Tale of Obsession: Courting Daphne Ch. 04

"I did not," came her answer. "She found me."

The two of them fell silent, each lost in his own thoughts. From a distance, they heard the raucous laughter of the men who were still celebrating at that hour of the night. Leander then heard Daphne sigh.

"So, I am your duty, am I not?" she asked when he looked at her, not waiting for an answer before continuing. "That's fine with me. Better than knowing that I am your plaything."

Leander smoothed back some strands of her hair, keeping them away from her face. He did not object to her statement. Better let her think that than let her know what she really meant to him.

"Is claiming me sexually a part of your duty, too?" she asked. "I wonder, what does the Duchess of Brayhorn going to do if she finds out what you turned me into while at camp with you?"

The general felt uneasy with the knowledge that Daphne's mother would probably throw him in prison. When he turned to her, he noticed the way that Daphne's eyes were twinkling, as if the woman was finding his discomfort amusing. Leander decided to test the waters.

"No, it is not part of my duty, and the duchess will probably imprison me the moment she finds out," he answered. "That is if she is feeling generous. If not, I'd be chopped into pieces or buried alive. Does the knowledge please you, my sweet?"

Daphne's eyes said that it did. "You better pray for my mother's generosity, then."

"I never knew your mother as a generous woman," Leander said.

"Then, you better pray to the spirits to take your soul into their realm," Daphne said, climbing on top of him and rubbing her nose against his. "You poor, poor man."

Leander smiled at her, glad that she seemed to be in a light-hearted mood, and grabbed both cheeks of her backside. His cock was starting to stir. "Well. Perhaps I should make the best of what is left in my life, don't you think? Enjoy you as much as I could?"

Daphne smiled but shook her head. "I will cut you a deal. Let me go, and I will never tell my mother, or my father, or anyone at all."

"Oh, Daphne." Leander chuckled, pulling her face down so that it was inches away from his. "My whole life revolved around you. If I let you go, my life would lose focus. If I have to choose between living without you and dying due to what I have done to you, I would choose the latter."

"Don't you have a wife, a child?" Daphne asked softly, staring into his eyes.

"My whole life revolved around you," Leander repeated, touching her face. "When I lost sight of you for two years, all that pushed me through was your mother's constant nagging that I will find you. I led the men she provided me with, dared every army I was pitched against, with only that thought in mind."

"Why?" Daphne asked. "Why are you so obsessed about finding me?"

"Maybe you should talk to your mother about that, when I bring you back to her," Leander answered.

Daphne nodded. "You are a strange hunter. You did not even know how your target looks like. And don't you tell me that I was wrong. You did not recognize me the first time you saw me."

Leander smiled slowly, raking his eyes over Daphne's face. "You should face a looking glass sometimes, Daphne. You should know how much your appearance have changed -- how much more beautiful, more mature you now look."

He noticed how Daphne's eyes softened at those words, but the girl was so much like her cunning parents to actually let her head be spun that easily. "I do not remember your face from before, but I see you now, and..." She grinned. "You are attractive. Very, very attractive."

"That's a start," Leander said, kissing her lips. "Now, we need to take care of the angry beast hovering behind you before it kills me."

"What are you talking about?" asked the confused Daphne.

Leander took her hand and guided it to where his cock was. "I am talking about this."

As blood rushed up her face, Leander kissed her mouth hungrily. He did not plan on trying to claim Daphne for a second time that night, but her actions were more than a bit seductive, and he could not prevent himself from feeling the way he felt.

Daphne moaned into his mouth, squeezing his cock before letting it go. He felt her trying to get away from him, but Leander held her close to him even as she struggled. For the first time in three weeks, he once again wondered if Daphne really had a penchant for ruining everything. They had been off to a good start, and now --!

He rolled over so that Daphne was the one lying on the bed and he was hovering above her. Only when they were already in that position and he was sure that she would not have a chance of getting away from him did he release her mouth and allowed her to speak.

"Abominable!" cried Daphne, pounding her fists on his chest. "How can you do this? You cannot resort to this kind of thing!"

"What exactly is this kind of thing?" Leander asked, parting her legs.

To his amusement, Daphne whimpered like a child and stopped struggling. "You said I could sleep."

"You should not have seduced me, then," he countered.

"I was not seducing you!" she said incredulously. "How could I know that you are that easily aroused?"

"You could not," he answered, "but now you know. What do you propose I do about this now, though?" He once again let her touch his cock. "Will you voluntarily help me relieve myself, or do I have to force you into helping me?"

