A single thought echoed through Aliana’s mind.

’Where...?’

Her body burned so hot... as though she had been set aflame.

Her breathing came in harsh, uneven bursts, but this time, each breath met something solid... something firm against her.

With her vision still shrouded in darkness, all she could do was move her limbs to get a better sense of her surroundings. Her hands, which were tucked against her chest, twitched before finally reaching out, only to come into contact with a warm, rigid, and sculpted surface.

At the feel of it, she stilled. She moved her body slightly, only to realise she was wrapped against something strong and heavy.

’Wait...’ she thought, her brow creasing. ’Am I.... still dreaming?’

Unable to move her upper body, she shifted her legs slowly, only for her knees to brush against something hot, hard, and long.

"Mm, what is that? A... cucumber?" she mumbled sleepily.

She rubbed her knee against it once more, only to feel the body she was pressed against go completely rigid. She wiggled her hand down the "hard wall" in front of her, her fingers reaching out to grab the mysterious object.

Suddenly, a gasp escaped her lips as she found her back pressed against the mattress. Her eyes squeezed shut from the impact, and in the same breath, she felt an iron grip seize her wrists, pinning them high above her head.

As she slowly opened her eyes, she blinked, realising it wasn’t quite as dark as before. Her lashes fluttered as her gaze widened, finally meeting those icy blue orbs that looked... pissed?

Her lips parted in shock, the words tumbling out before she could stop them. "What are you-"

"You have some nerve," his deep, husky voice rumbled near her ear, effectively making her mouth snap shut. He leaned in closer. "Not only did you just try to assault a man in his sleep, but you were daring enough to call my... a cucumber, huh?"

"Your..." Aliana whispered in shock before realisation flooded her mind as to what the "cucumber" actually was. Heat climbed her face so fast that she positively resembled a ripe tomato.

"You...what... l-let me go," she stammered in embarrassment as she tried to release her hands from his iron grip.

"Y-you... what... let me go," she stammered, mortified, as she tried to pull her wrists free from his iron grip.

Gavriel, who had been glaring at her only moments ago, felt his irritation shift into something far more amused.

A slow, devious smirk curved his lips.

"Oh... you want me to let you go now?" He leaned closer until his nose was only an inch away from hers. "After you held onto me for the entire night?"

"What?" Aliana’s voice rose louder than she intended. She glared at him, flustered. "I did no such... wait! Why are you even in my room?"

One dark brow lifted on his impossibly handsome face as his gaze lingered on her.

"Are you quite sure this is your room..." he asked, his voice dropping into a low, velvety murmur, "...little rose?"

At that, her eyes narrowed at him like a suspicious cat before she finally tore her gaze away to look around her surroundings.

With the faint morning light seeping in through the large windows, she took in the room. It was still a suite at Mar Azura, that much she could tell.

But as her gaze moved to the bedside table, she realised none of her belongings was there. The subtle differences in the interior confirmed it.

She was not in her room.

Her heart, already racing from her proximity to Gavriel, began to pound even harder at the realisation.

She was in his room. On his bed!

Before she could even begin to piece together the events of last night, her thoughts collapsed into a single, overwhelming question.

Her head snapped back towards the devil hovering over her.

"D-did we...?" Her lips trembled, her cheeks burning at the mere effort of asking.

She noticed how his beautiful, amused eyes continued to study her face, the smile on his lips only widening at her implication.

Wanting to tease her a little more, he asked, "Did we... what?"

His free hand, which had been supporting his weight above her, shifted to rest on his elbow. Before his fingers, absentmindedly, found one of the loose strands of her hair and began to rub it between his fingers to feel the soft texture of it against his skin, before wrapping it around his long finger.

Aliana, on the other hand, felt like she had just been struck by lightning of him acting aloof to what she clearly intended to ask. Her mind felt like it had been short-circuited beyond recovery, and his handsome face, hovering so close to hers, was not helping at all.

’Wait! Why is he pretending like he doesn’t know what I’m talking about? Gods, why the hell is he so unbelievably gorgeous? This is not helping at all! No... did I actually lose my virginity? And to him, of all people? Well, if I did, then why on earth do I not remember? If it was with this... this devilishly handsome man, I should remember!’

Another thought slammed into her.

’Oh my God... that dream! Was that real?! Was he actually...’

Aliana felt a headache building as her sense of dream and reality tangled into one confusing mess.

Her brows furrowed before she squeezed her eyes shut in exasperation, taking in a sharp breath.

’Why is my life like this...’

Meanwhile, Gavriel watched every flicker of expression dance across her face, far more entertained than he should have been, his fingers still absently toying with the strand of her hair wrapped around them.

Realising she was spiralling completely out of control in her own head, he decided it was time to end her misery.

"Aliana?" he called, his low, husky voice forcing her eyes to snap open and meet his.

After a brief pause, Gavriel leaned in, lowering himself closer to her ear.

His warm breath brushed against her skin, sending a fresh shiver down her spine as he murmured darkly, "Trust me, if something had happened... you wouldn’t be able to get out of this bed for a week, let alone walk."

Her heart lurched at his words, and she went completely... speechless.

Noticing her go still, Gavriel pulled back slightly to savour her adorable, stunned expression before finally releasing his grip on her wrists.

In one smooth, effortless movement, he climbed off the bed, leaving a shocked Aliana pinned in place by her own disbelief, as if his hands were still holding her down.

Though her body remained unmoving, her face burned a deep shade of red, betraying just how much his words had affected her.

Her eyes, however, followed him.

She watched every effortless, graceful movement as he walked around the suite.

Only then did she notice what he was wearing. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Tailored black trousers and a black shirt left unbuttoned down to his abdomen, revealing a glimpse of sculpted muscle that was... entirely too distracting.

Just as her daring gaze dipped below his waist, the memory of the "cucumber" she had felt against her knee came rushing back.

"Oh god," she wheezed, finally finding her voice only to wish she hadn’t. She lunged to her side, burying her face in the pillow and clutching her mouth shut to keep the screams of embarrassment inside.