A Vow So Beautiful

"Don't you remember me? I am the beast that ruined you."

Prisana watched in complete shock as the mirror image of her caveman reflected next to the man who called himself Elias, surfaced. They were the same man. Only that the man she once knew has abandoned the long hair, beard, and the jagged brown scar. Now Dane was replaced with the man named Elias who harbored short raven hair that fell to his neck and was clean shaven with a scar less face.

She wondered why there was an even more rugged hardness than ever before reflected in his eyes.

Things began to fall into place as she recalled how her body reacted to the mere sight and voice of him. She couldn't believe her eyes or her ears that the beast was truly holding her in his arms. There were so many questions running through her mind that the first one almost escaped her lips but he held a finger to her lips to silence her.

"Shh," he whispered. "You wouldn't want to cause a scene in front of your father and dearest husband now, would you?"

Suddenly she was flooded with hot rushing memories of the intimate night they both shared—His large muscular arms flexing with each thrust inside of her that conjured both pain and pleasure. Her memories then flooded to the tickling of his raspy grunts and moans that she readily devoured without shame. It was all too much for her to bare.

But, it was too late to run. The next song played and his arms wouldn't release her as they brought her forth closer. She could only desperately search his eyes for answers.

"W-What do you want? Why do this to me when you could have just passed by like we never knew each other?"

"Why...Haha," he laughed like a madman and shook his head. "I wonder that myself."

The pair began to slow dance, their footsteps matching to the tempo of the fast beat. Ironically the beat of the song was very upbeat, unfit for the uneasy and dark mood plaguing her mind. Prisana stared at his chest as she tried to collect her thoughts.

Yet, collecting her thoughts proved to be hard when she noticed her now groomed caveman was so close and so strikingly seductive. Before she knew it, she was becoming consumed by his charms.

♪ When marimba rhythms start to play♪

♪ Dance with me♪

♪ Sway with me♪

Dane ushered her hips to move forward and backward almost in a salsa step like motion so they were taking steps forwards and backwards. She grew flustered and looked away but that didn't deter him.

♪ Like a lazy ocean hugs the shore♪

♪ Hold me close. Sway me more♪

He sought out her eyes as his hands gently prodded her head to turn back to him. His arm wrapped over her waist as he used a finger to tap her collarbone so he could fully dip her backwards as her back swayed around in a glorious full circle.

♪Like a flower bending in the breeze♪

♪Bend with me, Sway with ease♪

♪When we dance you have a way with me♪

♪Stay with me, Sway with me♪

The moment she was brought back to him from the breathless swaying, he twirled her so she was hugged closely from behind. One of his arms draped over her stomach as his cologne scent carried to her nose. She sighed at both hints of familiar and unfamiliar scents. Prisana gasped as he ushered both of their bodies sideways so they swayed side to side in unison, their footsteps mimicking each one another.

Her back rubbed against his chest as they continued to endlessly sway, the casual touch sending shivers more than one down her own feverish body.

"Why the bloody hell is a caveman like you so good at dancing?" she incredulously asked, finally taking a moment to catch her breath.

"You're just terrible at dancing."

To this, Prisana's cheeks flushed as she kept her head down in shame because he was right. She not only almost fell if he hadn't guided her with those twirls but she almost stepped on his feet during the salsa moves.

"I don't understand. There's so many questions I have on my mind..."

"You always think too much."

"And you surely didn't think much when pulling a stunt like that. I-I always believed you wanted to rid of me. Now that you have, why are holding me in your arms?"

"It's true, I never wanted to meet you again in this lifetime. Believe me when I say that's what I wished for and I told myself to stay away but when I saw your beautiful form in front of me...Everything I tried so hard holding back just...shattered."

"...Perhaps, I could seduce you so you'd gain me favor in your father's council. Yes, that's all this is."

Was she yet again another pawn, even to this man who she once thought they could share something more with one another? It stung that, like father and Giovanni, he saw her as some object to further his ambitions. She bit her lip in anger and hurled her face around to give him a piece of her mind.

Yet she couldn't give him a piece of her mind. Prisana inhaled a deep breath and found him staring down at her with sad eyes. It was the first time that she felt as if she could catch a glimpse of his emotions. She wanted to reach out and console him but all eyes were on them. Why did he look so sad?

Soon, they turned raw and inviting once his finger slowly cupped her chin so her head leaned back onto his chest. He settled his gaze on her lips.

"Your lips, have already been taken by another. How pathetic of me. I don't even deserve jealousy. From the very beginning we started this, you were always his."

Prisana thought about telling him the truth but it was already too late. He was three months too late and there was nothing the both of them could do even if she spilled all her ugly truths.

His finger trailed to her flowing dark hair, then to the sides of her breasts and her waist. When they did so, she could feel her own nipples harden at each caress. Dane was teasing her and she knew it as that devilish smile abandoned all reason. She couldn't help but breathe and pant with each subtle caress he hid in between their upbeat dancing.

It didn't help that she actually felt Giovanni's gaze burning through them.

"Your dear husband must be burning with jealousy about now. I wonder, has he touched these places as well? Over and over again, he would probably relish in the fact that your skin is pale as snow and easily blushed, tainted by every soft touch. I'm sure he also knows," Dane pauses and he lightly hovers his hands over the shape of her buttocks. "That you have the most endearing dimples here and..."

"Stop that," Prisana chided him, voice betraying anger in breathy sighs.

"Stop what?"

"Seducing me. I'm a married woman."

"Not a very happy one. Or else, you wouldn't have ran away from your vows or tried to slap him when he kissed you."

"Just...Leave me be!"

Dane's hold on her waist loosened as their bodies separated from the endless swaying. The spell has been broken, reflected in his startled eyes.

"We should act as if we're nothing more than strangers because at the end of the day," Prisana took a deep breath and regarded him sadly. "At the end of the day you won't save me from this unhappy marriage. I also don't need any saving."

"Prisana..."

"That night was a mistake. So you can forget about everything and so will I."

A beautiful lie that hurt even her. That night was everything she wished for. The only mistake she made was when she left the beast and his cabin.