Sprawling on the carpeted floor, Lianne’s eyes rested intently at the king-size bed as surge of memories flooded inside her. She saw herself in the same bed with the mysterious man, passionately making love. It did stun her greatly but the memory brought her briefly to tears at the same time. It ached her heart and as the flashbacks continued, she saw the mysterious man caressing her neck passionately and her, in the dream, moaned and submitted herself to him.

Ruen…

All of a sudden, the name echoed in her mind.

‘Ruen…’ And then she saw herself utter his name in the flashback.

At first, Lianne was confused, but a sudden realization hit her.

‘RUEN!’ Her mind shouted, this time with renewed determination. It was as if she was a baby, learning her first words.

Before she could lift herself up, the unknown man quickly grabbed her arm pulling her to stand. She gave him a quick unconcealed glare.

“I’m asking you, who are you?! How do you know my name?!” she ordered roughly.

“Hmmm... you’ll remember soon enough, ” he answered with a slight grin. Then, he suddenly lifted her from the ground in a wedding-style fashion.

“No! Put me down! I said put me down!” Her hands curled into a ball, hit him roughly on the chest and pushed him away as she protested. She tried to wiggle out of his hold, but unfortunately she couldn’t even summon the strength to do so. He was strong. She felt his lean muscles balancing her weight, and felt his hard abdomen pressing her buttock.

He slammed her down the mattress and immediately nailed her hands on each side. Their eyes met, and this time she saw the mesmerizing color of his orbs - a beautiful ash-mauve.

POV: Lianne Deivin

He does seem familiar, but I couldn’t pinpoint when and where we met.

However, even so. No! Rape definitely wasn’t my option!

“I command you to let me go! I have many friends in this place and I assure you, you won’t get away with this!” I lashed out at him and hopefully I got my point across. But in response, he only grinned some more and my world began to crumble.

Oh, I’m pretty sure Jen would relish being in this kind of situation. If she was in my shoes right now, she would have been swooned long ago, but no, not me. I can’t deny he does have incredibly good looks, and of course, I could be attracted to him but still, I feel very apprehensive with this man and by the way he was positioning me and positioning himself, this is definitely not a good first impression, but this is indeed a good position to...

‘Shit.’ I cleared my mind with the thought as my panic got the best of me.

I saw him above me. Our face leveled, his hands holding my wrists, his knees locking my hips. Oh, this is definitely the perfect position to hit his crotch in case “something” happens.

“Do you remember this Lianne?” he started and though I was inexperienced in these kinds of situations, I was actually witty enough to understand what he was pertaining to... to how we were positioned. I only glared at him some more and tried to free my wrists from his hold.

“Yes! How I longed for this moment to happen once again.” He tightened his grip and slowly neared his face with mine. I could actually feel his manly scent and his warm breath, and...

No!

My mind immediately registered what was happening. He dove in and claimed my mouth.

His lips were moist as he pressed them hungrily on mine. I grumbled in protest but before I could react some more, he quickly slid his tongue inside my mouth, tasting me, assaulting me in every possible way.

It was suffocating.

He didn’t even give me enough time to breathe anew. His tongue was circling, sucking and probing me, and though I was aghast by it, unconsciously I managed to open my mouth to welcome some more.

‘What is happening to me!’ my subconscious yelled.

The only time I was finally able to fill some oxygen in my lungs was when he proceeded to caress my neck. This time it really did hit me. He wasn’t joking when he said I will remember soon enough. And by soon, he definitely means now.

I felt his weight depressing the mattress. I couldn’t believe this was truly happening with a man I hardly knew. I don’t even know his name for crying out loud! But there was something about him. Something... Something bothering me from the moment our eyes met.

He continued to caress me, and the feeling he was giving me from his kisses were indeed alien to me. It was then I realized I actually wasn’t even fighting anymore. I didn’t even notice that my hands were already free as his hands went on to cup my now exposed breasts. I found myself releasing a brief moan of... Oh no! Was it actually pleasure?

His hands wandered more to every curve of her body. She broke a brief moan as if she was enjoying it unconsciously but her eyes tightly shut and then stream of tears fell from her eyes.

His mouth welcomed the pink taut peaks of her breasts and lavished it like he had all the luxury of time.

Her mind went blank. This new electric feeling somehow was blocking any reasoning and worse, it was like it was taking all of the energy away from her.

