Asher nodded. "Forgive my bluntness, but…I'm willing to guess that you're a virgin. That you've never…slept with anyone before, sexually. And in this class?" He shook his head. "You would have been eaten alive." He didn't look at her. "I mean… you and I will have to, er…do it eventually. But like I already said, I'll be as gentle as possible. Most men wouldn't. You would be lucky if they even made sure you were comfortable." There was something dark in his tone for a moment, as if he were remembering something foul.
“I can’t love you...” Reposting this here (O/O|Romance|Closed|)
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Arabella grew shy at his question, nodding very slowly. “Yes… I am. I’ve never been touched by a man in such a way.” Her eyes fell to her feet. She knew what would have happened. She had gotten lucky… far too lucky for her own good.
“I know. I know I’m lucky for ending up with you too… you wouldn't force yourself on me. Nor would you be rough.” She flashed him a small smile. “You’re a good man, Asher. A good fae and a good person. I will willingly raise your child…” she said softly, dipping her head down respectfully. “It May be awkward for us, but I would still love that child.”
Asher nodded. "Yes. And Arabella? No matter what gender that child is…I'm going to teach them the tricks and trades of the company, so they can take over. I don't care what gender they are. They get an equal chance at getting the company when I'm gone." He didn't want to raise a daughter as a trophy wife. He wanted his child to have a choice, no matter what.
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She smiled, tearing up slightly at his words. “Thank you…” She murmured softly, holding herself with a small and kind smile. “I’m glad we can at least talk with one another about these things. You’re giving me every bit of freedom and comfort I could ever need. No worries about a surprise or forced bedding and you even promised to be gentle, a room for my painting, a wonderful chance at freedom…”
Asher nodded. "You're welcome." He looked over at her. "I promised to be as gentle as possible. As a Fae… control is difficult. Because… physiology." He shook his head. "I can only promise to try." He sighed softly. "And you're always welcome to ask for anything else you need. Really. Or even if you just want something. Ask, and if I can give you it, you'll get it."
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“I know, Asher. And I respect that. Even if you can’t be gentle completely I’ll still be thankful for you trying to be st least.” She smiled at him and gently touched his arm. “I’ll be alright. If I do need anything I’ll Be sure to tell you.” But she would be stubborn about it.
Asher nodded, then yawned. "Okay. I should head to bed." He said, giving her a small smile before standing up. "You can join me if you want, or stay here a bit longer. Your choice."
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Arabella watched him, her eyes wide. “I’ll come and join you.” She murmured softly, standing when he stood and following him out the door
Asher nodded, and headed up the stairs. He really was tired. Today had been a long one, and he really wanted to just tumble into bed and sleep. Tomorrow, hopefully, would be less stressful, though he wouldn't count on it.
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She sauntered after him, stretching out her limbs once more. She was stiff and sore from all of her stress. “I’m exhausted.”
"Me too." He admitted, going into the room. He didn't even bother to turn on the light before flopping onto the bed and crawling under the covers, laying on his back. He was laying on the right side of the bed, leaving the other half for her.
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Arabella climbed in after him, giving him plenty of room to sit and stretch and sleep. She was worried about getting in his way or making him upset in any way. But when he didn’t complain, she just laid her head down and sighed softly.
"Good night." He said sleepily, closing his eyes tiredly. He stretched slightly, then lay still, hands folded across his chest.
(Want to timeskip to the morning?)
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(Yeup!)
It tookArabella much longer than she would have hoped to fall asleep… her eyes slipped closed but her body felt restless.
The next morning she woke even more sore and in a cruddy mood. She sat up and glared at the clock, grumbling under her breath. Today was not going to be a good day.
Asher was already up before her, and was in the bathroom combing his hair and humming under his breath as he did so. He was already dressed, though his shirt was mostly unbottoned, as he hadn't yet buttoned it up.
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She slid from the covers and padded over to the bathroom, knocking on the door. She threw her arms around herself and sighed sadly. What a day they had ahead… she would have to be close and Rather intimate with Asher during the dinner…
"You can come in!" Asher called, setting the comb aside and starting to button up the shirt, still humming softly.
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Arabella opened the door and groaned at the light. She blinked blearily and shuffled past him to grab her hairbrush. “It’s too early…” she whined. “But I can’t sleep…”
He chuckled softly. "Good morning." He replied. "And if you're sleepy, uhm…I don't know." He finished buttoning the shirt up, looking over at her.
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She growled a few profanities under her breath and began to sleepily brush her hair out, her eyes slipping closed. “Too early…” she murmured again, grumbling lowly.
He chuckled softly. "Alright then. I'm going to have breakfast, you're welcome to join me if you wish." He said, slipping out of the bathroom.
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She grumbled to herself some more, but dressed and readied herself quickly and followed after him. She had put on a light face of makeup, hoping it would hide how lifeless and tired her eyes really looked. It helped a lot, actually. She was back to her full beauty with the help of makeup. Arabella was a fairly pretty young women. Of course she wasn’t stunning or breathtaking but she was enough to at least catch the eyes of some men. A lot of good that did her, however. She was taken. No pining after men for her.
She slipped into the kitchen in silence, her steely eyes searching for something to eat.
Asher started making breakfast. "I'm making scrambled eggs, you want any?" He asked. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea for him to be cooking in a suit, but none of the servants had arrived yet, and he was hungry.
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“Yeah, make me a plate please.” She flopped down into a chair and held her head. “I am not looking forwards to today…” She snarled, scowling. “Do we really have to put on a show for those other business partners at dinner?! I don’t feel like loving on you… it seems inappropriate for our current situation.”
He nodded, then sighed. "On a scale of one to ten, how much do you not want our faces in a gossip magazine? Because if we don't pretend, it will get out, and then we'll have added publicity, and have to make extra public appearances, and likely have to amp everything up so we look madly in love."
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She shivered at his words and scowled deeper. He was right. She hated that he was right. “Society and the media can go shove a-“ she stopped herself there, taking a deep breath. “I would rather not have to go to more public things.” She snarled. She was really not having it today.
He kept working on the eggs. "Well. We have to. So deal with it. I go to public things all the time, and lie through my teeth saying how much I love you. So you can deal with it." Asher spoke in a matter of fact tone, no aggression in it.
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Arabella shot him a look, huffing as she covered her face with her hands. She groaned and flopped down onto the counter, growling. “Ugh…”
Asher kept working on the eggs, humming softly again. When he finished, he put them in two plates, and handed her one, starting to eat his own. "It won't be that bad." He said, eating.
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She slowly sat back up and took the eggs with a small, curt ‘thanks.’ Her eyes focused on his face. “It’s too much for today. I just wanna sleep. All day…”