Deceived 96

Chapter 96

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⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁣⁣⁣⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣ ⁣⁠⁣⁠⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁣⁣⁣⁠⁣⁣⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁣⁠⁣⁠What What on earth was he checking?

She had no way of knowing, but she was certain it was something beyond common sense. The moment she saw the man’s face, twisted and tinged with a chilling light, Blair was convinced.

A foreboding premonition clawed at her chest. Without realizing it, Blair took a step back, her back pressing against the cold door.

Just as she realized there was no way to escape, Edmund suddenly reached out his hand.

Expecting contact, Blair flinched and her shoulders trembled. But his body heat didn’t touch her at all. His gaze, which still seemed to pierce right through her, remained unchanged, and Blair could only look up at Edmund and blink.

Click.

She heard the sound of metal locking behind her. She glanced down at the source of the sound and sighed. How foolish of her—only now did she realize it. His hand hadn’t been reaching for her; he’d been locking the door, cutting off her escape route.

“…What are you doing?”

“I hate being interrupted.”

“What kind of nonsense are you trying to pull?”

“Nonsense? Come on, Blair.”

Edmund, who had transformed the spacious room into a private chamber for just the two of them, closed the distance between them once more and chuckled softly.

“I’m simply trying to confirm whether my wife is telling the truth. And I happen to be curious if her love for me is still as strong as ever.”

That smiling face infuriated Blair. She couldn’t stand his attitude, which seemed as if he were casually playing a game. She knew better than anyone that beneath that facade lurked a deeply twisted mind.

“Don’t touch me. I’ll scream.”

“Go ahead.”

“Are you out of your mind?”

“I’m curious. What are you going to say?”

Instead of answering, Blair glared at him fiercely. She bit her lip hard, not wanting him to notice her ragged breathing. Edmund, the corners of his mouth turned up, raised his hand and rubbed her lower lip with his thumb.

“Beg for mercy? Say your husband has gone mad and is trying to intimidate his wife? That would completely destroy my reputation.”

His cool fingers parted her bitten lips and slowly stroked them. His fingertips, invading even the inner flesh, pressed and caressed her lips until their natural shape was distorted.

“If you want me to stop, shouldn’t you be pleading with me? Tell me to stop, beg me, ask me to trust you. You can beg all you want.”

“…….”

“Ah. That sounds like something I’ve heard a lot in bed.”

Blair, who had been repeating only ragged breaths, raised her hand. But before it could even connect with his cheek, her wrist was seized in midair.

“Let go of me!”

“Do you resent me?”

“Yes. You bastard.”

“Then tell me yourself.”

Her heart was pounding so fast that the thudding of her pulse echoed loudly in her ears. Edmund, who had been looking down at Blair as she struggled to steady her breathing, slowly leaned in.

Even as his face drew closer, Blair did not turn away from him. Nor did she close her eyes as if to accept the kiss, as she usually did. Without any hesitation, the man closed the distance between them and pressed a kiss onto her lips.

He didn’t part her lips to enter, but they pressed together so deeply that their soft flesh touched. He buried his firm nose against her slightly plump cheek, scattering her breath. Edmund’s lips parted with a soft pop and remained there for a moment. Then, in that voice so full of tenderness, he whispered,

“Are these lips meant to tell lies, or to call out my name in the heat of passion?”

Her cheeks, flushed bright red, felt unbearably hot. The tears she had struggled so hard to hold back finally spilled over.

“You….”

Her voice, laced with a sob, trembled pitifully. Blair couldn’t hold back the grief welling up inside her.

“Who do you think you are… to keep shaking me like this?”

Edmund said nothing. He didn’t offer any words of comfort or reach out to wipe away her tears. He simply gazed down quietly at the sobbing woman for a while.

Yet the eyes that were filled with her were slightly stiff. That made her angry all over again. It seemed as though he’d provoked her to the limit and was now unsettled by her reaction.

Blair roughly wiped her tears with the back of her hand and turned her head away from his face. Only then did Edmund raise his hand, gently cupping her chin and holding her gaze.

“Blair.”

