“Haah……”

She put her hand inside her robe and grabbed her br*ast. Seeing this, Lucas began to stroke his c*ck faster.

“Hah, ha…… Lucas.”

“Kugh…… Giselle.”

Sitting a couple of steps apart, the two touched their own bodies without taking their eyes off each other.

It wasn’t simple m*sturbation.

Rather, it was s*x that desired the other. So intense that they reached cl*max several times.

* * *

⟨Don’t look away, Giselle. Look at me. Yes. Hah, like that…….⟩

Even if he hadn’t told her not to look away, she probably couldn’t have avoided Lucas’s gaze.

The man who was satisfying his desires while fixing his gaze on her was too captivating.

No, it was beyond simply being captivating…….

“……It was thrilling.”

So she must have lost her mind to do such an outrageous thing. Giselle unconsciously muttered to herself. The nanny, who heard this, looked up from her knitting.

“Pardon? What did you just say, my lady?”

“Huh? Oh, nothing! Nothing at all.”

‘I must be going crazy!’

She hastily waved her hands at the nanny and shook her head vigorously. It was because the explicit image of Lucas wouldn’t easily disappear from her mind.

Imagining a man’s *rect c*ck in broad daylight.

Embarrassed by her own thoughts, Giselle shook her head repeatedly.

‘I must be sexually frustrated too.’

Giselle lightly patted her cheeks with the back of her hand to cool the heat that had suddenly flushed them. At that moment, she felt movement in her belly, as if the baby was moving.

“Oh?”

“What’s wrong, my lady?”

“Nothing. I just felt the baby move after a long time……”

She gently stroked her belly in response to the nanny’s question.

After entering the final month, the baby’s movements had decreased for a while, but now it moved vigorously in her belly, as if complaining, “Mom! What are you thinking!”

Her cheeks burned as if the baby had caught her remembering something embarrassing. Giselle quickly changed the subject, afraid the nanny would notice too.

“By the way, has Elizabeth still not come out of the storage room?”

“No. But it seems she’s eating regularly. You don’t need to worry, my lady.”

“That’s a relief then.”

She smiled reassuringly at the nanny’s words.

After giving birth, the cat had disappeared with her kittens. At first, she wondered where they had gone and searched everywhere, but soon discovered the cat’s whereabouts.

It was the storage room next to the kitchen.

It was a space currently not in use, as it was used for storing food ingredients during winter.

That must be why the cat chose that place.

Right after giving birth, it was suitable as a secret space where they could be alone, away from people.

“Anyway, take good care of her, nanny. Make sure she has enough food. Oh, and bedding too, ah……”

Giselle trailed off while asking the nanny to look after the cat. Then she slightly furrowed her brow and caressed her belly.

Just like before, she felt movement.

No, rather than movement, it was…….

“Ah!”

“My lady, what’s wrong? Oh my, could it be!”

The nanny’s eyes widened as she realized something was wrong with Giselle’s expression.

“Ah, but there’s still about a week until the due date……”

As the nanny muttered, Giselle smiled despite wincing and said:

“I think…… ugh, our baby wants to come out early…… hngh.”

“Oh my goodness! Wait just a moment! I must inform the grand madam…… Head maid! Butler!”

The nanny jumped up in alarm as she saw Giselle slightly hunching over and biting her lip.

* * *

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed loudly through the corridor. But no one blamed the person making the noise. Instead, they all bowed their heads respectfully toward him.

It was none other than Lucas Taylor, the master of this place.

“Where’s Giselle?”

Lucas urgently asked about his wife’s condition, not even thinking about fixing his disheveled appearance. A maid waiting outside the bedroom bowed her head lower and answered.

“She’s still in labor, sir.”

“How long has it been?”

“About an hour now, master.”

An hour. He muttered to himself like a sigh as he processed the maid’s words, then ran his hand through his hair.

A whole hour…….

—Aaack!

Just then, a piercing scream erupted from behind the door. It was Giselle’s scream.

“……!”

Without further thought, he immediately opened the door and went inside.

The first thing he noticed was that the space that had been their bedroom just this morning had been transformed into a birthing room.

Then he saw the doctor who was staying to assist with the birth, the nurse helping him, and the head maid and nanny who were standing by, helping with various chores.

