Regina’s cheeks turned pale. Grey let out a brief chuckle and reached out to caress her cheek.
“But you’re still lovely—that’s the truth. So I suppose I’ll just have to forgive you.”

What a remarkably tolerant liar he was –

To say such things in that tone, with those cold eyes, to call her lovely when she looked like a corpse just out of bed.

Regina swallowed a sigh and thought to herself,
‘It’s still too soon.’

She hadn’t expected Grey to agree to the divorce so quickly. After all, it had taken her three years to realise that she’d been deceived. So he would need time too – time to understand that she would no longer be deceived by him and that this marriage could not continue.

Surely, once he understood that, his mind would change. Grey was not a man who tolerated inefficiency.

“I promised to try, so I have to show you, don’t I?”

Show what?

Before she could ask, her lips fell silent. His large, surprisingly gentle fingers brushed through her hair and cupped her cheek. His lips met hers again and again, adjusting their angle each time, tasting faintly of cigars and ale.

She didn’t even have time to catch her breath. Each gasping inhalation filled her lungs with Grey’s scent – cool yet deeply sensual. It soaked into her like moisture, leaving her intoxicated.

“Regina.”

His voice, brushing against her ear, was so deep and sweet it could have melted chocolate – though not even that would have tasted as rich.

“Come here, my wife.”

The moment she was pulled into his arms, a bright red warning light went off in her head.

She had been alone for far too long – it was hard to push away the overwhelming warmth.

“You’ve grown so thin. How pitiful.”

Grey sighed as his fingers traced her prominent collarbone.

The damp air, heavy with unhidden desire, seeped beneath the thin layers of bedding.

Her body responded faster than her lips could deny.

Her n*pples tensed as if pulled by invisible strings and the insides of her thighs – clenched without her awareness – grew damp.

A slow, smoldering heat was building deep inside her, spreading through her body like a creeping fire.

She bit her lip to stifle the moan that rose in her throat, but there was no hiding the blush that rose to her cheeks.

“How cute.”
His tone was like watching a kitten play and it made her feel defiant. Just as Regina tried to steady her breathing and parted her lips to speak, his hand slipped under her nightgown.

“Grey…!”

The hand that had once gripped her heart now cupped her br*ast greedily, kneading and spreading the softness as if working with dough – an unmistakably lustful motion.

“You’re so soft.”

“Grey, ah!”

Her voice trailed off as his fingers toyed with her *rect n*pple.

“Hngh! Ah!”

“Still the same, I see. Sensitive here.”

“S-Stop…”

“Maybe it’s because your n*pples are big.”

His teasing remark made her ears flush red with heat.

Grey tugged open the front of her loose shirt, revealing her br*asts. Against the soft, pale skin untouched by sunlight, the contrast was striking—her full, dusky *reolas and flushed, tender n*pples stood out vividly, almost trembling under his gaze.

“Right here…”

Gray stroked his fingers over the firm tip of her br*ast, a faint smile playing at the corners of his lips.

“You have no idea how much I want to taste you.”

Who would have thought that beneath such refined, elegant clothes – the clothes of a fallen nobleman’s daughter – lay something so disarmingly raw and vulnerable?

He lowered his mouth, his lips capturing her softness, his tongue circling with a teasing, possessive intent.

Regina arched her neck, a sharp cry escaping her lips as the heat of his touch overwhelmed her, relentless and unyielding.

“Ahh……!”

When he pulled her in with such intensity, as if to crush her with his mouth, her eyes opened wide. But as his tongue moved over her in slow, gentle strokes, all her resistance melted away.

Her cool mind, her steady heart – all dissolved into him, dissolved by the warmth of his mouth.

When Grey finally pulled away, his lips wet with lingering warmth, one of her br*asts throbbed with numbness. Curious, he looked down – only to see that it was noticeably swollen, almost twice the size of the other.

“I can’t let one get all the attention.”

Before she could protest, he lowered his head again.

The moment he took the other in his mouth, her vision flared again – only to dissolve in the same overwhelming heat.

Each time his sharp teeth brushed against her, her toes curled reflexively, a slight tremor stirring in her lower abdomen.

As he gently stroked her trembling waist, Grey murmured softly, amused and affectionate.

“You’re even more irresistible when you’re this sensitive.”

“If you speak with it in your mouth… mm.'”

But instead of answering, he did exactly as she asked – he fell silent, letting his tongue continue its slow, deliberate devotion.

Her moans, choked with sobs, filled the room like a haunting melody – raw, vulnerable and utterly beautiful to him.

