Bondage and Marriage - 49

“Actually, I… I like that kind of thing.”

“What do you mean by ‘that kind of thing’?”

At first, Tanner didn’t understand Noah’s words and asked in confusion. Ian, who had been wearing an uncomfortable expression ever since Tanner grabbed him by the collar, stared at Noah with a strange look. Noah deliberately glanced at Ian and then lowered his head, hesitating. Tanner, who was particularly impatient today, asked in frustration.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well… I… I like it… rough,” Noah said, unable to lift his head in embarrassment.

“…”

As Tanner watched Noah speak without raising his head, many thoughts came to mind. It felt like he was hearing a typical excuse from a “beaten wife.” “He’s sometimes violent, but he loves me, so he hits me.” In an instant, Tanner’s mind flashed to a scene from a social program he had seen, titled Urgent Consultation SOS – The Seriousness of Domestic Violence. It was about an Omega who, after being beaten daily by her husband, became anxious if she wasn’t beaten. Unconsciously, Tanner began to imagine Noah as that Omega, and he snapped back in anger.

“You! What the hell did you do to her?”

“Sir, it’s dangerous if your bl00d pressure rises more,” Joseph said sternly, quietly observing the conversation, and placed a calming patch on Tanner’s arm. Forced to calm down, Tanner stumbled and sat down on the sofa, though his eyes still glared with anger.

“What did I do?” Ian answered calmly, not breaking eye contact with Noah. As Tanner’s bl00d pressure began to rise again, Noah gently grabbed Tanner’s hand. Almost as if by reflex, Tanner’s anger slowly eased. This was the effect Noah had on Tanner, something he had done for the past 20 years whenever Tanner was angry.

“Do you remember Christmas Eve about ten years ago? The day Benny brought his lover to the house…”

Tanner frowned as he tried to recall that day from ten years ago. Before long, he remembered it clearly. How could he forget such a memorable day…

Actually, it was nine years ago, the month Benjamin turned 18. (Benjamin’s birthday was in December.) As soon as he became an adult, Benjamin enjoyed everything that came with adulthood: drinking, smoking, clubs, adult sites, and so on. Tanner disliked it, but his concern wasn’t about it being inappropriate; he was just worried Benjamin might get into trouble. An Alpha should act that way, right?

On Christmas Eve, as usual, Noah spent the day with Tanner, knowing he would be busy with events on Christmas Day. They had a meal and visited social clubs, enjoying the day. Benjamin and William didn’t really care how they spent Christmas, but Noah showed disappointment if he didn’t spend it with his father. Tanner enjoyed spending the holiday with Noah.

However, that day, their schedule went awry, and they had to return home earlier than usual. Trying to cheer up, they bought a Christmas cake and returned… only to find Benjamin handcuffed to the armrest of the living room sofa, enjoying his time with his lover. At least he was wearing briefs, so it wasn’t too bad.

As Tanner and Noah stood there, speechless, Benjamin, who didn’t notice them coming in because his eyes were covered with a tie, awkwardly asked his lover, “Honey?”

“Uh… Benny? It looks like your family has arrived…”

“Oh… Merry Christmas!”

Handcuffed, Benjamin casually greeted them, while his lover, dressed like a sexy teacher, quickly buttoned up his shirt and hid the whip he was holding behind his back. Noah, though outwardly surprised, quickly figured out that they were just pretending to do something special, imitating an SM scene. After all, Noah had watched many such videos in the past. Besides, that cane, which Noah didn’t know where it came from, was an especially painful kind of whip. Benjamin, who often exaggerated when he was hurt, would never have liked being hit with it…

But despite Benjamin’s macho personality, he sometimes acted very romantically to win over his lovers, and having grown up in a strict, puritanical household, Tanner was completely unprepared for such things.

Naturally, Tanner screamed at Benjamin for such ridiculous behavior, especially in front of his younger sibling, and the two started to argue again.

Benjamin, handcuffed, courageously argued that lovers could do whatever they wanted, even in this situation.

As Tanner recalled that scene, his brow furrowed.

“So, you… you like that kind of thing too?”

Tanner, uncomfortable with this type of conversation, tried to ask in a roundabout way. Of course, the “kind of thing” Tanner imagined was completely different from what Noah meant. Most people might lightly spank or tie someone up by the wrists, but people like Noah, who enjoyed stomping on people, severely bruising their buttocks, or torturing others to near pain… were much rarer.

“Yeah… I do,” Noah answered, glancing at Ian again. Ian was silent, his expression unreadable. Noah’s purpose in saying that he liked such things was a kind of “white lie” to make it seem like Ian was rougher with him, to justify it to Tanner. And for Ian, it was meant to appear as if he liked hurting Noah, and Noah was just making excuses to his father… Was it working?

If Ian didn’t cooperate, the excuse would be useless. No matter how much Noah said it was fine, if Ian said otherwise, what would it matter? Ian remained silent, and Tanner’s gaze grew more suspicious.

“Look, I’m really fine. Ian treats me really well.”

Noah lied without even moistening his lips. At the same time, Ian’s gaze felt even more intense, making Noah feel a slight sting on the side of his face.

“Plus, when I was sick, he even took care of me until late at night… Right, Joseph?”

“Uh? Oh, yes… that’s right.”