Daphne frowned, although she looked more scared than angry. "I am not going to volunteer to do that."

"So, you want me to force my way in?" Leander asked, petting her cunt. It was starting to get moist, and he wondered if Daphne was aware of how her body was reacting to his touch.

She winced. "You are not going to do that. You said you will never hurt me."

"Oh, it won't hurt a bit," he chuckled, "if you do not resist."

Daphne looked thoughtful. "Will you let me sleep afterwards?"

Leander grinned. "It depends on how well you please me, my sweet."

Before Daphne could say anything more, he kissed her mouth, feeling light-hearted. The sudden change in Daphne's treatment of him lifted his spirits. An understanding seemed to have formed between them as soon as he told her about their shared history. Leander vowed that he would keep it that way.

As Daphne's mouth opened for his tongue and she wrapped her legs around him, Leander knew that, perhaps, he was not the only one vowing so.

*****

The early morning breeze was cold, yet Leander felt as though it was not. The hunt for game in the nearby woods started early, for he was insistent that those left in the camp should prepare for the arrival of the men he marched to battle three weeks ago. It was lucky for them that Elgeshoran woods abound with wild boars, stags, and large birds. Their hunt had been successful, and after sending some of the men back to bring their kill to the camp, Leander led the rest to meet the men he left last night.

By the time he was back with the majority of his army, it was already past noon and Leander was itching to be back at camp. Besides the fact that the idea of a sumptuous meal was beckoning to him, the knowledge that Daphne would be waiting inside their tent was more than enough to rouse his eagerness.

But when he arrived and walked into the tent to call Daphne down to lunch, the tent was empty. The bed was carefully made, and there was no sign of her anywhere. He even noticed that his clothes, which were still piled in a corner of the tent that morning, were not there anymore. He did not bother looking into his trunk to know that the clothes would be there.

"Renard!" he called to his friend, clenching his fists. Anthony was inside the tent in a few seconds. "Order the men to search the whole camp for Daphne."

Anthony said nothing to the general, but shouted the order to the men outside. He turned to Leander as soon as the order was given.

"She could not have left of her own will," Leander hissed, trying to control the anger that was starting to boil inside him. Was Daphne playing him all along the night before? "Gods, she couldn't!"

His friend remained silent. That made him more furious. He knew what Anthony's silence meant: his friend did not share his opinion.

But Daphne promised to wait for him, did she not? When he accidentally woke her up early that morning as he was preparing to hunt, Daphne even kissed him -- of her own free will. She had even asked him if he wanted to stay with her instead of go with his men. She would not do this!

Or, did he underestimate her? Was she as cunning as her father, as resourceful as her mother? Was he too blinded by his feelings that he did not see through her mask?

"By the fucking gods!" he exclaimed, itching to strike something just then. "We better find her!"

"What if we don't?" Anthony asked.

"If I have to turn the whole Elgeshore upside down to find Daphne, I would," Leander hissed, frowning. "She will never get away from me."

Anthony raised an eyebrow. "Your..." He paused, narrowing his eyes, before continuing, "...dedication to her is extremely disconcerting."

Leander knew that Anthony wanted to say 'obsession' instead of 'dedication', but thought better of it on the very last minute. The knowledge that Anthony was trying not to upset him more told Leander that he must seem as if he was losing it. He had to sigh and try to control his anger before saying anything.

"If I cannot have her, then, I at least need to know where she is," he said. "I need to make sure that she is safe. If she is in danger, I will bring her back to Thersale and give her to the Duchess of Brayhorn. But I will not rest until I know that Daphne is out of harm's way."

His friend murmured something about leading the search and excused himself; Leander decided to remain a while longer inside the tent. He did not want his men to see him thus affected. Whether he admitted it or not, the thought of Daphne betraying his trust gnawed at his heart. Could she be that devious? Could she really care none for him?

He was just about to accept that Daphne would never feel the same way for him as he did for her, when into the tent rushed one of the women. Mia, if he remembered the name correctly. She was one of the women from Daphne's village. That she would rush in like that into his tent was something Leander would not have tolerated at any other time, but her statement caught his attention.

"I know where she is," the woman said. "If you promise to give me the protection you give to every woman who willingly follows your soldiers, I will tell you where to find her."

"How do I know that you tell the truth?" Leander asked.

The woman looked offended. "I have nothing left but my words, General."

"Where is Daphne?" he asked, nodding to indicate that he gave her his word, too.

"Taken," answered Mia, "by the order of someone close to you."