Chapter 119: The Man Emily Brought Home
Arthur gave up on the window.
The view had become repetitive. Every few minutes, another green field, a passing line of trees, or a stretch of empty road replaced the previous one, offering nothing new to look at. He had already checked his phone, answered an ordinary guild message from the Obsidian Hand, attempted to sleep, and browsed through the car’s entertainment system without finding a single thing worth watching.
Across the rear compartment, Emily sat reading something on her phone screen.
"How much longer is this road?" Arthur asked, leaning back against the leather seat.
Emily glanced briefly at the vehicle’s route display. "Still a while."
Arthur looked back outside. "I think I have seen that tree before."
"All trees look the same when you have been complaining since the last town," Emily said without looking up from her screen.
"A dungeon was less boring," Arthur pointed out. "At least the monsters attempted to kill me."
Emily finally lowered her phone and studied him for a moment.
"You need something to keep you occupied," she decided.
She locked the screen, put the phone aside, and unfastened her seatbelt.
Emily moved across the wide compartment and sat directly beside Arthur. Her hand settled warmly on his thigh. She slowly slid it upward, her brown eyes watching his face while her palm reached the erection forming beneath his trousers.
She rubbed him firmly through the thick fabric.
Arthur caught her wrist, but he deliberately left her hand exactly where it was.
"This is your solution?" Arthur asked.
Emily squeezed him. "You stopped complaining."
She leaned in and kissed him. The kiss began slowly, but Emily continued rubbing his cock, setting a steady rhythm while Arthur’s free hand came up to cup the back of her neck. Their mouths opened, and their tongues met. Arthur pulled her closer, deepening the kiss as Emily pressed her body against his side.
The leather seat shifted beneath them as the kissing grew wetter and more demanding.
The angle beside him quickly became uncomfortable. Arthur caught Emily around the waist and pulled her squarely across his thighs. She landed sideways for a brief second, then smoothly swung one leg over his lap and straddled him without breaking the kiss.
Emily grabbed the front of Arthur’s casual shirt and pulled several buttons open. Her cool fingers slid over the bare, warm skin of his chest before gripping his shoulders for leverage.
Arthur unzipped her light travel jacket and pushed it down her arms. She shrugged it off, dropping it onto the empty seat beside them.
Emily held his face and kissed him harder, their tongues meeting repeatedly while she pressed her chest flush against his exposed skin. Her hips began rolling over his erection.
Arthur caught her waist and pulled her down firmly. Emily dragged herself backward and rolled forward again, increasing the friction through their trousers.
Arthur slid both hands beneath the hem of her fitted shirt. His rough palms moved up over the smooth skin of her stomach and ribs before reaching her breasts. He pushed her bra cups aside and cupped her bare breasts.
Emily gasped sharply into his mouth.
Arthur squeezed both breasts while she kept grinding her hips down. His thumbs moved over her nipples, circling the sensitive peaks until they hardened beneath his touch. Emily arched her back, pushing her chest deeper into his palms.
Arthur rolled one tight nipple between his fingers and gave it a sharp pinch.
Her hips jerked against him. Emily’s grip tightened on his shoulders, and she kissed him with frantic heat, her nails digging into his shoulders through the thin fabric of his shirt.
Arthur alternated between kneading her breasts and dropping his hands to grip her ass, pulling her tight against his lap through the layers of their trousers.
The friction became intense, and Emily began moving too quickly, her hips chasing the heavy contact. Arthur locked both hands firmly around her hips and stopped her rhythm.
Emily pulled back, her chest heaving, and glared at him.
She tried to force her hips forward again, but he held her still. Emily’s eyes narrowed. She leaned down and bit his lower lip, her teeth dragging over the sensitive skin.
Arthur released her hips, and she immediately resumed grinding with more force.
Emily pulled away from his mouth to breathe. She kissed along Arthur’s strong jaw and trailed wet kisses down his neck while his hands returned to massage her bare breasts.
Her lips settled against the exposed skin just above his collar. She bit him lightly, then clamped her mouth down, sucking the skin hard between her lips.
Arthur realized what she was doing. "Your family is going to see that."
Emily ignored him, continuing the suction for several more seconds. When she finally lifted her head, a dark mark remained prominent on his neck.
She examined the hickey with satisfaction. "Good."
"Are you deliberately trying to provoke your father?" Arthur asked.
Emily pulled him into another deep kiss rather than answering.
The grinding through their clothes was no longer enough. Emily reached between them and unfastened the front of Arthur’s trousers. Arthur moved one hand from her breast and started working the button of her waistband.
Emily slipped her hand through the loosened front of his trousers, hooked her fingers beneath the waistband of his underwear, and pulled his cock free. Her cool fingers wrapped firmly around him, and she began stroking in a tight rhythm while kissing him breathlessly.
Arthur pushed his fingers beneath the edge of her opened trousers, brushing against the silk of her underwear.
Before he could move farther—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
The sharp sound came directly from the driver’s side of the privacy partition.
Emily froze.
The intercom activated with a soft click. "Young Miss, we are approaching the family residence."
The driver’s voice remained professional.
Emily slowly withdrew her hand.
Arthur glanced toward the closed partition. "Tell him we forgot something and need to turn around."
Emily climbed off his lap, dropped onto the seat beside him, and glared.
Arthur fastened his trousers and began buttoning his shirt.
Beside him, Emily quickly pulled her bra back into place, fixed her waistband, smoothed her shirt, and pulled her travel jacket back on. She checked her hair and lips in the reflection of the tinted window.
Her face remained flushed, her lips were visibly swollen, and her nipples still pressed noticeably against the fabric of her shirt.
Arthur reached over and deliberately fastened one of her shirt buttons incorrectly.
