Chapter 9

He turned Adela’s body, pressing her close so they faced each other.

He grabbed the back of her head with one hand, her chin with the other, and pressed his lips to hers. Adela had no time to be surprised.

His lips pressed roughly against Adela’s, sucking as though to swallow them whole.

But it didn’t end there. His tongue traced over her lips, then nipped at them lightly with his teeth.

“Ah.”

At the light pain, Adela opened her lips. At once, his unfamiliar tongue forcefully invaded her mouth.

His tongue was hot. The two tongues tangled, and the heat spread to Adela’s tongue.

The heat that touched her tongue raced through her blood like fire.

Haa, haa.

Her breath quickened, her heart pounded as if it would burst. Her mind turned white.

His tongue dug deep, sweeping her mouth, touching every bit of her inner cheek. Then he licked her lips again, bit her lower lip, and sucked so hard it stung.

What is this?

It felt like her body was melting.

The tingling sensation that enveloped her whole body was almost maddening.

Her shoulders trembled slightly. Tension gripped her lower belly, and her legs lost all strength. It had nothing to do with her own will.

As he sucked her lips and tongue, shivers ran down to her toes and she couldn’t come to her senses.

Adela staggered.

Instead of collapsing, she fell into his strong arms that wrapped around her waist.

Trapped in his body, Adela couldn’t move at all. Meanwhile, the kiss grew rougher and deeper.

She was short of breath.

No, it felt like everything was being sucked into him. Her head went fuzzy from lack of air.

Their lips parted.

“Haa….”

Adela gasped desperately for air. His rough breath slipped through her parted lips, mingling with hers.

Even her eyelashes trembled.

So this is what a kiss is?

For a first kiss, it was a shockingly intense experience.

Before she could gather her thoughts, he turned her body back toward the mirror.

He slowly caressed Adela’s plump, swollen lips with his fingertips.

“How do you feel now?”

A woman appeared in the mirror.

Her dazed, watery eyes, flushed cheeks, slightly parted red lips, and hair tangled from a man’s touch—all wrapped in heat.

She looked like a wanton woman, the kind that would inspire all sorts of shameful imaginings.

‘Is that really me?’

The reflection looked like someone else with the same face.

Adela had always been neat and extremely restrained in expressing emotion. She had never looked like this in her life.

How could her face change so much in such a short time?

Adela was confused.

“See, Princess? When a man and woman touch, traces remain like this.”

His deep, mellow voice, like a stringed instrument, whispered in Adela’s ear.

In the mirror, she saw him lean to her nape.

Was he biting her?

She tensed up in fear, but he gently sucked on her nape, looking into her eyes through the mirror.

The sensation of her nape being softly sucked was as sweet as eating a delicious dessert.

Adela closed her eyes.

A tingling shiver swept her whole body. Drip, a wetness spread from her center, soaking her undergarments.

“Can you see? Like this….”

Startled by his voice, Adela opened her eyes. On her nape where his lips had just been, a red petal bloomed.

“…a mark remains.”

He smiled subtly, gently stroking the red petal he had left with his thumb.

Once again, an unfamiliar shiver ran through Adela. Strangely, a peculiar thirst arose.

“Princess, do you know what it means for a man and woman to sleep together?”

“I’ve had enough s*x education.”

Adela hurriedly shook off his arm and went back to sit on the sofa.

She was truly flustered.

She wanted to fan her hot face. But not wanting to show her agitation, she pretended to be as calm as possible.

“I’m sure you have, in theory. But this is your first real experience, isn’t it? It’s completely different from theory.”

He teased, stroking his lips.

He was touching his own lips, but all she could think of was that kiss.

“So, are you rejecting my proposal?”

She tried to compose herself as best she could, but her voice still cracked slightly from lingering excitement.

“What I mean is, if you’re going to deceive others, you have to do it properly.”

“Properly?”

“Properly.”

Braden repeated in a clear, decisive tone.

“So, to make this deal, you’re saying we have to sleep together?”

“Let’s be clear, Princess. It’s not that you’re having me, but that I am especially embracing you.”

He smiled slyly, his eyes narrowing.

