“Kyle, I’m so sleepy.”
“Then just sleep.”
“No, but it feels a bit bad to sleep next to you like this…”
I was just sitting next to Kyle, doing nothing.
Well, I originally had less work than Kyle anyway.
I was just… resting my face on the desk and watching him work diligently as always, sitting up straight.
“When will you be done?”
“I think it’s about 10 minutes more.”
“Then let’s finish that and go look at some tuxedos together?”
“That sounds good too.”
My work ended earlier than usual anyway.
It wouldn’t be bad to go down and have some fun for a bit.
Since we had already agreed to go look sometime, and we had some time left this time too.
I thought it’d be nice to go check them out while we had the time, enjoying a date with Kyle at the same time.
After all, we needed to pick out clothes to wear before the wedding.
My wedding dress was still being worked on slowly, and all that was left for us was Kyle’s tuxedo.
And a tuxedo was definitely easier to find and decide on compared to the wedding dress.
“If we check out your outfit today, we’ll really be ready.”
“Except for practicing a few times before the ceremony.”
“Ah, right. We also have to do a little family meeting…”
Thinking back, there was still work left to do.
The real end wasn’t here yet.
These were just preparations for the ceremony, and there would be plenty to do after the wedding too.
There were the first night discussions I had awkwardly blurted out to Kyle, paperwork, and… well, there was still a lot to do before everything was truly finished.
At the same time, it wasn’t an overwhelming amount either.
Just a manageable level.
“Are we about two months away now?”
“Yeah, about that. I’ve already sent letters to everyone I needed to, and I’ve communicated the news to other families through the Princess… so there are no problems.”
“That’s true.”
There really were no problems.
In fact, there were so few that it felt strange personally.
“It’s super peaceful…”
“Well, it is summer, after all.”
“Usually, summer in other regions is really noisy…”
“That’s because we’re in the north.”
If it were any other region, people would probably be going crazy at the beach right now, enjoying barbecues at dinner, living it up and really reveling in summer.
Of course, it’s summer.
It’s only natural to go out to play to cool off from the heat and to carry that lively atmosphere right into a party.
Though nobles often just relaxed in their cool homes instead. Regardless, summer in Eristirol was definitely quieter than in other regions.
If anything, it was spring or winter that were noisier.
“If it’s warmer than usual, wouldn’t people want to have even more fun?”
“Well… it just makes you feel lazy.”
“I don’t get it…”
That was a hard concept for me to grasp.
After all, I had lived in a place far removed from the north.
The northern way of thinking was surely different from other places.
Maybe… Louise wouldn’t understand it either, just like me.
“Well, it’s not like the atmosphere is bad, it’s just more laid-back than usual. Nothing wrong with that.”
“Isn’t it still better for Sophia to have warm weather?”
“That’s true. It was definitely warmer than last month.”
Maybe it really was because it was summer; it felt unquestionably warm.
Of course, it had been a streak of snowy weather, but still, it felt warm.
“Well… as you said, it was definitely good to have it in autumn. If we had done it in winter, it would’ve been really cold.”
“I didn’t suggest autumn just for the fun of it, you know, it really is better for Sophia.”
“Sorry, I just hadn’t thought about it back then.”
Anyway… it was all good.
It was so good that I even felt a bit worried because of it.
Of course, even if worries surfaced, I trusted Kyle would handle it well.
*
“Well… this isn’t bad. It’s the kind of look I’d want you to wear only when you’re with me.”
“But that doesn’t mean you can show up to the wedding in nothing, right?”
“… That wouldn’t be so bad, though?”
After all, Kyle had an amazing body.
I knew this well since I had seen it every time I entered his dreams.
His body was truly something to admire.
If it had been in my previous life, girls would have lined up for a glimpse.
If Kyle were a commoner instead of a noble, I was sure nobles and rich men would have been incredibly interested in him.
Even now, interest was high, but it was just that Kyle being a duke made it awkward to approach.
“… I’m just joking. Don’t look at me like that.”
“You haven’t been looking at my body lately.”
“Well, it’s not like I’ve only seen your body a few times in my life. You know.”
I hadn’t seen Kyle’s bare skin much recently at all.
I had actually seen it more back in the day.
The reason was… there was nothing special.
It was just that our relationship had grown closer, and our physical interactions had increased.