Emily saw the uneven collar in the reflection. She slapped his hand away and fixed it with practiced speed. Then, her eyes dropped to the dark hickey on Arthur’s neck.
She reached over and pulled his collar higher, but the mark remained visible above the collar. She rubbed it with her thumb, but the friction only made the bruised skin redder.
"You were proud of it a moment ago," Arthur pointed out.
"Stop smiling," Emily ordered.
She considered moving to the opposite end of the wide seat to create some distance, but the privacy partition began lowering smoothly into the floor before she could decide. They remained sitting beside each other, an awkward gap separating their shoulders.
The car entered the city.
The streets were far busier than Arthur expected. Hotels were crowded, traffic moved slowly, and temporary stalls had appeared along the wider roads. Arthur spotted several fighters carrying weapon cases among the travellers, while bright banners hung above the major intersections.
Emily leaned closer to the window. She recognized the symbols of several martial schools among the crowd, along with a few familiar merchant and guild emblems.
"The city wasn’t this crowded the last time I came home," she murmured.
"Maybe they heard you were returning," Arthur said.
Emily gave him a flat look and turned back toward the window.
The crowds gradually thinned as the car left the central streets and entered a quieter district occupied by large merchant residences, private training halls, walled gardens, and old family compounds.
The car turned through a pair of iron gates and entered the Thorne compound. The main residence stood at the center, surrounded by gardens, smaller houses, and several large training halls. A few servants crossed the grounds, while the distant yards echoed with the familiar sounds of martial practice.
Emily looked toward the training halls as the car stopped outside the main residence.
The car glided to a stop outside the wide stone steps of the main house.
Emily’s younger brother was waiting near the bottom of the steps. Emily stepped out of the vehicle, and Arthur followed a moment later carrying his travel bag.
Emily’s older brother came down two steps to meet her. She gave him a brief embrace before turning toward her younger brother.
He was already staring at Arthur with a grin.
Emily punched him lightly in the shoulder.
"You could at least pretend to be happy to see me."
"I am," he said, rubbing his shoulder. "I’m also curious."
The younger brother’s eyes swept over them. He looked at Emily’s flushed face and swollen lips, and then his gaze locked onto the stark red hickey on Arthur’s neck.
His eyebrows rose toward his hairline. A slow, entertained grin spread across his face.
Emily saw the expression and knew exactly what he had noticed.
After releasing Emily, her older brother stepped back and studied Arthur in silence. His gaze moved over Arthur’s calloused hands, relaxed balance, and calm expression before pausing briefly on the hickey.
Before either brother could say more, the front doors opened and Emily’s parents stepped outside.
Her father came down the steps first and pulled Emily into a warm embrace. Seraphina followed a step behind, her eyes moving between her daughter and Arthur.
When Emily’s father released her, he turned toward Arthur. His eyes found the hickey above Arthur’s collar almost immediately.
"So this is Arthur."
Emily stiffened slightly.
Her father looked him over once more. A broad grin spread across his face as he struck one fist against his palm.
"Then I should see what kind of man keeps appearing in my daughter’s letters."
He had barely taken a step when Seraphina pinched him sharply at the waist.
He flinched and twisted toward his wife.
"Do you intend to start testing our guest before he has even entered the house?" she asked.
"I was merely welcoming him."
Seraphina pinched him again.
The younger brother covered his laugh with a cough. The older brother quietly turned his attention toward the garden.
Seraphina stepped forward and embraced Emily. When she drew back, her gaze passed over her daughter’s flushed face and swollen lips before moving to the hickey on Arthur’s neck.
She looked back at Emily and slowly raised one eyebrow.
Emily’s face reddened again.
Seraphina gave her a small, knowing smile but said nothing. She turned toward Arthur.
"Welcome, Arthur. I have heard quite a lot about you."
"I have barely mentioned him," Emily insisted.
"You spent half a page explaining why he was essential during the Grayroot survey."
Emily fell silent. Arthur looked at her with open amusement.
Emily glanced toward the training halls.
"What is happening here? The entire city is overcrowded."
Her younger brother’s grin widened. "The regional martial competition is being held in the city this year. Competitors and spectators have been arriving all week. Both of us entered through the main dojo, and several relatives came back for it."
Emily’s embarrassment disappeared as her attention shifted toward the training grounds. She immediately asked about registration, and her older brother assured her that she still had time to enter.
She slowly turned toward her parents. "And nobody thought to mention this?"
Her father rubbed his jaw. "I intended to tell you."
Seraphina looked at him.
"I forgot," he admitted. "Then your brother said your reaction would be funnier if we kept quiet."
The younger brother abruptly became interested in the stone beneath his shoes.
Emily looked down at the clothes she had worn for the journey. "My preferred wraps are still in Lornfell."
"You have plenty here," her younger brother said.
"I had plenty here. Before you started stealing them."
"Borrowing," he corrected, edging behind their older brother.
Emily took a step toward him, but Seraphina caught her gently by the arm.
"You can reclaim your equipment after dinner. Both of you need to wash and change first."
Seraphina turned and called a woman forward from the open doorway.
"Nessa," Seraphina said.
The senior maid greeted Arthur with a polite bow and smoothly took his travel bag from his hand.
"Nessa manages the main guest rooms and will help you settle in," Seraphina explained. "Let Arthur and Emily wash and change after the long journey. There will be time for questions at dinner."
Emily’s father looked at Arthur, his grin returning. "Tomorrow morning."
Arthur met his gaze evenly.
Nessa took Arthur’s bag and led the way up the steps. Emily walked beside him into the entrance hall, while her brothers remained outside discussing the competition.
Arthur leaned slightly closer to Emily. "What happens tomorrow morning?" he asked quietly.
Emily answered without hesitation. "My father hits you."