“Stunning roses have thorns, however there’s all the time not less than one one who reaches for them, keen to threat getting pricked by the thorns.”

The Marquis narrowed his eyes at Liv’s comment.

“Then I might reward that individual for his or her commendable bravery.”

The gradual, languid voice urged Liv on.

“Would you wish to attempt it, Instructor?”

“Are you okay with that?”

“What’s there for me to not be okay with? Ultimately, you’re the one who’s going to bleed from the thorns, not me.”

His conceited assurance made Liv chuckle with out realizing it.

“The rose may even really feel ache when its department is reduce.”

Being absolutely armed with thorns means being rather more cowardly than others, in any case.

Then, wouldn’t it’s the identical for the Marquis?

“The branches of the roses which are reduce will ultimately wither, my Lord.”

Steadily, the smile light from the Marquis’ face, which had appeared so relaxed as if he had been on a soothing boat journey. And at last, it was changed by the chilly, expressionless look that suited him finest.

“So that you’re simply going to look at together with your eyes?”

He shifted as if to rise from his seat. At that second, Liv reached out and grabbed the Marquis’ shifting hand.

Her contact was timid in comparison with the Marquis’ nonchalant contact on her cheek. The second the Marquis lifted the nook of his mouth as if to sneer, Liv grabbed the top of his white glove and yanked it.

The glove got here off easily.

Seeing his naked hand, which she had gazed at with pleasure-stained eyes, with a transparent thoughts was a brand new sensation. For the reason that Marquis didn’t brush Liv’s hand away, she acquired an opportunity to look down and contact the person’s hand very carefully.

Every finger had distinguished knuckles, and the again of his hand was coated in blue veins that prolonged up his arm. His palms had been tough; the calloused hand was not fairly in any respect.

It was the hand that rubbed Liv’s privates, probing deeper, and paralyzed her cause. She knew how strongly it gripped her flesh.

Liv, who had been curiously tracing the veins on the again of his hand, pressed her thumb between his fingers. There was a scar between them that was arduous to see until from up shut.

“I suppose you’re interested by that, huh?”

The Marquis, who had been silently letting Liv take his hand, subtly twisted his lips.

“I bear in mind holding a blade with my naked hand and nearly reducing my finger off.”

Fidgeting with the scar between his fingers, Liv appeared up and locked eyes with the Marquis.

“Did you win?”

The Marquis raised his eyebrows as if he had heard one thing surprising. After a short pause, he replied in a barely lowered voice.

“Yeah.”

Liv broke into an harmless smile on the reply.

“If that’s the case, this scar is a medal of victory.”

With a fast motion, the hand of a person who wore the indelible medal of victory grabbed Liv by the nape and pulled her into his arms. Liv, having misplaced her heart of gravity straight away, tumbled ahead into the Marquis’ arms.

An pressing breath, not as relaxed because it had been a second in the past, crashed into Liv’s lips. A torrent of kisses rained down on her, extra forceful and violent than ever earlier than.

Within the quiet greenhouse, gasping breaths echoed faintly.

***

The primary scars on Demus’ physique had been from the army academy.

Academies typically had been closed areas, however army academies particularly operated beneath their very own guidelines.

A world of their very own, the place there was no flexibility in doing issues that could be acceptable elsewhere.

Whereas energy is commonly the logic behind any group of boys, within the army academy, energy and standing coexisted.

The scholars with each naturally established themselves as predators, these with just one or the opposite confirmed off their backgrounds, and people with out each had been on the backside of the ranks as prey.

When Demus first enrolled on the academy, he was a prey.

Certainly, he had expertise, however in comparison with the youngsters of noble households, who had been nurtured from an early age, he was extra like a gemstone within the mud. He needed to undergo loads of hardship earlier than he may wash away the mud and change into a jewel that would really shine.

The foundations of the academy forbid dueling with actual swords, however the predators, naturally, weren’t certain by such minutiae.

Scorching-blooded boys needed stimulating occasions, and to meet that want, they typically drew actual swords. On the tip of these swords stood the preys. Folks like Demus.

Demus was bare in entrance of his opponent, who wielded an actual sword.

That day, he nearly reduce off a finger from his grip on the blade. The varsity nurse acknowledged the wound from the blade on Demus’ hand and turned him over to the disciplinary committee. The rationale for this was that there was proof of academy guidelines violation. Not surprisingly, the one that swung the sword at him acquired away with it.

Fortunately, Demus prevented being expelled. Though he was disciplined for violating academy guidelines.

Nicely, there was such a time.