Back to the present…

Eva put her face in her hands, remembering everything that had happened. 'Oh, goodness! Now you have really gone and done it, Eva!' she yelled at herself in her mind. She could not believe she could be that bold of a woman when drunk.

It wasn’t like this was her first time ever drinking alcohol. But she had never let herself get drunk to this extent before. She was all about self-control and discipline when it came to alcohol…until this time. It was because she had always believed that nothing good ever comes from getting drunk. She had seen too many people who had gotten themselves drunk and ended up embarrassing themselves big-time. And since she was the kind of woman who was uptight and cared so much about her reputation, she had always put herself under her own strict surveillance. She never allowed herself to get on the loose.

And now that she had thrown away her guard, she had indeed ended up embarrassing herself. 'My god! Alcohol really gives one nothing but a headache!'

When she returned her gaze to the man in the room with her, he was still smiling. For some reason, his wicked mouth, curled at the sides, was making her heart nervous.

Eva had met a bevy of good looking men before. In her line of work, she had even met with a few top-tier celebrities and other big personalities, and she was proud to say that she had built quite a tolerance when it came to handsome guys. A few had tried to seduce her, and some were young studs who were desperate for rich and successful sugar mommies. But Eva had never let any of those superficial men lay their hands on her. In fact, just one sharp, blade-like gaze from her, and the men never came crawling back to bother her anymore.

But this man. She had been glaring at him for a while now. She even made a move to grab at his collar like she was some violent alpha woman. Most men would definitely run away and ignore a woman like her, because she knew that most men were suckers for soft, sweet and delicate ladies. She, however, was far from soft, never sweet, and certainly not delicate…and that was probably one of the biggest reasons why Julian had thrown her away like trash now that she had nothing left to her name.

So, why? Why was this man still stopping her from leaving? Why was he still smiling at her as though he found her interesting? She knew she was not interesting as a woman! She also knew now how ugly she was! So, what was this guy really up to? His behaving this way must be due to some ulterior motive!

"Fine. What do you want?" Eva huffed in slight irritation as her gaze sharpened again. "How much do you—" She caught her lower lip between her teeth as her eyes looked around the house, which was screaming with luxury, before falling back on him. Did a man living in such luxurious wealth even need money? But what if he was not the one who owned this house? But…he looked…

Her eyes traveled over him from head to toe. Why the hell did she feel as though he was like some high-ranking aristocrat, as well?!

Eva had met a few aristocrats in the past, and though she had not had the opportunity to meet kings and queens, she had met her share of princes and other lower-ranking aristocrats. This was how she had an idea of the kind of air surrounding them. And she was surprised that this man actually had an even stronger presence compared to all those she had met before. Who was this man? Or, were her observations and senses playing a trick on her?

"Who are you?" Eva finally asked, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Who am I…" his deep voice drawled out. "How about you guess, pet?"

Eva creased her brows. "I don't have time to play a guessing game with you."

"That's a shame, then." He just smiled. It was strange how he seemed to be so tolerant of her uptight attitude. Most people, be they men or women, could not wait to end a conversation with her, except when the conversation was revolving purely around business. So, why did this man sound like he was trying to drag their conversation out?

"Alright," he said, staring at her, his wicked smile fading. "I am the Devil."

Silence suddenly reigned between them for a moment. It was so quiet that an invisible crow might as well have been seen flying over their heads.

Then, her imagination kicked into high gear, and she could imagine him with horns and a tail.

She slapped her forehead with her palm, and her expression abruptly returned to her usual business-like face.

"If you are not taking me seriously, then I'm leaving," she snapped, frowning at him as he sipped at his wine with grace. His intense gaze, shooting at her right over the rim of his glass, was just mesmerizing. And she could not help but watch his Adam's apple bob up and down as he swallowed his drink. This man…why did she feel like he was seducing her? And how could a man exude such overflowing sexiness and grace just by drinking wine?

Eva shook her head to clear her mind. My god, this man was truly dangerous! This was definitely a man every woman had to be careful with.

Just as she was thinking to herself, she felt his fingertip lightly brush over the skin between her brows again, as if to smoothen the deep lines that were furrowing there.

"This line here will truly become permanent if you keep frowning so hard like this, my pet," he said, and Eva roughly caught his wrist again.

"And whose fault is it that I am frowning like this? I'm saying it for the last time: If you're not taking me seriously, then I'm leaving." Eva groused, feeling a massive headache coming on.

"I am taking you very seriously, pet."

Eva narrowed her eyes, then gave a small, very unladylike snort.

"You're saying that you telling me, 'I am the Devil,' is you being verryyy serious," she emphasized the word “very” before sighing heavily, shaking her head. "I am not drunk anymore. So, stop playing around with me. If you won't, then just let me leave. I told you, I don't have time for games like this."

"Alright, alright." He looked as though he had finally given in, and then his expression became serious, almost business-like but combined with a kind of unsettling grace. He stretched his hand out to her.

"Gage. I'm Gage Acheron."

Eva stared at his large hand. ‘Gage…Acheron… where had I heard this name before?’ she thought to herself inwardly, but no matter how hard she tried, she could not remember anyone she knew with such a name. She took his hand with a business-like face and manner, as if she had just met up with a business partner for the first time.

"Eva. I'm Eva You –"

Before she could complete her surname, Eva bit her lower lip, remembering her situation again. Her grandfather and her ex-fiancé. The fact that she felt her family had disowned her as soon as they found out she was not biologically related, the fact that her fiancé cheated on her and even…

She clenched her fists tight, and then she squared her shoulders. She refused to put on a show in front of a complete stranger.

She made herself tough and brusque, and her eyes became fierce as she looked him straight in the eyes.

"Mr. Acheron. I am truly sorry for what I did to you. I was drunk, and…"

The scene of that moment when she had bit him flashed in her mind, and involuntarily, she blushed. But she brushed it off quickly from her thoughts. Clearing her throat, she focused on the matter at hand.

"I know you don't look like someone who is in dire need of money. But money is all I have to pay you for the inconvenience I have caused." She told him.

He swirled the wine in his glass.

"Hmm. That would be problematic, pet. But since I am the victim here, don't you think I should be the one deciding what kind of compensation I want?"

"V-victim?" Eva stuttered a little.

Her eyes fell on the bite mark on his neck and she felt the heat rise to her cheeks again.

"Mr. Achero-"

"Just Gage," he drawled. "No need to be formal with me, pet."

"Alright, Gage. What is it that you want?"

A slow smile curved across his lips; a smile that looked so mischievously hot. Damn this man to hell! There was no need for him to smile like that!

"I won't ask for much, pet. I just want you to stay with me…in this house…until this bite mark and hickey disappear." He spoke in a leisurely fashion, all the while still swirling the wine in his glass. "That shouldn't be all too hard to do, right?"

Eva blinked. Speechless. W-what?!