The Most Noble Gentleman

Prologue : ''I will not ask again.''

My head was pounding. Even before my eyes opened and the air around hugged my senses, I could already feel the pusling of my veins. When the darkness welcomed my eyesight, the flickering of the light bulb in one corner caught my attention. I tried my best to look around for a few seconds and take in the room because my brain was still foggy from the pain.

I wonder where I am.
And why can't I move at all?
God damn, this headache is killing me.
What is going on?

I successfully sat on what I realized was a very soft mattress, then it dawned on me, I'm in a bedroom. A very strange bedroom.

"Where am I?" I blurted out.

A gust of wind made the curtain move and from my peripheral vision, I saw a slight glow but it wasn't from the flickering of the light bulb.

"Well, see who's awake." It sounded cold. But manly. Like a man with authority.

"Who's there?" I asked. I started getting cautious as soon as the glow inched closer and closer. I knew that I have no room behind me to back away to. But as part of my survival instinct, I still tend to choose flight in this situation. "Show yourself."

The gust of air hit me directly and immediately my whole body shivered. My eyes automatically closed - waiting for a hand to snap my neck or a knife to pierce my chest. Without even thinking about it I knew that my life flashed before my eyes.

"Who are you?" he asked.

My eyes remained closed but my other senses heightened to the point that I feel like my soul left my body, flew around, and looked at me right now. The man, whom the voice belonged to had his body against mine. One of his hands was holding my unchained hand tightly against the bed frame while the other was controlling a glowing blade that was dangerously close to my neck. I didn't actually saw what we looked like, but more of felt it. With his breath gently fanning over my cheeks, I slowly opened my eyes and found a pair of blue ones staring at my soul.

"I will not ask again. Because if I do, I will not be as nicely as the first one."

The way his voice enforces command and his gaze exerts dominance, I melted immediately. He was the heir of House Paxley that everyone's been talking about, the newly appointed Duke of Castle Aberleen. The cloaked blader that once saved my small town from being completely raided and burnt to the ground. My thoughts were confirmed by the glimpse of his shard that is about to cut my throat if I don't answer now.

Yet answering his question was the last thing I had in mind. And because it's taking me too long to respond, it got him frustrated, making him start repeating his question, "I asked you, who you-"

Without hesitation, I leaned forward.

I don't even care what will happen to me.

All I care about was how his lips felt against mine. I noticed that his body stiffened at my action, but slowly softened too. His hand wasn't holding my wrist as tightly as it was before as well and his lips parted slightly a few seconds into the kiss letting my upper lip slid in between his. But he stayed locked with mine, none of us dare to move at all.