Fresh Embers of Love

Chapter 4

Nuwa breathed deeply and evenly, concentrating on the sound of the air passing in and out of her lungs. Eventually the spinning in her head slowed and settled, but she was not confident enough to open her eyes just yet. The bed that she lay on felt very comfortable, and she felt very tired. She was on the verge of sleep when she heard Tangyue's voice.

"She must have passed out" Tangyue said to himself, startling her awake.

He gave another mournful sigh. "That did NOT go as well as I had hoped" she overheard him say. "Maybe it's better this way, she won't remember any of this."

She felt his fingers gently brush a strand of hair off of her face. "I should just leave the Heavenly Realm" his voice sounded frustrated.

Nuwa opened her eyes in alarm. "Don't leave!" she forbade him.

Tangyue jerked his hand back, startled. "I thought you were asleep!"

"Don't leave, Tangyue! I couldn't take that!" Nuwa declared, then blinked back the dizziness that resurfaced.

"It would be better for both of us" he argued. "I don't think that I can bear to be around you, knowing that there is no hope for us."

"I thought you said you were going to wait for me?" she asked.

"Who am I kidding?" Tangyue replied, running his hands through his hair irritatedly. "When you do find the right man for you, it will drive me insane. It's better if I'm not here to see that."

He stood up and turned towards the door.

Nuwa grabbed his sleeve to keep him from walking away.

"Change my mind!" she demanded desperately.

He looked down at her with consternation. "You don't mean that!" he replied.

"If our only options are for you to leave, or to change my mind, then change my mind, because I don't want you to leave!" she said earnestly.

Tangyue stared at her. His facial expression changed multiple times as he thought it over. It looked like he was at war with his conscience. Nuwa bit her bottom lip nervously as she watched him, fearful that he would decide to leave.

Tangyue sucked in a breath. "Nuwa!" he gasped out, falling to his knees beside the bed. He grabbed the sides of her face between his hands, pulling her lower lip out of her teeth with his thumb, and then lowered his face down to hers, placing a gentle kiss on that lip.

"I can't walk away from you" he told her, his voice sounding strained.

He studied her face intently, and then slowly reached for the belt at her waist, unfastening it and removing it. He continued to watch her, looking for any hint of resistance, as he undid her dress and peeled it away from her body. As her breasts became exposed, his eyes took on a burning intensity.

"You are so beautiful, Nuwa" he murmured in awe.

He slid his arm underneath her back, gently lifting her up so that he could slide her dress off of her shoulders, and down her arms. Once she was free of it, he lowered her back down to the bed.

Hurriedly he stood up and stripped off his own robes, tossing them aside to reveal his naked torso. Then he leaned down over Nuwa, placing a trail of delicate kisses on her face, from her forehead down her nose to her lips, from her lips down her cheek to her neck, from her neck down to her breasts.

Nuwa stared up at the ceiling, wide-eyed. Her experiences with love in the Mortal Realm seemed so far away, like a dream. She had never done anything like this in her real body, and it felt so much more real, and so much more embarrassing.