Chapter 232: One Bite, One Answer
[Music recommendation: Yehezkel Raz - Deep Blue Sea]
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The silent cottage was filled only with the occasional crackle of the fire and the sound of their quick, uneven breaths.
As they both slowly came down from the high of their mind-blowing, intense kiss, Ivan lifted a hand and gently tucked a loose strand of her soft, beautiful hair behind her ear before letting his fingers trail down to her neck, making her heart somersault.
Then, in a deep, husky voice, he asked, "What is it...my Eve?"
Eve was so completely ensnared by his touch as his fingers glided down her neck, stopping where her breath rose and fell. His molten-red eyes followed the path of his hand, drifting from her face to her inviting neck before lingering at the low sweep of her nightgown, where the soft, milky curves of her breasts peeked through.
Swallowing hard, he began to pull his hand away, only for Eve to catch it. Holding his gaze with sultry, half-lidded eyes, she leaned in until her lips hovered a mere hair’s breadth from his and whispered, "Ivan....I want you..." She closed the remaining distance just enough for her soft, warm lips to brush against his. "...now."
With her unexpected boldness, a sharp jolt of electricity shot through Ivan, igniting every cell in his body. His eyes widened for a moment before darkening with raw, unrestrained desire....an intense, consuming hunger for her.
His arm around her back tightened instinctively, as though his very being demanded to take her then and there, to lose himself utterly in her.
Driven by that thought, he slipped his other hand free from her grasp and cupped her cheek, leaning in for another deep, claiming kiss....when a low, rumbling sound cut through the silence.
It was abrupt and jarring as if someone had dumped cold water over both of them.
They froze at once, eyes going wide as they stared at each other in stunned silence.
Eve felt heat rush to her cheeks just as an even louder rumble erupted from her stomach, cutting through the quiet and announcing rather boldly that she needed....food.
Flustered, she glanced up at him, "Ah...ahem...You can ignore that..." Her blue eyes darted away, her face burning all the way to the roots.
Soon, a rich, unrestrained laugh burst from Ivan’s lips, echoing warmly against the snug wooden walls of the cottage. His shoulders shook with the force, and Eve, who was practically plastered against him, felt every vibration through his chest. Heat crept up her neck in embarrassment, and a flicker of annoyance sparked at the thought of him laughing at her expense.
Yet glanced at him again, and something inside her softened. It had been so long since she’d heard him laugh like this...unguarded and alive. Admiration washed through her, and before she realised it, a small, helpless chuckle escaped her lips.
That was all it took. The next second, she was laughing with him. Her soft and melodic laughter chimed through the room like bell notes dancing in the air, a music that seeped straight into Ivan’s soul.
Still wrapped in each other’s embrace, they laughed until their lungs ached and every last thread of tension melted away, leaving only warmth...only them.
As their laughter faded and the last of the adrenaline slipped away, she felt the weakness seep back into her limbs. Without another word, she slumped against him, resting her head in the crook of his neck before pressing a soft kiss there.
Ivan smiled, wrapping his arms securely around her as he murmured, "I see your body still hasn’t regained its full strength."
"Hmm," Eve hummed softly as she closed her eyes, utterly content in his embrace.
Ivan pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. "Why don’t we get you something to eat? Then you can rest a bit more."
Eve gave a small nod, still curled against him in a way that reminded him of a tiny, fluffy kitten.
He gently slipped off his impeccable black blazer and wrapped it around her before settling her on the sofa. She let out a small whine at the sudden loss of his warmth, and an amused smile tugged at his lips at her needy behaviour.
"I need to get you food, Eve. I’ll be back soon, alright?"
At his words, her eyes snapped open, her hands shot out to clasp his wrists, and she asked almost frantically at the thought of him leaving again, "Where are you going?"
Ivan saw her agitation, and he replied calmly while holding her hand above his, "Just to the kitchen." Keeping her gaze, his eyes softened further, "While you were asleep, I went to get some food to stock up in the kitchen, hoping that when you woke, you would need it."
