Side Story 2.2

“…”

“…”

Delilah squeezed her eyes shut. If Eric laughed, she’d be too embarrassed to bear it. A fierce battle raged inside her head.

‘We’re on our honeymoon, and Eric said that to me the other day. But yesterday I fell asleep first, so maybe Eric wasn’t satisfied… No, what am I thinking, he wouldn’t do that first thing in the morning. Get a grip, Delilah Erica. No, Delilah Briar. Maybe it’s your mind that’s messy? Maybe you wanted it after all…’

“I’ve warmed up the bathwater.”

Just as Delilah’s self-reflection was turning into self-criticism, Eric mercifully redirected her thoughts. Otherwise, she might really have buried her face in the bed.

“It should be just right by now.”

“…Okay. I’ll bathe.”

Only then did Eric smile. As Delilah kept her eyes squeezed shut, the blanket was gently pulled away from her shoulders. He lifted Delilah’s bare body again and walked away. Today, it seemed she wouldn’t walk on her own at all. Delilah sighed deeply.

The en-suite bathroom was luxurious, especially with its spacious bathtub. Eric must have filled it while Delilah slept, because steam was rising from the warm water. After setting Delilah down by the tub, Eric took off his robe, rolled up his shirt sleeves, and dipped his hand in the water. Delilah, following his lead, put her hand in the water. It was perfectly warm.

As she lowered herself into the tub, the overflowing water soaked Eric’s pant legs.

“Whew.”

The feeling of warm water wrapping around her body was wonderful. Heat rose through her feet, which had grown cold without her noticing. Delilah sighed contentedly and shifted to find a comfortable position in the tub.

When she looked up, Eric was still there.

His gaze fell over the clear water, or rather, over Delilah’s pale and red body beneath the surface. His eyes didn’t melt into the water, but clung sticky and heavy to Delilah’s skin. Delilah suddenly thought her earlier worries might not have been so mistaken.

“Delilah.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“Should I wash you?”

“Uh?”

Without waiting for an answer, Eric sat on the edge of the tub. His rolled-up sleeves dipped into the water. As he stirred the water, the shadow of the ripples tickled Delilah’s pale skin. Even before his hand touched her, Delilah’s body warmed.

His hand gently stroked her knee, then slid upward. He didn’t touch her thigh, but his movement sent ripples that reached Delilah. Her chest tightened. When his fingers brushed her elbow and traveled up her arm to her shoulder, she let out a sigh.

“Haa…”

But instead of teasing her, Eric pressed firmly on her rounded shoulder.

“Ah, ooh!”

“Does it hurt?”

“A little.”

His hand moved from her shoulder to her neck, brushed her hair aside, and began rubbing her back. At her comment about pain, he eased his pressure. The muscles that had been tense relaxed under his touch. The atmosphere, which had seemed like it would turn steamy, softened again. Delilah’s heart swelled gently with the flickering water shadows.

‘Maybe I was mistaken earlier.’ Delilah idly played with the water, then let her hand drop quietly under Eric’s guiding touch.

“You’re not really shy, Delilah.”

Huh? As she tilted her head, Eric ran his hand down her spine.

“Sometimes you get embarrassed at the strangest things.”

“Mmm…”

“But this doesn’t seem to bother you.”

His voice slid softly into Delilah’s ear. She blinked, then relaxed under his hands massaging her waist and shoulders, letting out odd little sounds. Sleepiness, which had fled earlier, returned and blurred her thoughts. Eric traced his thumb along the hollow beneath her collarbone.

Soft and relaxed, Delilah let Eric wash her in earnest. His hands moved gently and matter-of-factly from her nape to her shoulders, back, and arms, and Delilah accepted his touch without thinking. She was half-asleep. After the wedding, a full day in the carriage, and a long night with Eric, she was exhausted.

“Mm, yeah.”

Sometimes his hands brushed her chest or side, but he moved on quickly before she could react. Delilah drifted between drowsiness and the occasional prickle of sensation. She wondered what would happen if she fell asleep just like this. Even so, her eyes kept closing.

So when Eric’s hand slipped from her soft belly to deeper waters, Delilah just let it happen.

His hand kneaded her thigh, sending blood flowing to her toes. His fingers, moving over her thigh, slowly crept inward.

“Mmm, ah…”

His fingers slid over the mound between her legs and slipped into the folds. Maybe just washing her wasn’t enough, or maybe she’d gotten wet in the meantime. Slick moisture spread through the bathwater with his touch. His other hand gently gripped her shoulder.

“Haa, ah!”

His hand squeezed her chest, and Delilah’s heavy eyelids flew open. But only for a moment—soon, the sensation rising from between her legs made her squeeze her eyes shut again. His fingers, wrapped in slick liquid, teased her sensitive spots. The soft flesh in his hand tingled with sharp pleasure.

“Wait, Eric. Uh…?”

Delilah twisted her hips, and water overflowed. Eric’s shirt was already wet and clinging to him. The hem brushed her softened skin as it soaked in the water. Hair spread messily over Delilah’s chest and Eric’s hand, sticking and tangling. Rough and soft, warm and cool, the tangled sensations swirled through Delilah’s mind.

“Ah, haa, ah…!”

Delilah’s limbs went limp as she reached a gentle, languid cl*max. Eric, leaning over the edge of the tub, laughed softly, his voice blending with the humid air. He slid his arms under her and lifted her, seating her across his lap. Delilah’s pale thighs spread over Eric’s legs.

