“I’m not sure,” Maude lied. Every cell in her body was screaming that there were very few things in the world that would cause her to change her ways…and Jaspar was not on that list.

“Well,” Jaspar said with what looked like a bit of a forlorn expression. “I’ll do my best to ask for something that requires less death,” he said. “Or at least less violence.”

Maude nodded, her stomach slowly sinking further into her abdomen. The anxiety she was hoping talking to him would help her subside was starting to build again.

Jaspar was still looking over at Maude. “Are you starting to panic?” he asked.

Maude only vaguely heard his question amongst the whirlwind of thoughts and emotions that were running through her. She stared up at the ceiling, running through all of the possibilities.

I don’t want to start over again, she thought. I’ve only just gotten established in Aulbert. If I go somewhere else, I will have to start completely anew once more. I’ll have no friends, no one to talk to, no one to spar with. No one to tell me it will all work out and be alright. I’ll have no one. And in a lot of ways, it will be a lot like living in the Holloway manor all over again, because I will have nothing.

She paused in her thinking. Could I really fight in a war to protect what I have here in Aulbert? There was a moment of silence in her mind while she considered what it might look like if she did fight.

No, no, I couldn’t, she decided. I can’t fight. I can’t be like them. I cannot use violence for my own gain.

“Maude,” Jaspar’s voice said behind her, as a gentle hand touched her shoulder.

She turned to meet his warm eyes. He kissed her gently on the mouth instead.

At first, she’d widened her eyes with surprise, but they gently closed and she found herself pulling him closer to her, deepening the kiss.

He backed away, gently from her. “I promise that if you’re not able to meet whatever requirement the king may have for you, or he tells me there is no way to have you gain citizenship, that I will ensure you have an opportunity to escape Aulbert,” Jaspar murmured. “I couldn’t live with myself if I had to watch you die.”

“Thank you,” Maude whispered back in response. Though I hope it doesn’t come to that, she added privately.

“I believe you’ll be more than capable to meet any requirements the king may have for you, though,” he murmured, gently kissing her in her ear as he said the words.

He pulled back, and then gently kissed her on the lips again. She pulled him in closer. More, more… she thought.

He tumbled on top of her, on the couch. His breath was heavier than usual. She pulled him in closer, their lips almost inseparable.

Her hands were rubbing all over his back as their tongues met, both of them unable to hold back the visceral reaction to groan from the pleasure. His hands were threaded through her hair, pulling her face as tightly to his as possible. He started kissing her neck, his hands, making their way further down her body.

“Maude,” he softly panted. “I want all of you.”

She felt her heart skip a beat. “You can have all of me,” she whispered softly, her heart thudding in her chest.

His lips found their way back to hers, and he explored every inch of her mouth with his tongue. Her body felt like it was on fire. She was moving her hips under Jaspar’s in rhythm with his.

“Are you certain?” he asked her, breathing heavily. “You are a lady, and it’s something you’ll never be able to take back.”

I’m not a lady anymore, Maude thought. If Aulbert is not willing to become my home, then I am homeless. A mere commoner with a special ability.

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“I’m certain,” she replied, before finding his lips again, and crushing hers against them. He moved with desire, and his hands found their way onto her breasts.

The warmth that was in her core was heating up, to the point that her desire for Jaspar was beginning to spill over, threatening to take over and consume the both of them.

“I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life,” she murmured, before gently lifting her dress up for easier access.

Jaspar’s eyes peered down on her, filled with voracious, lustful desire. He kissed her inner thigh, glancing up to gauge her reaction.

Maude could barely hold herself back from begging Jaspar for more. She tried to make a face back at him to communicate her own appetite for him. She could tell from the glint in his eye that her message had been received.

He kissed her on the lips. “I love you, Maude,” he said softly.

“I love you, Jaspar,” she replied.

The night was theirs and there was nothing in the world that could stop them.