Eve’s brows lifted at his answer, and then she began to relax. "Oh....alright." With great reluctance, she let his hand go. Ivan caught her hand once more and pressed a soft kiss to it before heading towards the kitchen.
As he moved, her gaze followed him like a hawk, tracking his every action as though if she looked away for even a moment, he might vanish. She watched him fold the sleeves of his crisp white shirt, revealing the powerful muscles beneath, and she gulped softly as desire pooled in her stomach again.
But she soon caught herself ogling at him like that. Her brows drew together as she wondered, ’What’s wrong with me? Why am I suddenly behaving like some animal in heat? Have I turned into a pervert?’
She pursed her lips at the thought, yet her blue eyes inevitably drifted back to Ivan, who was now pouring soup for her. Remembering his earlier absence, she asked, "Where were you before?"
"Before?" Ivan echoed.
"I....was searching for you when I didn’t find you here. Where were you then?" Eve clarified.
"I went to pick up food from Dracoria Palace," Ivan replied coolly. "Arthur keeps it prepared every day at noon on my instructions."
"Oh..." Eve fell silent for a moment as the mouthwatering aroma drifted through the air. Then she asked, "But wait, how are you able to bring anything here? Didn’t you say that things get burnt when you try to teleport them..." Her voice grew small as she remembered his story of the bunny that had been burnt alive when he once tried to teleport it to Dracoria Palace.
Ivan lifted his molten red eyes and looked at her, "Hm. I found a way to deal with it....after my powers awakened."
"A way? What is it?" she asked, tilting her head as curiosity sparked within her.
Ivan set everything neatly on the tray and carried it over to her. He placed the dishes on the table in front of the sofa, then picked up a bowl of soup, still steaming after he had reheated it with his powers.
As he stirred it to let it cool a bit, he said, "Yes. I realised I just needed to wrap things in a protective barrier before teleporting them, so they wouldn’t end up burnt to ash."
"I see..." she murmured. He scooped up a spoonful, blew on it gently, and lifted it towards her mouth. Her eyes widened in surprise.
"Come on," he coaxed lightly, a hint of teasing warmth in his smile, "before your stomach starts complaining again."
Eve’s cheeks warmed at the reminder, and without a word, she parted her lips and let the rich, warm flavour wash over her tongue. As it did, a quiet, involuntary moan slipped from her, making Ivan narrow his eyes slightly.
He didn’t say a word and offered her another spoonful, which she accepted eagerly, another soft moan slipping past her lips.
When it happened for the third time as well, he set the spoon back in the bowl and lightly took hold of her chin. "Are you trying to excite me, baby?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her. "Because it’s working."
She flushed harder, and he continued, "Here I am trying to control myself with you in such a frail condition, while you’re going about being a temptress."
"What?" she looked at him in disbelief. "I was only enjoying the food, which feels like something I haven’t had in days."
And suddenly another thought struck her. "Wait! How many days have passed since....since that day? And how am I here? What happened in Dartmouth after I....What happened?" Eve fired off questions one after another as her mind scrambled to piece everything together.
"So many questions..." he clicked his tongue at her impatience and arched an elegant brow. "Eat first, and I’ll answer all of them."
"How about one bite and one answer each?" Eve asked earnestly, trying to bargain with him because she couldn’t bear not knowing how she had ended up here in the first place.
Ivan’s lips twitched at her cute attempt to bargain before he shook his head lightly, "Fine....one bite, one answer."
He lifted another spoonful of the delicious chicken soup, and she gulped it down in one go before her innocent blue eyes fixed on him, waiting for his answer.
With a soft chuckle, Ivan relented. "It has been three days since you fell asleep after passing out in Dartmouth."
Eve’s eyes widened at the revelation, and she asked in a voice barely above a whisper, "I was....out for three days?"
