Be Gentle, Immortal Master
Chapter 74 - Always Tomorrow

That round of madness almost drained the life out of me, and I was so exhausted that the only thing I could do for a while was to lean against him under the tree, trembling in his arms. When I opened my eyes again to a stir of breeze tickling my nostrils, it was already dusk.

I looked up, and the first sight that greeted me was his beautiful, smiling eyes under the milky twilight sky.

"Did I fall asleep?" I asked, surprised by how fast time had passed.

He pecked my forehead. "Sound sleep. Even drooled on me a few times."

I jerked, instinctively tilting my head to check over his shoulder. It wasn't until I saw the crisp and dry fabric beneath my face that I realized he was teasing me again. I glared at him, though the words of retribution halted on the tip of my tongue when I noticed that he wasn't wearing his outer robe.

It was spread over my legs instead, its silver trim gleaming in the rising moonlight. A scatter of golden leaves was caught on it while I slept, tumbling in the wind like little waving hands.

Right, he had ripped my clothes to pieces, and he was covering me up with his robe because … I was wearing nothing.

My cheeks burned. Even now, I still found it hard to believe that he had done all of that. With his arms wrapped softly around me, his hand carefully holding up my head so that I wouldn't roll off his shoulder, he seemed in every way the gentle, adoring master he had always been. To think this was the same man who had just given me all that wild pleasure …

Something throbbed inside me at the thought. I bit my lips, trying to silence my body's shameless reaction to those memories. "I didn't drool on you …" I mumbled, trying to hide my embarrassment by shifting my attention. "Even if I did, it was to repay you for turning my clothes into rags."

He looked at me as if he didn't understand what I was talking about. "You asked for it, Qing-er," he said almost innocently. "You said 'right here, right now', and I did nothing but oblige."

The reminder of my own words stirred the sensations in my memory again, and I turned away so that he wouldn't notice my flushed cheeks. "You … You could've just taken them off! I like this pair of outfit."

"But you told me before that you don't like pink."

"…"

He chuckled. "I'll get you new ones." He brushed his thumb over my cheek and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "Meanwhile, if you don't want mine—" He reached for the robe covering my legs in a gesture to remove it.

"W-Wait!" I yelped. What little modesty there was left in my head told me that I didn't want to sit next to him half naked, and I tried to catch his hand before he could pull the garment off of me. But instead of gripping him, I slipped and slammed his hand down along with mine instead, and our fingers landed between my legs, onto my …

I gasped. My body was still too sensitive after the mad indulgence, and that accidental touch … reawakened something lurking inside me. I snapped my hand back as if scorched, and I prayed desperately that he wouldn't question what was happening. But of course, it was too late.

He stared at me. There was genuine surprise in his eyes. "Qing-er—"

I turned my head away and bit my lips again, too mortified to look at him. I wanted to will my body into obedience, but it wouldn't listen, and the flames inside me suddenly blazed once more. What had happened to me? This felt wrong, insane, and yet …

Before I could replace an answer, I heard him laugh. "Qing-er." A warm hand slid under his robe and grazed over my thighs. "Did I … not satisfy you?" he breathed into my ears.

I moaned uncontrollably as his familiar touch tickled the itches inside me like the most irresistible drug shown to an addict. Of course he had satisfied me … and I doubted I'd be able to take any more than what he had given me. But even after all of it, I still wanted him. My body craved his warmth, his caress, to the extent that it frightened me. It was almost as if my own inner self had also surfaced along with that savage side of him, beckoning me to follow that desire.

What was the meaning of this? What had become of me?

His hand skimmed between my legs, and his lips found mine before my next moan broke free. "I promise to do better next time …" he whispered, and his fingers slid up to the end of my thighs, dipping into the wetness there.

I groaned. Please don't try to do better, I prayed silently. I might not have a life left if he took me any harder. But at the same time, I found his promise unreasonably thrilling, and the bare thought of what we might do together … was enough to send tingles all over my body and make my back arch into him.

His finger dipped and swirled nimbly inside me, caressing every sensitive spot with equal care, while his tongue mimicked the motion and made love to my mouth, swallowing my moans and whimpers until I finally cried my release and became limp again in his arms.

I thought he would finish it off for himself next, but he only kissed me on the top of my head. "Don't overspend yourself," he smiled and said softly, though I felt the suppressed desire in his hot breath. "Get some rest. There is always tomorrow."

He swept me up in his arms.. As he carried me back into my room under the stars, I wondered if things would ever be the same between us after this day.