Scarlet Desires: Last High Blood

Ch. 15: Beautifully Flawed

EDITED

  I was flabbergasted.

   My whole body froze at his confession and for a moment there, I stopped breathing. Desmond must had sensed it, since he pulled back and stared at me with his charming sea green eyes. Isn't this what you want? For him to love you back? I wondered. Truth to be told, I don't know anymore. We don't have time to think about relationships – there were more important things that needed our attentions.

   "When... When did you..." I paused, unable to find the proper words. "See me this way?"

   Desmond lowered his gaze and said, "The moment Lincoln introduced me to you. While you were unconscious."

   I still remember that day. If I was not mistaken, I wore blood splattered training spandex clothes. There were fatal wounds on me and I looked like a ghost, no less. So how the hell did he find me attractive? As if reading my mind, he rambled on.

   "I don't know how to explain this but I was attracted to you right from the start. To make things worse, my mind didn't function the same way once... once you've bitten me. I tried to ignore it but it felt so wrong to not be close to you, Artemis! I never felt this way before - the feeling was so alien, I thought there's something wrong with me."

   I opened my mouth to answer but his lips met mine. At first, I didn't respond due to sheer shock but right after that, I kissed him back. The world seemed to vanish once our lips connected. I didn't resist when he pulled me closer and snaked his arms around my waist. Deepening the kiss, I demanded an entrance to his mouth - which he gave in without hesitation. 

   Our tongues danced to the ancient rhyme of the lovers. The clips on my ugly dress started to unfasten themselves once Desmond's lean yet muscular body grinded on mine. I was not complaining. He continued pushing me down until I was lying on the bed. We both broke the kiss and marveled each other with silence.

   "Will you be mine?" His voice turned husky.

   I was pretty sure I looked flustered and bothered from all that kissing. I took some time to consider then nodded. Desmond removed a rebellious strand of my hair from my face. He leaned closer to me and our lips were about to touch when the door flew open.

   I quickly looked at the intruder and saw it turned out to be the annoying Lincoln. The word "shock" was written all over Desmond's face as he removed himself from me and plastered a fake grin. It looked more like a displeased grimace, though. Furrowing my eyebrows at the brat, I mimicked Desmond's actions - excluding the smiling part.

   "Oh Desmond, did you stoop so low for a woman to the point where you picked Artemis?" Lincoln said melodramatically.

   "You little squirt –" I spat, my hands balling into fists.

   "Calm down," Desmond held my hand. "Lincoln, I fell in love with her. It's as simple as that."

    "Once we found Lord Marcus, then he'll decide if you're fit to be her boyfriend or not." His voice lacked emotions.

   The urge to give him more sarcastic remarks came but something in the tone of his voice prevented me from doing so. Sneaking a peek at Desmond, he wore a guarded expression on his face once my grandfather's name was mentioned. 

   My eyes drifted to Lincoln and noticed he changed his formal attire to something more casual. He wore a black blazer with a white T-shirt under it and a pair of jeans. He has a sense of style... Just not with women, I guess. 

   Speaking of that, the idea of wearing this unsightly outfit grossed me out. Looking around in the room, a wooden cupboard caught my eye. Without any further delay, I opened it and the cupboard spilled its contents. A huge pile of clothes nearly drowned me with their weight. Scampering out from the heap, my deft fingers sort out the men's clothes and chose a light blue frock from the women's.