So we’d both been careful not to show as much skin as we used to.
One wrong move and… who knows what might happen before we get married?
“Anyway, this really suits you. Let’s try on another one.”
“… They all look the same to me.”
“No way! They’re all a bit different, so just try it on.”
“…”
I treated Kyle the same way he treated me when he bought my clothes.
It wasn’t my fault; it was Kyle’s fault for being a pain whenever I went clothes shopping.
Of course, I could have refused, but it wasn’t something I disliked that much.
I couldn’t read Kyle’s mind, but he probably wouldn’t think it was too bad either.
“Come on, hurry up.”
“Okay, but let’s see it just a bit later.”
“… Huh?”
Kyle said this and went into the fitting room to change into another tuxedo.
All of a sudden.
“… Huh?”
I suddenly felt a bit scared.
He wasn’t just changing quietly like usual; the way he warned me felt different for some reason.
Of course, since we had half-promise to do something like that after we married, it probably wouldn’t happen out of the blue… but I was a little nervous.
“But seriously, what is he trying to do…?”
*
The answer to that came… sooner than I expected.
Whether I wanted to know or not, I had no choice.
“K-Kyle…?”
“Do you like this so much?”
“Uh, um…”
What was the best way to respond?
Should I honestly tell Kyle what I thought?
“Um… Kyle? Is it really okay for us to be like this with so many others around in the store…? I mean, there’s no one here, but still…”
“Well, it’s not like anyone could see us anyway.”
“That may be true… but still, you never know, right? Someone could suddenly call out to us outside…”
Right now, I was in the fitting room.
Kyle had suddenly pulled me in here after changing.
I was surprised by the suddenness, and for some reason, I was taken aback again by Kyle’s appearance, which was a bit more revealing than before.
He wasn’t completely undressed, but with the buttons of his shirt undone, he was showing off his extremely sexy chest muscles…
“Sophia?”
“Uh, y-yes!?”
In an instant, I was captivated by Kyle’s body.
No matter how one might think of it just being his chest, I wondered if this reaction was normal, but it had been a while since I’d seen him like that.
After all, every time I saw Kyle lately, it had been in his sleep, with his eyes closed.
In my dreams, he was completely unresponsive, not moving at all.
Like this… something…
“Swallow.”
“So, how is it? Do you like it?”
“… Yeah.”
I answered honestly.
It felt great.
Just like men are instinctively attracted to women with curves, my body simply responded to it.
It wasn’t because I felt pressured by Kyle’s gaze on me; it was just impossible not to be drawn to his muscles.
Really.
It wasn’t like I was a pervert; it was just… unavoidable.
Really.
“Um… Kyle, I shouldn’t be saying this, but could you please hug me just once like this, with the clothes on?”
“… Sophia.”
“W-What! Is it that strange for a girlfriend to ask for a little something?”
Kyle looked at me like I was a weirdo, and I felt wronged.
Isn’t it natural to be intrigued by your partner’s body in a relationship?
“You like touching my chest normally, don’t you…? Am I not allowed to do the same…?”
I raised my gaze to Kyle’s face again to speak.
Even if my attention had been drawn to his body for a moment, it was only right to ask him properly without avoiding eye contact.
After all, I was the one who taught him to look people in the eyes while speaking.
“Is it not allowed…?”
“… Okay.”
Kyle pretended he wouldn’t, but he eventually did hug me.
I thought, if that was the case, he could have just done it from the start, but I kept that thought to myself.
Because, he was already hugging me.
There was nothing more to say.
Just Kyle doing this was more than enough.
“….”
“….”
“….”
“….”
It suddenly became… so awkward!!!
I really felt like I had said something wrong and the atmosphere turned super awkward.
It really did feel incredibly awkward.
Despite being wrapped in Kyle’s arms, the situation felt excessively strange.
It wasn’t that being in his arms was bad; it was just… we seemed to have run out of things to say.
“Um, I think it’s okay now! Shall we go out? That’s alright… right?”
“… Yeah.”
Anyway, we decided to head back outside.
If I knew this would happen, I ought to have just fastened my buttons first before doing this.
It would have made the atmosphere less awkward, at least.
With this, I seriously began to ponder whether we would be able to properly enjoy our first night together after marriage.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