Even with such subtle teasing, she was already broken.

Her heart might be fighting him, but her body was telling no lies.

And really – was there anything more intoxicating than a woman who responded so easily… but only to him?

Every time she shattered at the slightest flick of his fingers, something deep and possessive stirred inside him.

‘I want to hear you moan – shameless, obscene – but only for me. Only here, only like this… for the rest of your life.’

The thought came without warning, taking him by surprise. His eyebrows drew together instinctively, as if troubled by the power of his own desire.

When his endless caresses abruptly stopped, Regina looked up in confusion, her eyes glistening with heat and tears.

Meeting her dazed gaze, Grey softened his expression and offered a slow smile.

“I’m reaching my limit too.”

‘Limit…?’

Struggling to think clearly, Regina instinctively lowered her gaze.

The moment she saw the shadow straining against his trousers, ready to tear through them, her eyes widened.

“My heart may be desperate, but if I gave in to my desire now, I doubt your body would emerge unscathed.”

He gathered the scattered remnants of his self-control, piecing together the last fragments of his patience. It was just enough to put on the mask of a gentleman.

Wearing that mask willingly, he leaned down and planted a kiss on her heart.

“You are still unwell. So please, recover quickly. For the sake of your poor husband, if nothing else.”

***

Caught in it all over again.

Regina ran a comb through her tangled hair, a heavy wave of self-recrimination washing over her.

She had made the decision to leave Grey Cabil – but once again, his beauty had effortlessly drawn her in, toyed with her, unravelled her.

Their personalities clashed in the worst way, grating and unbearable…

And yet their bodies fit together like a perfect match.

His scent, the feel of his skin, the curve of his muscles, even the way he moved – every detail seemed designed to weaken her, to cast a spell that held almost absolute power.

On the table, the ornate jewellery box shimmered in the light, the bracelet he’d left behind shining from within.

Regina let out a long sigh as her eyes rested on it, torn between anger and longing.

‘It’s far too much.’

She knew her shy self would be too afraid of scratching it to ever wear it properly. A few flowers – like the ones he used to give Barbara – would have been more than enough.

Regina thought back to a time that was now filled with longing.

There had been days when her husband had given her so many flowers, it was as if he wanted to leave them wherever she went.

Moments, however brief, when she had foolishly believed that he could truly love her.

“As you know, I’m not the most affectionate man, so I might not meet all your expectations. But… I’ll do my best.”

‘You should have told me sooner. If you had, foolish as I am, I would’ve believed you without question. I would have let myself believe that we could return to those days. When even without sleep I felt like I was drifting through a dream. When I ached for you with the heat of a fever, And you looked at me with eyes as bright as the first light of dawn. I’d have believed it all without a second thought.’

“Madam, may I come in?”

At that moment, Dain knocked on the door.

“What is it?”

“A letter arrived from the Marquis of Odair.”

“From my family?”

Dain held out the letter politely with both hands.

The way she looked at Regina cautiously hadn’t been unpleasant since the last incident.

“You may go.”

Through the seal of the envelope, Regina saw the handwriting she had missed so much – her father’s.

It was sealed with wax so it wouldn’t look like Dain had peeked.

[I’m glad you’re out of your coma, my daughter. Thank you for coming back to us.]

The letter began with these words and went on to express her father’s concern and longing.

He wrote that he would be coming to see her soon, and this part made her heart tighten with emotion.

The letter also contained news of their home, the Odair estate.

There were many things she had missed over the past year.

‘So Father started growing grapes last year…’

It came as a surprise.

The speciality of Odair Manor had always been wheat.

The golden fields of wheat that flourished under the scorching summer sun were grown on plains given to the first Marquess by the King himself.

Her father used to say with pride that Odair wheat had once accounted for over 30% of the kingdom’s supply.

But the world had changed – with the development of sailing and the rise of trade between kingdoms,

Wailin began to import wheat from other lands.

Although the quality was slightly inferior, the imported wheat was almost half the price.

It had been a losing battle from the very beginning.

Year after year, House Odair’s finances had steadily fallen apart, collapsing faster than anyone could repair them.

By the time Regina’s father, Ralph, took over, all that was left were empty granaries and a mountain of anxieties.

The letter he sent was filled with hopeful news—raisin bread was gaining popularity, and wine was predicted to become Wailin’s signature export within five years—but the weight he must have carried behind those words was immeasurable.

‘Poor Father.’

Regina didn’t like raisins.