Chapter 27
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 27
“If light is getting in, that’s a problem. It means rain will leak through.”
“So that’s what this was about.”
It was a murmur of understanding, not a question. Vanessa followed River Ross’s gaze and scanned the ceiling. Whenever she spotted a faint sliver of light and pointed it out, he meticulously patched the spot with a wooden board and nailed it down. After they had thoroughly inspected every nook and cranny, Vanessa turned around in the gloom.
“I don’t think there are any more.”
“We won’t know for sure until it rains, but this should do for now.”
“Isn’t it dangerous? What if the whole thing collapses?”
“It’s not that bad.”
“You should just move into the castle. You could use the servants’ quarters.”
“I don’t really like dealing with people.”
It was too dark to make out his expression, but his resolve was unmistakable. Vanessa pursed her lips in worry before schooling her features. Though old, the building wasn’t on the verge of immediate collapse. It had held up well enough despite being abandoned for years.
“Can I open the window now?”
“Go ahead.”
As she drew back the curtains and pushed the window open, a muggy breeze rushed into the stifling room. Vanessa greedily inhaled the fresh air. The days had grown significantly hotter, but the breeze was still cooler than the stagnant air trapped inside. She was letting the wind dry her sweat-dampened hair when she turned back around.
“……”
A man’s bare chest suddenly filled her vision. It hadn’t materialized out of thin air, but the surprise of it made it feel that way. Having discarded his cumbersome shirt at some point, River Ross’s upper body was slick with sweat.
Her gaze, utterly captivated, refused to move. Then again, there was nowhere else to look. The hallway was blocked with clutter, and the bedroom, barely large enough for a bed, was so cramped that two people filled it to capacity. It wasn't a space meant for living, and they were simply standing too close to begin with.
At some point, her thoughts began to sound like excuses. The man’s well-muscled torso resembled the famous sculptures of Notos. Just looking at him made her throat run dry.
“…Can I touch you?”
As she instinctively reached for his chest, her wrist was caught. His hand was large and firm—a stark reminder that he was, indeed, a man.
“After I wash up.”
He raised an eyebrow, amused by her audacity, but his reply was casual, as if it were nothing.
“Now. Just like this.”
A faint heat laced Vanessa’s voice as she stubbornly insisted. This was her first time seeing a man’s body up close. The last time he had held her, she had been too dazed, and he hadn’t been fully undressed anyway.
Thinking about it now, it felt a little unfair. As she held his gaze, River Ross cupped her cheek with his warm hand. His green eyes caught a thin shaft of sunlight, gleaming brightly.
“Are you serious?”
“Yes. So lie down. Right here.”
When she pushed his chest with her fingertips, River Ross sank onto the bed with a soft thud. She hadn't pushed him hard; he was essentially letting himself be moved. Propping himself up lazily on an elbow, he looked like an ancient god draped in a himation, taking for granted the lifebreath of a sacrifice offered by a priestess.
Vanessa straddled him, slowly settling onto his firm abdomen. She watched his taut Adam’s apple bob up and down. After staring for a moment, she remembered her original purpose and began to examine his torso.
“……”
Everything about him was so different from her, filling her with a sense of wonder. His broad shoulders, the strong column of his neck, the long, finely sculpted muscles, the veins tracing fluid paths along their contours, and the solid line of his bones.
She placed her hand on his chest, which rose and fell with each slow breath. Everything beneath her palm was hot and smooth. His body felt as if it had been forged from bronze fresh from the furnace—hard yet supple, pulsing with the vigorous life a god had breathed into it.
His waist tapered from his broad torso like a drawn bow, and his tight abdominal muscles were flawless. Like this, a little lower, just a little lower…
“Vanessa.”
As her hand traced down his abdomen, heading lower, he called her name in a deep, low voice. His breath was shallow. Only then did Vanessa register the heat smoldering in his eyes—and the desire that had already been pulsing beneath her.
She grabbed his shoulders and pushed down hard. River Ross willingly fell back onto the bed, as if curious to see how far she would go. Gripping his wrists with her small hands, she found they were more than a handful as she pinned them to the bed.
