At the sudden soft but determined lips of Evie that descended on him, Gavriel felt his whole being jolt in shock. Gavriel had never expected a kiss to be coming so voluntarily and determinedly – especially one from his usually shy and reticent wife – so his eyes widened at the touch of her supple and pouty lips against his, unable to believe what was happening. Was she really kissing him without him asking? This had got to be a dream, albeit a crazy wonderful one though. And he was not minding it one bit. That was right, he was not the one who was asking for a kiss. He simply told her to persuade him! He did not … then why… oh, God…

A blurry memory flashed in his mind and Gavriel saw Evie kissing him in the darkness. That was right, this was not actually the first time she had done this. She had kissed him like this too in the dungeon, back when he was still under the influence of his inner monster. Though there were flashes of memories that he could somewhat recall, Gavriel's memories about what happened in the dungeon was not very clear. It was as if he had been drunk all that time and could only remember blurry snippets of what had happened.

Why did she kiss him that time? And more importantly, in that state of his too? Was she not afraid? She who usually trembles even when he turned his full gaze on her initially when they were newly married. Thinking back on that time, he could not help but let out a chuckle as he still thought how adorable she was even when frightened and she was acting like a little fearful rabbit. Now just look at her and how she had blossomed. Her forwardness and courage were totally welcomed and like a breath of fresh air as opposed to that little rabbit persona she had earlier on.

"There," she breathed out in satisfaction and then pulled away, staring at him. Her clear and crystal-like eyes were focused on his face, trying to catch any and every single response that he would display. Her sharp gaze was making sure she did not miss anything.

Seeing that Gavriel remained immobile for quite a few seconds, Evie blinked and tilted her head a little. "Still… not enough?" she asked shyly, biting her lower lip as her cheeks flushed incredibly red. When he asked her to persuade him, Evie did not know why she had suddenly thought of nothing else but just on kissing him. The memory of the feel of his lips pressed to hers completely filled her mind's eye and she could not think of anything else. Perhaps, she too had desperately wanted to kiss him in this beautiful, dark garden, under the moonlight – being affected by the mood and surroundings. Or maybe it was the simple reason of her just missing the taste of his lips so dreadfully during the time of his absence … or perhaps, both. Whatever it was, she found that she could not care less anymore. She was past holding back and trying to deny her true feelings for this vampire royal, who was her husband.

Realizing that, she felt a little shock at this personal admission in her mind. But she quickly shrugged it off, knowing that it would not make a difference now anyway.

Focusing her mind back on her husband, to her surprise, there was no reaction from Gavriel. She deliberately waited for him to respond to her actions – to kiss her back – but he did not show any inclination to do so. And now, he was simply staring at her, as if she did something he did not expect at all. Could it be that… he did not want a kiss but was actually hoping for something else? If so, what was it that he wanted? Evie felt conflicted as she was unsure what else could she have done, when she had given so much courage in taking that first move to go to him and kiss him so forwardly.

The thought made Evie felt crestfallen and mortified, suddenly not knowing what to do. She felt her heart pound nervously and the tips of her fingers suddenly grew colder. Her once confident and sultry gaze lowered, and her bright crystal-like eyes could be seen to have dimmed considerably. She suddenly felt ashamed and the thought of bolting away crossed her mind.

Her hands around his neck quickly loosened and she was on the verge of removing them when Gavriel came to and suddenly cursed. "Damned it," he whispered and before Evie quite knew what was happening, his mouth had seized hers.

Evie's eyes flew wide opened with surprise but only a few seconds passed before she eventually gave in to the sensations that were being brought out in her and her lashes fluttered close, slowly, unable to resist the toe-curling pleasure from this living temptation. He kissed her savagely like a hungry beast, as if his life depended on it. Until his tongue invaded her mouth. The slow and undulating movement melted Evie's bones and she strained against him, moaning.

She instinctively rose on her toes and her hands climbed higher to tangle themselves into his thick, silky dark hair, tugging him closer as she returned his kisses with as much fervour or perhaps, even more. She could feel the familiar sensations of her head spinning and recognised it as the immense pleasure that was starting to affect her mental faculties.

She felt the vibrations of his groans as his arms tightened its hold around her, pulling her against him as if he could not get enough of her closeness against him. She too, felt the same.

A paralyzing flare of sensations whipped through every muscle in her body. And she was surprised at how much she wanted him. The surging emotions and the sharp intensity of her feelings was something she still was not quite used to yet. However, with her husband here, she was quite sure she would be familiarising herself with these feelings quite speedily, no doubt about it. She could not even stop her hands from clutching his hair, pulling him to her even though their bodies were already pressed against each other. She wanted him so much. Much more than what she had ever thought or imagined she ever would.

"Oh, Evie…" he groaned, his deep voice was gravelly, velvety.

Gavriel's mouth travelled down to her jaw line and then lower down to her slender swan-like neck. A faint yet intoxicating scent welcomed him and his mouth watered, remembering the heavenly taste of her blood that had flooded into his mouth when he drew from her previously.

The image of himself sucking on Evie's blood flashed in his head and Gavriel jerked away without warning. Evie who was stunned with shock swayed because of the sudden absence of the anchor that was supporting her.