It had been two days since Yelena unwrapped her bandage. She had wanted to keep an eye on it just to be cautious, but now she was truly convinced: she felt completely healed. With a pounding heart, she looked for the pull cord near her bed and gave it a tug. A moment later, a maid appeared in the room.

“Is there anything you need, ma’am?”

“I need to take a bath, so please prepare the bath salts and essential oils.”

“Understood.”

“Ah, also bring some wine. Any type is fine, just not something too strong.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“And…”

The maid listened to all of Yelena’s requirements, nodded her head, and left the room. Yelena sat on the edge of her bed, anxiously curling her toes. Her heart continued to pound.

‘Calm down,’ she told herself, but it had little effect.

Her gaze shifted to the window; the sun hanging high in the sky felt incredibly cruel. She wondered how long she had been fidgeting, curling, and uncurling her toes without reason.

The maid returned. “Ma’am, your bath is ready.”

Yelena sprang up from the bed. As she moved toward the bathroom, her ears flushed a shade redder than usual. Night had fallen, and she had no recollection of how the day had passed. She couldn’t even remember what she had done. All she knew was that she had been waiting for this moment all day long.

Yelena sat back down on the bed, placing her hand over the left side of her chest. The pounding that had persisted since the daytime continued to reverberate within her. Just then, the bedroom door opened. Yelena was so startled that she involuntarily jumped a bit on the bed but quickly regained her composure.

“Kaywhin,” she heard, as her lightly dressed husband slowly approached her. Yelena focused on the wet ends of his hair and finally spoke, “…Did you get the note I sent?”

Earlier in the day, Yelena had instructed a maid to deliver a note to Kaywhin. The content of the note was simple: “Keep the promise today.”

Kaywhin had made a promise to Yelena. Although he had mentioned that they would bathe together once Yelena’s ankle had fully healed at the Pernel estate, there was another promise preceding that. When it was decided that Kaywhin would leave for a military campaign to subdue barbarian tribes in the northern borderlands, he whispered in Yelena’s ear, “I promise, once I return from the campaign, then…”

Yelena had not forgotten the vow her husband had whispered to her that day. Until now, there hadn’t been an opportunity to fulfill that promise. Busy as they both were, and with Yelena injured, Kaywhin had refrained from laying a hand on her. But now the circumstances were different. The hectic tasks had mostly been resolved, and Yelena’s injuries had healed completely.

It was their wedding night. The time had finally come for them to experience the first night that Kaywhin had promised her.

Yelena grabbed the collar of Kaywhin’s shirt and pulled him toward her. Her husband came willingly; his hand touched the bed. Yelena’s lips trembled as they lightly touched her spouse’s lips before pulling away.

“I’m really nervous right now,” she said.

“What about you?”

“I am… too,” he responded. His voice, settling near her ear, sounded stiffer than usual, making her wonder if he was lying.

For some reason, Yelena found her gaze drawn to her husband’s neck, which seemed more prominent than usual. She reached out her hand and touched his chest. Startled, his large body twitched. Below her palm, she felt a warmth as if he were aflame. The thin shirt did little to conceal the taut muscles and loudly pounding heartbeat.

“You’re really nervous,” Yelena noted, the corners of her lips curling upward, filled with a strange sense of satisfaction.

Kaywhin looked at Yelena’s smiling face for a moment, then placed his hand over her slender, fragile hand that rested on his chest. He moved fully onto the bed and sought Yelena’s lips.

As the tongue gently probed between the naturally parted lips, a soft moan escaped from Yelena.

“Mmm…”

At that tiny moan, the muscles under Kaywhin’s shirt tensed noticeably.

The pounding of Yelena’s heart, felt through the palm of her hand, resonated more intensely than before.

Yelena briefly paused the kiss and muttered,

“Ha, you…”

Her gaze landed on Kaywhin’s chest.

“My heart is going to burst.”

“It’ll be fine. It’s a tougher organ than it looks. Human hearts…don’t burst easily.”

Well, that’s true; it’s unlikely to literally burst.

Yelena looked at her husband with an incredulous face.

Both his expression and voice were rather serious, more so than if he were making a joke.