Who knew this man could smile so mischievously?

It was the first time his smile looked sweet.

“Isn’t it the same thing?”

“No, it’s very different. I don’t just sleep with any woman. So it means you’ve been chosen by me.”

“Ha!”

She was dumbfounded. She was the one who chose him.

Why? Because he was the hottest gladiator right now.

And she’d offered him freedom as payment.

But now, he was saying she was the one being chosen?

“So, make up your mind. If you’re going to do it, do it properly. If not, forget it. But I’ll make sure the scandal you want is worth every bit of what you pay.”

“How?”

“I’ll show you how a woman crazed for a man behaves. Isn’t that what you want? To drag your lofty reputation ‘all the way to the bottom’ through a scandal with me?”

When she said it herself, she hadn’t realized, but hearing it from him, the meaning of dragging her reputation to the bottom through a scandal hit home.

Now she understood why Logan had struggled so much.

“That’s right. That’s what I want. To fall ‘all the way to the bottom’.”

Adela repeated it, recalling her purpose for meeting him.

“No other gladiator can do it. Only me.”

He was oddly confident.

And somehow, it made sense. It really did feel like only he could complete her plan.

“So, if you’re not going to go all the way with me, you’d better give up on your plan. You’ll lose your money, and your plan will fail.”

Adela looked deeply into his teal eyes.

Ever since she entered the room, he’d been teasing her. But now, he was completely serious.

Was that why he seemed reliable? She really felt that no other gladiator would do.

She’d thought creating a scandal wouldn’t be difficult. Of course, she hadn’t expected to actually sleep with him.

But now, he said she had to.

His kiss had proved his point. She’d come to persuade him, but now she was being persuaded instead.

A man she met for the first time today.

All she knew was that he was a top gladiator slave with striking looks. She knew nothing of his values or preferences.

Could she really sleep with such a man? And on their second meeting, at that?

She admitted he had a s*xual allure she’d never encountered before.

But could she really give her body for that alone?

“There’s a match in two days. That should give you enough time to think, right?”

Seeing Adela silent in thought, he asked in a relaxed voice.

“No. I don’t need it.”

“Giving up? Good decision.”

It was the right answer, but Braden felt oddly disappointed by how quickly she gave up.

Ha! To feel regret over a woman.

“Giving up? No.”

“Then?”

Braden narrowed his eyes.

Was she going to make another proposal?

“I’ll do it properly, as you said. I already made up my mind before I came. Strategies may change, but tactics should not.”

A hint of desperation flickered in her determined gaze.

What could be so desperate?

She really was fascinating. Not for a single moment since they met had she been uninteresting.

Braden glanced at the contraceptive potion on the shelf.

“Ah, that stuff tastes absolutely disgusting.”

He hadn’t drunk it for s*x. Crazy Liber had tricked him into tasting it once, so he knew the taste. It was truly foul.

That crazy Liber. He could have made it properly, but chose to make it that way.

There were countless reasons to curse Liber, but he never expected to curse him over the taste of a potion.

The way Braden frowned made it clear how much he hated it, so much so that even Adela, who’d never tasted it, could almost imagine the flavor.

It seemed he wasn’t lying about not having a lady because he hated the potion. Fearing he might refuse the deal because of this, Adela quickly spoke.

“If there were enough time, I’d drink the potion myself, but there isn’t. I’ll compensate you generously for that.”

This was the only concession Adela could offer.

“The compensation is enough. But I’d like to confirm one thing.”

“Confirm?”

“Do you remember how I kissed you just now?”

“……”

“Try kissing me like that. Make me so desperate to have you that I’d be willing to drink that dreadful stuff for the pleasure of being with you.”

Adela stared intently at Braden.

“I’m not sure.”

“About what? How to kiss? Want me to show you again?”

“Is it that you hate the potion, or is it me? Are you just mocking me because you don’t want to accept my proposal?”

“On the contrary, Princess. I want you to seduce me. Enough that I’d put up with that awful stuff. So kiss me.”

Braden spoke in a commanding tone, then sat on the bed with a casual air. He patted his thick thigh, as if telling her to sit.

As if daring her to try, if she could.