Chapter 120: How Can You Yearn For Your Son’s Tutor?

"I love you," the Duke repeated. "I love you so much to the point I cannot stop yearning for you."

Julian’s body shrivelled to the pressure, and he wished he could throw himself in a well or something, and his face wouldn’t stop flushing, and his cheeks began to hurt.

"Do you like the confession that much?" The Duke asked, over a short laugh, and Julian shook his head.

He couldn’t admit it. There was no way he would.

But there were still some uncertainties that plagued him.

"Are you sure about this?" Julian asked, looking a little unsure. "I am a man just like you and I... I am Lucius’s tutor. It is usually unheard of for. man of your status, a Grand Duke to y-yearn for his son’s tutor."

It was as if Julian wanted to get all the facts down. All the variables that could lead to a reasonable breakup later.

What if there is a reset in the system and the Duke doesn’t actually feel all these things for real?

What if he claims he can no longer be with a man who cannot give him a child?

What if...?

"Then I shall be a Grand Duke that yearns for his son’s tutor." The Duke whispered, and Julian’s eyes grew teary. "And it does not matter if you are a man. I am not in search of a child. Lucius is enough for me. So worry not and simply accept my love, Julian."

A single tear slid down Julian’s cheek before he even realized it.

He didn’t know he would be so glad to hear those words that he would be moved to tears.

The Duke kissed his cheek, licking away the trace of his salty tears.

"Are you okay?" He asked, and Julian nodded, bringing up his second hand to cover up his face, but the Duke held it and lowered it.

"Do not hide your face, Julian. Allow me to gaze at you."

Julian bit his lower lip.

"Do not bite on your lips." The Duke said, brushing his own lips over Julian’s. "If you must, bite mine instead."

"That doesn’t make sense," Julian said, his voice soft and low, but Alaric used this as an opportunity to steal his lips and muffle out whatever might spill out of them.

The kiss held so much more than Julian could’ve imagined. The warmth, the desperation, the intensity, the promises... all told with just their lips collided.

How fascinating this thing called love was.

In this moment, he wished nothing could ruin the moment.

The Duke kissed Julian like he was a dessert he had been craving, tasting every part of his mouth, his tongue swirling around Julian’s so Julian would never forget the taste of him.

And so that even as they broke the kiss, the aftereffect would linger for long.

Julian felt the kiss intensify by the second, and he could not keep up. He couldn’t catch his breath normally, but that no longer seemed to be a problem as the Duke released his lips, tracing kisses down Julian’s neck.

His breath got caught, the feeling of Alaric’s lips setting fire over his skin, leaving a trace of endless longing wherever he touched.

Then, he felt the Duke’s hand slide over his waist, gripping him firmly.

Julian did his best not to let any sound escape his lips... as if the faintest of it would reach the ears of the knights riding outside the carriage.

But then, he felt the Duke’s hand slide into his shirt, his cold, calloused hand sending a wave of shock over Julian, and a sound he could not suppress finally escaped his lips.

"Ahh—!"

He quickly clamped his free hand over his mouth, his eyes widening, but the Duke did not give him a moment to even consider what was going on.

He sucked on Julian’s collar bone, leaving a faint red mark before going down, pushing Julian’s collar aside and disheveling his crisp shirt under his coat.

His hand inside Julian’s shirt made its way to his nipples, and Julian’s body quivered.

This feeling... It was just like back then, when the Duke touched him while he was drunk and thought he would not remember anything the next day.

But this time, he was not drunk, so why was he feeling it so intently?

He blamed his reactions on the alcohol back then, thinking there was no way a man’s body could react like that just from a kiss and gradual strokes.

But what could he say about this situation?

The logic Julian had built around that incident had crumbled completely with the friction of heat against skin.

And now, he was seeing and ’feeling’ the truth for himself.

"Lucien... wait..." Julian’s plea was half-hearted, lost in the heat between them.

Alaric didn’t wait. His hand moved with agonizing deliberate intent. When his thumb grazed Julian’s nipple again, Julian’s back arched instinctively, his head hitting the soft padding of the carriage.

The sound he’d tried to stifle—a low, helpless whimper—was caught by Alaric’s mouth as the Duke kissed him again, hungrily, as if trying to consume Julian’s very breath.

"You’re so responsive," Alaric murmured against Julian’s lips, his voice thick with a dark, heavy pride. "Did you think you could hide this from me? Your body doesn’t know how to lie, Julian."

Julian felt the cool air of the carriage hitting his chest as Alaric pushed the fabric of his shirt further aside, but the cold was immediately replaced by the heat of the Duke’s tongue.

"Ah!" Julian’s fingers dug into Alaric’s shoulders. The sensation was sharp, electric, and terrifyingly good.

He felt Alaric’s other hand slide lower until it stopped at Julian’s belt. But it didn’t exactly stop. He unfastened the belt’s buckle with ease and then dug his hand into the trousers, reaching for the sensitive part that Julian was trying to hide.

"Your... Your hand..." his breath hitched, feeling the Duke’s rough, calloused hand grip around his dick.

His body jerked, and his fingers tingled.

This sensation... This precise, devastatingly gentle touch of the Duke made Julian’s head spin.

"Lucien, the... the knights," Julian managed to gasp out, his eyes fluttering shut as Alaric’s teeth grazed his skin, clipping his nipples to tease him. "Ah—!"

"Let them wonder," Alaric rasped, shifting his weight so Julian was pinned even more securely against him. "Let the whole world wonder. They saw me carry you out of that hall. They already know you are mine. Let me show you what that means."