Her disheveled hair fell forward like a veil. The man, held by her in the very way he had once held her, was beautiful. A twisted thrill surged through her. To see this man—the absolute pinnacle of physical masculinity—lying so helplessly pinned by a mere woman’s hands was intoxicating, even if she knew he was only letting her.
“You’re beautiful.”
She whispered the praise she had heard countless times from men, speaking it directly to his face. He truly was dazzlingly beautiful, and she felt she could finally understand what those men had felt.
River Ross immediately furrowed his brow and let out a dry laugh.
“That’s the first time I’ve ever heard such crazy nonsense.”
Well, it was her first time saying it, so that seemed fair. Brushing off his complaint, Vanessa traced her fingertips down his forearm.
It was strange how sweat-dampened skin could be so alluring. On a midsummer afternoon, in weather so hot it felt like sitting before a furnace, any accidental touch of skin should have been irritating. Yet, was it normal to wish they could cling to each other like this forever, melting into one?
“Your gaze is getting more and more indecent.”
In an instant, their positions were reversed. Before she knew it, she was the one pinned beneath him, held in the exact same way. As she looked up blankly, like a child whose favorite toy had been snatched away, River Ross smirked.
“A deal should be equal, Vanessa.”
His firm hand slipped beneath her thin blouse, cupping her rounded breast. A teasing smile played on his lips.
“After all, those are the terms you prefer.”
His tilted face descended, softly swallowing her lips, which were flushed with excitement. It was the beginning of the night they had both been waiting for.
* * *
When she finally drifted back to consciousness, it was dawn. A bluish light, like dark blue ink dissolved in water, enveloped their surroundings. It wouldn't be long before the first light of daybreak.
Vanessa rubbed her heavy eyelids and curled inward. Sensing the slight movement, the arm around her waist tightened. A hand immediately found and cupped the breast peeking out from the open front of her crumpled dress.
“You’re finally awake. You’ve been mumbling this whole time.”
“Ah, ah…”
“I’ve been holding back… It’s been killing me.”
His erection, swelling inside her once more, felt impossibly tight. Vanessa’s body, which had been limp with sleep, tensed. It felt as though a dry spark was forcing its way inside, stretching her open.
River Ross adjusted his hold, parting her legs to wrap them around his waist. Instinctively, she dug her nails into his shoulders and back, clinging to him. He bit her earlobe, letting out a low groan.
“Don’t… squeeze so hard. Relax.”
As he pressed his upper body flush against hers, Vanessa buried her face in the crook of his neck. His heat transferred to her, and her own excitement flared in response. It didn’t take long for moisture to seep back into her dry depths.
After all, her insides were already a slick mess of their mingled fluids from the multiple climaxes they had already shared.
“I just… woke up… Ah… mmph…”
“Go back to sleep. If you can.”
“No, ah, mm… ah…”
Her “no” was no longer a real objection between them—not from the moment she uttered it while instinctively wrapping both legs around his waist.
As he drew back, the fluids pooled inside her trickled down his length. River Ross caught the escaping wetness with his hand and rubbed it over the place where they were joined.
His slick, firm fingers pressed against her clitoris. The sensation was so intensely raw that her back arched on its own. With that, his thrusts angled even deeper.
Panting, Vanessa squeezed his thick waist with her thighs. Her white muslin dress crumpled once more beneath his large hands. He bit down sharply on her prominent nipple through the fabric—exposed since her underwear had long been stripped away—before gently licking and sucking it.
Her mind grew hazy, and she must have instinctively squeezed him tighter with every intensifying wave of pleasure. A sudden chuckle escaped the man's lips, brushing against her feverish forehead and ear.
“Vanessa. Don’t… squeeze me like that.”
River Ross’s Adam’s apple bobbed. Grabbing her hips to pull them apart, he roughly buried himself all the way inside her. Each time the hard pillar of his flesh plunged deep, their arousal fluids sloshed and splattered.
“Ah, ah!”
Her thoroughly melted inner walls greedily swallowed him whole. Their connection was so hot it felt as though they would melt together and fuse forever.