Bands of the Unpaid Dowry

Chapter 4

For a moment, the lips of the two remained locked in a more surprising than sensual embrace. Millicent, who was the first to regain her senses and realize her blunder, quickly understood the abuse that she had placed her virgin lips through. Placing both of her palms on the chest of Jace, who was still lost in the moment of the accident, she pushed him with a bit of strength, allowing their lips to separate with a smooching sound. The stool wobbled again but Jace whose hands were unconsciously holding her secured her in place.

Millicent's hands flew up to her lips in fear of the feeling that was lingering on them and she looked at the man who had been tempting her mind since she met him in confusion.

"What the hell is this Korean drama?" Jace regained his complete senses when he heard the sweet tone of the woman, who he couldn't keep his hands from, exclaim. Her wide doe eyes were roaming his face in disbelief and he concluded that this might have been her first kiss with a man. Dragging her body closer to his with a sense of mischievousness as he couldn't help himself, he heard a rather loud gasp fall from her lips.

"Wha.. What are you doing?" The feeling of her hand lightly being placed on his chest as if to stop him spurred him to continue his actions. His mind was clouded without a lot of his judgment now, especially with the glass of alcohol that had soothed his system when he had seen her hug another man in front of the house just before she stepped in.

"Tell me, is this the first time you have been this close to a man?" Millicent froze every action of hers as she feared this sexually open atmosphere that Jace was creating. Her heart beat crazily in her chest when she reckoned the truth in the question that the man holding her dangerously close to himself had asked. This was, in fact, the first time that a man had even placed his lips this close to her neck as he was doing now. Thinking of a way to diffuse the situation, she lightly tapped his chest in the dark lit kitchen where they were still standing with her still holding the sheet in her hand up above their heads while two muscular arms circled her waist and two of the lightest brown eyes moved to look at her in question.

"Uh, you can let me go now, Jace. Thank you for catching me." With a light smile, she brought down her arms when the said man looked even more confused than before. Taking pride in how she could render people befuddled with their thoughts, she jumped down from the stool with half a smile as she pushed away his hands and slowly disentangled herself from the man who was still not responding to any of her actions. Moving towards the counter, she placed the baking pan down only to see a pair of similar muscular arms with light skin trap her in. Millicent in surprise, turned around sharply with her arm open to catch Jace staring at her with some misplaced emotions in his eyes.

"You. What did you call me?" Her mind went through the last few minutes before she responded.

"Uh, Jace?" She spoke unsurely, still trying to understand why he was staring at her with those creamy eyes as if he was trying to make something of her. She watched as his throat bobbed lightly and he shuffled a little closer to her with his arms moving in to form a tight cage around her. He swallowed thickly before speaking.

"I think you should be the only one that calls me thar from now on." Millicent was again muddled by his statement when she remembered something Manuela had said this afternoon when they were in the living room being introduced. He liked to go by the name Kwaku.

"So, you don't mind me calling you Jace?" She questioned in a low tone making sure not to arouse her sleeping friend and trying to keep any offense at bay for using a name that the person refusing to let her go right now may have. But he shook his head in confirmation to let her know that he did not mind it. Heaving out a breath of relief, she stared into his watchful gaze and some tendrils of his hair had her looking at those light curls that fell loosely from his hair. It did not look like a chemical had been used to relax them, so the only explanation that she could offer was that he was a mulatto.