The sight of Lina's parted lips was summoning him closer and this time, Reuben did not want to resist this urge inside him.
Bending forward he was once again closer to her face and he clearly watched how her cheeks had gotten a deeper shade of pink.
'Why is she so cute!?' His lips formed a smile as they approached her willing lips.
Lina on the other hand decided not to close her eyes like the last time.
She kept them open to bear witness to reaching a huge milestone in her life, her first kiss.
'Hopefully, he doesn't back away this time!' Her heart rate accelerated as he drew closer.
They could clearly hear the beating of their hearts, in unison, and then it happened.
The moment, they had no idea that they had been desperately waiting for all this while.
In a quick second, their lips finally met each other.
As though the world had been silenced, every thought, every distraction around them faded away when they felt their lips touching each other for the very first time.
A shiver ran down Lina's spine when she felt him touch her in a place no man had ever touched her and she shut her eyes to savor this moment.
A chaste close-mouthed kiss followed by another and then another after that.
Repeatedly their lips met and separated and finally they moved away as they opened their eyes.
'I want more!' Was the only thought on Lina's muddled brain as she stood before the man who had taken her first kiss.
Looking into each other's eyes, she saw the glimmer of joy in Reuben's dark eyes which gave her the courage to make the first move this time around.
Standing on her toes, she raised her hand and caressed his jawline.
Following which she pulled his face closer and directed him to her awaiting lips.
Reuben did not resist her touch but willingly moved according to her wishes and once again planted his lips on hers.
But this time, Lina did something unexpected, something she had never done before.
She timidly parted her lips and sucked on his lower lip which almost made him lose control of his restraint and will power.
She could feel his lips curve into a smile and hers did the same.
Reuben's hands on her hips tightened as he deepened the kiss.
He followed her actions and sucked on her lower lip before turning their chaste kiss from earlier into an intense open-mouthed kiss.
Surprisingly, all the smut that Lina had read in the past taught her what move to make and when to make it.
Her hands wrapped around his neck while his arms secured her body and helped her stand steadily.
Her entire body's weight was on him but he did not seem to have a problem with it.
As though they were both aware of this unspoken rule, neither of them invaded the other's mouth and just stayed outside.
They alternated between sipping each other's lips and pecking it.
Gently nibbling on her lower lip for one last time, Reuben reluctantly let go of the kiss because any more than this and he would have to deepen their kiss even further.
But this was not the right time for that, at least not yet.
Lina's eyes fluttered open when she felt his lips separate from hers.
Reuben's glazed eyes captured the image of her wet and glistening lips.
This made him rub his thumb over it to wipe away their saliva which was on it.
The realization of what she had done hit Lina and she instantly buried her face in his chest, making him chuckle heartily in the process.
"Why are you so shy after taking advantage of me, Kitten?" He teasingly whispered in her ears.
This question succeeded in drawing her out as she glared at him and then pouted.
Reuben immediately looked away from her and muttered something that made Lina's eyes widen after which she once again buried her head in his chest.
"Don't look at me like that, Kitten! Makes me want to eat you up." These words were out of his mouth before he could realize it.
'Did he just say what I think he said?' She pressed her ear against his chest and heard his loud and racing heartbeat which harmonized with hers.
His arms around her tightened and they stood in that position for a couple of seconds, enjoying the feeling of being in each other's embrace.
However, this feeling did not last long when they heard someone clearing their throat.
'Oh right! We forgot that there was someone else here!' She felt embarrassed that she had just let some stranger witness her very first kiss.
But her worries were not required because when Reuben had turned her around earlier, he made sure to cover her entire body.
So what the other person could see was the broad back of a tall man and the lower portion of a dark grey flowing gown.
"How long do you plan on hiding your faces from us!?" The woman's sneering voice was heard when no one responded to the man's attempt of clearing his throat.
Reuben kept Lina hidden behind him as he turned around to see who exactly had dared to interrupt him not once but twice in such a short span of time.
Seeing the half balding man standing beside a young woman wearing an extremely fitted gown with her well-endowed bosoms almost spilling out, Reuben scoffed and smiled at the man.
The middle-aged man's annoyance at being disturbed turned to fear when he saw the man whose smile was often described as the 'Demon's smile'.
"M-master Reuben!" He stuttered as he moved towards this big shot.
Lina secretly peeped her head out from behind Reuben's body and watched how the seemingly mismatched couple made their way from the smoking area towards where she and Reuben stood.
'Good thing Ruby dragged me here or else I would have seen that guy getting some right there!' She cringed inwardly.
When the man noticed Lina's face peeking out, his eyes automatically drifted towards her and gleamed when he saw how ravishing she looked.
The kiss from earlier had made her lips slightly swollen and her cheeks were stained red which made her appear even more breathtaking than usual.
Reuben's eyes darkened when he saw the lecherous eyes which he had directed towards his Kitten.
He glared at the man and raised his brows when the man did not respond to his glare because he was busy staring at Lina.
So he took a step to the side and once again Lina was hidden behind his back.
This time she did not try to pop her head out because she felt disgusted by the way this man had been gawking at her.
The man clicked his tongue when his eye candy was taken away but froze when he saw the vicious look in Reuben's eyes.
"Hehe… I'm shocked to see Master Reuben in this place." He sheepishly chuckled and glanced at the balcony where he stood with Lina.
Reuben was not pleased when he saw the man trying to catch glimpses of Lina and the woman beside him was even more pissed.
"Darling… Who are they? They disturbed us and you won't even punish them for it?" The woman whined as she stuck close to his body.
Feeling her breasts pressed against his body, the man finally diverted his attention to his partner and gave her a lascivious smile.
"So Mr. Long wants to punish me?" Reuben sneered when finally remembered where he had seen this man before.
Lina snickered from behind when she heard his sarcastic words but covered her mouth when she saw Reuben turn around to give her a quick glare.
The woman who was Mr. Long's partner felt humiliated when she heard Lina's chuckle and she clenched her fists.
But before she could say anything, Reuben's mocking words sounded in their ears.
"I did not know that Mr. Long had divorced your wife and remarried this lady here?" He asked with a sweet smile as he glanced at the woman stuck to him and back at the now sweating man.
"No no… You have mistaken me!" Mr. Long pushed the woman aside and wiped his drenched forehead.
Lina's brows furrowed when she heard those words and her face contorted in disgust when she connected the dots.
"You're cheating on your wife!" She stepped away from Reuben's back and glared at the man.
She did not know who this man was nor did she know his wife but all the novels she read had one thing in common.
A cheating husband who crushed his wife's heart just for a few moments of pleasure outside.
Destroying a family with children just because he had gotten tired of seeing the same old face at home.
Before Mr. Long could react to the accusation on him, Lina focused her blazing eyes on the woman who had been pushed away from him.
'I don't like putting other women down but a woman who intimately mingles with a married man can never deserve my respect!' She scowled at that woman who stepped away when she saw Lina's fierce eyes.
Reuben also flinched the moment he felt the intense anger radiating out of her body.
'Remind me never to cheat on her!' He thought even though they weren't in that kind of a relationship yet.
Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her close to hug her and ran his fingers through her hair.
The soothing feeling of being in his arms reduced the heartache she felt a few moments ago.
'His wife must be alone at home waiting for him and here he is fooling around with another woman, scumbag!' She once again glared at the man.
"Kitten, stop wasting your energy on someone who's not worth it. If he had an ounce of shame then he would have left already but apparently, he doesn't." He looked up and noticed how a vicious glint flashed through Mr. Long's eyes.
'I'll deal with you later.' He decided and then tapped Lina's shoulder.
"So why don't we just leave?" He lowered his head and looked into her eyes.
Lina glimpsed at the cheating couple one last time before nodding her head.
'I don't want to make my mood plummet by thinking about them.' She scoffed and then walked beside Reuben as he escorted her back to the banquet hall.