Chapter 5.4

She couldn’t remember how they’d gotten to her door. As the lock clicked shut, Evan cupped Daphne’s cheek. She couldn’t understand why her fingertips tingled when his hand was only touching her face.

His kiss was bolder than before. The sensation of their lips touching was strange, yet she didn’t want to pull away. The two of them stood in the entryway for a long time, stealing each other’s breath.

“W-wait….”

Barely managing to break away, Daphne pressed a hand against Evan’s chest. Shortness of breath was one thing, but craning her neck to look up at him was starting to make her stiff.

With a flushed face, Daphne looked up at him. His chest heaved as if his heart might burst, and his face was no less flushed than hers.

Daphne swallowed dryly at the complexity of emotions in his eyes, impossible to sum up in a few words.

‘I want to be closer.’

She took his hand and led him further inside. No matter what, she didn’t want to do this in the entryway. With every step, her damp undergarments pressed against her, a reminder of her desire. Evan followed, breathing heavily, his breath hot.

The room was dark, not even a lamp lit. With his large frame added to the small space, it felt even more cramped.

“Sir Grey, are you really… alright with this?”

Even now, he was gentle. Despite being unable to hide his desire to lay her down immediately. Daphne didn’t answer right away. The tension between them was palpable.

The urge to touch him grew stronger, like drinking seawater only made her thirstier.

“I’m alright.”

That was all she could manage to say. Overwhelmed by a storm of unfamiliar emotions, she could barely keep her composure. But it didn’t matter. She’d never acted on impulse before, but just for today, she wanted to.

Daphne wrapped her arms around his neck. Their lips met, and the heat that had built up exploded in an instant.

She couldn’t hold back a breath that escaped between their lips. At her sigh, which was almost a m*an, Evan let out a low groan.

With awkward hands, Daphne fumbled with his clothes. 

Why were knight uniforms so difficult to remove? 

After several failed attempts, Evan ended up undressing himself.

Watching him toss his top aside, Daphne exhaled a shaky breath, tensing her body. Compared to the complicated knight’s uniform, Daphne’s clothing was simple and quick to remove.

By the moonlight streaming through the window, Daphne traced his broad, well-trained shoulders and chest.

A growl escaped from between Evan’s lips. Daphne, flushed with heat, slid her hand along his side.

Evan, who seemed about to pounce, instead looked down at her, breathing heavily.

“You’re… beautiful.”

If he’d said that at any other time, Daphne would have laughed, but in this situation, she bit her lip.

He looked at her as if she were a goddess of beauty, his eyes dazed. When his lips touched her neck, so hot, Daphne squeezed her eyes shut.

She kept wavering between ‘I like this’ and ‘I don’t.’ Evan’s touch was so gentle and kind, but that wasn’t quite what Daphne wanted.

‘A little… rougher…’

As if he sensed her wish, Evan’s large, calloused hand gripped her chest.

Before she knew it, Daphne was lying on the soft mattress, looking up at him.

He slowly moved between her legs, his hands roaming. His pants rustled as they crumpled, the sound loud in the otherwise silent room—a reminder of what they were doing.

Daphne gasped. She was a little afraid he might feel her heart pounding wildly.

His warm, thick tongue licked her sensitive skin, making her toes curl.

“Ah, mm….”

Her hand, which had been hovering in the air, gripped his shoulder tightly. The heat radiating from his firm skin felt like it might burn her.

She’d thought he was just an innocent, clumsy knight, but apparently, she was wrong.

His other hand gently stroked her tense lower abdomen, then naturally slipped between her legs.

Startled, she tried to close her thighs, but she, who barely exercised, couldn’t overpower the strength of a trained knight.

His fingers slowly traced the trembling, wet entrance, then gradually slipped inside.

The unfamiliar intrusion made Daphne tense her jaw. She tried to push him away, but instead, her body tightened around his fingers, preventing him from pulling out.

As his thick fingers slowly explored her, the heat rising inside became almost unbearable, and Daphne managed to gasp out a few words.

“You’re… really good at this, uh!”

She didn’t mean it as a complaint, but for some reason, it didn’t feel good. He’d claimed to have no lover, yet he was so skilled at this.

“I’m actually really nervous.”

He replied with a slight laugh, and Daphne let out a shaky breath, relaxing a little.

“Doesn’t seem like it to me.”

“My heart feels like it’s about to burst.”

He took Daphne’s hand and placed it on his chest. She could feel his heart pounding beneath her palm.

“I know it’s strange to ask now, but…”

Even as he spoke, Evan’s hand continued exploring Daphne’s lower body. The tingling sensation made her let out a shaky breath.

“You really meant it when you said it was your first time, right?”

At that moment, she cl*maxed.

Feeling something hot flowing inside, Daphne struggled to pull his fingers out, but that was all she could do.

Taking advantage of her brief relaxation, he slipped in another finger.

“It is my first time. I just… received good training.”

“From… who?”

“My brothers taught me. They both have families.”

Ah, right. He’d said he had two older brothers.

She’d never talked about such things with anyone. She especially didn’t want to know, since her biological father, who’d worked her to the bone every day, disgusted her all the more.

As his two fingers spread, a tight pain shot through her. Evan immediately soothed Daphne, covering her cheeks and eyes with gentle kisses as her brow twisted in discomfort.

She was annoyed at how skilled he seemed compared to her own nervousness and uncertainty, but in a way, it was a relief.

At least one of them knew what to do.

It was late at night, and the neighborhood where her house was located was a quiet area, home to many civil servants, so everything outside was still. Every time his fingers moved in and out at just the right pace—not too fast, not too slow—an indecent, wet sound echoed in the silence.

A wave of pleasure washed over Daphne. The sultry sound of her own voice was so unfamiliar she could hardly believe it was coming from her, and her chest swelled with the sensation.

Daphne sobbed, gasping for breath. Her mind felt like it was melting away, leaving her in a daze.

“St-stop… ahh!”

“Haa….”

Looking down at her limp, trembling body, unable to even close her legs, Evan’s breathing grew rough.

He quickly stripped off the pants and undergarments that had tormented his arousal. Then, as he hungrily kissed Daphne’s lips, he pressed the tip of himself against her still-trembling entrance.

“Ahh!”

Perhaps overwhelmed by the relentless stimulation, Daphne thrashed, shaking her head from side to side.

He pressed his now slick tip into her trembling entrance. The sensation was so much more intense than before that the inside, loosened by his touch, tightened all at once.

A low curse slipped from Evan’s lips, but Daphne didn’t hear it. All she could do was gasp beneath him.

Every time her face twisted in pain, Evan’s heart ached.

He didn’t want to hurt her, but he couldn’t stop now. If he wanted to avoid hurting her, he’d have to pull away, but he didn’t want that.

It was all because he was too greedy. As a child, he’d once thrown a tantrum, crying on the floor because he wanted the wooden sword his brother had received for his birthday.

Not that Daphne was anything like a wooden sword, but he’d never felt such a powerful desire to possess something before. His wish not to burden her translated into the slow, careful movement of his hips.

He wondered if he was really inside, but his desire not to hurt her was even stronger.

“It’s almost all the way in….”

It was a lie—he only said it to comfort her as she trembled in anxiety. Glancing down, Evan tried to remain calm, caressing her body.

“Sir Clyde….”

If not for the way she pressed her forehead against him, breathless, he might have succeeded. Evan shuddered at the moist tone of her voice.

And then, in one motion, he pushed himself all the way in. Without even a moment to catch her breath, Daphne gripped his shoulders, enduring the pain as he filled her.