Eva fell silent at his words, and when her gaze wandered and somehow landed on his mouth, she felt her pulse quicken.

“Nervous?” A teasing, yet wolfish grin flashed across his features.

She sharpened her gaze at him while shooting off her rebuttal. “It’s natural for any first-timer to feel nervous, Mr. Acheron.”

Silence reigned between them. A slow frown crossed Gage’s face, then was quickly replaced by a look of surprise. “Wait…are you saying that you’ve never been kissed before?” His eyes went a little wide as he asked that.

“I’m saying that I have never kissed someone before in a situation in which I’m the one who needed to be initiating the kissing.”

“Oh,” Gage leaned back again. She did not know what his expression was now, since he had faced away from her while putting his hand over his mouth and clearing his throat. “I see...”

His wolfish grin returned.

Reaching over, he tucked a loose wave of her fiery hair behind her ear. His fingers lingered as he spoke. “Don’t worry, pet. Just relax. I’m totally fine, even if you want to carry out a few trials to get yourself familiarized with the process. I’m giving you freedom to practice on me right now.” Then, he winked at her.

That made her blush again. His voice sounded so tempting.

“I don’t need practice, Mr. Acheron.” She managed to keep her face straight and her tone steady as she answered him.

Then, without warning, Eva twisted her body, facing him fully now. One hand braced on his seat while the other moved to lightly cup his face...but that hand halted midway, remembering his damn condition that she couldn't touch him while kissing him and that she would be punished if she did.

So, she grabbed his collar instead.

Gage smiled. “Bold gi–”

Before he could even finish the line, Eva’s lips unceremoniously crashed against his.

He froze. She had literally smashed her lips into his. That was no kiss! It felt more like a punch—just delivered with her lips instead of her fists!

She pulled away.

Their eyes met, and Gage bit down on his lower lip. He looked a bit speechless as he continued staring at her.

When Eva slowly retreated back to her seat, a breath that almost sounded like a laugh blew out from Gage’s lips.

“What?” Eva glanced at him, adopting her straight face again. Her voice was flat, and she had her brows arched, but her ears were still a little red. “You didn’t specify what kind of kiss I must give, remember?”

An amused chuckle erupted. “Well, true. You are right again.” He ran his fingers through his hair before he climbed out of the car.

Eva saw him walk around to her side, so she moved to open the door, but he managed to beat her to it. She stepped out but ended up getting trapped between Gage’s tall frame and the car.

“That was one memorable kiss, I must say.” He muttered softly, looking endlessly amused.

But a moment passed, and his expression changed. His gaze seemed to darken as he bent over her.

Somehow, Gage in the dark felt incredibly domineering.

Eva suddenly realized that without bright lights and those playful smirks plastered on his face, Gage seemed to look and feel completely different than that lazy and rich-heir persona that he usually displayed. A mysterious air clung to him now, and for a moment, she felt as though there was something off about him. And whatever it was, it made the tiny hairs along her spine rise.

“Spend these three days perfecting your disguise,” his nonchalant, yet firm, tone distracted her from her sudden deep observation. “I’ve already arranged everything. So, all you have to do is just focus on the things you need to prepare for.”

“I got it.” Eva nodded sharply as she voiced her agreement, businesslike and serious.

“Well, then,” his attention moved across her face and lingered on her lips a moment too long before his gaze shifted to her eyes again. He bent and whispered near her ear. “See you in three days, Eva.” He said his goodbyes, walked back to the driver’s side, and got back into his car as smoothly as he had gotten out of it.

His voice lingered in her ears and echoed endlessly in her mind, even as she watched his car drive off and disappear from sight.

Eva absentmindedly reached up and touched her lips, remembering how soft and warm his lips had been against hers . She suddenly wondered how it would feel if they were to really kiss.

“Miss Eva?” someone called out, knocking her out of her little reverie. She blinked a few times before coming back to reality. A very faint blush tainting her high cheekbones was the only proof that she had been drifting off on some pleasurable fantasy.

When she turned, she was back to her normal, no-nonsense self, and she saw that an older man in his fifties stood there along with two maids behind him.

The trio introduced themselves to her and then led her back inside the mansion. Eva found out that they had been the caretakers of this house for a long time. The man was the butler, and the two maids were the ones in charge of keeping everything in the house as it was—clean and flawless.

When Eva asked them who the maid that Gage had told her had run away was, none of them could answer the question.