~

Maude’s eyes fluttered open in a room she’d only seen for the first time the night before. The room already felt more like home than her bedroom in the attic of the Holloway manor ever had.

Every bit of the space was filled with Jaspar. Bits of his personality that she’d yet to experience, such as the collection of knicknacks from every city he’d visited, were evidenced in the room. He had a collection of pocket watches, and unsurprisingly, another desk in his room filled with more ledgers and documents.

“Do you ever stop working?” she’d asked him the moment she’d seen the desk.

He had grinned at her, his eyes filled with desire and greed. “I’m a very busy man,” he’d murmured, coming up behind her and kissing her neck.

Now, laying in his bed, next to a sleeping Jaspar, Maude shivered at the memories of the night before. For the first time in her life, she’d felt wanted. There hadn’t been one inch of her being that he hadn’t explored. He’d asked her the story behind every single scar. And after telling him all of them, he’d still looked at her with desire and love married into one.

I could have never imagined having a partner in life could possibly feel this good, she thought while staring at his sleeping face next to her.

She gently stroked his hair. It was soft and fine, and it felt like rows of silk running through her fingers. Up until recently, she’d never been allowed to touch anyone’s hair other than her own. Someone else’s touch, just like their hair, was a completely different experience.

“And I used to think I could manage going through life entirely on my own,” she murmured softly. She couldn’t help but chuckle to herself. “How foolish I was,” she added.

“You’re not foolish,” Jaspar replied, not opening his eyes. “You’ve just been hurt.”

“You’re awake?” Maude asked.

“How could I not be awake with such an incredible woman stroking my hair?” he asked, peeling one eye open. “And she’s impeccably beautiful in the morning as well.”

Maude giggled shyly. “Despite my pillow hair?” she asked.

“Pillow hair?” he replied. “What’s not to like about that?” he asked in a sultry voice. Maude felt her body tingle in response.

My god, she thought. This man has so much power over me.

Maude smiled at him in a scolding way, and he chuckled and closed his eye. “You’re so breathtaking,” he said. “It saddens me how few people in your life have acknowledged that.”

“Hmm,” Maude replied, a warm smile filling her cheeks. Her face felt warmer. “I’m still glad you at least think so.”

He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. “You’re the love of my life,” he murmured into her hair. “I can’t imagine my life without you at this point.”

“I feel the same,” she replied. “I never thought that I could possibly ever find someone I could love as much as I love you.”

“Hmm,” he replied back, making his own cute noise of acknowledgement. “I recently discussed you becoming a citizen of Aulbert with the king. He said he will let us know when he determines what options you have.”

Maude breathed a sigh of relief, and a dam she’d been holding inside released. “I just hope it’s something feasible.”

“If it’s not, we’ll figure something out,” he replied, snuggling into her tighter. “There’s also a ball coming up for Prince Erich’s birthday. It would be good for me to introduce you to him.”

Maude swallowed hard. “Why?” she asked.

“He’s one of my dearest friends,” Jaspar answered, stroking her hair. “And as the crown prince, he has a lot of leverage with the king.”

“That sounds good, then,” Maude agreed.

“Will you be my partner to that ball, as well, Lady Maude?” he asked, taking her hand and putting it to his lips.

Maude giggled and blushed, meeting his eyes. “I’d love to accompany you to all the balls for the rest of your life.”

Jaspar was giving her bedroom eyes once more. “Lady Maude, that sounds quite lovely,” he said, moving in for a kiss. Their lips met, and he held her tightly to himself, unable to prevent a groan escaping from his throat.

“God, I could never get tired of kissing you,” he whispered, before coming back in for another kiss. He gently pulled her on top of him, doing his best to keep their lips together.

“Don’t you need to work today?” Maude asked, pulling back on her own, despite her body desperately aching for more.

“It can wait,” he replied, pulling her back closer to him. “Nothing is more important than you right now.”

Maude felt herself blush, and then let herself be entranced by his kisses once more.