Chapter 9

By the time I reached the office, more than ten minutes had passed.

I’d barely arrived when Lin Yao rushed out, her eyes red, brushing straight past me.

Huh?

This wasn’t quite the scene I’d imagined.

Weren’t they supposed to be sipping wine by candlelight, discussing life and dreams?

Suspicious, I pushed open the office door.

The man sitting straight-backed at the desk abruptly darkened his expression. Authority radiated from him, the kind that came from years at the top. His icy voice sent a chill down my spine.

“Miss Lin Yao, I’ll say this one last time. For your sister’s sake, I’m letting today’s incident pass.”

“If it happens again, I will not spare anyone who tries to betray her.”

Ah.

He thought Lin Yao had come back.

With me, Shen Jibai was always quiet and gentle.

I rarely saw him this forceful, his jaw sharply defined, his whole bearing warning strangers to keep their distance.

The coldest voice, saying the sweetest things.

Adorable.

That was my husband, all right.

I shut the door and launched myself into his arms.

Apparently, he hadn’t expected “Lin Yao” to become so brazen. Anger flooded his face, and he tried to pull me away.

“Honey…”

At that single word, his body stiffened. He froze.

“Honey, what am I going to do? I think I like you a little more today.”

I buried my face against his chest and nuzzled him again and again.

His arms came around me naturally, holding me close.

After a long while, he asked in a low, husky voice, “Why only a little?”

“A man shouldn’t be too greedy,” I chided.

He laughed softly and slid his fingers into my hair. “All right, my wife. Whatever you say.”

Somehow, when he called me his wife, the words sounded especially tender and intimate.

I blushed and, coward that I was, changed the subject.

“Honey, I saw Lin Yao when I got here. What was she doing?”

At the mention of her, his face briefly clouded.

Cool fingertips touched my cheek, slowly tracing its contours as he spoke gently. “She tried to pretend she was you and seduce me. But she did such a poor job that I saw through it immediately.”

“Really? Honey, you’re that clever? How did you know she wasn’t me?”

Now I was genuinely curious, and couldn’t help coaxing him.

“Because…”

His fingers reached my chin and tipped it up, making me look at him.

“My wife would never be that gentle with me.”

Before I could react, his shadow fell over me. Warmth pressed against my lips, our breaths mingled, and my mind went blank.

I had only one thought.

He… was kissing me.