Nine Hot Therians and Their Only One Queen novel Chapter 198

**TITLE: When She Opened the Door to the Life She Was Afraid to Live by Nora Vale Kingsley 198**

**Chapter 198: Acting Weird**

There was something undeniably strange about Marcus today.

From the moment they had stepped outside that morning, he had seized every opportunity to draw near to her, as if he were a moth to a flame.

If he wasn’t entwining his fingers with hers, he was pulling her into his warm embrace, the kind that made her heart race.

Emma tilted her head, her brow furrowing as she surveyed his strikingly handsome yet cold expression. A flicker of concern danced in her eyes.

“Are you feeling unwell, Marcus?” she inquired, her voice laced with genuine worry.

His response was immediate, almost too quick. “No, I feel great,” he declared, though a slight frown creased his brow at her question.

“And you, Ms. Tibarn? Are you feeling unwell?”

A pang of uncertainty gnawed at him. Was he misreading the situation? Was he making her uncomfortable with his closeness?

Yet, despite the uncertainty, he found a strange comfort in their proximity.

“I’m fine,” Emma replied hastily, shaking her head as if to dispel the notion.

But the confusion only deepened within her.

Physically, he appeared perfectly healthy.

Could it be that he was experiencing a heat period?

She had heard whispers that males went through such cycles.

If they couldn’t mate during these times, they would have to suppress their urges, leading to a kind of desperate clinging—much like what Marcus was doing now.

The thought sent a shiver down her spine.

Just as she contemplated pulling away, Marcus’s hand slid around her waist, anchoring her to him.

In his other hand, he cradled a freshly picked fruit, its vibrant color almost glowing in the sunlight.

Emma didn’t seem uneasy, which led him to believe she was okay with his touch.

According to the book he had read, as long as she appeared to enjoy it, he was permitted to kiss her.

His throat tightened as he gazed at Emma’s soft, inviting lips, wondering if she would be angry if he leaned in for a kiss without warning.

He lifted the two red fruits, their surfaces still glistening with morning dew.

“Would you like to try one, Ms. Tibarn?” he asked, his voice low and enticing.

Emma’s eyes darted to the fruit, and after a moment of hesitation, she leaned closer, taking a small bite.

The sweet juice burst forth, staining the corners of her lips a vivid red.

Marcus’s fingertips brushed against her mouth, tracing the crimson mark lightly as if he were an artist admiring his masterpiece.

At that moment, he narrowed his eyes, resembling a snow wolf stalking its prey.

“You’ve got some on you, Ms. Tibarn,” he murmured, his voice husky and filled with a predatory charm.

Before she could respond, he swiftly leaned in.

As his lips met hers, Emma was enveloped in the lingering sweetness of the fruit, but that sweetness was swiftly overshadowed by the intensity of Marcus’s kiss.

His tongue danced across her lips, sweeping away the remnants of juice, and just as he was about to pull back, he playfully nipped at her lower lip.

In the corner, a little pink rabbit peeked curiously at its own lightcore, its eyes wide with wonder.

Corvin had thought the first two materials Silas had given him were spicy enough, but these new links were even more explicit, igniting a fire within him.

He could already sense his heat period creeping in earlier than expected.

And so, in the quiet of the resting cabin, the pale-blue liger beast and the fluffy pink rabbit each remained ensconced in their own thoughts, the silence stretching around them.

As the sky darkened, Corvin finally received a message from Lucien.

Instead of diving right into the matter of the links, Lucien first inquired, “Has Edric woken up?”

At the sight of his message, Corvin straightened up on the couch, a sense of urgency washing over him.

“No, he hasn’t. I don’t think he’ll be waking up today,” he replied quickly.

He added, “Also, I didn’t mean to send you those messages earlier this morning! Cotton Candy was messing with my lightcore and accidentally sent you that.”

Cotton Candy was Emma’s new pet, a little bunny that had already made its presence known in their group chat, so both Lucien and Silas were aware of it.

But for Lucien, whether those links had been ‘accidentally’ sent by Cotton Candy or not didn’t seem to matter.

Lucien pressed on, “Where did you get those inappropriate links? Who else did you send them to?”

Hadn’t he made himself clear? Why was Lucien still fixated on this?

Frustrated, Corvin scooped up Cotton Candy, giving the poor rabbit an affectionate yet rough rub.

“This is all your fault! How am I supposed to explain myself now?”

Malrik, observing the scene, could only shake his head in disbelief.