one who had diligently remained until the end of Kate’s wedding and reception were both new to her.

But this was the first time she had encountered such a playful side of him.

“I’m joking.”