I did not even know what to say or what to do or even where to look. I was feeling too shy. Moreover, Demetrius's constant teasing was making me blush unknowingly as well.
As soon as we entered the room, he closed the door behind us. Should I do something? But what in the world was I even supposed to do at this moment?
"Don't worry, I'll teach you everything," he said and I jumped in surprise. "Why are you surprised? It's just me- your husband here."
Husband... Right- he was my husband now. I got married on my eighteenth birthday and a new chapter of my life had begun.
"That maid Red..."
"Ruby. Her name is Ruby," I corrected.
"Right, that Ruby girl, she told you about everything, right? So, you know what we are going to do now, don't you?" he asked, smirking.
"I... uh... I..."
"Are you shy, my wife?" he asked, placing his chin on my shoulder where there was a bite mark left. Though there was no pain, I still could not bring myself to look at that scar.
"Let me take a shower first," I blurted out, using all the courage I could muster.
I tried to move away from him quickly, but he grabbed me by my waist and pulled me towards him that my back met against his hard chest.
"I've thought about all this a long time ago, my wife," he said, his breath falling straight onto my ear. "I've planned this night before too. We haven't been out for too long. You took a bath before the ceremony, right? It's enough. And I've taken a bath that time as well."
"Still..."
"No still, my darling wife. Let me make you mine fully now," he cut me off.
I gulped. I had never done this before. I had never even kissed anyone. Everything was moving too much. But as it was necessary, I was obliged to do it.
"You'll like it," he said and kissed on my nape.
His fingers ran on my bare back and once again, I was reminded that the dress was backless. "Mother seems to have a nice choice. You look magnificent today."
I could not help but flinch at his touch. "The dress is... too revealing. My... back is exposed... completely," I mumbled.
"And what's wrong with that? Your back is beautiful, everything about you is gorgeous."
"But they saw a lot of my skin..."
"Let them see," he said. "That's the only thing they can do after all. Just let their eyes be blessed, my wife, as they cannot feel your skin. Because only I have the right to do so."
Did he have to add things like that in the end? His words were making me blush and a tingly sensation bubbled up inside my stomach.
"Look at me," he said in a commanding tone.
I looked back at him, into those dark eyes that showed a veil of mystery and a secret between life and death, mind and soul, light and darkness. He touched my cheek with the back of his hand. The touch was so gentle that I felt as if he was trying to touch a castle of sand with delicate moves.
"Your skin is soft," he muttered. "Just stay like this forever. Do you know why?"
I shook my head. I had no idea what he was trying to say. He behaved as if he was trying to savor the moment, spend every second with utter importance and care, and for the first time in my life, I became aware that the time that flew by never came back.
"Because soft things are unbreakable."
His gaze was fixed on mine. No matter how shy I felt, I could not move my gaze from him as if I was possessed.
Over my eyes, my cheeks, my lips- his fingers traced everywhere as if a blind person was trying to see. I could hear his heartbeat as well as mine, but could not quite differentiate them. The sounds were different, but they beat with a matching rhythm as if they were meant to beat together with utter perfection creating a captivating melody that only the hearts could hear.
He bent towards me, his face hovering over mine just before his lips met mine. The feeling was overwhelming- my first kiss, oh lord, was it supposed to be this crazy?
Rough and warm- his lips were a mixture of all those words that I read in romance novels, all those words that made my heart flutter. He was doing all the work- moving his lips over mine and making my heart throb inside my chest with sudden heat. I felt useless- I did not even know how to kiss.
He pulled back and rubbed our noses together. "Don't worry. I will teach you everything," he said soothingly. "Just move your lips slowly. There is no need to rush."
But I read that in the heat of the moment, kisses were crazy, not slow and patient. Was I wrong?
He chuckled. "My innocent wife, when the fire starts, there is no turning back. You'll get to see it yourself."
My cheeks heat up and I bit the inside of my lips. Even when he was being considerate, his words were still teasing, but for some reason, I did not hate it.
His lips met mine again and this time, just like he told me, I tried to move my lips as well, trying to match with his motion. And this time, I knew the mistake I made. I found myself asking that the thing we were sharing- was it just a kiss? Or was it more than that?
He bit on my bottom lip lightly and I gasped in the kiss. In the meantime, his tongue sneakily found its way inside my mouth.
For the first time in my life, I tasted wine and I could not even believe that I tasted it through a kiss. But there was another taste as well... like eternal happiness, like heaven, or was it like hell?
While kissing, I knew that couples closed their eyes, but I did not know why back then. Now I found out that it was to feel the intensity, the purity, and the warmth of being in each other's embrace with their lips sealed together by a never-ending bind.
His lips left mine, but the feeling seemed to be still alive on my lips. Was this how kisses were supposed to be?
"Won't you breathe, my wife?"
And only then I realized that I had run out of air. Why did I feel that way? Were our souls already bound together?
He smiled at me, but there was a dangerous look in his eyes. "Now slowly, we will do other things. You need to relax. Can you do that?"
Relaxing was the last thing that I could do at that moment. Under his blinding intense gaze and amid the tight knot in my stomach, I had even forgotten how to breathe, so relaxing was out of the question. But I wanted to feel everything. If I liked something, why not enjoy it as well? And besides, he might be someone I did not know about much, but still, he was my husband. If I could not be with him, then who?
I nodded at him and it did not take long for him to press his lips on mine again. His hands were around my waist, pressing me against him. I wrapped my arms around his nape. He had to bend a lot to kiss me- the problem of being tall...
The taste of the kiss, the taste of us together was unforgettable and for a split second, I felt I could taste his soul. The wounds that I had gotten from my family seemed to start healing the moment his lips had found mine. Just what kind of power did he have that his kiss had that effect on me?
The first kiss was as gentle as it could be, light as a feather, short-lived like the kindness of a psychopath, but warm as the embrace of a loved one.
Our lips met and left several times, while his hands got busy taking off my earrings. I had wanted to ask who chose the earrings as they were truly beautiful, but guess I needed to wait until morning if I managed to survive tonight. The fear of getting hurt had left my mind a long time ago, but this time I was worried if I would be able to survive the heat that was building inside me like a baby dragon breathing for the first time.
I panted as he left my mouth, a string of saliva between us as his gaze intensified on mine.