Chapter 4
Edward Quan ·
At that thought, I laughed aloud.
For several days, we slept in separate rooms.
My mind was a mess.
There was only one thing I could think about:
Now that we were officially together, should I refund some of his rent?
Sigh!
Beauty clouded judgment. Beauty cost money.
Just then, someone knocked on my door.
I immediately scrambled up to answer it.
The man outside wore pajamas.
“Can we sleep together?”
Me: “…”
I didn’t even manage the words “We can.”
My lips had barely moved before he came inside himself.
Closing the door, he wrapped both hands around my waist and lifted.
Just like that, I was in his arms.
I gave a startled cry, held securely against him.
“You’re too thin,” he said.
Such a small waist.
His hand could wrap right around it.
But it was so soft.
His words embarrassed me.
Once we fell onto the bed, Jing Song wasted no time getting straight to the point.
Fierce and powerful, utterly overwhelming.
By the time he gathered me into his arms, dawn was near.
Drifting toward sleep, I pleaded in a tearful voice:
“No more…”
“Mm.”
He kissed my shoulder.
His broad chest pressed against my back, his arm across my waist, enclosing me in his embrace.
My leg rested over his calf.
Jing Song loved this feeling.
The person in his arms seemed so small.
He loved it.
When I mentioned the rent, he went silent for a while.
Then he gave me all his bank cards.
“If you don’t mind, you can keep all my cards from now on. Use the money however you like. I’ll put it in writing. It’s all yours.”
I hurriedly waved my hands.
“No, that isn’t what I meant.”
He immediately pulled me onto his lap.
“But it’s what I mean. My mother manages all the money in our family.”
I looked at him and leaned closer.
“We’re only dating. There’s no need.”
He shook his head.
“Even if we’re dating, you’re mine.”
Me: “…”
My face rose to the occasion and promptly turned red.
“Then… Then you’re mine too.”
“Mm.”
His deep gaze stayed fixed on me.
When he bent to kiss me, I hugged him too.
We’d barely fallen onto the sofa, our clothes still disheveled, when his ears twitched.
His gaze sharpened instantly.
He lifted me.
While I was still staring blankly, he straightened my clothes.
At that exact moment, my front door opened.
“That silly girl never comes home to stay. Living alone, doesn’t she get scared?”
“Mom, Tianxu isn’t a child anymore. She needs her own space.”
I snapped fully awake.
“Mom and my sister-in-law!”
Jing Song stood.
The two women walked straight in.
Finding a young man in the apartment nearly startled them out of their skins.
I hurriedly slipped on my shoes and stood.
“Mom! Why are you two here?”
My hair was a mess.
Jing Song’s neckline hung open.
Both our mouths were red.
The two women fell silent.
In my bedroom, my mother poked my forehead.
“Have you lost your mind? Dating your roommate? Renting a room to a man in the first place? I ought to beat you!”
I ducked my head.
“He… He pays rent.”
Her voice rose.
“Of course he pays rent! What else would he do?”
Aggrieved, I said:
“He’s handsome. And he has a great body.”
Mom: “…”
She really couldn’t argue with that.
She was about to say more when someone knocked. My sister-in-law stepped out this time, and Mom went to the living room.
“He isn’t a con man. I’m not a child either. Even if I’m fooled, I have to take responsibility for my own actions. Am I supposed to go my whole life without dating?”
My sister-in-law linked her arm through mine and sat down.
“I know. Song seems nice. Mom’s just worried about you.”
I laughed.
“It’s just…”
A little awkwardly, she asked:
“How long have you two been together? Why didn’t we know anything? He even says he wants to marry you, whenever you agree.”
Embarrassed, I said:
“We’ve been official less than a month.”
She frowned.
“Then there’s no rush. Take a good look at the man before marrying him.”
I nodded.
Yet before long, Mom was happily cooking for us, calling him “Song” so affectionately you’d think he was her own son.
I glanced at Jing Song.
He looked at me reassuringly.
That said, although my sister-in-law thought marriage could wait, somehow our mothers quietly arranged to meet.
I met his mother once too.
She was an impressively commanding career woman. She gave me a red envelope and a black bank card, happily declaring that she no longer had to arrange blind dates to find her son a wife.
I secretly glanced at Jing Song.
He raised an eyebrow, his hand supporting my lower back, and explained quietly:
“Why do you think I ran away?”
His family had a rule: after twenty, you should quickly find a suitable partner and settle down.
As for the wedding date, our mothers discussed all that behind the scenes.
There was already a new home.
Villas, apartments in the city center. We could live wherever we liked. After marriage, they could even transfer the property into my name.
Mom declined.
She said we could discuss that after we had children.
After all, women were still the ones more likely to lose out in marriage.
If this Song really was a good man, we should live happily together.
But if he wasn’t, whose name was on the house wouldn’t solve anything. Better to part early, neither taking advantage of the other, and avoid getting tangled in disputes over property.
Even so, the Jings bought a separate home for me.
His family had their views. Mine had theirs.
Anyway, Mom was pleased with their attitude and didn’t deliberately stand in our way. She even bought us a car.
After all, this involved two families. Both sides should show some sincerity.
That night, reading my sister-in-law’s message, I unexpectedly felt my eyes sting.
Why did it feel as though I’d only just started dating, yet was already about to marry?
Suddenly, marriage frightened me a little.
Jing Song got into bed and hugged me.
“I’m back at work now. Are you bored at home alone? How about being my assistant?”
After thinking, I said seriously:
“No. What would people think of us? Close the office door, and wouldn’t everyone assume we were having an office romance?”
He pictured it. His voice grew husky.
“Assistant Fu. Secretary Fu.”
Tilting my head, I laughed.
“What’s wrong with you? Pervert.”
I took off his pajama top, tracing my fingers along the firm muscles of his chest. Then I raised my head and kissed it lightly.
“Hubby. Hehe.”
I’d barely given that silly little laugh before he pinned me beneath him.
12
The next day, my throat was hoarse.
I’d spent all night calling him “hubby.”
The day Jing Song successfully proposed, Shen Fanyu cried uncontrollably.
“Baby, you have to be happy.”
Held in Jing Song’s arms, I felt him look down at me tenderly as he answered:
“Of course.”
Extra
When I saw a pair of round, soft-furred ears sprout from Jing Song’s head, he had me pinned on the bed.
Honestly, I wasn’t terribly frightened.
I even reached out and touched one.
He gave a low growl. A fierce light flashed through his clear amber eyes.
“Are you scared?”
I answered haltingly:
“What… What do you think?”
“You’re not.”
Lowering his head, he gently kissed my face to soothe me.
“This isn’t my normal state. I’m just too excited.”
I could have cried.
So the “big cat” he’d mentioned really was a great big tiger.
At the time, I’d thought he was just talking cheesy nonsense. I’d even found the contrast rather fun.
Who could have guessed…
He meant it!