Chapter 38

Elvira was still locked in Wivior's sweet embrace. Her face pressed against his rock-hard chest, and her arms wrapped around his waist. The way he was holding her made her feel protected and loved. She didn't even know if it was possible to feel that way with a man, but the person before her differed from anyone she had ever met. He had done so much for her in such a short period. He had saved her life multiple times, welcomed her into his home, and brought her on a dangerous journey to find a cure for a curse that had been making her life miserable for a very long time.

Keeping all that in mind, she became surer of slowly revealing her true identity to him. It would take a lot of time, and she would also need to hide this from her family, but now that she was in his arms, all she knew was that he was a man worth trying for.

"I wish we could stay like this forever," Wivior spoke ardently. He retracted his hands from her back. "You haven't eaten for more than a day." Elvira didn't want to let him go, but she was famished. She released him from her embrace halfheartedly. "Then let's eat first."

He took her hands into his and brushed his lips against each of them before standing up. "The lady of the hut was kind enough to leave chicken broth in the pot to cook, but if you want something else, I can arrange that with magic."

"Chicken broth will be fine for now, but I'll have at least three bowls of it," said Elvira, rubbing her belly.

"Coming right your way, madam." Wivior poured some soup into a small wooden bowl using a ladle.

"I thought wizards prefer magic for the smallest tasks?" she asked.

He gave her a half-smile. "Since I have fallen for a drop-dead gorgeous human woman, I thought I should use my hands and legs more. This way, she'll know how much she means to me. However, I don't have a problem using my magic to give her anything in the world that she desires."

"You are quite a gentleman," Elvira said, repressing a smile.

Wivior handed her the bowl of soup. "At your service, madam," he said with a low bow. That time, Elvira couldn't hold her smile back. He certainly knew how to treat a woman right.

She brought the bowl close to her mouth to take a sip.

 "Careful, you'll burn your tongue." Wivior took the bowl from her hand and put it aside. "Let it cool first. I forgot you're a human and hence more fragile." Elvira wouldn't burn her tongue, but it was still considerate of him to do that. 

"You can drink something that hot without burning your throat?" asked Elvira. Wivior's laughter made it seem like she had just asked him the silliest question ever.

"I can. Though fire and lava can hurt and burn us."

Elvira looked away. Worry clouded her features when she thought about how she would ever improve her image in his eyes. It would take at least a hundred years!

Wivior put one arm around her waist and used the other to make her look at him. "Elvira, don't worry. I'll remember everything, no matter how big or small, and I'll take care of you. I won't let our differences come in the way of our feelings for each other. We might not belong to the same species, but I'll do anything to make our relationship work. It doesn't matter who you are because our hearts connect, and I am already falling in love with your beautiful soul."

"It doesn't matter who I am. Only what do I do? And how I am, in the present?" asked Elvira.

"Yes!" Wivior planted several soft kisses on her lips.

"What if I had a dark past? What if I did something wrong and immoral? Of course, this is only a hypothetical question." Elvira nervously looked away.

"Well, speaking hypothetically, of course," Wivior began. "It depends entirely on what you did and if you asked for forgiveness. You know, back in my homeland, people think of me as a human killer."

"Do all crimes deserve punishment? If, for instance, one is guilty of some terrible deeds but is willing to quit the life of crime, does that person still belong behind bars?" Elvira asked.

Wivior looked at her with suspicious humor. "I am getting the feeling that this is coming from a real experience, but it's hard imagining you living the life of a criminal."

"Wait, did you use to pickpocket people at the marketplace for fun?" He laughed wholeheartedly, but Elvira couldn't possibly join in. She wished her crime was that simple. The only thing Elvira hadn't done was take the life of an innocent via witchcraft. However, she had killed plenty of people who did deserve it.

"I am sorry to make fun of you like that. But if you have done something bad and want to repent. That's great. No crime is too big if one is looking for forgiveness and change, but I think one should start by helping those one has hurt and also by helping the poor and the needy."

"What did you do?" That time, Wivior was dead serious.

"Where are we? Quinn said something about being surrounded by cursed people," Elvira attempted to change the subject.

"We are in the Laketown of devils," he answered.

"And?" 

"This town is full of cursed people who haven't found a cure yet. Most have been rejected by society and forced to evacuate their homes because of the strange superstition that cursed people walk with devils or are a magnet to witches and misfortune. Here, They have a chance to find Doctor Oliver. He visits this village now and then to treat people. It's a horrible life, but at least they have each other."

"Can I meet some of these people?" Elvira requested.

"Sure. But drink your soup first," Wivior commanded her.

Elvira slurped the whole bowl down her throat in less than a minute. Her gaze fell on Wivior's somewhat shocked face. She didn't want to come off as a slob to him, but she was too hungry to care.

"I'll bring you another one." Wivior poured another steaming bowl of tasty chicken broth for Elvira. She took it and began pushing it down her throat the same way but stopped midway.

"You want some?" she offered him.

