He’d lifted her skirt. His scorching–hot hand slid down her spine, gripping her firmly from behind.
“No-” Deborah’s heart dropped. ‘What kind of man have I gotten myself tangled up with? This is the palace–someone can come by at any moment. And yet he dares.
“Your Highness, stop–let me go-!”
Then, out of nowhere–a sharp crash rang out nearby. Something shattered against the ground.
Deborah froze. Her heart went ice–cold.
Damian turned his head, his expression immediately sharpening.
Just a few steps away, a young palace maid stood paralyzed in the path, wide–eyed in shock. The moment their eyes met, she collapsed to her knees with a loud thud, shaking all over.
“Please spare me, Your Highness! Spare me!” the maid said.
There was no beauty mark by his eye. The maid knew he wasn’t Prince Simon. It was Prince Damian–caught in an illicit moment with Deborah in the royal garden.
The maid was trembling violently, clearly moments from fainting.
Damian finally let go of Deborah.
She had barely managed a breath of relief before she saw him turn and stride toward the palace maid. Her heart lurched. “Your Highness–don’t!”
The stories about Prince Damian were infamous: ruthless, cold–blooded, merciless. Someone had just seen them in a compromising situation. Deborah thought, ‘Is he really going to silence her for it?‘
“Please, Prince Damian, spare me! Please!” the maid sobbed, her voice trembling as Damian approached.
He stopped in front of her, towering over her with chilling calm. “What did you just call me?” he asked, voice low and deadly. “Say it again–who am
I?”
“Pr–Prince Damian–ah!” Before she could finish, his boot came down hard on her hand. She let out a piercing scream.
“Your Highness!” Deborah rushed forward, shaking her head at him. “Please, don’t—she’s innocent!”
But Damian didn’t budge. His foot pressed down harder.
Deborah heard it–crack. The maid’s fingers had broken.
She was in so much pain she nearly passed out, but somehow managed to grit her teeth and force out, “P–Prince Simon…”
The sound had already drawn the guards. They were on their way.
“You’d better remember that,” Damian said coldly. “Tonight, the man you saw was Prince Simon.”
And with that, he kicked her hard in the side. The maid went flying, hitting the ground with a thud before coughing up blood and passing out cold.
Deborah instinctively moved to check on her, but Damian yanked her back.
“And you,” he said, his eyes narrowing, “what exactly were you doing with me just now?”
Her chest tightened. She met his icy gaze, forcing herself to speak. “You were just… walking with me in the garden.”
Damian took a step forward, closing the distance between them. “Just walking?”
A cold smirk tugged at the corners of his lips. “Wasn’t it you who threw yourself at me? Got me so worked up I nearly lost control?”
“This man is going to kill me one day,’ Deborah thought.
She swallowed her fear and tried to stay calm. “You’re joking, Your Highness. We just walked, that’s all.”
“You’re busy with official matters,” she added quickly, stepping back, “so I won’t keep you. I’ll head back now.”
“Do you even know the way?” His tone remained frosty.
“I can ask a maid or an official,” she said. There were guards nearby too. Honestly, wandering back alone sounded safer than staying one more second with him.
But he clearly had no intention of letting her go. “I said I’d walk with you–and I meant it. I’m not sending you back alone.”
He flicked his sleeve, and the nearby guards instantly backed off. None dared approach or even try to confirm whether he was Damian or Simon.
Damian turned and started walking.
Deborah hesitated, then reluctantly followed.
Back in the room, still shaken, she immediately said, “Your Highness, let me redraw the beauty mark.”
“Not interested,” he replied without even looking at her. “You seduced me–at worst, I get a little scandal added to my name. But you? You and the general’s estate will pay the price.”
“Your Highness!” Deborah nearly begged. She thought, ‘Could he stop being so unreasonable, just once?‘
“I’m cold and cruel,” he said flatly. “You really think I’d protect you or the general’s estate at my own expense?”
That was it. He was angry. She thought, ‘Is this because I’ve stopped him from hurting the maid?‘
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