Chapter 50
Beth’s fingers hesitated before slipping out of Debert’s hand. Unable to hide her feelings, she clutched her worn skirt beneath the table.
Debert rested his chin on the side table, his narrowed eyes scrutinising her as if testing her.
“This isn’t like you.”
His fingers, laced with a hint of irritation, drummed rhythmically on the table.
He was right. Beth Jane wasn’t acting like herself.
The hollow laughter on the forest path, the meaningless questions—it was unlike her. Her usually bright, black eyes seemed lost in an undefined void.
“You have to trust me.”
At his words, Beth briefly lifted her head.
“You have no choice but to trust me.”
Debert slowly stood, rounding the table to stand beside her. His imposing shadow fell over her, but it gradually diminished in size.
Beth glanced at the man kneeling on one knee beside her. He was looking up at her, his eyes locked onto hers.
“You know I have no choice but to trust you.”
His gentle prodding continued.
“Have you thought about your answer?”
Beth gazed into his eyes as if entranced, seeing only herself reflected in them.
She was reminded of the first time she had met him. Although the same person occupied her gaze, the warmth now was entirely different.
Beth nodded slowly. Her response was unexpected, and one of Debert’s eyebrows lifted slightly. A hint of a smile touched the corners of his eyes.
“So, your answer?”
A shadow crossed Debert’s face. The faint fragrance of Beth wafted to his nose, teasingly intoxicating him, just before her lukewarm lips met his.
When Beth lifted her head again, her eyes were as calm as the midnight sea.
“This really isn’t like you.”
Debert’s large hand cupped one side of her face, and the warmth from his calloused palm seeped into her skin.
When Beth leaned into his hand, the soft texture became even more pronounced.
“Don’t keep tormenting me.”
At his petulant words, Beth let out a soft laugh. His fingers traced her face as if engraving it in his memory.
Her prominent forehead, the gently curved eyes, the slightly flushed cheeks warmed by emotion, and finally, her now slightly reddened lips.
His dry fingertips brushed her lips a few times, which felt like ripe berries on a snowy field. He was parched.
“How sweetly do you plan to reject me?”
Debert muttered absentmindedly.
Beth cupped his face with both hands. Although her small hands couldn’t cover all of him, seeing him so willingly follow her lead made her heart race.
This time, she pressed her lips to his with more force, eliciting a low groan from his throat.
In the heat of their shared breaths, Debert’s hand gripped the chair’s backrest tightly, veins bulging on his hand as he fought for control.
“No.”
Debert abruptly stood and stepped back, the tension evident in his neck, where the blue veins stood out starkly.
“I’ll take you back.”
Beth quickly grabbed his collar as he tried to leave. Debert sighed in resignation.
Beth gently pushed him back. Debert stepped back several times, his boot heels hitting the metal bedframe. Taking a deep breath, Beth seemed to make a final decision and gave him one more push.
Debert fell back onto the bed, his eyes filled with intense desire.
“Beth.”
[Stay the night.]
Beth’s gaze was unwavering as she looked at him. She had no regrets.
“Do you understand what that means—”
Before he could finish his warning, Beth silently undid the first button of his shirt. The previously immaculate shirt now had its top button undone, revealing the prominent Adam’s apple that bobbed visibly.
When she undid the second button, the muscles in Debert’s jaw twitched.
Her hand paused as it reached for the third button, noticing the bandages stained with blood beneath the loose fabric.
Beth bit her lip, but before she could undo the third button, Debert grabbed her waist, pulling her onto his lap. Beth’s body spun as she landed on the bed, her ebony hair scattering across the worn mattress.
Debert’s lips urgently sought hers, his tongue invading her mouth insistently.
Beth instinctively turned her head, but before she could catch her breath, Debert pressed his lips to hers again.
The kiss was far more intense than Beth’s earlier one, the heat between them undeniable.
In the quiet of the tent, the only sound was the wet, sloppy noise of their lips meeting and parting. After what felt like an eternity of tormenting Beth with his kisses, Debert finally pulled away slightly, whispering.
“If you say no, I’ll stop.”
His lips hovered tantalisingly close, brushing against hers as he spoke. Debert crinkled his nose playfully, as if to assure her that he meant it.
“Really.”
It was a promise that was hard to keep but one he had no choice but to uphold. Debert’s fingers threaded through her dark hair, the silky texture soothing his frayed nerves.
