Chapter 430: Maybe
Elion looked at her, and a victorious grin spread across his face.
"Hoho. You noticed, huh?" he asked proudly. "I look more handsome, yeah?" He pointed at his face proudly.
Tessa looked away as she answered, "W-Well, maybe."
Elion’s grin widened, "And?"
"You got taller too," she added quickly. "And you look stronger, not only that, you feel stronger."
As she listed the changes, a far dirtier thought slipped into her mind.
Unfortunately, it dragged with it memories of Mira’s frequent and shameless dirty talk, particularly her endless ravings about Elion being rather impressive in places Tessa had never asked to hear about.
Before her brain could stop her mouth, Tessa blurted, "D-Did you also get bigger down there too?"
Silence.
The instant she realised what she had just said, Tessa felt like digging a hole and burying herself inside it, "Fuck! Why did I say that out loud!" She screamed.
She crouched down on the spot and grabbed at her own hair in frustration, ’Now he is going to think I am some loose slut!’
Elion stared at her with his brows raised in amusement.
Tessa tended to speak before thinking, and she had done it once again. However, the content of the question was not exactly something he expected to come out of her mouth.
There was only one explanation. Mira had somehow managed to corrupt this clueless punching machine within the past month.
The thought brought a wide grin to Elion’s face.
’Good job, Mira!’ Wherever she was, Elion gave his trusty assistant an imaginary thumbs-up in his mind. Of course, there was no way he was going to let Tessa escape after making a comment like that.
"Hehe."
He chuckled proudly and crouched down in front of her, matching her height.
"I have indeed gotten even more impressive; my goods are quite capable," he said, his grin turning wicked. "Are you curious?"
Tessa froze as Elion leaned a little closer, so much that she could feel his hot breath fanning her face.
"Do you want to confirm it yourself?"
Tessa’s face turned bright red, "Elion!" Her shout echoed through the street, drawing the attention of several passersby.
Elion laughed shamelessly.
Tessa covered her face with both hands.
"I hate you."
"No, you do not."
"I really do."
"And yet, you are blushing so fiercely."
"That is because you are shameless!"
Elion smiled, clearly enjoying himself. Tessa peeked through her fingers, saw his expression, and immediately regretted looking.
This man was dangerous.
Not because of his strength, but because he could say things like that with a perfectly straight face and make her heart stumble like an idiot.
Now she could totally understand how it was that he had managed to so easily make Mira, Aria, and Isolde fall for him. Perhaps she had found herself yearning for something similar. After he was gone for so long, she could indeed say she had missed his presence greatly.
Tessa lowered her hands slightly and glared at him, "You are definitely worse than before."
Elion placed a hand over his chest, "I prefer to think of it as growth."
"Do not use that word right now."
Elion’s grin widened, and Tessa immediately pointed at him.
"Do not."
He raised both hands innocently, "I said nothing."
"You were thinking it."
"I cannot be blamed for your imagination."
Tessa groaned and stood up, turning away before he could see the smile threatening to form on her lips.
Elion rose as well, still chuckling softly, "The offer is still up, you know," He said lightly, and Tessa froze
Elion’s smile turned predatory, "The others could use a bit of help handling me, especially as I am right now."
He tilted his head, his gaze moving over her slowly, "And I mean this in the nicest way possible, Tessa. You are one of the sexiest women I have ever seen. It’s only natural that I would want to make you mine."
Tessa’s breath caught.
His eyes traced her figure openly, moving over her strong curves, defined muscles, and the tight shorts she wore that did very little to hide the power in her legs. A shiver crawled up her spine.
"I still have not forgotten the feeling of your thighs in my hands during our very first training session."
Tessa’s mouth fell open, ’He still remembers that?’
Of course, she remembered it too.
They had gotten a little carried away back then. She still did not fully understand what had come over her during that spar, but she had to admit that those few moments when they had been locked together had felt strangely good.
And if his touch felt anywhere near as good as Mira always claimed, then perhaps Tessa had been missing out far more than she realised.
Most of all, she was genuinely curious. What reason did she really have to play hard to get?
Elion was perhaps the only decent guy she knew. He was strong, no doubt far stronger than her by now. He was handsome, irritatingly confident, and despite his shameless mouth, he was a good person where it mattered.
The fact that Mira, Aria, and Isolde had all fallen for him was proof enough of that. Tessa thought about it deeply.
’If it is him, then maybe I can...’
She did not want to lie to herself. This past month without him had been mostly filled with thoughts of him.
Where he was, whether he was safe, whether he would ever come back. And now that he was standing right in front of her, what if he left again?
What if she never saw him after this? What if some bounty hunter truly found him?
Tessa shook her head sharply. No.
She did not want that; she wanted to live in the present. And more than anything, she wanted to know what it would feel like to be with a man.
To be with him and finally cross that line and become a woman in truth?
’I cannot be outdone by the likes of Mira and Aria!’ she thought fiercely.
She clenched her fists.
"Come on," she muttered under her breath. "You can do this."
She closed her eyes, patted her cheeks a few times, and looked up at Elion with perhaps the most serious expression she had ever worn in her life.
Her face was bright red, and her voice was also trembling, "C-Can I really see it?"
Elion’s brows rose in shock. He was the one caught completely off guard with that one. He had expected her to shout, maybe punch him, and curse his shamelessness before storming away with her face burning.
He had not expected this at all. The two of them simply stared at each other in the middle of the street.
Then Elion blinked, "Wait, really?"
Her face became an even fiercer shade of red, "I-I said it already," she muttered. "Do not make me repeat it!"