The only thing Hena could hear was the sound of the carriage passing through the rocky pathway of the town. After earlier's events with the thug vampires, the vampire prince, Luka had called for a carriage as if he had already predicted everything.
She didn't even dare question her of the reason how he got there and saved her. Hena knew how powerful noble vampires are, not to mention, royal blood like him.
Darting her eyes to the right, Hena could feel a brooding atmosphere coming from Luka. He appeared to be serious and didn't really talk a lot more than his usual self.
Hena had never felt intimidated of anyone's presence before, but this unpredictable and devilishly charming man was the first one to do this to her.
"I have never heard you say sorry, or even thank me for saving you," Luka said, not glancing over in her direction. His gaze was fixed on the carriage's floor as if it was the most entertaining part of the world.
"…"
Hena didn't say anything.
Saying things like, 'thank you' and 'I am sorry' are phrases that she had never really said to anyone aside from her family. For her, those words expressed weakness to anyone.
But she couldn't ignore the fact that this man had been there whenever she needed help.
She felt guilty as she had never been this good at articulating her feelings. But this time, she wanted to express her gratitude towards her.
The vampire prince took such lengths to save her, even though she broke the rules and went out without anyone accompanying her.
The princess had several spiraling thoughts on her head. And there was one thing that made an impact on her, and that was the fact that she wasn't alone in this battle.
Taking a deep breath, Hena had decided to say the words she had wanted to say.
"Thank you for saving me…" She trailed off, as she stared at her hands on her knees. "And I'm sorry for being a hard-headed wife."
"Wife," he echoed and exhaled. His deep baritone voice echoed in Hena's ears. "That is right, you are my wife. So I think it might be better for you to act like one."
Act like one?
This might be Hena's one and only chance given to her. She mustered up all the courage left on her system and scooted right next to him.
Turning her head, Hena's gaze met on the prince's wayfarer red eyes. These crimson red eyes had always been enchanting as if seeing herself in his eyes were the last bit of hope she had in her situation.
Hena hesitated for a moment, but she slightly raised her body and lightly pressed her lips onto his. She wanted to express herself by kissing him on his lips.
She separated herself from the kiss and stared at him in the eye. Luka stared at her as if he was boring a hole into her forehead.
Then, the corner of his lips quirked up, "Just this? Do you really think you'd be considered as my wife just by kissing me on the lips?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, as my wife, don't you think you needed to do more?"
Hena stared at him, wide-eyed.
"You boldly mentioned consummating our marriage when you don't even know much," he explained. "Did you really think consummating our marriage only involves kissing?"
Hena felt flush as she tried to find the right words to say, "O-Of course not! Consummating marriage is having…"
"Having sex?"
She became even more flustered. "How can the East Kingdom's prince say such vulgar words?"
"No matter how you twist it, consummating marriage is having sex," he said as he leaned in closer towards her. "Or lovemaking. However you call it, the act is still the same."
She leaned her back away from him, but the carriage's space didn't allow her to do so. Her back was now pressed against the carriage's wooden wall.
"You don't have to worry too much," Luka said, brushing his fingers through his hair. "I'll be gentle in our first night. The moment I introduce you to the palace, we can do whatever we want."
"Wh-Who says I wanted to do it with you?" Hena stuttered and averted her gaze away from him. His entire presence was making her feel weak. Just by staring at him in the eye hit differently.
"We can always start small," He said as he continued to scoot over, trapping her. "If you want, we can start tasting each other here."
"You must be out of your mind!"
"Maybe I am." You didn't even flinch when I bared your neck, bit it, and took several sips of your blood. Be honest with me, you felt aroused, weren't you?"
"Y-You—"
Hena had never felt this embarrassed before. Despite her cold exterior, she had never been claimed by a man. She always had fantasies of doing it with the right one, in a proper place and time.
Definitely not in a carriage.
All of a sudden, the vampire prince chuckled. "You might want to see your face right now," He continued to mock her by laughing at her. "Were you actually looking forward to doing it here?"
With her fist clenched, Hena had never expected to have toyed like this. It was her first time getting toyed by a man, who kept on exuding great charisma and sexual tension.
She could never read what's on his mind.
Without her expecting it, Luka grabbed her right hand and held her chin to look at him. His playful smirk was on full display. Just a moment ago, Hena wanted to punch this man's face but seeing him smiling with a gentle gaze made her insides feel weak.
"I'm just playing with you," he said in a low voice as he leaned in closer and kissed her on her lips. "It's best to do it at the right time."
Hena didn't really know if she wanted to consummate their marriage just to let her status lifted up as the crown prince's wife or if she really just wanted to do it with him.
Her pride was too high to agree that she was starting to feel sexually attracted to him ever since he had taken a sip on her blood, thinking that it was the vampire prince's doing.
One thing was for sure, she was definitely looking forward to when that would be.