“Whoa!”

The carriage jolted, sending Iva flying into the air and straight toward Ray.

He had been sitting facing forward, but because Iva was sitting in the opposite direction, she felt the impact more severely.

In a hurried attempt to regain her balance, she instinctively reached out, and the only thing she could grab was Ray.

Knowing this, he opened his arms to catch her.

“Ah!”

Just before she landed in Ray’s embrace, the carriage jolted again. Her body lurched backward, slamming hard against the chair.

“Ugh!”

“Miss Iva!”

There was no time to register the pain amid the violent shaking of the carriage. Iva’s body flew toward Ray again. Concerned that she might get hurt, he quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her safely into his arms.

It was a perfect princess-carry pose.

“Are you alright?”

“Ugh, yes, yes. I’m fine…”

Fine my ass! It hurts so much!

Even if the chair was cushioned, the impact from flying and crashing was bound to hurt. But she couldn’t admit that while being held in his arms, so she pretended to be fine.

As she awkwardly smiled, intending to return to her seat,

“Yikes!”

Thud, the carriage jolted again.

In a moment of panic, fearing another collision, she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist.

Wait, am I on a carriage or some kind of amusement park ride? I want to get off! Let me get off, driver!

“Why is this carriage shaking so much?”

As if forbidding her from leaving his arms, another lurch pressed her even deeper into Ray’s embrace. 

Are we on a roller coaster or what?

“There are many rough patches on the road to Grace.” Ray explained.

“Even so, does it have to be this bad?”

“Moreover, it rained a few days ago. If we go too slow, we risk losing a wheel. We have to maintain a certain speed, so expect more shaking.”

Great. At this rate, I’ll break a bone before we even get to Grace.

“Would it be rude if I sat next to you instead, Your Grace?”

“I don’t mind. Do you think you could manage to stay balanced on a seat?”

Ray’s question left Iva struggling for an answer. 

Even nestled in his arms, her head was swaying listlessly back and forth. There was no way she could hold out on her own.

Sensing her hesitation, Ray adjusted his grip on Iva.

“Whoa!”

With one hand, he firmly supported her waist and back, pulling her snugly against him.

With his other hand, Ray firmly grasped the wall of the carriage, spreading his legs a bit more to stabilize their swaying bodies.

“This should keep us from shaking too much.”

“Are we going to stay like this all the way to Grace?”

“As soon as the road smooths out, I’ll let you go.”

Almost every part of Iva’s left side was in contact with Ray. No, it wasn’t just in contact; she was practically buried in his embrace.

She could feel every inch of his body against hers, pressed closely together.

His muscles were more than just toned; they felt like rock. Yet, they were soft enough in the areas touching her, as if he was careful not to make her uncomfortable.

Being so close, she could feel the intricate movements of his muscles as he breathed in and out. It felt like lying on a one-person sofa that was both firm and elastic.

Even his body temperature was perfect. Who knew that stability could feel this good?

“I’ll, um, sit in the seat next to you as soon as we hit a smooth road.”

As comforting as this was, she couldn’t stay like this forever. Iva intentionally tensed her neck to make herself uncomfortable, not wanting to get too accustomed to the feeling.

“Miss Iva.”

“Yes?”

“The paint still hasn’t completely dried.”

Oops. I was only thinking how comfortable I was, that I forgot how close his face had come to mine.

Ray’s low voice reached her ears, effortlessly sinking deep into them.

His voice was the same as always, but maybe it was the close proximity that made Iva feel a certain warmth where their bodies touched.

“R-right. I haven’t managed to get all the paint off yet.”

She took the handkerchief she was holding and began to wipe the less visible areas. She could feel Ray’s intense gaze on her, and it made her fingers feel oddly stiff.

“No, it’s lower than that.”

“Here?”

“No, more to the left.”

“Here?”

As Iva swiped at the areas to remove the smeared paint, Ray looked at her with an awkward expression, as if she was missing the mark.

Thrown off by his direct gaze, Iva felt even more unsure of where to wipe.

“Would you like me to wipe it off for you?”

“What?”

“I’ll try not to touch you as much as possible.”

It was an ironic statement, considering their bodies were already so close to each other.

But he asked carefully as if to make it clear he had no bad intentions and didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable.