- Bobby... Eames lowered his face, his cheeks rosy, and looked at his hands nervously clutching the skirt of his nightgown. May I have another kiss.
Goren smiled at this timid request.
She was so sweet right now, he would have done anything she asked.
But more kisses...
That wasn't very prudent.
- It was very nice... She lifted her flushed face, her big hazel eyes shining with that little gleam they'd had when he'd kissed her. And I loved it.
Goren blushed violently at this admission, his heart beating wildly in his chest.
Name of God...
It felt good...
She'd loved it.
Didn't she see what she was saying to him.
Of course she didn't.
Eames was telling her this with such honesty, and above all, innocence.
As if it were normal.
But didn't she understand the risks she was running by asking him for more kisses.
Why wasn't she afraid of him.
After what had happened at the waterfall.
She should have been, but she wasn't.
Didn't she understand that he'd done wrong.
By making her feel his unrestrained desire for her, by shamelessly pressing his member against her intimacy.
And she, instead of panicking, even after what he'd done, was asking for more kisses.
It was simply impossible.
He couldn't accede to her request.

It had nothing to do with the fact that he didn't want to kiss her, on the contrary.
She'd been so receptive to his kiss, he'd lost all control.
And that absolutely must not happen again.
Because if he set her on fire again, Goren was afraid he'd lose control again, and possess her without any form of trial.
And Alex was still just a child, too pure and too innocent to suffer his assaults.
So for her own good, to keep her innocent, for what he loved in her, he'd have to avoid touching her, even if he wanted to.
At the very least, he'd have to keep it from going beyond the kissing stage, so it was better not to tempt the devil, and certainly not to kiss her.
- Alex... He put his hand to the back of her neck and looked away, not daring to look at her. I don't know if it's wise.
He didn't know if it was safe...
Why was Goren telling him this.
Had she done something wrong.
Had she been too fiery for a first kiss, and that was what had chilled him.
- Was I too wild...
Too feisty.
Of course she had.

And contrary to what she was thinking, it had nothing to do with the fact that he preferred to avoid kissing her.
Well, almost.
For he had to admit, it was that ardor that had made him lose all control.
But on the other hand, if she'd reacted differently, he'd have felt hurt.
- No. That's not the point.
So why...
If it had nothing to do with it.
She was only asking for more kisses, and he was making her understand that it wouldn't happen again.
Why...
If it was only kisses.
In addition, thinking back on his kisses, she felt a gentle warmth envelop her.
The first had been something new for her, hence her reaction of surprise.
But the second had lit a fire inside her, a fire she'd wanted to extinguish, so much so that she responded to his kiss, clinging to him.
And Eames would love to have such a fiery kiss again.
She'd felt like a woman under that kiss.
And no longer that lassie, as Goren called her.
And if he'd wanted to, she'd have let him do whatever he wanted.
Especially if it was something this pleasurable.
- But Bobby... I...
Goren moved toward her, shortening the distance between them, and stopped millimeters from Eames, his body brushing against hers.
He put his finger to his lips, silencing her, and shook his head in denial.
- Alex... You mustn't.

Involuntarily, his finger gently caressed Eames's lips, and he burst into flames.
Then he hurriedly withdrew his finger, as if it had been burned.
- Lassie...
Ah no.
He wasn't going to start calling her lassie again.
Couldn't he stop using that diminutive with her all the time.
In addition, the way he'd kissed her, he didn't seriously think she was a kid.
One didn't kiss a little girl with such ardor.
Should she make him understand that he had to stop thinking of her as such.
Yes.
So she was going to show him, and now, by taking the lead, to make him understand that she was no longer a little girl.
Decisive, she brought her hands up to Goren's face, took him gently, stood on tiptoe, and brought her lips close to his.
- Alex... It's not safe.
Not safe...
She didn't care.
Not listening to him or his objection, she took possession of his lips with passion.
At this passionate kiss, Goren forgot all his objections, losing all control.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her to him, holding her tight with all his strength, his chest crushing her, forcing his teeth through, their tongues intertwining in a frenzied dance.
Name of God...
How could you keep control when a girl like Alex kissed you so passionately, and was so fiery in your arms.
Goren knew she was losing him.

- Alex... I...
But he stopped short, mortified by what he was doing.
He'd just given in to his impulses, his baser instincts.
And that wasn't right.
He absolutely had to pull himself together and leave as soon as possible, or else he'd give in to his greatest temptation, which was none other than that lovely kid in his arms.
Taking it in his stride, he reluctantly stepped aside, keeping his distance, as Alex looked on, still reeling from his kiss, and unable to realize what was happening.
- I've got to go... Lassie.
What.
Goren had to go. She opened her mouth to close it again, dumbfounded.
He wasn't going to do this.
Not after that kiss.
And not yet.
Alex wanted Goren to stay and keep kissing her.
Realizing he was pulling away, she brought her hand to his arm, holding him back.
- Stay... Bobby.

What.
Let him stay...
Had he heard her words correctly.
Eames couldn't be serious.
She couldn't ask such a thing of him.
Didn't she understand when making such a proposal, he might commit the irreparable.
And that was out of the question.
- Do you understand what you're asking me...
Of course she did.
She wasn't that stupid.
She'd read about these things.
But why did he want to leave.
Was he afraid of what might happen.
It was only kisses.
Where was the evil in that.
And why did he want to leave.
Goren didn't need to leave.
At least, not right away.
- I'm sorry, lassie... But I can't stay.
At her words, Alex's face flushed with sadness and his heart sank, but he had to make a huge effort not to hug her and show her that he didn't want to.
He brought his hand to the little fingers clutching her arm, and gently pulled them apart.
With death in his soul and a face disfigured by suffering, he turned away from Eames and headed for the window.

- Bobby...
At this cry, straight from Alex's heart, Goren retraced his steps, took Eames' face in his hands and feverishly took possession of her lips.
- See you tomorrow, lassie of my heart.
With these last words, he stepped away from Alex, rushed to the window, stepped over it and climbed onto the branch, watched by Eames who never took her eyes off him, not moving an inch, her heart beating violently in her chest, her cheeks pink and her hand caressing her lips, swollen with Goren's kisses and still shaken by his kiss.