As he lifted his half-bent arm, he could see Beth’s dark eyes darting around beneath him. She looked like a startled deer, and Debert couldn’t help but chuckle. It only made him feel more like a beast.
What had possessed her to act so boldly?
Debert tried to quell the desire rising within him, anticipating that he would soon have to pull back.
But the effort was futile as Beth’s hands encircled his neck, pulling him close. Debert buried his face in her embrace, holding his breath.
Her small fingers tapped lightly on his sensitised back.
“Yes. I’m listening.”
Beth’s voice echoed through the stiff fabric of his shirt. Debert closed his eyes, tracing her voice in his mind. (T/L: He is imagining her voice.)
Debert nestled deeper into the small embrace that was significantly smaller than his own.
[I]
Beth’s voice settled between his twitching muscles and the scars etched into his body.
[love you]
Ah, Debert recalled Beth’s earlier question. That audacious question of whether he trusted her.
How could I not trust you?
It was a battle he was bound to lose. He was certain he’d surrender to this small woman time and again.
Debert slowly lifted his head and brushed his lips against Beth’s delicate ear. He laughed softly at her slight flinch.
“Even if you say no now, it’s too late.”
It was a sweet warning, a signal for the long night ahead.
As his lips trailed down her slender jawline, they moved towards her pale neck. Meanwhile, his hands, with deliberate precision, began unbuttoning her dress.
His lips, which had descended to her delicate collarbone, soon moved to the white slip beneath. Each time his lips touched her, Beth’s ribs heaved with shallow breaths.
“Are you cold?”
Debert asked, his lips still pressed to her skin, as if unaware of her embarrassment. Beth shook her head. There was no way she could feel cold when that strange warmth kept creeping up her spine.
When Debert’s hand touched a place she thought no one else would ever touch, Beth grabbed his shoulder in a sudden panic.
He, unfazed, merely pressed a deep kiss to her hand as it clutched at him. When she withdrew her now-flushed hand in embarrassment, Debert’s lips curled into a playful smirk.
“We have a long way to go, Miss Beth Jane.”
His tone was gentlemanly and straightforward, which only made Beth blush harder.
His hand that had grasped her delicate ankle slowly moved upward. As it traced her slender calf and tender thigh, its presence became unmistakably clear.
Beth let out a short, sharp breath. When Debert firmly gripped her thigh and lowered his head, she could only cling to his shoulder as though she might cry.
He was more relentless than when they had kissed. The strength drained from Beth’s hands, which had clutched at his shoulder as if to scratch him.
“It might hurt.”
Debert whispered, gently caressing the tear-streaked corners of Beth’s eyes. Soon, a beast-like growl escaped from his throat.
Beth could only cling to him, accepting his presence as it forcefully entered her. Her breath hitched, obstructed by the chaos in her throat.
Each movement Debert made caused the old iron frame of the narrow bed to creak loudly.
As Debert filled her completely, Beth’s lips parted like a blossoming flower. And he wasn’t a man to miss such an opportunity. There wasn’t a place, above or below, that he didn’t claim as his own.
“Haah.”
Every time his hand gripped the slope beneath her collarbone and hit its mark, Beth’s shoulders curled inwards. She could feel his breath growing increasingly rough in her ear.
“Beth… Beth….”
Hearing his voice, which was filled with unmistakable excitement, Beth struggled to hold on to what little sense remained. There wasn’t a single place left untouched.
Debert was similarly overwhelmed, his mind clouded with heat.
Though he felt as if he were drunk, his mind grew clearer with each moment. The soft curves of Beth’s body against his own only served to stoke the fire within him.
His taut muscles revealed themselves as he moved. The thirst that couldn’t be quenched only made him move more urgently.
As his movements grew more intense, a moan escaped Debert’s lips. At the same time, Beth’s slender arms tightened around him, holding on for dear life.
At the peak of that unbearable climax, Debert collapsed onto Beth. Their sweat-slicked bodies fit together perfectly. Their ragged breaths echoed in each other’s ears.
“Beth… Beth Jane.”
At the end of her trembling eyelashes, a tear clung desperately. Debert, as if it were precious, captured it with his lips. He gently wiped away each tear over and over again.
The winter night had only just begun.
(T/L: I don’t know why, but this chapter saddens me.)
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TRANSLATOR:
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