Lying in bed, Lu Xia felt a fire raging through her body, with no way to extinguish it.

Not until a pair of cool hands touched her did Lu Xia find an escape, nuzzling against them. She heard Smelian calling her name.

"Xiaxia, Doctor Eugene just said you’re in heat. If you’re not soothed, it could cause physical harm. Graces isn’t here right now. Can you accept my touch? Or would you prefer Cecil?"

Selfishly, Smelian didn’t want to mention Cecil’s name at that moment. But as one of Duke Lu Xia’s partners, if Lu Xia needed Cecil at a time like this, he was prepared to step aside.

Lu Xia’s mind was a muddle. She could hear Smelian’s voice clearly but couldn’t fully grasp his meaning. She only knew that his touch felt good. She instinctively craved more, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her whole body against his.

Lu Xia’s actions seemed to be silent permission. Smelian was already fond of Lu Xia, so how could he possibly resist when she treated him like this?

Besides, when a female entered her heat, she would emit a cloyingly sweet scent, which was in itself a temptation for any male.

Smelian had long since been tempted and was already aroused.

He no longer held back. Even if Duke Lu Xia might grow to detest him when she came to her senses, he didn’t want to let go now. He sought out Lu Xia’s red lips and kissed her.

Everything seemed to happen so naturally.

But once a female’s heat began, it required three continuous days of intimate acts to subside.

For these three days, the old butler was in charge of Lu Xia and Smelian’s meals. With something like this happening in the household, there was no way Cecil wouldn’t know.

When he learned that Duke Lu Xia had been tricked at the public banquet hosted by Victoria’s main husband, triggering her heat, and that Smelian was now helping her through it, it was impossible for him not to be jealous.

’He even maliciously wondered if Smelian had done all this on purpose. He had clearly reminded Smelian before they left, so why did he still let Lu Xia get tricked?’

But what was done was done; there was nothing he could do to change it. He could only wait for Duke Lu Xia to wake up before dealing with the matter.

For these three days, the atmosphere in Duke Lu Xia’s Mansion was somewhat oppressive. The old butler didn’t even want to go near Cecil, who exuded a gloomy aura from head to toe. He even felt that if the man were to curl up in a corner, dark mushrooms would probably sprout from him.

As for what was happening with Smelian and the Duke, he was indifferent. ’Smelian is one of the Duke’s husbands, after all, and helping the Duke through her heat is his duty. He should be grateful for this opportunity. Otherwise, who knows how much longer it would have been before he received the Duke’s favor.’

For Lu Xia, those three days were not easy. A male’s stamina in that regard was always exceptional. Even though this wasn’t Lu Xia’s first time, it was still quite taxing to endure.

Not to mention, Smelian had approached it with a sense of desperate determination.

When it was all over, Smelian cleaned her body and knelt silently by the bed, waiting for Lu Xia to wake.

It was as if he were awaiting a verdict. He didn’t know if Lu Xia, upon waking, would suspect him of taking advantage of her situation and thus despise him.

’But he didn’t regret his actions over the past three days. If he had to do it all over again, he would make the same choice. He couldn’t just watch Lu Xia suffer through her heat alone, and he especially didn’t want to give an opportunity like this to Cecil. His mother was right—with Graces away, this was truly his best chance to get ahead. It would be a lie to say he wasn’t tempted. Males are greedy creatures.’

When Lu Xia woke up, the scorching heat in her body had subsided, and her mind was clear again. Although she had spent the past three days in a daze, there were moments of lucidity. She knew perfectly well what she and Smelian had done during that time.

She had no intention of staying chaste for Graces. The reason she hadn’t accepted Smelian before was simply because she thought he might have better options one day.

But now that this had happened between them, she wouldn’t run from it.

It was just that opening her eyes to see Smelian kneeling on the floor gave her a disorienting sense of déjà vu, taking her back to the scene of her first meeting with Graces.

Males were always exceptionally gifted at admitting fault.

’She couldn’t help but have a wicked thought: if she pretended to be angry right now, would Smelian also pull out a whip, offer it with both hands, and beg for her punishment?’

But the thought was fleeting. She could see Smelian’s trepidation and anxiety. Saying something harsh at a time like this would be too cold toward him.

She opened her mouth to call Smelian’s name, but her voice came out unusually hoarse.

Smelian still heard her, however. His body trembled slightly as he instinctively prostrated himself on the floor. "Duke," he said, "I took the liberty of overstepping my bounds. Please punish me."

’Alright, no whip, but the scene is replaying itself.’

Lu Xia sat up and poured herself a glass of Spiritual Spring Water, drinking it to recover some of her strength. ’If I had been able to drink the Spiritual Spring Water in time back then, none of this probably would have happened. But who could have known the Imperial Secret Medicine would be so potent? Just a tiny amount had been enough to trigger my heat, and it had been so sudden and intense that there was no time to do anything.’

She sat up and looked at Smelian, who was still prostrated on the floor. Her voice was no longer hoarse. "Do you regret it, Smelian?" she asked.

Hearing this, Smelian answered earnestly, "Never. Even though I obtained your favor without your permission, I still don’t regret it. Even if it happened again, I would make the same choice. So, for my transgression, I will accept any punishment. I only hope, Xiaxia, that you won’t despise me."

After saying that last sentence, Smelian buried his head even lower. It was as if he was certain he had already been cast aside by Lu Xia, his tone laced with an unconscious tremor.

Lu Xia raised an eyebrow. "Am I that cold-hearted of a person in your eyes?"

Smelian hurriedly explained, "Of course not. You..."

"If that’s the case, then why would I despise you? I know very well that if it weren’t for you this time, my heat wouldn’t have passed so smoothly. You saved me, yet here you are, begging for my punishment. Smelian, you’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?"

’He’s deliberately humbling himself, begging for my pity to soften my heart.’

Smelian rose slightly, lifting his gaze to Lu Xia. His golden eyes were filled with apprehension and unease, as if trying to confirm that there was truly no resentment or disgust for him in her gaze.

Lu Xia reached out, lifted his chin, and leaned in to place a light kiss on the corner of his lips. "You did very well, Smelian. Thank you for helping me through my heat."

Smelian looked at Lu Xia, who was so close, and felt as if this were all a dream. Lu Xia had actually accepted him.