Chapter 7 #2
Godric sighed and shook his head.
“Is that what you were trying to do? Invoke some sort of… emotion? It does not surprise me that you failed. You are far too ignorant to understand the feelings of a man.” He said bluntly.
Nora sat up straighter at his last statement. He had just mentioned feelings, which meant he understood them to an extent and also was capable of experiencing and portraying them. He only had to tell her what would pull the strings of his feelings and cause them to manifest.
“Tell me more about these… feelings men have. Perhaps it is not that I do not understand them, but rather it is far too complex to comprehend,” she told him, her heart thrumming with renewed hope.
Godric’s eyes took on an odd glint that whispered danger, but he did not do anything strange or abrupt. He merely shook his head and said,
“If you do not understand them, then you do not. They are not difficult to comprehend as you claim.”
“So, tell me then. What are they? What sort of feeling makes you emotional, Your Grace? We are all slaves to an emotion – some more than others. It is a completely human thing. I will not judge you, no matter what it might be. You can trust that whatever you say, I will never speak to another soul.” Nora pledged.
“That’s enough. Let us speak of this no more.” He stated, rising to his feet.
He began to walk to the door, but Nora was quick and persistent, with no intention to back down after getting so close.
“What are you afraid of? Do you think you will be seen differently if I know who you really are? I doubt there is anything you could say or do that could surprise me, because you do not seem at all remarkable. Do not think too much and just – tell me,” She fussed, following him.
The duke stopped suddenly, and she had to catch herself to keep from bumping into him, jumping slightly when he faced her.
“There is only one emotion every man feels. As you said, it is in the base of our nature as humans to fall prey to our emotions, some more than others. But there is a single one that every man is weak to. Lust. And that is what you should be careful of, Miss Nora.”
Heat rushed to Nora’s cheeks, and although her instincts told her to back away and put an end to this charade, she could not help but ask,
“And you… as well? Do you feel this emotion too?”
Godric’s gaze dropped to her lips, and when they rise back to her eyes, she could not help but notice how rigid her form looked. After what feels like ages, he replied, voice hoarse,
“Yes.”
Nora felt the air around them grow heavier. Try as she might, she could not seem to take enough into her lungs, each inhale and exhale feeling like a chore. She had come so far, but it was not nearly enough still.
“What… what does it feel like?”
Godric looked even tenser now, and she half expected him to chase her away then. But he curled his hands into tight fists, and he replied through a strangled voice,
“It feels as though your veins are on fire. You lose reason, and all common sense flees. All you know in that moment is the object of your desire and the yearning burning within you. You’ll try to fight it, to resist it as best as you can.
And maybe you’ll succeed at first. But later, you will learn that no one wins against this feeling. ”
As he spoke, he stepped closer and closer toward her, the shrinking distance between them stifling her breath. His words ignited a flame within her, setting loose an appetite she did not know she had, only heavily aware of the hunger and yearning that was slowly consuming her.
“W-Why? Why does no one win against it?
“It is not possible to do so. It is all consuming, crippling, breaking down your senses and resistance, until all that is left is the hunger.” He whispered, taking another step towards her.
The beating of her heart nearly completely cut off the sound of his voice, but still, the heavy timbre of it continued to leak through, sinking into her mind and rousing the hunger growing within her.
“So… what happens next?” she questioned quietly, looking up at him as he stood before her, now only inches away.
He halted, his expression unreadable as he continued to speak.
“It lies in wait, growing, eating at your thoughts of the person you want, feeding your appetite for them simultaneously, until one day. A taste is all it takes for you to lose your mind completely. And you’ll be filled with a ceaseless need to consume them whole. ”
As soon as he was done speaking, he reached out, grabbed hold of her face, and pulled her towards him, pressing their lips together. Nora let out a squeak of surprise, her heart thundering in her chest as his lips moved hotly against hers.
He tasted warm, like cinnamon with a twinge of sugar, and she vaguely realized he must have sampled one of the treats she had brought.
He pressed closer, the kiss turning slow and deep and she felt her nerves threaten to crumble when he nipped at her lower lip.
She felt the thoughts in her head dissipate as she melted in his arms, unable to stop the whine that left her throat when their tongues brushed.
He pulled away at the sound and released her, snapping,
“Let this serve as a warning of what you should avoid. Now, leave.”
Nora stood there, blinking at him in utter confusion, startled when he yelled at her,
“I said, leave!”
Quickly, she left the room, her mind spinning as she tried to fathom what had just happened. It felt so unreal, like a dream.
She raised a hand to her lips, still feeling the demanding press of his, and she sighed, her heart beating in her chest as she mumbled to herself.
“What a strange and intriguing dream.”