Evan leans against on the couch, feeling tired and drunk. He loosens the collar on his shirt and undoes the top buttons, revealing his strong, tan chest. He gazes at Avery like a panther targeting its prey. They stare each other down for a moment, but Avery talks first.

"I gave her the dress," she said simply.

She can't tell him the reason she gave Janetta the dress: Evan would be furious to hear about Charles' ring.

"Did you hear me?" she asks.

Evan's eyes are dark as he responds, "I know."

"Then why did you slap her?" Avery asks in confusion, "Why couldn't you allow her to wear the dress. If it was so important you should be mad at me, not her."

"I couldn't bear that," Evan whispers, almost to himself.

Avery wonders if the frantic beat of her heart is audible. For a brief second, she sees something in her eyes that makes her throat feel thick with emotion.

"Is this how he looks at Diana?" she wonders, "I wonder if he's lied so much about our relationship, he's started to believe his own story."

Avery takes a deep breath and calms down.

"It's only a dress," she says, "Why are you so upset?"

"Only a dress?" Evan sneers.

Evan's smile turns colder and spookier.

"Of course, Avery sees it as nothing more than a dress," he thinks bitterly, "She doesn't have a single tender feeling for me. I tried to tell her that I don't want to lose her, that I can't bear the divorce, but she shot me down. She even gave the dress to her hated half-sister."

It feels like she's stuck a dagger in his heart, and he wonders if she'll ever stop twisting it and tormenting him. A maid enters the dressing room with a bottle, and an ice bucket, and a glass filled with cold whiskey stones. Evan takes the whiskey and pours a generous amount into the class. The dim light of the room reflects the ice in the bucket and mirrors the steely glint in Evan's eyes.

Avery bites her lower lip and straightens her back. She doesn't want to show weakness to Evan, but she knows she can't allow Janetta to remain naked.

"Didn't you give me that dress?" she asks, "I can't dispose of a gift as I like? I don't understand."

"No, you can't," he growls, "You can take it or reject it, but you can't give it to someone else."

Avery wants to roll her eyes.

"Evan is so full of himself," she thinks, "He's telling me that I can only accept or reject his gifts like they're too precious for anyone else to touch. Though, honestly, I doubt he'd accept a rejection."

Avery glares at him, "You're unbelievable."

"I'm always like this," Evan says with an edge of irony, "Hadn't you noticed?"

Avery really wants to slam the door and leave him to his drunken stupor, but Janetta's sobbing seems to come through the door. She bites her lip and clenches her fist.

"I'm sorry for giving your gift away," she says, "How about I make it up to you? What do you want?"

"Make it up to me how?" Evan asks.

"However you say," Avery answers.

Avery stares coldly at Evan coldly. She expects him to ask her to grovel or else indulge his seemingly boundless desire. Evan drains the glass of whiskey and pours another. The whiskey stones clink coldly against the crystal.

Suddenly Evan gets up and approaches her. His tall figure seems to block the light and cast a shadow on Avery. In the dimness of the room, his face looks marble and cold. He places his band against the door over her head and bends down to her face. Avery closes her eyes and braces herself for what's going to happen next.

"I want a gift," he breathes against her ear.

The smell of alcohol on his breath makes her want to gag. She racked her brain trying to figure out what he could possibly want from her. She feels her blood run cold with a realization: the only thing he wants from her is a child.

"What kind of a gift?" she asks, trying to keep her voice calm, "A child?"

Evan forces a bitter smile. His voice sounds deep and slightly slurred, "I want a gift from you on March 27th, your birthday."

"My birthday? You want a present from me on my birthday?" Avery asks incredulously, "Shouldn't you be giving me the gift on my birthday?"

Even as she's speaking, she's fighting the urge to smile. She can't believe he actually remembers her birthday. She wonders if he's joking, but his expression seems quite serious.

"So all you want is for me to give you a present on my birthday?" she asks, "If I agree to do that, you'll let Janetta get dressed?"

"Even by Evan's standards, this is an odd demand," Avery thinks, "He can buy himself anything he wants."

"Yes," Evan nods curtly.

His birthday is November 7th, and he's afraid that he can't wait that long to ask her for a gift.

"What kind of gift?" Avery asks confusedly.

"Something that you made," he replies.

"Something I made?" Avery doesn't understand, "You'd like something I made?"

"Anything you make is unique," Evan whispers.

For a moment Avery doesn't know what to say. She feels a lump starting to form in her throat.

"What do you say?" he asks, "Do we have a deal?"

Beneath the seemingly indifferent tone, there's a great deal of emotion and anticipation, but Avery doesn't detect it.

She nods weakly, "Okay."

"Are you sure?" Evan asks.

"Yes," she says more firmly.

Evan smiles, and the gloom and anger vanish from his face. Avery thinks his expression looks like a melting glacier.

He places amorous kisses on her ears, neck, and face and holds her tightly. The smell of alcohol on his breath makes her frown. She can't understand Evan's mood—he suddenly seems like a boy on Christmas morning.

"Why is he suddenly so happy?" she wonders, "Is it on account of the agreement or does he genuinely wanted me to make him something? I wish I could read his mind and understand why he's alternately so happy, gloomy, and possessive. I just want to know why he's treating me so differently all of a sudden—what are his true intentions?"

"It doesn't matter," Avery thinks, shaking her head, "The priority is to save Janetta from this public humiliation, and I've managed to do that at least."

Evan holds her in his hot arms. He's holding her as if he wants to pull her body into his, dissolving the barriers between them.

The pungent smell of alcohol disgusts Avery. She fans her face with hands and tries to squirm away from him. The glass in Evan's hand wobbles and some whiskey sloshes over the side, splashing her skin and drenching her collar. Evan kisses her once on the lips and then begins to kiss down her neck, licking the spilled whiskey from her skin. Avery grabs his head and pulls it away from her neck.

"I've given you what you want," she says, "Shouldn't you go fulfill your promise?"

"Sure," he says, his voice sexy and deep with intoxication.

Avery feels dizzy just listening to and smelling him. Desire flares in his bloodshot eyes and he lifts Avery's leg and holds it at his waist. Avery presses her palms against his chest.

"Please, give the orders that allow Janetta to wear clothes," she says.

Evan calls Robert and gives his permission. Knowing she's accomplished what she set out to do, she stops resisting him. She lets his hot breath brush her skin. She knows that nothing and no one can stop Evan's desire to have and possess her.