“Eh, mm, ah!”

His wet fingers immediately invaded her body. The sensation of being penetrated after cl*max was so vivid. She felt every joint of his fingers. If his arms hadn’t been wrapped tightly around her waist, Delilah might have twisted and slipped away from the intense feeling.

Sticky liquid flowed from between her legs as his fingers worked inside. A strange, musky smell filled the air.

The s*men Eric had poured into her the night before was now dripping out between her thighs. The slick fl*ids stained Eric’s pants, but he didn’t care. From the moment he sat Delilah on his lap, his clothes were soaked through.

“Mm, agh. Ah!”

“You kept it inside all night, my love.”

“Eric. Haa…!”

“I’ll clean you up.”

It wasn’t the bathwater, but sticky fl*ids that slicked his hand and Delilah’s lower body. Every time he pushed his fingers in and pulled them out, there was a sticky, wet sound. It was impossible to tell if it was s*men or Delilah’s own fl*ids—probably both.

One finger became two, then three, scraping inside. The fl*ids coating his fingers turned from cloudy white to clearer, and finally transparent.

“Delilah, you’re so soft inside…”

“Aah, mm…!”

Eric’s voice whispered sticky in her ear. There was nothing that wasn’t sticky. She’d been dozing in the water just moments before. Her thoughts scattered with every press and scrape inside her, pleasure blooming white-hot.

Then, suddenly, she felt empty.

“Uh, Eric?”

He hurriedly pulled at his pants. The soaked fabric clung to his skin, and he almost tore it off. Through the loosened cloth, his flushed, *rect member sprang free. Before Delilah could even take it in, it pressed against her bottom. The movement, searching for her entrance, was rough for him.

“Haa, ah, mm…!”

“Ah, Delilah… really.”

“Eric, mm!”

“I really love this…”

Only when Delilah’s hips met his stomach did he stop. The feeling of being filled so deeply was overwhelming, no matter how many times she experienced it. Yet a strange sense of comfort filled Delilah’s chest. Was it because she was feeling again what she’d felt last night? Her heart filled with the sensation. Eric’s damp breath on the nape of her neck was welcome.

“Even now, you’re… still so open inside…”

“Mm, haa.”

Every time Eric spoke in broken phrases, his stomach and chest trembled. What was inside her twitched with every word. Somehow, Eric’s dazed voice floated in the air.

“My lady, you really feel like my wife.”

The contextless words broke off. Eric, instead of speaking, pressed Delilah’s body down onto his stomach.

“Ah, ah…!”

“Haa, ugh…”

The sensation of him thrusting deeply inside was intense. Delilah’s thoughts had already scattered. Her body, perched on top of him, trembled precariously, but his arms, tightly wrapped around her waist, showed no sign of letting her go. His hands, wrapped around her shoulders, held her chest as well. With his arms reaching from behind, her whole body felt bound.

His body moving beneath her hips was firm. In this unfamiliar position, her waist kept bending forward, but his hands pulled her back. She kept falling backward. The wet shirt brushed the back of her head. With every movement, his muscles flexed against her back.

His thr*sts, lifting her hips strongly, soon came to a halt. His member, pressing deeply inside, pulsed and throbbed. Each time, it felt as if warmth was spreading through her body.

“Haa.”

She was breathless in his tight embrace. Eric rubbed his lips against the top of her head, and Delilah thought he was being playful. When the binding created by his body finally loosened a bit, Delilah exhaled a long sigh. As she inhaled again, the fingers crawling up her swelling chest fell away.

“Eric. Ah…”

When he lifted Delilah by her waist, the sensation of him slipping out left her vision white for a moment. White liquid dripped from between her legs.

Standing with shaky legs on the bathroom floor, Eric looked back at her, his face oddly flustered. Had he not intended for things to get so heated so suddenly?

Thinking that, Delilah found Eric even a little cute. Remembering his dazed, contextless voice whispering behind her, she nearly laughed in front of his embarrassed face. She hadn’t expected to find her beloved man’s uncontrollable desire for her so endearing.

Delilah, stifling a laugh, stumbled and deliberately sat down on Eric’s knee, this time facing him.

“You said you’d clean me up.”

“…”

“The bathwater’s cold now.”

Wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him close, she pressed her head gently against his wet chest. The pounding of his heart echoed in her ears. Delilah whispered very softly against his chest.

“Did you really like it that much?”

“…Yes.”

“But Eric.”

She whispered these words, probably for the same reason as Eric. Because she loved him. Because she liked him. Because she didn’t want to let go. Seeing his cute face made her own desire surge uncontrollably.

“I’m not done yet.”

“…”

“Are you just going to finish by yourself?”

Eric’s hands gripped her hips tightly. As Eric stood up, Delilah clung to his neck, not wanting to be put down. Feeling the strength in his supportive hands, Delilah finally burst out laughing. Or maybe it was because she felt something hard pressing against her below, or saw the trembling at the corner of his tightly closed mouth. Anyway, she found it all so lovely.

Eric carried her out of the bathroom and laid her down on the bed. As he tore off his wet clothes and pressed his weight onto her, Delilah welcomed him.

And because she had teased him, Delilah found herself unable to leave the bedroom for the rest of the day.