’I wonder if he even uses condoms when he fools around. I hope he hasn’t caught anything...’

Shen Chen’s expression turned grim, but thankfully the private room was already dim, so Xu Su didn’t notice a thing.

Outside the hotel, Little Li the driver was already holding the rear car door open. Zhou Mochen led Xu Su into the car, and noticing her serious expression, he couldn’t help but ask about it.

Xu Su furrowed her brow and voiced her concern.

Instantly, Zhou Mochen’s expression darkened too. He squeezed her hand, which was resting in his, and snapped irritably, "Stop worrying about other men. What kind of nonsense goes through that head of yours all day?"

Xu Su pouted. "I was just curious, I wasn’t actually concerned. Besides, Shen Chen has been pretty nice to me, so it would be normal to worry about him a little, right?"

"He’s not reckless," Zhou Mochen explained with a sigh of resignation. "Shen Chen isn’t as desperate as you think, sleeping with just anyone."

Thinking of Fei Qiao, Xu Su nodded thoughtfully...

’Right. Shen Chen would probably go for sweet young things. If nothing else, at least they’d be clean.’

...

It was almost ten by the time they got home. Xu Su removed her makeup, washed her face, and took a long, relaxing bath before finally emerging from the bathroom. Just as she was starting her skincare routine, Zhou Mochen came in with a glass of milk.

Gazing quietly at the girl sitting at her vanity, Zhou Mochen smiled slightly and said, "Susu, what if I moved back in?"

The hand applying her eye cream paused. Xu Su turned her head, suddenly recalling what Xi Zirong had said: ’It’s really unbearable...’

’Xi Zirong was only nineteen, and he was already saying things like that...’

’And Zhou Mochen was already twenty-four, a perfectly normal man, physically and psychologically. The woman he loved was right in front of him, yet she loved to tease him, constantly arousing his desire for a whole year without ever letting him cross the line...’

For once, Xu Su took a moment to reflect on her own actions. ’It seems I really have been awful to him.’

After this pang of conscience, Xu Su finished patting and dabbing her face, took the glass of milk from him, and sipped it before turning to look at him again.

Hmm...

He must have just showered; he still carried a hint of dampness. A few strands of his bangs fell across his brow, and his eyes, full of unconcealed tenderness, were focused intently on her.

Looking like this, Zhou Mochen could almost be described as docile at a glance, giving off the illusion that he was hers for the taking. Where was the intimidating aura he usually carried?

’In short, he was handsome from every possible angle...’

A glint appeared in Xu Su’s eyes, and she felt a stir of temptation. Overcome by his good looks, she pulled Zhou Mochen down onto the sofa in her room.

She threw her arms around his neck, straddled his lap, and nuzzled against the crook of his neck. "Let me ask you a question."

Zhou Mochen grunted in acknowledgment, his hand settling on her waist as a thin sheen of sweat broke out on his forehead. "Go ahead."

"..." Feeling the stirring beneath her, Xu Su fell silent for a moment. ’It seems there’s no need to ask after all.’

’I only just sat on his lap, and he’s already...’

Zhou Mochen prompted her, "What did you want to ask?"

"Well..." Xu Su blinked. "Zhou Mochen, has it been really hard for you to hold back? I thought about it carefully, and I feel like I really have been a little cruel."

"Just a little?" Zhou Mochen looked down at her, his tone level. "Just remember what you said. As long as you don’t mind if I end up broken."

’His tone wasn’t accusatory, but it still made one feel terribly guilty.’

"..." Xu Su fell silent again, the corner of her lip twitching. Half amused, half exasperated, her hand slid downward. "You’re not broken yet, are you? So... how about we finally do what we’re supposed to do tonight?"

"Are you sure?" His gaze turned terrifyingly intense in an instant. He sat up straight and repeated slowly, "Are you sure?"

Xu Su’s answer was to give a gentle squeeze with her hand and lift her head to kiss the corner of his mouth...

’There’s no shame in admitting you’re a little horny...’

’She’d wanted to sleep with him for half a year now, but he was the one who insisted on being so proper.’

’If they’d just gotten down to the great, harmonious business of life earlier and he’d satisfied her, body and soul, would she still be causing a scene every day?’

’Isn’t this just what couples do?’

But thinking about his actions earlier tonight, Xu Su’s lingering anger flared up again. ’How dare he humiliate me like that!’

’Sleeping with him right now felt like she was letting him off way too easy!’

’But she... really wanted to sleep with him, too.’

After a two-second hesitation, Xu Su pried his hand from the back of her head, glared at him huffily, and went right back to her antics. "I almost forgot, I’m still mad at you!"

"..." The lust in Zhou Mochen’s eyes had yet to fade, his lips were red and swollen from their passionate kiss, and he had already unbuttoned half of his pajama top. He was just about to pull her onto the bed with him when he heard what she said.

His temples throbbed. He thought she was just finding another way to torture him. His body went rigid for a few seconds, and he was on the verge of forcing himself on her, consequences be damned.

’To hell with it, just take her and sort it out later...’

It took a long moment for him to suppress the dark thoughts rising within him. He covered his eyes with his hand and fell back against the sofa as if all the air had gone out of him. "Xu Su, I’m serious. If you pull this a couple more times, I’m really going to get sick from holding back."

Xu Su blinked. Seeing him like this, her heart ached for him a little, and she leaned in, wanting to kiss him.

The next second, he grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her away. "Stay away from me. Unless you want me to become a rapist."

"..." Xu Su was speechless. Her gaze drifted downward, and she stared for a long time.

She raised a quizzical eyebrow. "How come it still hasn’t gone down?"

Zhou Mochen lowered his hand and met her gaze. "I’m giving you one minute to get away from me. If you’re still on my lap after that, I’ll assume you’re ready to go through with this."

His eyes were as black as ink, dark and unreadable.

His stare gave Xu Su goosebumps; she found it inexplicably terrifying.

When he had acted that way in the private room earlier, Xu Su had only felt wronged and furious; she hadn’t been afraid of him.

But now...

Besides being a little scared, Xu Su also found him especially alluring in this state.

’Just think about it: a man who seems so unattainable, whose emotions are in turmoil because of you, who lets you have your way with him, who lets you act out and cause trouble, who tolerates you endlessly.’

Just looking at him made Xu Su’s legs feel a little weak. How could she possibly bear to move away from him?

They locked eyes for a long moment before Xu Su was the first to give in, leaning forward to kiss him. "So, um... whatever you want to do, I’ll go along with it, okay?"

*Whatever you want to do, I’ll go along with it, okay...*

No man could possibly hold back after hearing that!

With bloodshot eyes, Zhou Mochen breathed, "Okay." He lowered his head to cover her lips with his own, not forgetting to murmur a reassurance, "Don’t be afraid. I couldn’t bear to be rough with you."

......

They kissed their way from the sofa to the bed, leaving a trail of clothes on the floor. Xu Su wrapped her legs around Zhou Mochen’s waist and buried her head in his chest.

Their breathing grew ragged.

Zhou Mochen held her by the shoulders as he reached over and pulled open the nightstand drawer. Xu Su watched, wide-eyed, as he took out a box of condoms...

She stared at him and accused in a hoarse voice, "When did you put these here?" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

’He was so well-prepared...’

Zhou Mochen just smiled, not answering her. He casually tore open the wrapper. A drop of sweat fell from the tip of his nose, landing right on Xu Su’s lips. She couldn’t help but lick it away. She was about to say something else, but in the next second, her words were smothered by a searing kiss.

She could vaguely make out the veins bulging on his neck, and an inexplicable feeling of unease washed over her...