Karl followed her in, closing the door behind them, and suddenly wrapped his arms around her from behind. His voice was low and intimate as he murmured,
"I... actually want you to sleep here with ..."
Marylin, standing by the bed preparing fresh bedding for him, felt her cheeks flush at his shaless words. She imdiately protested,
"You really have so nerve, you know that?"
He ignored her hint about staying elsewhere and now even dared to say he wanted to sleep with her—how was that not shaless?
Before she could react further, Karl pulled her down onto the bed, pressing her against him. His voice was deep, close to her ear,
"It’s already your bedding anyway... just consider it that you’re sleeping here with ."
The closeness, the warmth—it was almost too much. Marylin lifted her hands to push him away, but he silenced her with a kiss. She could only let out a small sound before words failed her entirely.
This kiss was intense, urgent; his hands slid around her back, holding her tightly. His body pressed against hers, moving with a rhythm that made her pulse race. Marylin could hardly resist—the heat of his touch, the weight of him, the intoxicating closeness—everything made her body respond.
When his heated palms brushed against her back, his trembling fingers fumbled with the buttons on her front, causing him a mont of awkward hesitation. Marylin, cheeks burning, whispered softly,
"The buttons... in the front..."
Today she had worn a front-buttoned top, sothing Karl had never dealt with before. The situation was awkward, tantalizing, and maddening all at once. But monts later, he leaned in again, pressing fervent kisses to her lips, her neck, his hands exploring carefully but purposefully.
"Marylin—"
Just as he found the buttons and started to fumble with them, Marylin’s mother’s voice called from outside:
"Are you done changing? Make sure to leave so space for Xiao Mo to rest—he drove so far today, he must be tired."
Both of them snapped back to reality. Marylin panicked, pushing him away in a flurry. If her mother ca in now, she would surely lose it.
Breathing heavily, Marylin quickly adjusted her clothing, replying from the doorway,
"Got it!"
Then, looking at Karl who was half-sitting on the bed, she said,
"If the sheets don’t need changing, I’ll go. My mom always changes them after I leave anyway—so it’s fine for you to sleep here as is."
With that, she turned and left the room.
Left alone, Karl flopped onto the bed, frustrated, letting out several heavy breaths.
Why had she worn front-buttoned clothes? He had assud everything unfastened from the back.
Sighing, he thought, If only I knew...
No. He couldn’t think any further—otherwise, his body would betray him.
After leaving the bedroom, Marylin went straight to the bathroom, her face still burning red. She was terrified that her parents might notice anything unusual.
What was happening lately? Every ti they kissed, it seed to get harder to control. In the beginning, it had been innocent, just a kiss, emotional but proper. But these past few tis... it carried a deeper, more intimate undertone. It wasn’t just Karl who seed drawn to her—she felt it too, an inexplicable desire to be closer, to be one with him...
She didn’t know why. Everything felt so fast. With her ex, she hadn’t let herself go for a whole year. And yet, with Karl, in such a short ti, she felt this strange rush of emotion. Blushing, she ran her fingers through her hair and let out a quiet sigh.
Let things happen naturally, she told herself. Forcing anything only made life exhausting and stressful. Going with the flow was always better.
The night passed peacefully, both of them sleeping soundly.
It was after lunch the next day when they finally left. Marylin had been reluctant to go, wanting to stay a little longer with her parents. But her mother urged them to leave sooner rather than later, warning that it would get dark and unsafe if they delayed. And since Karl had driven all the way to see her, she couldn’t very well take the train back alone. So, she got into his car, and the two of them set off back to Burg Eltz together.
On the road, Karl noticed her slightly lancholy mood and gently tried to console her:
"If you miss them, I can co with you more often."
"Who asked for your company?" Marylin huffed.
Karl chuckled, unfazed by her tone, and added teasingly:
"A free chauffeur, and a tall, handso one at that. If the road gets boring, you get to look at . Isn’t that worth it?"
Marylin couldn’t help but laugh aloud at his self-praise.
Seeing her smile, he said more softly, concerned:
"If you feel tired, I can drive for a while instead."
"Okay," she said, and yet, the entire ride back to Burg Eltz, he never once let her take over the wheel.
When the car finally stopped outside their apartnt building, Marylin noticed he was preparing to go upstairs with her. She asked lightly:
"You’ve been with all weekend. Aren’t you going to visit your parents tonight?"
She knew Karl had a habit of seeing his parents on weekends—a family tradition.
He just smiled and said:
"It’s fine. I already told my mom; she’ll understand. Let’s go upstairs and rest first."
Then he helped her carry the items her mother had packed and led the way up, making sure to look out for her as they entered their ho.
Because Karl had brought plenty of local specialties and gifts from Burg Eltz when he ca, Marylin’s mother had prepared so return gifts for him and his parents as well.
When they reached their floor, Marylin looked at him and said,
"You’ve driven so far... you should rest when you get ho."
He raised an eyebrow.
"Not inviting to rest at your place?"
Marylin froze.
His audacity really knew no bounds.
Before she could reply, he chuckled.
"Never mind, I’ll head back to my place. You rest too, and we’ll have dinner together tonight."
Then he opened the door and went inside.
In truth, Karl did want to go to her place—he knew that even if she refused, he could insist—but he had a bigger plan for the evening. If he stayed at her place, it would throw everything off, so he obediently went back to his own ho.
Marylin returned to her apartnt, tidied up a bit, took a shower, changed into clean clothes, and nestled into bed to rest for a short while. Although she hadn’t driven, sitting in a car for several hours had left her with a sore back.
She had dozed off without realizing it, only to be woken up by Karl’s phone call. Hearing the sleepiness in her voice, he softened his tone.
"Sleeping?"
Marylin replied,
"Mm... accidentally fell asleep."
He sounded cheerful as he invited her,
"Co over for dinner. I’ve got sothing delicious."
"Okay, I’ll get ready and co over."
They had agreed earlier to have dinner together, so Marylin didn’t think much of it. She washed her face, tidied herself up, and went across the hall.
Marylin had expected they’d either go out for dinner or that she might prepare sothing at her place. She hadn’t expected dinner at his, especially when he said he had sothing good to eat. She was curious—Karl wasn’t exactly a chef.
But when Karl opened the door for her, Marylin saw Linda in the living room and Karl’s father coming out of the kitchen with a freshly prepared dish. She finally understood why Karl had said the food would be good—his father had cooked it himself. Of course it would be delicious.
Marylin froze at the doorway. Although Karl had visited her parents this weekend, that had been his initiative. She still wasn’t ready to et his parents. And most pressing of all, she had expected only the two of them to eat together. She hadn’t even put on makeup, wearing a loose, casual outfit, and now she felt a little embarrassed.
Linda warmly approached her.
"Karl, this must be Marylin, right?"
Karl wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her inside before closing the door.
Then, turning to formally introduce her to his parents, he said,
"Marylin, these are my parents."
And to his parents,
"Mom, Dad, this is Marylin, my girlfriend."
Marylin snapped out of her daze and, still held in Karl’s embrace, lifted a polite smile.
"Hello, uncle, aunt."
She couldn’t resist giving him a little pinch on the waist from behind—she realized, yet again, that she had fallen for this man’s little trick.
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