Chapter 50
“What are you doing?”
Her voice was low, still heavy with sleep.
Eliana flinched as Grady gripped her ankle, then slowly tried to pull her leg back beneath her dress. She didn’t even have time to register the cold touch of metal—what mattered more was why he was holding her ankle in the first place.
“…There were too many eyes watching. I had no choice.”
“What do you mean?”
Now fully awake, Eliana sat up and pressed herself into the corner of the sofa, warily watching Grady. He clicked his tongue at her reaction.
“For a couple who supposedly married for love, things are looking a little too dull, don’t you think?”
“……”
“I meant, there are a lot of people watching us.”
Grady raked a hand through his hair. Though his hand trembled ever so slightly, Eliana didn’t notice.
“Ah… Should we go out for dinner later then?”
Realizing his meaning, Eliana sighed quietly and asked. The weight of having to put on an act in front of others—something she’d been freed from while trapped in the mansion—pressed down on her again.
Still, she didn’t mind being with Grady. At least when he was around, Viscount Hoffman wouldn’t dare come near her.
“Is that a date invitation?”
“…What?”
Startled, Eliana looked up. Grady, still rubbing his chin with a slight frown, smirked arrogantly.
“I’m busy, but I suppose I have no choice.”
“If you’re busy, you really don’t have to—”
“I’ll wait. Just come out when you’re ready.”
Without waiting for her reply, Grady turned and strode toward the drawing room’s terrace. He flung open the window, letting a wave of cold air rush in, brushing against his flushed face.
He stopped.
On the dirt floor outside, a drawing had been trampled underfoot beyond recognition. Though its form was ruined, Grady had a good idea of who it had once depicted.
He stared at the marks for a moment, then turned around.
Hanging halfway out the window was Eliana, peering curiously at him. She’d just been asleep moments ago.
Who had drawn it? He wasn’t sure. But who the model was—he knew.
A strange sense of discomfort stirred in his chest.
“Grady! Is something wrong?”
Eliana leaned out the open window and called out. The cold wind whipped at her ankles and rushed up toward her.
Grady strode toward her and pushed her gently back inside.
“How long are you going to make me wait? Didn’t you invite me on this date?”
At his words, Eliana flushed red and scurried off.
Grady turned back to the barren winter garden. Nothing stirred except the biting wind.
Laola’s Diary: Today’s Entry
Did you know? This morning, Duke Cryber went horseback riding at dawn!
Here’s to Duke Cryber, who’s once again survived the seductive temptress. Cheers!
Grady chuckled dryly as he read the diary included in the yellow-press newspaper.
He was used to seeing himself in the headlines. Most of the time, they were nonsense involving Empress Rozella. But lately, the stories had shifted from scandal to speculation—on whether or not Grady Cryber was still alive.
He never imagined his daily awakening would become a matter of public interest.
“Seems like everyone’s really invested in whether I’m still breathing.”
He tossed the newspaper aside and gently stroked Eliana’s cheek with the back of his hand. A nearby maid, who’d been attending them, quickly bowed her head.
Grady glanced at the maid’s now flushed cheeks, then continued his idle caress. As Eliana let out a quiet sigh and turned her head slightly, her lips brushed against his fingers.
“Is that so?”
Her voice was lower than usual, perhaps due to the early hour.
Every time she opened her mouth to speak, her tongue brushed his fingertips. Grady swallowed dryly without thinking.
“I don’t remember getting this much attention even when I was at war.”
As his voice slowed deliberately, his hand drifted from her lips and slid toward her nape. The cold touch of his fingers made her tense up instinctively.
He pushed his large hand into her carefully styled hair. His dark eyes bore into her, licking her with intensity. Eliana couldn’t help but lower her gaze and swallow.
“Eliana Cryber, what do you think? Do you think I’ll end up like your previous husbands—dead after sleeping with you?”
Thunder rumbled.
Lightning flashed—and suddenly, the bloodied visage of her late husband, the marquis, glared at her.
“Ah…”
Startled by the hallucination, her lips parted—and Grady’s tongue swiftly invaded.
Eliana accepted the kiss passively, then slowly wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. The painful memory dulled beneath his rude kiss.
The drawing room door opened and shut in the distance.
“Haa…”
“Why so eager?”
As soon as the maid left, Grady pulled back from the kiss. But Eliana’s arms were still wound around his neck.
Breath spilled from her small lips in heavy pants, sweet and hot. But instead of savoring the moment, Grady tilted his mouth into a mocking smirk.
He didn’t know why, but he felt like he had to.
This was all just an assignment, he reminded himself. A task handed down by Empress Rozella, not something he did by choice. Only by insisting on that could he silence the pounding in his chest that betrayed his master’s will.
“You’re the one who wanted this, weren’t you?”
“If I want it, does that mean you’ll always give in so easily?”
Beyond Grady’s shoulder, she could see the marquis again—staring at her.
Eliana closed her eyes.
She ignored the persistent hallucination and leaned in first, seeking Grady’s lips. He responded, suckling her lower lip before breaking away.
“We don’t look like a political couple. We look like lovers who actually care for each other. Most arranged couples don’t devour each other like this.”
He wiped the shine from her lips with his thumb and grinned. But the smile was awkward, as though he were hiding something.
“…Because we’re a love-match, remember? A reckless rake and a seductress who fell in love at first sight.”
Grady’s expression vanished. He gently unwrapped her arms from around his neck and spoke again.
“The marquis—wasn’t the cause of death a heart attack?”
Eliana, who had been staring down at her displaced arms, looked up at him. Her chest heaved from their rough kiss, and her red lips made her pale face look even whiter.
“What are you trying to say?”
“I was just wondering… why your previous husbands died. Since you’re keeping your lips sealed, I figured I’d have to find out on my own.”
“……”
“I even went to find the undertaker who handled the marquis’s funeral—but he’s already gone.”
His tone was light, but Eliana couldn’t hide her unease. She kept swallowing nervously.
“I don’t know anything about that.”
Her voice was soft, barely audible—but not enough that Grady couldn’t hear.
“I guess it must’ve been shocking. One minute you’re lost in passion, the next, he drops dead. Must’ve been quite the surprise.”
Grady gently stroked her face. Eliana tilted her head into his touch.
“……”
“And yet, you still want to do it again? If it were me, I’d be sick of it by now.”
His voice was calm—so calm it almost sounded comforting. Eliana nearly mistook it for concern.
Grady smiled.
He kissed her forehead with a loud, playful smooch, then pulled away.
“But I get it. I’m curious too. Especially about what you’re like in bed.”
“……”
He took Eliana’s hand and placed it over his chest.
“Is this what they call the seductive power of a deadly temptress?”
Beneath her palm, his heart thudded powerfully.
Thump.
Thump.
His heartbeat was wild and erratic, as if it might burst at any moment.
“And all it took was a little kissing…”
In an instant, her view flipped. Grady loomed above her, smiling leisurely.
He had slid between her legs in a blink, and her dress now barely covered her thighs. His hot hands glided up the sheer silk stockings that clung to her slender legs.
“…No wonder the marquis didn’t survive.”
His deep voice was husky. His teasing, near-kissing breath burned her cheek.
The boldness she had shown earlier, wrapping her arms around him first, had vanished. She struggled beneath his weight, unable to bear the pressure.
As his breath traced down her neck, she couldn’t take it anymore and pushed at his head.
Grady stopped and met her gaze, holding his breath just above her pounding chest.
Then, slowly, he stuck out his tongue and licked the back of her hand—like he was asking for permission.
Startled by the wetness, Eliana pulled her hand back. But the moment she did, Grady’s lips found the swell of her chest.
