The Divine Temptation (18+) (Forbidden Priest Romance)

4. Are you a Virgin? (Edited)

'Therefore, 'Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.''

Corinthians 6:17

♱

Evangeline

♱

"Wait, are you a virgin?" I blurt out, my mouth moving faster than my thoughts. "Wait, no, don't answer that. That's incredibly forward and highly inappropriate of me. I apologise."

He keeps his head down, continuing the task at hand. I shift slightly in my sitting position, uneasiness settling in.

"I mean, even if you are, there's nothing wrong with that. I know loads of people who are virgins, even older than you. I think it's great if you are, waiting for the right person honestly sounds great."

Stop talking, Evangeline.

I let out a sigh, letting the thoughts in my head calm down before attempting to speak again.

"Please forget everything I said. It was stupid of me, and if it makes you feel better, I wish I had waited myself before losing mine."

His face twists.

"What I'm say—" Gabriel lifts his head and looks at me, making me stop my sentence halfway through.

"Were you happy about it?" he asks.

My lips part, slightly taken aback by his line of questioning. His expression is now pained, mixed with an unreadable other half.

"Well, I mean, I guess so. It was uncomfortable given the location, but it was something we both wanted."

His eyes grow darker as he hangs his head again in response, reacting as if my answer revealed a truth to him that he didn't want to hear. He picks up another Bible and starts to wrap another one. The extent of our conversation goes no further as I finish wrapping up my next Bible.

We sit in silence for the rest of the time, as guilt overwhelms me. I want to say anything that could ease even the slightest bit of tension, but right now I don't think he would even entertain the idea of hearing my voice again.

Way to go, Evangeline.

The single person close to your age who was actually willing to talk to you and treat you like a normal person, and you go and fuck it up.

I place the last wrapped Bible on the stack of the other newly wrapped ones. Gabriel finishes before me and is now cleaning up the mess we've both made, stuffing it into a large black bag.

"I should get going now. I guess I'll see you later," I say, standing up, grabbing my phone off the floor, and walking towards the office door without waiting for a reply.

However, before I could make my hasty exit, Gabriel gently takes my wrist in his hand, and I intake a quick breath at our connection. As if noticing, he pulls his hand back as I turn to face him.

"I'll walk you home, if that's okay?" he asks, his expression lighter. I nod in response, my mouth lifting into a tiny smile.

"Let me just lock up here."

He grabs a set of keys and the full tied-up black bag, and we both walk out of his office and into the corridor. As he locks up, I walk out, waiting for him by the chancel. I hear him following me with the jingling of keys as we both make our way down the aisle together, the echoing of our footsteps filling the silence as we walk out of the large church doors.