Reasons for Contract Marriage - Chapter 132

Brianna turned her head and looked at Lucius. At some point, he had woken and was leaning slightly to one side, propping his head up with one arm as he stared at her. Like a beast crouched in the dark, watching its prey.

Brianna smiled. “Ah, you’re awake? I was just…”

“Come here, Brianna.”

He could have asked why she was up at this hour, but Lucius first demanded she return to him. Displeasure was written all over his face, as if something that should be in his arms had slipped away without him noticing.

Brianna lowered her knees that had been supporting her chin. She stepped onto the floor barefoot and rose from the chair.

“I woke up thirsty. At first, I just meant to get some water, but then I couldn’t fall back asleep…”

She mumbled excuses as she slowly approached him. She hadn’t done anything wrong, yet she felt oddly guilty. That’s how foul his mood seemed—it was almost frightening to approach.

“But why are you still awake…”

Before she could finish, he grabbed her arm and pulled her. Her body collapsed onto the bed, and before she knew it, Lucius had climbed on top of her.

“Mmph…”

His tongue immediately parted her lips. At the same time, he yanked down her robe, baring her body once more. His fingers slipped between her legs. That place, still damp from the seed he had poured into her just hours ago, welcomed his touch. As his thick fingers stroked and pressed against the tender flesh, Brianna let out a muffled moan through their kiss.

“Luce…”

She tried to stop him for a moment, but he didn’t pull back. As if he had forgotten they’d already joined several times before falling asleep, he toyed with her secret place and reignited her body. In the end, Brianna wrapped her arms around him in surrender and kissed him fervently.

Soon, his thick member scraped against her inner walls as it filled her tightly below. The foreplay had been brief, but perhaps because of the residual fluid inside her, it didn’t hurt. Instead, it felt even hotter and smoother, drawing out a moan.

“Mmm! Nngh…”

As he started moving, Brianna let out soft, breathy moans—until his lips sealed hers again, turning them into muffled whimpers.

Though he liked hearing her cry out during sex, Lucius also seemed to enjoy muffling her with kisses. It had become routine for him to kiss her deeply and unrelentingly every time they were together—so much so that she could barely recall the last time they’d made love without kissing.

While his hips pounded into her with intense force, she grew short of breath, and it became hard to breathe.

“Ah!”

And just like always, Lucius noticed instantly. He either pulled away to let her catch her breath—or, like now, he flipped her over.

“Ngh!”

Feeling him thrust back in from behind, Brianna gasped into the blanket. Her fingers curled instinctively, clutching the covers.

Usually, after a particularly intense or drawn-out night, their morning couplings were gentler. But not today. And in this position, he tended to be even rougher.

The problem was that she couldn’t control him in this posture. Though she lacked extensive knowledge about pregnancy, she had a hunch—if she was pregnant, such vigorous intercourse might not be good for the baby.

“Luce, gently…”

Before she could finish, his tongue licked her nape. As if to ease her worries, he kissed her neck and back several times, then began to move again. Slowly, gently.

His hand expertly cupped her bouncing breast, his fingertips rubbing her nipple. Deep moans spilled over her back.

Before long, Brianna was lost in pleasure, swaying with him. When he buried himself to the root and poured himself inside her, a loud cry burst from her lips. The climax hit hard, clouding her mind.

She could no longer remember what had been troubling her moments ago. All she could feel was the heat of the man enveloping her and the warmth spreading inside her. Maybe… this was what she wanted all along. To be here, with him, not thinking about anything.

A little while later, as his arms wrapped around her body, Brianna closed her eyes. Sleep came quickly.

“Brianna, I…”

She thought he might have whispered something—but she soon fell into a deep sleep.

***

The Thanksgiving celebrated by the nobles was quite different from what Brianna knew. By definition, Thanksgiving should be a time to express gratitude and acknowledge the hard work of the year while reflecting on the harvest—but the nobles mostly spent the day enjoying various sports and games. When she asked why, Lucius gave a simple answer.

“Because that day has always brought the most money to the nobles. If there’s money, then you should enjoy it.”

As Brianna adjusted his collar, she grumbled in a sulky tone, “So all the hard work falls to the others, and they just get to have fun?”

“Isn’t it even more shameless to act like you toiled in the fields when you haven’t pulled a single weed?”

This time, Brianna picked up the vest. Lucius bent his knees slightly to help her dress him more easily. As she fastened each button one by one, she continued speaking.

“We also played simple games during Thanksgiving. It wasn’t just about eating roast pig.”

“Like what?”

“Things like a wife-carrying race.”

Lucius burst into laughter. “Is it exactly what it sounds like—a race where you carry your wife?”

“Yes. If you don’t have a wife, you carry your girlfriend, or maybe a woman you’ve had feelings for. Thanks to that game, quite a few couples ended up getting married.”

Brianna chatted cheerfully about the events they held in Harzen for Thanksgiving. Lucius listened with sparkling eyes.

“So what happens if the man is too weak and drops out early?”

“Then they break up. In Harzen, a man without strength is as unpopular as a eunuch.”

Lucius now let out a full-throated laugh, his chest heaving with amusement. Brianna shot him a glare when it became hard to fasten the vest’s buttons because of his laughter. Only then did Lucius stop laughing and kiss her cheek with a smooch.

“Good thing I’m neither of those.”

“Actually, my parents supposedly got married thanks to that race.”

Surprise immediately flashed across Lucius’s face.

“Really?”

“My father used to be a mercenary, mostly active on the battlefield. One day, he went to Harzen with a fellow mercenary just to make a little pocket money and happened to see my mother. He fell for her at first sight.”

Her father had been quite the well-regarded mercenary in his youth. He was so skilled that he was hired at high prices for various wars, meaning he had never needed to hunt monsters. Compared to war, monster hunting didn’t pay much.

It was during a visit to Harzen, originally just to earn a bit of extra money, that he met her mother. The moment he saw her, he apparently thought, She’s the one.

“He must have heard somewhere that winning first place in the wife-carrying race meant you could marry the woman. So he just picked up my mom, who was minding her own business, and started running. The problem was that he got a little too enthusiastic.”

Brianna now began helping him into his hunting jacket, and Lucius tilted his head slightly.

“Too enthusiastic? What do you mean?”

“He was so determined to win that he slung her over his shoulder like a sack of grain. Everyone else was carrying their partners princess-style. He came in first by a landslide, and when he went to confess his feelings, she slapped him.”

Lucius burst into loud, wheezing laughter.

“She stormed off, furious. He just stood there, stunned, wondering why he got slapped despite winning. Apparently, it was a total disaster. Later, he finally realized what he had done wrong and begged her forgiveness on his knees.”