“No!” was all she could ever express when he turned his attention again on her lips.

“Lianne...”

Lianne...

Lianne...

Her name lingered again and again inside her mind. The man’s voice was clear at first, but it too gradually faded as her attention focused solely on a familiar voice.

Lianne huh.

She had heard her name whispered countless of times. Was it in her dreams? Was it in reality? Unfortunately, she couldn’t remember.

“Open your eyes and look at me, ” the man commanded with his voice stern and domineering. “Lianne, look at me and remember.”

“Ruen...”

She suddenly uttered.

Upon hearing it, a pained expression painted his face.

Quickly, she opened her eyes. She didn’t exactly know how but the name just emerged in her thoughts.

“Ruen...” her trembling voice uttered once again as if she was evoking him, as if she was asking for his help.

The chandelier of the bedroom suddenly flickered and lit up. Consequently, every space of the room was illuminated.

Lianne winced, feeling the sting of the light for a brief moment. After a few seconds of adjustment, she looked up and saw the man’s face on top her so clearly now.

The man, on the other hand, immediately straightened to see who the intruder was, his face instantly turning sour. His brows furrowed and his teeth clenched.

Covering herself with her dress, Lianne turned to see where his attention was directed and a quick gasp escaped her mouth.

To her surprise, the mysterious man was standing at the entrance of the bedroom door, his left hand resting on the switch of the chandelier. He was wearing a v-neck black shirt and black pants, covered by a dark-brown leather coat.

“Let go of her, Cain, ” he simply said with a stern, unyielding voice. He looked at the one addressed with hatred in his eyes…or was it pure anger?

“What a surprise. You actually came, Ruen, ” the man responded, mentioning his name in a disgusted manner.

The name however lingered on Lianne’s mind.

Ruen...

Ruen.

Ruen!

‘He is Ruen?!’ she asked herself.

“Stay where you are...” the man ordered when he noticed her attempting to stand.

Lianne wasn’t certain for now but a big part of her somehow was telling that they were both connected.

She wanted to shout his name but a surge of embarrassment quickly enveloped her as she saw herself half-naked and almost taken by the man now standing at the edge of the bed.

‘Cain. That man’s name is Cain, ’ Lianne continued to ponder on, trying to cultivate whatever memory she could have with the man, but she couldn’t remember anything at all.

“Leave her be!” Ruen ordered once again, stepping inside the room with his shoulders squared and his hands in tight fists.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that, ” Cain shook his head. “You know that already, Yo-ur High-ness.” He grinned, obviously testing him. “It seems that destiny is playing a game on us for the second time.”

A muscle on Ruen’s jaw ticked. “Yes, but still...nothing has changed. She hasn’t and still won’t reciprocate whatever it is you feel.”

“I want to remind you that she doesn’t remember you either, ” Cain rebuked.

Lianne, choosing to be silent, watched them with her brows furrowed. She may not have a clue as to what they were saying but certainly, she wasn’t dumb not to notice that there was hostility developing between them because of her.

Cain continued to spat his dagger of words, each sharper than the last.

“You, who was so important to her in the past. Who would have known that she would forget you also. Now, everything is but a piece of white paper. I believe I have captured her first, do you honestly think I would let her go then?”

A cold shiver crept down her back when she heard Cain’s words.

‘What are they actually saying?!’ she voiced out in her mind.

“Your overconfidence doesn’t suit you well Cain. That maybe the truth but I won’t give up either. Not now when everything has come to this. However, to force her to remember the past is something I would never do.” Ruen clenched his jaw.

He glanced at her and with that, their eyes met.

Lianne was taken aback. For a moment there, his eyes softened. He looked lovingly at her as if she was the rarest of all treasures. Even with this distance, she saw the color in his eyes. They were a beautiful brown-green reminding her of dense forests and breathtaking landscapes of long ago.

“Oh Lianne will remember alright, me and her, and your memory will remain in the ashes. Shall we wait? Or we’ll settle this fast?”

Ruen didn’t have the time to reply when Cain pull out a gun from his back and pointed it directly to him.

Lianne gasped and her eyes widened at the sight of the weapon.

“You don’t think I would actually use those old-rusted swords do you?” Cain asked dryly, his wicked triumphant grin appearing easily. “We are in the modern world now, Ruen.”

Ruen, if he was concerned with the immediate threat of his life, didn’t show it on his face. He was just standing there, open and obviously vulnerable.