Catherine and the Black Emperor

72. Are you really unwilling?

Sergei knocked on Ekaterina's door.

When the other person opened the door and saw it was him, they stepped aside, and Sergei walked in.

"Duke, the way you slammed the door just now startled me," Ekaterina said, patting her chest.

"Otherwise, we won't be able to alert the Dzogolokovs," Sergei said with a smile.

Ekaterina nodded; she guessed that Sergei slammed the door to lure the Dzogolokovs in. That way, Peter would quickly end the awkward situation and flee.

Moreover, Sergei's initial outburst was to prevent her from being harassed.

If Sergei gets angry, she won't have to get angry at Peter, and then Peter won't hold a grudge against her.

"It's hard for Peter and me to maintain a balance. Even peace is so precious. Many times he doesn't use his brain at all, or rather, he doesn't have a brain at all. He always manages to make things go in an out-of-control direction," Ekaterina said helplessly.

"Your Highness must remember the principle of self-preservation," Sergei reminded him.

Ekaterina nodded.

"Your Highness, please don't take what happened just now to heart. You should be able to sense that Peter's mind has become twisted; he's not a normal person," Sergei comforted him.

Upon hearing Sergei's words, Ekaterina immediately remembered Peter's words, and Sergei grabbed her legs and pulled them to his waist.

Her cheeks flushed instantly: "Duke, if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten long ago."

"You can forget those words, but don't forget my magnificence," Sergei teased.

Ekaterina pouted her rosy lips slightly and smiled with a hint of pride, "It's because you, Duke, can't forget my legs, is it?"

"Bang!"

With a soft cry from Ekaterina, Sergei pounced on her, pinned her against the wall, and lifted one of her long, elastic legs to his waist.

Such an ambiguous gesture made Ekaterina's face turn as red as a sunset.

Although she was already married, she was only a woman in name only, never a real "woman," and had never even had such intimate contact with a man.

"Your Highness, your heart is beating very fast." Sergei's face was close to Catherine's, and he could already smell her captivating fragrance.

"Your Highness, no." Ekaterina turned her head away and closed her eyes.

"Peter won't come, and neither will Djogolokova, so here I have plenty of time and energy to take you down, Your Highness. What do you think?" Sergei continued to provoke.

Catherine's ears were already red: "I believe in your prowess, Duke. Please stop teasing me."

She wasn't lying; she truly experienced it.

It's like a piece of iron.

"Your Highness, are you really unwilling?"

Catherine simply stopped talking, as if tacitly agreeing, while her hands pressed against Sergei's chest.

Finally, Sergei lowered Ekaterina's leg and gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Your Highness, please get some rest."

After saying that, he left the room. Ekaterina, who was standing against the wall, opened her eyes and watched Sergei leave. In her eyes were regret for herself and disappointment in Sergei. She regretted that she had resisted, and was disappointed that Sergei could not be more forceful.

Sergei went outside and let the cold wind blow on his face.

He knew very well that if he had been a little more forceful, he could have won over Catherine. Catherine's resistance was no different from her compromise. He didn't even need to be a little more forceful. If he had stayed in the room a little longer and inquired about Catherine's scent a little more, he would have been unable to resist and devoured her.

That's why he hurriedly left the room.

Now is not the time.

Not only does his current relationship with Catherine expose them both to enormous risks, but he also needs to ensure that Catherine tells Elizabeth at the right time that she is still a virgin.

This would deal a heavy blow to Elizabeth, causing her to completely lose hope in Peter.

His true moment will come when Elizabeth resorts to any means necessary to ensure Russia has an heir to the throne.

The event officially began on the second day of check-in.

Everyone slept in late, and the country villa gradually became lively in the afternoon.

The dance party lasted until 6 a.m. on the third day.

However, the accident happened on the third day.

Around 8 o'clock, when everyone was sound asleep, a sergeant on guard duty heard a creaking sound and went to check the foundation of the house.

The guards hurriedly reported to the major captain, and they soon discovered the problem—the large stones supporting the house had become loose on the slippery ground.

"The Grand Duke and Duchess have only been asleep for two hours. To wake them now would be suicidal," the major said.

"If we don't call them, people will die if the building collapses," the guard said.

"Then they've brought this upon themselves, and of course we'll die with them." The major was troubled, but he quickly came up with a solution. "Go, tell Prince Saltykov, he's the vice-chairman of the secret council, let him make the decision."

"yes!"

Sergei was woken from his sleep. Although he was very tired, he knew the seriousness of the situation and immediately went downstairs and woke up the Dzogolokovs.

"Wake the Grand Duchess up first. She is very reasonable and won't get angry even if she makes a mistake. Wait for my message before waking her up again," Sergei said.

Djogolovova immediately nodded to her husband: "Do as the Chairman says. The Grand Duchess is fine, but the Grand Duchess who was woken up is a madwoman."

Sergei came to check on the situation.

The large rocks gradually separated, and after completely detaching from the logs at the bottom of the house, they would roll down the hillside, causing the entire house to collapse.

"Immediately notify everyone to evacuate the houses!" Sergei ordered immediately.

Upon receiving the order, the major captain led a group of guards into the house.

The guards rushed into the rooms shouting, and the servants woke up, hurriedly dressed, and ran outside. Madame Djogolokova and the Grand Duchess, who had already been woken up, also quickly went downstairs.

"That room belongs to...Mrs. Bruzer!"

When Catherine arrived on the first floor, she saw that most of the doors were open, but one was closed. She recognized it as Mrs. Bruezer's room, before the guards could call out to her.

She rushed over.

"Your Highness!" Lady Djogologova exclaimed.

Seeing that the other person wouldn't listen to her, she decisively abandoned them and ran outside.

Upon receiving the news, Mr. Dzogolokov rushed into Peter's room: "Your Highness, get up! Get out of here immediately! The foundation is about to collapse!"

Peter, who was fast asleep, was suddenly awakened. Realizing what was happening, he jumped out of bed, put on a thin coat, and rushed out the door. He was so fast that by the time Mr. Djogolokov left, Peter had already disappeared.

Catherine woke the fast-sleeping Mrs. Brueze, at which point the floor began to tremble, like surging waves.

"Quick! Get out of here!"

Ekaterina and Mrs. Brueze were holding onto each other when the house began to collapse in large sections, the floorboards sank and cracked, and the two fell to the ground.

A lithe figure rushed over, picked up Ekaterina, and swerved around the swaying wooden pillar.

The major was in charge of Mrs. Bruzer.

Finally, the house collapsed completely, and on a pile of rubble, Sergei landed safely with the limp body of Ekaterina in his arms.