“Master.”

The head maid was wiping her hands on her apron when she saw Lucas and hurriedly bowed. His eyes fell on her apron.

His face instantly turned pale at the sight of the blood-stained fabric. He didn’t need to ask whose blood it was.

Lucas quickly moved toward the bed. He caught a glimpse of Giselle, who had been hidden by the doctor and nurse.

Though she wasn’t screaming sharply as before, she was drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, and enduring the pain.

“……Giselle.”

“Lucas, you can’t.”

It was Stella, his mother, who blocked Lucas as he rushed toward Giselle.

“……Mother.”

Only then did he realize his mother was also there. But that didn’t change anything. Lucas tried to approach Giselle again without even taking time to greet his mother.

He would have done so if his mother hadn’t continued speaking.

“Are you trying to put your wife in danger? Go wash yourself thoroughly first.”

Lucas stopped at his mother’s words. He realized he had come straight here without even changing his clothes after returning from work.

“Ah……”

Lucas opened his mouth and let out a single sound, then ran his hand over his face.

Unlike his usual cool and calm demeanor, even his hands were trembling slightly. Seeing this, Stella spoke again to reassure her son.

“Go quickly. Wash thoroughly and change your clothes.”

“But, Mother.”

He understood intellectually that he should do as his mother said. But Lucas’s gaze remained fixed on Giselle, reluctant to leave.

Understanding his feelings, Stella smiled gently and continued.

“It seems it will take quite some time before the baby is born, Lucas. Her body hasn’t even opened yet.”

“……How much longer do you think it will take?”

She had already been in pain for an hour, and it would take even longer?

Lucas gritted his teeth, clenched his fist, and forced out a question through his tight throat. Stella furrowed her brow, shook her head, and answered.

“I’m not sure. With first births, it usually takes longer, so it’s hard to give a definite answer. In my case, I was in labor for over twelve hours.”

“……Over twelve hours, you say?”

Lucas’s face turned ashen at his mother’s words. Stella pushed her son’s back again as he stood speechless.

Just then, a groan and Giselle’s faint voice came from the bed.

“Lucas…… hng, is that you?”

“Giselle!”

He was about to leave, practically pushed out by his mother, but quickly turned around at the sound of his wife calling him. However, concerned about ‘hygiene,’ he couldn’t approach Giselle closely and stopped at a distance.

“Hngh, hng……”

Realizing her husband was nearby, Giselle struggled to move her head to see him. But unable to control her body as she wished, she pouted, feeling upset.

“Why are you just standing there looking? Hngh, am I too unsightly to look at?”

“No, Giselle. It’s because I haven’t washed yet……”

Seeing his wife whimpering with distress, Lucas urgently took another step forward, then stopped. If he could, he wanted to go to Giselle immediately, stroke her hair, hold her hand, and kiss her all over her face.

No, if it were possible, I wanted to bear all her pain myself.

Seeing his woman, who always sparkled, lying there in such a haggard state filled him with extreme fear.

“What does that matter…… ugh, aaack!”

Giselle, not understanding Lucas’s feelings, whimpered even more sadly before screaming. The contractions had started again.

“Aah! Lucas! It hurts so much…… aaaack!”

At Giselle’s scream, Lucas gritted his teeth and turned away. Then he found a bottle of disinfectant among the medicine bottles placed to the side and quickly poured it over his hands.

“Good heavens, Lucas!”

“Master!”

Since it was a strong disinfectant meant to be diluted before use, his hands quickly turned red after pouring the undiluted solution. Anyone could imagine the pain must be quite severe.

Surprised by this, Stella and the head maid hurriedly approached him. But Lucas, without changing his expression, opened his mouth toward the head maid.

“Give me your apron.”

“Pardon?”

“Quickly!”

The head maid, who couldn’t immediately follow his order and was looking at him with a bewildered expression, was urged again by Lucas. Then, though confused, she belatedly handed him an apron.

Lucas quickly took it and wrapped it around his outer clothes.

A man wearing an apron.

It should have been a ridiculous sight, but he neither laughed nor showed embarrassment. Instead, he approached Giselle while wearing the apron.

“Giselle.”