Joseph, unable to hide his excitement, unconsciously agreed while listening, his mouth slightly open. Ian still remained silent, making Noah a bit disappointed. Well, I’ve done my best…

No matter how much Noah wanted to enjoy himself, if Ian decided on a divorce, there was nothing Noah could do. After all, Noah knew that Ian wanted to make Tanner angry. But suddenly, a strong arm wrapped around Noah’s waist like a snake, and before he knew it, he was pulled toward Ian. As Noah was confused, something soft briefly pressed against his temple.

“Eugh?” Noah froze for a moment. What did Ian just do? Noah was confused because Ian’s actions had seemed so natural. Before he could process it, Ian, who had kept his mouth shut until then, finally spoke.

“I apologize for speaking rudely earlier. But, even though you came unannounced, grabbing my collar like that…”

Ian said this in a very gentle tone, holding Noah in his arms with an apologetic tone. The expression on Tanner’s face was one of suspicion. Seeing how Noah and Ian were acting, Tanner suddenly wondered if he had jumped to conclusions without hearing the full story. When he first saw Ian, it looked like he was forcing Noah… but now that he thought about it, maybe it wasn’t that way. He had rushed in without understanding the situation.

“Are you really saying that’s not true?” Tanner asked.

“Of course not. It’s not true. And what happened in the hallway… you know… we’re newlyweds.”

Noah answered with a bright smile, feeling relieved that things seemed to be going well. Tanner still looked doubtful. He stared at Noah for a while, wondering if Noah was hiding something. However, Noah’s smile was so genuine that it didn’t seem forced at all. (Naturally, it was because it was true.)

“I do apologize for suddenly visiting without notice.”

Tanner said reluctantly, still unable to shake off his suspicions. Of course, he understood that anyone would be upset if someone showed up unannounced while they were enjoying time with their partner. As an alpha, Tanner himself was particularly sensitive about such things. Ian, like him, was a very strong alpha, so he understood that side of him. But something felt off when Ian had acted so arrogantly earlier. He had been annoyed, but there was something unsettling about the whole situation. Tanner couldn’t completely accept it, so he issued a warning.

“You should be careful not to go too far.”

“I’ll be careful. I won’t leave any bruises on my face.”

Ian responded smoothly. Tanner knew Ian had always been like this—never backing down—but today his boldness felt different, and in a negative way. He decided it was probably because of his own emotions, so he tried to rationalize it. Still, Tanner couldn’t shake the feeling that he had to keep a close eye on Ian from now on.

“…I just stopped by for a moment, so I’ll leave now.”

Tanner said irritably as he removed a calming patch from his arm and stood up. Noah tried to get up too, but Tanner told him not to come outside because he still had a cold. Before leaving, Tanner gave Ian one last glare before walking out of the mansion.

Noah, despite being told not to, followed Tanner to the hall. Once Tanner left, Noah felt relieved, thinking he would be able to enjoy a bit more of his newlywed life. But when he turned around, he saw Ian, who had immediately wiped the smile off his face and walked to the third floor without saying a word.

Left alone in the hall, Joseph, who had ended up coming out to see Tanner off, awkwardly spoke.

“Well… I’ll leave too.”

“Oh! Thank you for the treatment today.”

“It’s my job, Mr. Frost.”

Joseph silently thought to himself that Noah had seen some interesting things today. When Noah suggested he stay in the guest room because it was getting late, Joseph politely declined. As he was about to leave, he hesitated for a moment, seeming like he wanted to say something. Noah blinked, sensing he had something to say.

“Is there something you want to say?”

“No, just make sure to take care of your face. If you get a scar, let me know.”

Joseph said politely. His mind was still preoccupied with the way Ian had looked in the living room earlier. As a relative, Joseph had seen Ian act all nice in front of adults countless times. He had known Ian since childhood, and even now, though Ian was more polished, Joseph could quickly sense when Ian was acting differently from his true feelings. Ian’s act of hugging Noah in the living room had seemed so tender. But… maybe Ian’s acting skills had improved while Joseph wasn’t looking.

“I’ll see you again.”

“Yes, see you next time.”

After sending Joseph off with a smile, Noah sighed and turned, looking at the third floor where Ian had just gone.

“Is he really not going to do anything today?”

Noah muttered to himself. After all, if someone brings up something, shouldn’t they at least do something about it? He had been hoping Ian would defend him earlier. Was he really that upset about being grabbed by his father? After a moment of hesitation, Noah made his way to the third floor. Standing in front of Ian’s study, Noah knocked softly. What was that? He heard an angry response from inside and, with some expectation, Noah opened the door and stepped inside.

As soon as Noah entered, Ian, who had been standing with his back to the desk, suddenly spun around. The intensity of his gaze made Noah flinch. Normally, Noah could tell what Ian was thinking, but today it was much harder. He had been unable to understand Ian’s thoughts earlier in the living room either.

But now Noah could tell that Ian wasn’t angry. The way Ian was looking at him didn’t seem like he was annoyed or terribly embarrassed.

“You.”

Ian growled as he took a few steps toward Noah. Noah instinctively took a step back.

“You don’t want to divorce me, right?”

Ian asked directly. Noah’s eyes widened in surprise. He couldn’t immediately answer, and while his lips moved, Ian’s face twisted with frustration. He had just realized that he didn’t want to divorce Noah Frost.