A few short hours later, Erik had abruptly awoken to discover that the fire had burnt out and that a sea of darkness had instead enclosed the living room area. Without wanting to wake Rosaline, he precisely managed to detangle himself from her body and stood to his full height. After stretching out his sore limbs from sleeping on the blanketed floor, he bent down again so that he could gently encompass Rosaline in his strong arms and carry her upstairs. Erik noted how she felt exceptionally soft and warm in his grasp and even found himself stifling a groan, due to the fact that she was still very much without any apparel. With careful steps, Erik walked the path towards the bedroom where he laid Rosaline down with ease. She stirred quietly in her sleep, before turning to one side where she tightened her hold on the pillow. Erik smiled at the sight of her, and pressed a delicate kiss against her hair. He made his way around the other side of the bed, before curling in behind Rosaline's body and tangling their limbs together once more. Several more hours had passed since Erik had initially woken up and carried Rosaline upstairs. He currently had his nose pressed into the side of Rosaline's neck and was caressing her thigh with the feel of his leg.

"Rose?" Erik faintly whispered, uncertain if she was in fact still sleeping.

Although she hadn't answered him with words, Rosaline shifted slightly in his hold until she lay firmly against her back. She manoeuvred her head to meet Erik's gaze and offered him a sleepy grin.

"Good morning." She groggily spoke.

"How do you feel this morning?" Erik keenly asked her.

Despite his best attempts last night to treat Rosaline with compassion and care, he wasn't entirely convinced that he didn't hurt her. It was a difficult thing Erik thought, trying both to simultaneously impress and comfort Rosaline, but if at least she told him that she wasn't feeling completely sore this morning, Erik would know for certain that he treated her right.

"I feel whole." She confessed, with a newfound glimmer of hope in her eyes.

Erik's lips curved upwards into a relieved smile, upon hearing her response. It was one thing to try and offer Rosaline an unforgettable and romantic first sexual experience and it was also another to accept the fact that she now felt connected to Erik on a level that far exceeded even his own understanding and expectations. With a grateful look, Erik dropped his gaze and met her halfway for a long and sweet kiss. Caressing her cheek in an affectionate way, Erik smiles into yet another sensual kiss. He loves the feel of Rosaline beneath his body, but more so when she is spurring him on with her fingers as they glide against his backbone and also in the way they scrape through the fibres of his hair. Before matters can escalate any further between them, Erik breaks their kiss in order to reveal something of importance.

"Sweetheart, I'm sorry but we can't." He reluctantly tells her.

Much to his dismay, Erik notices the way in which Rosaline's expression changes from one of fiery passion to confusion and regret.

"It's too soon my love, I want your body to recover first before we make love again." He sympathetically explains.

"The pain isn't intolerable though." Rosaline replies in a hopeful voice.

"And I'm thankful to hear that, but I don't want to take this risk. You're much to precious to me and besides, we have all the time in the world to explore all kinds of pleasure, now that we know what to expect." Erik seductively spoke, before dropping his right eye in a cheeky wink.

As expected, Rosaline blushed under Erik's hotly intense stare and ducked under the bed covers to avoid his penetrating gaze. What soon followed was a giggling squeal that broke out, caused by the onslaught of Erik's fingers meeting Rosaline's bare skin. It seemed that no matter how many times they teased one another, Erik would always win as it invited him to tickle Rosaline and have her heaving from laughter.

"Erik, stop!" She wheezed between boisterous chortles.

Pleased with himself and the sounds he managed to elicit out of Rosaline's pretty lips, Erik hastily dragged her body so that it rested atop of his.

"I love you." Erik frivolously stated, while noisily sealing their lips in a sloppy kiss.

"Say you love me back." Erik added in a lighthearted tone.

He continued to rain childish kisses against Rosaline's face, but quickly noticed her unusually quiet demeanour.

"What's wrong?" He sincerely demanded.

With her brows pulled together and a look that appeared to say 'Don't mess with me', Erik wasn't sure what to expect.

"I just wanted to stir you up like you did me." Rosaline proudly said, with all hints of aggravation completely vanished from her face.

It took nearly all of Erik's self control to not jump at the opportunity again and tickle Rosaline until she was well and truly exhausted from laughing. Instead, he reached around behind Rosaline and flung the covers off the both of them, leaving them stark nude in the broad daylight. Upon realising this, Rosaline let out a nervous squeak.

"Erik, what did you do that for?" She questioned, while desperately looking around for something to use in order to cover up her body.

"Just stirring you up sweetheart." Erik easily replied, with a satisfied smirk.

Aside from her obvious discomfort with being naked during the day, Erik found the concept to be completely adorable given how intimate they were with one another only hours ago. He assumed Rosaline was still not use to gawking at her lovers physique or prancing around confidently in her own skin, but regardless of that he hoped this little experiment would help her in embracing these new and exciting times ahead. Erik placed his arms behind his head and continued to watch her as she struggled with herself and what to do.

"You could just make a run for it." Erik plainly suggested.

"Would you close your eyes if I did?" Rosaline hesitantly replied.

"Rose, what makes you think I would deny myself the chance to stare at your sexy and tempting body?" Erik retaliated in an obvious tone.

"You did this on purpose!" Rosaline accused, after she had finally recovered from the effects of his compliment.

"So what if I did?" Erik challenged, while wiggling his eyebrows at her in a humorous kind of way.

The sound of their combined laughter filled the room around them. After it had died down, Rosaline offered Erik a serious, yet fond look.

"You're lucky that I love you." She voiced her inner most thoughts, before hastily leaping off the bed and running towards the ensuite bathroom.

Pleasantly surprised by the tender moment shared between the two lovers, Erik barely had time to register the fact that Rosaline had escaped the confines of their bed. Eager to pick up from where they left off, Erik practically bolted towards the bathroom in search of Rosaline.

"Ready or not Rose, here I come." He cheerfully called out after her.