As soon as they entered the room, Damien gently placed Maya on the wedding bed. Everyone else was still inside, gathered to witness the final part of the ceremony, when the bride would tie the nuptial necklace around the groom's neck.
After helping her sit, Damien sat beside her. Slowly, he reached forward and lifted the veil from her face. His breath caught for a moment as he looked at her, taking her in.
Seeing this, a woman from his family called out with a teasing grin, "Maya, good luck for tonight!"
The room erupted with laughter.
Due to how quickly everything had happened, Maya hadn't had the chance to properly meet or remember everyone in Damien's family. She wasn't sure who had made the cheeky remark, but the others laughed along and blushed again.
Lifting her eyes to his face shyly, Maya let herself take him in.
This was the first time she was seeing without any upper cloth. His bare chest was broad, his biceps firm and muscular.
Her gaze lingered longer than she meant it to. Someone in the room—another lady from Damien's family—caught the moment and chuckled. "They're both the same," she said playfully, "look at them staring like no one else exists."
More laughter followed, and Maya's cheeks flushed again. Damien didn't say anything, but when their eyes met for a second, he gave her a soft smirk that only made her blush deeper.
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She placed the necklace around his neck, her fingers trembling. It was a simple chain—black beads threaded with two gold pendants, delicate but sacred.
As she leaned in to fasten the clasp, their faces were so close she could feel his breath grazing her cheek. His eyes didn't waver. They stayed on her, watching every flutter of her lashes, every nervous flick of her gaze.
When she finally moved back, she caught the way his eyes were still on her. Her face flushed. She leaned slightly away and whispered, "Stop it… everyone is looking," darting a glance at the others before turning her face to the side, away from him.
But Damien reached out gently and turned her chin back to him, His voice was a low murmur, "Why shouldn't I look? I'm just looking at what's mine."
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After everyone had finally left, they'd also left their wedding gifts behind in the room, stacked in a corner.
"Take off your clothes."
Maya stared at him, wide-eyed. He chuckled softly, hearing her breath hitch. "I meant the dress," he clarified. "It must be heavy, right? Want me to take it off?"
It wasn't that he didn't want her naked. Gods, he wanted her more than anything. But the embroidery on her bridal lehenga was thick, ornate, and looked suffocating. It was concern first… desire second. Well, maybe a close second.
"Yes… It is heavy but," she admitted quietly, then glanced away, clearly hesitating.
He tilted his head, sensing something was off. "But?"
She didn't answer at first, and when she still didn't meet his eyes, he stood in front of her.
"Maya," he called her name firmly.
Hearing the seriousness in his voice, she slowly stood up too and said nervously, "My mother… she took all of my clothes from my cupboard."
Damien blinked. "Why?"
She fidgeted under his gaze. "It's a tradition. From my village. I didn't know how to tell you."
"So… we just ask her for them again?" he offered.
She shook her head quickly. His brow furrowed as it clicked.
She had no clothes to change into.
She couldn't sleep in the wedding dress.
And that meant—
"Ohhh," he muttered, realization dawning as he looked at her knowingly.
Maya looked away, blushing furiously, ignoring the fact that his fingers were now playing with a lock of her hair, lazily twirling it around his hand.
A slow smirk tugged at his lips.
"So you didn't say anything because you wanted to do it?" he asked, voice dipping into a husky whisper, his hand gliding to her waist.
She let out a shaky breath, her cheeks turning even redder.
"Damian…" she warned softly, not meeting his eyes.
He leaned in just enough to make her shiver, "What? I'm just helping my wife with tradition."
He leaned in, brushing his lips gently over hers, and her heart pounded furiously in her chest. His own desire surged like a wild rollercoaster.
"Maya," he whispered, her name like a prayer pressed against her lips.
She opened her eyes to meet his and found him with his eyes closed, breathing heavily, fighting to control himself. It wasn't that he didn't want to lose himself in her right then and there; he wanted nothing more than to lift her and make love to her with all the passion inside him.
But his mother's words echoed in his mind.
He was getting ready, standing in front of the mirror, when a soft knock came at the door. It was his mom. She looked at him from head to toe, her eyes shimmering with a mix of pride and emotion.
"My baby boy has grown so much," she said, stepping forward to hug him tightly.
Pulling back, she smiled gently. "Your father would have loved today."
Damien nodded quietly, feeling the weight of her words. Then she asked softly, "Are you ready?"
"More than ever," he replied.
She hesitated, like she wanted to say more. "Mom, what is it?"
She took a deep breath. "It's hard to tell you this, but you're my boy, and I want you to be happy, hmm? I'm your mother, so it's my responsibility to advise you. But the decision is yours. You need to consider the facts, the cause and effect, and then make your choice--"
"Mom, what is it? Please just say it." Damien frowned slightly. It was his mother's habit to ramble on and on when she was nervous.
She smiled nervously and said, "I was talking to Marie."
"Ethan's mate?" Damien asked.
"Yes, Ethan's mate. A human." She continued, "I was talking to her and she kind of gave me some advice."
"And? Did she say anything useful?"
"She told me that any relationship, any event, that starts with lies doesn't last long. The women here are different. Their values differ from those in the village. Well, Maya is from a village. So her values are different from those of city women-" "Mom."
She looked into his eyes. "I'm just saying that she's marrying you, she's trusting you completely. She's leaving her world behind because she believes in you—because you are who you say you are."
He nodded slowly, absorbing his mother's words.
"The marriage, in her world," she continued, her voice softening, "is like the humans'... way, way of finding a mate. The person she's marrying, that connection, means everything to her." He glanced away for a moment, understanding dawning on him.
"She's a sweet girl… probably has big dreams and hopes for her future. And in those future dreams, you are right there—exactly as you have told her you are." His mother's voice carried on. "She's placing her trust in you, Damien. Don't forget that."