"Lucien, do you… Love me?"
As soon as those words slipped out of his mouth, Julian pursed his lips and rolled his eyes away, almost regretting it immediately.
Maybe he shouldn't have asked it. Maybe he should've kept it to himself and lived with the way things were.
Maybe he shouldn't have been… greedy.
The Duke opened his mouth to speak, but something caught his voice, and he couldn't speak.
He hesitated, as if saying the one thing he was so sure of would ruin what they had right now.
Julian's heart was racing as he thought of all the possibilities. The Duke was being influenced by the system, he believed. The affection level raised was beyond normal, and that was why the Duke was… that was why the Duke was so good to him, he believed.
The Duke brought up his hand and brushed Julian's jaw before gently nudging his face a bit so Julian would once again bring his gaze to face him.