"Why not." Wivior placed a finger on her lips. "There is some there." He pressed his lips onto hers. "The soup is good, but your lips are way better." He snatched the bowl from her hand and put it on the ground.

Instead of the soup, Elvira was now craving his body. She jumped on his lap, put her hands in his hair, and laid a steamy open-mouthed kiss on his mouth.

In response, Wivior threw her on the bed and kissed her back with even more passion. His hands traveled around her legs. He lifted her skirt and caressed her thighs, going all the way up to her groin. She let out a low moan when it touched her crotch. His touch was electrical, and he certainly knew how to stimulate a woman's outer female part.

He kept teasing her around that area until she finally reached an orgasm and let out a final moan. His mouth moved to her neck. He left a hot trail of kisses starting up from her neck and going all the way down to her upper chest. He stopped near her breasts when clothes got between his mouth and her bare skin.

Wivior looked into her eyes. "Do you want me to take your clothes off?"

"Yes!" Elvira gave him a sweet kiss to let him know he had permission to do anything.

She sat on the bed to give her easy access to the back of her dress. Wivior's fingers worked hastily to get her out of it. They were about to see each other naked for the very first time, and she couldn't wait to see what was underneath his clothes.

A knock on their door got their attention. "Ezra is here. Come outside," Quinn's voice came from the other side.

Elvira let out a low grunt. Quinn surely knew how to ruin the moment she had been waiting for so long! Her eyes turned to Wivior. He looked disappointed as well. "I don't want to go. We can ignore her calls." He continued untying her dress.

"If you don't come out, I will come in!" they heard Quinn shout, accompanied by one loud bang at the door.

"Fine, I am coming!" Wivior yelled back.

Elvira felt his arms around her and turned to face him.

 "I have tied your dress again with magic, of course. Now, I wish I had used magic to untie it in the first place, but I don't want to rush our first time. Maybe I should use my magic to lock this door and tie Quinn's mouth, but it'll make her even madder," said Wivior.

It put a goofy smile on Elvira's face. "I don't want to make her mad. You should go. I'll wait for you here."

"Are you sure?" asked Wivior. He pressed his lips softly against her neck and left a series of teasing kisses and gentle nibbles that made her question her decision.

She gently pushed his face away. "We can continue this later. Quinn will come inside if you don't go now."

He put his arms around her waist. "Should I ask Ezra to bunk with Quinn? Do you want to spend the night with me in this hut?"

"Yes, I do, "that answer came out like an impulse from her mouth.

The corners of Wivior's mouth lifted. Excitement and pleasure were evident on his face. "Our first night is going to be memorable. You're so beautiful and perfect. I don't think I'll be able to control myself once we get into it. Stop me if you're not comfortable with anything. I'll be gentle with you. And since you are a lord's daughter getting married against her will, I guess you must be a virgin. You were acting like you were celibate when we kissed."

Elvira didn't want him to be gentle or awkward with her. She was looking forward to a night full of passion with him, and she didn't mind things getting a bit rough while in bed with a man. "The truth is I acted like I am celibate because I didn't want you to think less of me. A few years back, I lost my virginity to a man. Things didn't go well as he was only using me."

"I don't think less of you because you're not a virgin. He must be a goon for doing that to an amazing woman like you. Tell me where he lives, and I'll give him what he deserves for treating the woman of my dreams this way. He won't ever break another woman's heart when..."

"You'll torture or kill him?" Elvira widened her eyes at him.

"No!" Wivior exclaimed. "I am not sadistic. I was thinking about some light beating, some public humiliation, or messing with his manhood so that he can't make love to any woman until he comes and apologizes to you and every other woman he has ever hurt. I'll make sure he starts being respectful and truthful towards women."

The goodness of his heart put a smile on her face. He was truly a gentleman! She had one particular man in mind who had played with her heart by hitting on every other girl in her village, including her sisters. However, that man was a warlock, so it was best to save it for a time when she could start being truthful to her.

Wivior would hate her for starting a relationship on a lie, but her truth was way too big to lay on him. Their species have fought for generations, and he wouldn't be able to look past that. His kind saw them only as cold-hearted monsters.

Elvira needed to show him that she was not different than him. Away from her home, she felt like a much nicer person. She could perhaps even consider leaving witchcraft to obtain power from the underworld for him.

"I have forgiven him," said Elvira.

"Forgiving does make you a bigger person," Wivior remarked.

They heard another loud thud on the door. "Come within one minute, or else I am coming in!" shouted Quinn. That time, her voice sounded even angrier and scarier than before.

"I am coming," Wivior yelled back. He burst into laughter, but Elvira couldn't see the humor in anything the scary wizardess did.

"Come with me," he said to her. "I'll introduce you to the townspeople. You'll be surprised to see how many curses there can be. It's a terrible sight and a horrendous crime to inflict so much pain on someone."

"Sure!" Elvira had seen so many curses in life from the side of the spell casters, but it would be her very first time to meet any victims of it other than herself.