Lily turned her head to look at Zhuo Jingren only to realize that their faces were a mere inch apart. Lily swallowed hard. She couldn’t see any pores on this man’s flawless skin ah. “Are you done drinking?” she immediately asked, almost blushing. She couldn’t let her thoughts run wild, not when they are still in public at least.
Zhuo Jingren gestured for her to look at Fernando who was already knocked out. “I won the bet,” he said cooly, his gaze lingered on Lily’s side profile.
“What bet?” she asked curiously.
“The last man standing wins,” he said with an obvious triumph in his voice.
“What is the prize for the winner?” she asked, smiling at him. Actually, Fernando’s alcohol tolerance was not really that high so it was only surprising that he lost the drinking contest. Lily wondered if Fernando thought he could win Zhuo Jingren when he challenged him in the first place.
“Do you know what the bet was? If I win, I get to kiss you tonight,” he answered cheekily. “If I lose, I cannot kiss you for a month.”
“Hmmm… so you made a bet on me without my knowledge?” Lily chuckled. “What if I don’t agree?”
“Agree to what? Not kissing you for a month?”
“HA-HA…” She gave him a fake laugh before she clarified, “What if I don’t agree to let you kiss me tonight?”
“Then, I can only blame my bad luck,” Zhuo Jingren answered before he checked his wristwatch. It was already three in the morning. “It’s pretty late and I think we both had too many drinks… I think it’s time to go home, no?”
Lily nodded in agreement. It was indeed very late. It was a good thing that Secretary Go was still here to drive them home.
‘Home’ Lily let out a smile. She seemed to like the sound of that word.
……
At Lily’s apartment.
“I think you should give Secretary Go a raise,” Lily suggested as she wiped off the make-up from her face. It was already four in the morning when they arrived home. Before they left the club, Secretary Go, who was the only one sober person had made sure that Lily’s intoxicated friends had all safely boarded a cab home. That kind of secretary was simply one of a kind – so responsible and diligent.
“Hmmm… as you wish.” She heard him say as she eyed him in the mirror. The man was about to take off his shirt.
Lily immediately raised an eyebrow when he started unbuttoning his shirt slowly. Her eyes unconsciously traveled downward before she froze and blinked several times. Was she being shameless again? With a straight face, Lily decided not to peek anymore and continue wiping her make-up off her face.
“Why are you so red?” Lily almost jumped to her feet when she heard Zhuo Jingren’s voice next to her ear. ‘Is this man a ninja?’ she wondered She did not notice the man approaching her at all. It seemed as though she had become so absent-minded lately.
“I drank a lot of alcohol that’s why,” she answered. That must be the reason why her face was red and why she was also absent-minded.
“Hmmm… right.” Zhuo Jingren answered suspiciously while giving her a smirk. Lily was quick to notice that he was now only wearing sweatpants without any t-shirt on. A towel was also thrown on his shoulders.
“Where did you get those clothes? You brought clothes with you?”
“Of course,” he said before stifling a yawn. “I’ll go and brush my teeth now.” Then he walked towards Lily’s bathroom with his toiletries in hand.
Only after seeing Zhuo Jingren enter the bathroom was Lily able to release the breath that she was holding. She furrowed her brows and looked at her reflection in the mirror. Having another person inside her room was extremely awkward for Lily. What made it more awkward was the fact that she was with… her husband.
Husband!
What was she supposed to do? Suddenly, Fernando’s question popped in her mind: Do you like him?
Lily didn’t know when it started, but she had taken a liking towards Zhuo Jingren. He treated her so well and made her very happy. But Lily found it difficult to express her feelings to him. Was it because she had been so guarded all these while that she found it difficult to just lay her emotions out in the open?
Lily closed her eyes, and slowly massaged her temples; a habit that she had developed when contemplating about things. Ever since what happened to her seven years ago, she had been guarded and cautious towards people. When her maternal grandmother brought her to London and taught her the ropes in business, she quickly realized that people could be really ugly. Entering into business had opened her eyes to the depravity of man, where betrayals could happen when you least expect it, when people would prioritize profits over everything else. Over time, she had built a very high and thick wall around her heart. Her personal mantra was: To hide your emotions is already half the battle won against your enemies.
Lily had been comfortable being so cooped up inside her own fortress that she was finding it especially difficult to walk out, figuratively.
“Are you okay?” Lily felt a hand massaging her head. Without waiting for her response, Zhuo Jingren gently said, “Change your clothes first, then I will give your head a massage before you sleep.”
A small smile escaped Lily’s lips as she nodded. She then quickly changed into a comfortable set of pyjamas, finished her nightly routine before she lay beside Zhuo Jingren. Without a word, Zhuo Jingren started massaging her temples.
“Relax, I won’t do anything without your consent.” She heard him say. ” I have already waited for years, a few more months won’t change anything for me.”
…
Editor: Swaning