“Go away.”

“Look at me.”

“No.”

No matter how she turned her head this way and that, she couldn’t escape him. Edmund, who had persistently followed her face, tilted his chin slightly and gently brushed his lips against hers. Four times, five times, and after that, they continued with such a soft smacking sound that counting lost all meaning. Each time their lips met, it was a pitiful kiss. As if he were shedding tears instead of offering an apology.

“If you’re angry with me, just say so. You can blame me and hold it against me, right? I’ll listen to anything.”

“What good would that do now?”

“You want me.”

Edmund continued, almost in a whisper.

“Even if you want to push me away, deep down you want to hold me.”

Breathing heavily, Blair glared at Edmund with reddened eyes.

“So what do you want? Do you want me to lift my skirt and spread my legs right here, where you spend every day in meetings with business partners and poring over documents?”

“I want you to come back to me.”

His lips, laden with confession, brushed away the tears on the corner of Blair’s mouth.

“Just like in the beginning, I want your heart to look only at me.”

For a moment, it felt as if her breath had stopped. Blair closed her eyes tightly, then opened them again, staring at the floor as she let out a trembling breath.

Was what the man before her truly wanted love? Or was it simply a desire for her to be subservient to him once again? She couldn’t believe it at all.

And yet, her foolish heart pounded relentlessly at the confession she’d longed to hear. The affection she’d kept so tightly hidden for him—the love that had been so badly wounded she’d wanted to throw it away—was quietly revealing itself.

“Tell me. What do I need to do to make that happen?”

“…Why are you acting so desperate now?”

“Because I’d do anything for you.”

Edmund let out a short, forced laugh. That twisted smile was self-mockery, resignation, and the arrogance he hadn’t yet managed to let go of. A wave of anger welled up inside her for no reason. Trapped firmly in his arms, all Blair could do was let her sorrow pour out.

“I don’t need it. Not words that aren’t sincere.”

“That’s hurtful. You know I don’t do things I don’t want to do.”

The man finally reached out and pulled Blair into his arms.

“You said you loved me. You said you couldn’t live without me.”

Then he rested his cheek against her sunken shoulder, pressed his lips to the nape of her neck, and kissed her earlobe.

“Tell me now, Blair. Tell me you can’t live without me.”

“…That’s right. I won’t deny it. But what about you?”

Before she knew it, their chests were pressed tightly together, and a rapid, unfamiliar heartbeat was pounding against hers. Edmund, who had been showering her with kisses as if trying to burrow into every inch of her, slowly raised up.

Blair, still gasping for breath, stared straight at him.

“What on earth is going on in your heart?”

“Me too.”

Thump, thump—the beating was now uncontrollable. His voice cracked as his breath caught slightly.

“I love you.”

The confession, uttered in a deep, hushed tone, felt unreal. Blair’s eyes, brimming with tears, trembled.

How long had she waited for him to return her feelings? It was heartbreaking that the man who had never revealed his true feelings despite so many opportunities was confessing his love to her only now.

If only she had heard those words of love before learning of his last will, she wouldn’t have doubted its weight the way she did now… If that had been the case, nothing could have broken her love for him. Back then, she would have been content to be deceived.

“I don’t know. Our conversation should have ended before I heard the will.”

“It’s not too late, even now.”

Edmund gently cupped her face in his hands. His slightly cool body temperature was a warmth she knew all too well. It felt like the perfect temperature to calm their uncontrollably surging emotions for a moment.

Blair remained silent for a while, resting her cheek against his palm. What more could she possibly say at this point? Whether the feelings he offered were genuine or calculated, she had long since lost the ability to tell the difference.

So, even knowing all this, she pretended not to resist and accepted his warmth. Even knowing it might not be sincere, that illusion was her last remaining comfort. She wanted to pretend not to know—to embrace the lingering embers of the emotion she had once called love, and the feelings he had revealed far too late.

Edmund, gazing down at Blair as she stubbornly clung to her silence, took hold of her face once more. Clutching her tightly with both hands so she couldn’t escape, he devoured her lips as if racing against time.