Alice felt she knew what Mark wanted and for him to waste his sleeping time to stare at her for two hours, she felt he was dedicated.

"Is there something you want?" She asked, even if she had an inkling feeling of what he might want. "Is that why you couldn’t sleep?"

Mark did not expect this question, so he was caught off guard.

"I’m right, aren’t I? If you didn’t want anything, you wouldn’t stay by my bedside like this."

Though she had an inkling feeling, she did not see it in his eyes. Yes, there was something he wanted, and his hesitation told her there was, but what she thought he may want was not in his face at all.

She was good at reading men, well at least that’s what she made herself believe. And when she meant reading men, she didn’t mean their minds or feelings they may have; she just knew how to recognize a particular gaze of want and lust in a person.

A selfish lustful gaze that sunk deep into the irises of men was something she was familiar with. And if it wasn’t the iris then it was the pupil. A little look into their eyes and one would know right away that what they desired was nothing more than the body of any lady that came across them.

But she did not see it in Mark’s eyes, and though his actions, while gazing at her lips, indicated he wanted her in a way, she could not sense that shameless, and selfish lustful vigor.

It was a relief, honestly. If Mark had started to look at her that way, even if it was because he held feelings for her, then she wasn’t sure she would be able to stick around him like she usually did.

After all, Lust was a flame she did not hope to ignite in the men around her. And the reason was simple.

Alice stared at Mark who hid his expression by turning away.

"I’m sorry I disturbed you so late." He said, attempting to stand. "I’ll leave now."

"Wait," Alice caught his arm. "I’m already awake." She said. "And if I hit my pillow, I’ll go back to sleep right away but before that..." She pulled him down and edged her body towards him. "Would you be able to sleep if I eased your worries?"

"Ease my...?" He gulped. What worries was she talking about?

Alice stared at the look in his eyes one more time. It wasn’t there.

Yes, lust was something she did not hope to ignite but if it was not present, then didn’t that mean she could do whatever she wanted without fear that such a thing would become of their thoughts?

(Oh, you poor naive little girl! It’s times like this that your naivety gets you in trouble)

"Then, do you want to get a kiss?" Her words shocked him and he turned to her right away.

But he did not see any sinister plotting. All he saw was the beautiful innocent girl who was offering to lend him her lips for the sake of his sleep.

He didn’t expect it in the slightest.

And there was this allure around her that made it seem impossible for him to resist her. She was glowing and he was hopeless.

(Ahem, I guess that seed has a little role to play here)

But who was he to resist when she was throwing out such a generous offer? Those lips... He had craved them for quite a while. Was it finally his turn to taste them?

’No, I shouldn’t. What if this is a test?’ He thought but before he could even think to reason what was going on, Alice had already wrapped her arms around his neck, gazing into his eyes. "You... What are you doing?"

"You know, when I kissed Micheal, I did it because I was curious to know what he looked like if he took off his mask." She suddenly said, "But though I was disappointed since he had another mask underneath that one, I didn’t hate the kiss. Rather, it was warm and sweet."

Mark was a bit listless. She was using her strength to hold him down so he couldn’t struggle out of her hold, not that he was even trying so maybe it wasn’t her strength after all. He wanted it so he wasn’t struggling at all.

"And then I thought, well, this must be something I can do with everyone that I like. And if I can feel sweet and warm just from a kiss, then there was no harm to it."

"B-but," Mark finally spoke. "Shouldn’t you do it only if you want to? I mean, I know you aren’t interested in feelings and relationships, but at least, you have to want to kiss the other person first, right?"

"True. So, don’t you want me to kiss you?" Alice asked, which turned out to be a tricky question. "If you don’t then I won’t force it."

Mark’s heart raced and his body started feeling hot. She was... Seducing him.

That was the thought that penetrated his mind but he rebuked it right away. Alice was not the type. She had no reason to seduce him.

This was just... He stared at her lips. Her soft-looking lips had him curious for a long time.

Alice felt maybe she was pushing it and her assumption had been wrong. So, she decided to just let go and leave him be.

But just as she was freeing her arms from around his neck, he clutched her arm and said,

"Alice, I don’t want things to change between us... For the worse." He said and finally showed his face, the feeling of worry glistening like tears in his eyes and the adorability of it all.

Ah, who knew Mark could look so cute?

"Well, if that’s your worry," She smirked. "Then it’s useless. Come tomorrow, it’ll be like nothing ever happened."

She assured him with these words.

’Well, maybe we should just make it simple, I guess.’ she thought. ’A light peck on his lips would...’

Her thoughts were interrupted when Mark pulled her closer and said,

"Then, please pardon me." He held the back of her head, causing her to wonder when his hand got there, and then pressed her lips to his.

Alice thought she would be the one to initiate the kiss since Mark was being all shy and stuff, but he took the lead quite well.

He made sure her lips were completely entrapped by his, licking and sucking on them.

Alice was baffled honestly. And then, he slid his tongue into her mouth and pressed the back of her head more deeply.

Their lips made smacking noises that sounded sensual. And with every breath they took through the little gaps they made while kissing, Alice found herself falling deep into a pit she did not know was there.

But more importantly, she began to wonder why she even bothered to ask such a thing in the first place.

’I... I’m confused.’ She thought, shutting her eyes to endure the intensity of the kiss. ’Why am I doing this with Mark right now?’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com