ONE NIGHT STAND WITH HOT DUKE-Chapter 75: The strange feeling he felt

Not the polite smile she wore when he entered her room. Not the thin smile meant to ease a fragile moment. But a smile born without effort without fear of saying the wrong thing, without the need to be careful.

A smile Demian realized... he had not been given in a very long time.

Kaiser said something else. Valerie laughed softly he couldn’t hear the sound from inside, but the slight lift of her shoulders was enough.

Demian’s hands clenched at his sides.

A heat spread upward in his chest. Not an explosion of rage something far more dangerous.

Jealousy that came too late.

He watched Kaiser’s gaze. Too gentle. Too intent. A look that could not be hidden behind rank or title.

It was the look of a man who liked what he saw. Who enjoyed the moment. Who without realizing it was beginning to care.

And what cut deepest for Demian was one bitter truth, Valerie did not close herself off around Kaiser. Valerie did not keep her distance.

She looked... comfortable.

Demian swallowed. His throat felt dry.

He wanted to step outside. Wanted to call Valerie’s name. Wanted to end the conversation with any excuse at all.

But his feet would not move.

Because he knew he was the one who had created this distance. He was the one who told Valerie to step back, to stay silent, to restrain herself. He was the one who chose to stand between two worlds: Valerie... and Ivanka.

Now those worlds were beginning to collapse in on him.

Demian remained there, unseen, watching a smile that was no longer his.

And for the first time since he had known Valerie, he felt something tighten painfully in his chest not anger, not jealousy alone.

But a quiet fear.

Fear that one day, Valerie would not only smile at another man... but would stop turning back to look at him at all.

Valerie was only a few steps away from the staircase when the large door behind her burst open with a sharp sound.

Before she could even turn around, a hand closed around her wrist.

"Valerie."

The pull was sudden and strong.

"Sera—!" Lira gasped, instinctively stepping forward.

But everything happened too fast.

Demian dragged Valerie into the study, the door slamming shut behind them with a heavy thud that echoed down the corridor. The sound of the lock turning made Sera and Lira freeze in place, able only to stare at one another, their breaths caught in their throats.

"Your Grace—" Sera’s voice broke, but the door remained firmly closed.

Inside the room, Valerie nearly lost her balance.

Her back struck the cold wooden door. Before she could say anything, Demian was already standing far too close, too close. The warmth of his body, his breath, the emotions he hadn’t yet reined in all crushed the space between them until there was almost none left.

"Demian—" Valerie had only just opened her mouth—

His hand pressed her shoulder against the door. Not painful, but firm. As if he were afraid she would disappear the moment he let go.

Then Demian lowered his head.

The kiss came without warning hard, forceful, driven by pressure rather than tenderness.

Valerie was startled. Her breath was cut off, her fingers instinctively gripping Demian’s arm. His lips pressed against hers with a feeling tangled in anger, jealousy, and something darker still, the fear of losing her.

It was not a gentle kiss. Not a seductive one.

It was the kiss of someone trying desperately to make sure that the person in front of him was still his.

Valerie froze for a few seconds before finally pushing against Demian’s chest, gently but firmly.

"Demian," her voice trembled not from weakness, but from too many emotions colliding at once, "stop."

Demian went still.

His forehead remained pressed against hers. His breathing was heavy, uneven. His hands were still on her shoulders, but the grip loosened.

He closed his eyes for a moment, as if struggling to rein something in.

"You..." his voice was low and rough, "...you smiled at him."

Valerie looked at him.

Demian’s gaze was dark not purely angry, but unsettled. Chaotic.

"What?" Valerie asked softly.

"You don’t smile like that at me anymore," Demian continued, his jaw tightening. "Not like you did just now."

A long silence followed.

Valerie drew a slow, steady breath.

"And?" she asked. "What does that mean to you?"

Demian opened his eyes and met her gaze. For a brief moment, the anger cracked revealing confusion he rarely showed to anyone.

"I don’t like seeing it," he said honestly. "I don’t like seeing another man make you comfortable."

Valerie gave a small smile not a happy one, but a bitter one.

"Funny," she murmured. "Because all this time, you didn’t mind making me uncomfortable."

The words struck harder than a slap.

Demian fell silent.

Valerie continued, her voice calm even as her chest felt tight.

"You told me to keep my distance. To stay quiet. Not to argue. Not to speak. Not to feel," she said. "And now you’re angry because I smiled at someone who treated me kindly?"

Demian opened his mouth but no words came.

Valerie shifted slightly, creating space between them a small distance, yet it felt like a chasm.

"That kiss just now," she said softly, "wasn’t because you wanted me."

She met Demian’s eyes, unflinching.

"It was because you can’t stand losing control."

The room fell silent again.

Demian lowered his hands completely.

And for the first time since he had dragged Valerie into that room,he had no idea what to say.

Demian straightened his posture. The darkness in his gaze hardened once more, as if he were sealing shut every crack that had briefly opened.

"You don’t know anything," he said coldly."So don’t speak as if you understand my feelings."

His voice was low and controlled but precisely because of that, it felt dangerous.

Valerie didn’t answer right away. Her back was still against the door, her palms resting on the cold wood behind her. She looked at Demian for a long moment, trying to read the face of the man who had always stood above everything else strong, powerful, untouchable.

"I don’t," Valerie said at last, her voice calm. "Because you never told me."

Demian’s jaw tightened.

"You think feelings are something to be displayed?" he shot back. "I do what needs to be done."

"For whom?" Valerie asked quietly. "For me?"