Chapter 3
Edward Quan ·
9
After soothing me, Gu Sui had a basket of fruit brought in.
He picked two pieces himself and handed them to me.
“These are very sweet. I brought them back especially for you.”
I took them and looked for a while.
Then I smiled up at him.
“If I remember correctly, these only grow in the north. How did they end up on the southern coast?”
His expression shifted slightly.
Then his gentle smile returned.
“The tiger tribe brought them to trade for salt.”
I didn't question him.
My gaze happened to settle on his ear.
At its tip was a faint red mark.
Not a scratch.
Lipstick.
I smiled and spoke slowly.
“Have you finished questioning Xu Qin?”
“She comes from the same world as me. Don't be too harsh. I'm sure there's nothing wrong with her. Let her go before you frighten the poor girl.”
“Bring her over for a meal sometime.”
His expression stiffened.
But his answer was soft.
“All right. I'll have someone tell her.”
He really was behaving strangely today.
He rarely returned in the afternoon.
Besides, he and Xu Qin should still have been on their honeymoon.
Why had he suddenly come back?
10
Xu Qin didn't decline the invitation.
I knew before Gu Sui even had a chance to tell me.
Shen Wang really did know everything.
After bringing me the news, he turned half man, half snake again.
His cool, smooth tail wound around my waist, coil after coil.
The tip kept fidgeting.
Quietly, I caught it.
He laughed softly and bent close.
Cool breath brushed my face.
“What else would you like to know?”
I looked up.
“Anything?”
“Of course...”
“But there's a price.”
He always carried that air of dangerous allure.
But I wasn't afraid.
Exploring was what I liked best.
I looped my arms behind his neck, pulled him down, and quickly nipped his lip.
“I want to see for myself...”
“How Gu Sui asks you about what's happened these past few days.”
I'd broken his lip a little.
His expression didn't change.
He wouldn't let me pull away.
His tail tightened, and he continued the kiss.
He kissed me until my head spun.
When I recovered, he'd taken me onto the roof.
He'd even thoughtfully made a little gap for me to watch through.
I looked down.
Shen Wang appeared inside the room.
Soon, footsteps sounded outside.
Gu Sui came in.
11
From up here, I could hear their entire conversation clearly.
Gu Sui had no idea I was there.
He went straight to the point.
“Yesterday...”
“You didn't go to see Ruoli?”
“No.”
“I knew you were coming back, so I stayed away.”
“These past few days...”
“You've worked hard.”
Worked hard?
I was the one doing all the hard work!
I complained silently.
Then I noticed Shen Wang glance toward me.
Seeing me curl in on myself, he gave the faintest smile.
As restrained as the man himself.
Gu Sui still wasn't reassured.
“She...”
“Didn't notice anything unusual?”
Shen Wang lied without blinking.
“No.”
I had to admire him.
How could he lie so calmly?
Suddenly, Gu Sui's gaze stopped.
“Your lip...”
“What happened?”
“Caught it on something while hunting.”
Gu Sui didn't question it.
But I saw his thumb ring turn unconsciously beneath his fingers.
Not long after Shen Wang brought me back, Gu Sui opened my door.
His face was calm.
He embraced me as soon as he entered, his gaze moving slowly over every inch of exposed skin.
He wanted to see whether Shen Wang's mate mark was on me.
Fortunately, Shen Wang had prepared for that.
Smiling, I moved closer and deliberately leaned toward Gu Sui's neck.
From outside, it would look as though I was kissing him.
I gave him a sultry glance.
“It's still early...”
“We shouldn't.”
“We're bonded,” he answered gently.
“Any time is fine.”
His fingers slowly undid my buttons.
I wasn't afraid at all.
To anyone watching, we looked deeply intimate.
A beastkin's vulnerable spot was almost always the neck.
Only a loved one was allowed to touch it.
I glanced beyond the window and saw Xu Qin with red-rimmed eyes.
My lips curved slightly.
I brushed a fingertip over Gu Sui's Adam's apple and listened as his breathing grew heavier.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Xu Qin run away in distress.
Only then did I put both hands against his chest to push him back.
A sudden whistling sound cut through the air.
The next instant, Gu Sui began to fall.
Just before he collapsed into my arms, a pair of cool, pale hands caught him.
12
I looked up unhurriedly.
As expected, it was Shen Wang.
His face was dark.
Without ceremony, he flung Gu Sui onto the bed.
Thud!
Then he slowly looked at me.
Danger gleamed in his slit pupils.
I immediately put on a wounded expression and threw myself into his arms to complain.
“What took you so long?”
“Don't you care about me anymore?”
“I knew it...”
“You were on Gu Sui's side from the start.”
His face stiffened.
The dangerous air vanished at once.
He gently patted my back.
“I'm here.”
“I won't let him bully you again.”
He changed to his half-beast form.
Right in front of the unconscious Gu Sui, his tail coiled around me, holding me still.
Then he bent to kiss me.
“You smell of him.”
“I don't like it.”
“I'll erase his scent...”
“A little at a time.”
Realizing his intention, I flushed.
“Gu Sui's still here!”
“He won't wake.”
“What if he does? How will we explain?”
“We can.”
Then he kissed me again.
My head was starved of air.
I had no strength left to think.
In the end, I could only wrap my arms around his neck and forget everything else.
This kiss was especially fierce.
Perhaps because Gu Sui was lying right beside us.
Only afterward did Shen Wang explain.
On their honeymoon, Gu Sui and Xu Qin had been affected by a love poison.
They'd spent the past few days tangled up with each other.
So Gu Sui wouldn't suspect anything.
He'd simply think the poison hadn't fully cleared.
When he woke, he rubbed his forehead.
Then he saw me and froze.
“Why did I pass out?”
I touched the marks on my neck and blushed.
“Just now...”
“You suddenly wouldn't listen.”
“You pushed me onto the bed...”
The rest went without saying.
Gu Sui's face went white.
Then he quickly collected himself and tenderly stroked the suggestive marks on my body.
“I'm sorry. I was too rough.”
“I'll be gentler next time.”
I waved it off.
Never mind.
I liked it that way.
Pity the man who'd done it wasn't you.