“Lily, please stop being angry. She really means nothing to me now,” Jack said as he reached out to grab me. I was cornered against the wall with nowhere to escape. Just as I was about to use all my strength to push him away— My boss grabbed Jack’s arm and yanked him back forcefully, stepping in front of me protectively. His whole body radiated cold fury as he growled, “What do you think you’re doing to my wife?” I had liked Jack Thompson for a long time, throughout my entire youth. But he had also liked his goddess for just as long. I chased after him for five years, while he chased after his goddess for four years. It’s not that he stopped chasing her – she just went abroad. … His family lived right next door to mine. Since childhood, he was always the “perfect kid” my mom compared me to. When my mom scolded me for being useless and said I couldn’t compare to him in any way, I felt both envious and resentful towards Jack. I wished he had never existed in this world. But when he appeared downstairs in a white shirt, riding his bicycle and gently calling out, “Lily, it’s time to go to school,” my heart would beat uncontrollably. “Let’s break up.” After sending him this message on SnapChat, I deleted all his contact information. His goddess had returned from abroad. Yesterday he told me that it was my birthday tomorrow, and he would give me a surprise in the evening. It was the first time he had ever prepared a surprise for me. I spent all day getting ready, from morning till night. Full of joy and anticipation, I arrived early at the restaurant we had agreed on. I waited from 8 pm until midnight. I didn’t get to see him, but I did receive photos of him helping his goddess into a hotel room. To be honest, when I saw those photos, I laughed. But what I didn’t realize was that my laughter looked just like crying. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. Every time, he would gently stroke my head afterwards and tell me, “She was upset and needed someone. She’s fragile and needs company.” And every time, I would say, “It’s okay, don’t worry about it. Just comfort her, I’ll be fine on my own.” I carefully nurtured our relationship, afraid that even the slightest setback would sever the bond I had worked so hard to create. In this relationship, I had lowered myself to the extreme. But this time, I didn’t want to put up with it anymore. It was past midnight, and the dorm was closed. I didn’t want to go back there either. After letting my roommates know, I headed straight to a bar, planning to drink myself into oblivion and bury this fruitless love. In the end, I really did get drunk. I ended up hooking up with some hot guy for the night. The next morning. I opened my eyes to find a handsome face right in front of me. I stared blankly for two minutes before coming to my senses. Then I realized this handsome face belonged to my internship company’s boss!! After a quick check, I found myself completely naked….!! I covered my mouth, trembling. My brain felt oxygen-deprived and I couldn’t breathe. I can’t believe I dared to hook up with the boss!! People weren’t lying when they said alcohol and lust lead to trouble. So many people in the company wanted him but didn’t dare make a move, and I actually… ! Run! I need to run away! My mind went blank except for that one thought. I saw our clothes scattered messily on the floor. I planned to get out of bed, put on my clothes, and run. I carefully inched from the head of the bed to the foot, about to put my feet on the ground. Then I heard a deep voice from above me. “Where are you going?” At that moment, my mind crashed, going completely blank. But for some reason, a guilty feeling started bubbling up from deep inside. Because I had no idea what happened last night… I was afraid that I had taken advantage of my boss, since I had planned to get drunk and have a one-night stand… But this was my boss! The object of so many people’s fantasies! A lazy voice came from his lips, “Do you remember what happened last night?” I lifted my head slightly, too guilty to turn and look at him. From the corner of my eye, I saw him sit up against the headboard, broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, defined abs, clear muscle definition… To be honest, seeing his physique, I felt like I had hit the jackpot last night. But since I couldn’t remember anything that happened, I also felt like I had lost big time. My feelings were suddenly very complicated… “I… I don’t remember,” I said weakly. “But I won’t tell anyone about last night!” I turned my head to face him, my eyes determined. I was ready to swear an oath to prove my resolve. “What, you’re planning to avoid responsibility? Now you’re pretending not to remember?” His voice deepened as his dark eyes stared intently at me. “What? Take responsibility?!” I stared at him in shock, completely caught off guard by him saying I should take responsibility. “Last night you grabbed my hand and said you’d take responsibility, that’s why I came in.” He said matter-of-factly. I… “How should I take responsibility?” He calmly uttered two words: “Get married.” ?!! “What?” I couldn’t believe my ears. What kind of talk is this? It was just a one-night stand, but he wants me to give up my whole life for it? “Or I could let everyone at the company and your school know what you did.” He glanced at me sideways. “You, you, you can’t! Besides, then everyone would know you were forced into it. You’d lose face even more.” He listened to me finish, his eyes growing darker as he seemed to consider something. After a moment, he said slowly, “I don’t care.” …Well that’s quite the “I don’t care.” But I do care. I felt a bit wronged, but couldn’t say anything. “Is there any other way to resolve this?” He stared at me silently, his eyes deep and the atmosphere growing increasingly oppressive. I could only stammer out, “Then… when should we get married?” “Tomorrow morning at 9am.” My eyes darted around as I agreed with a “Okay.” “Don’t try any tricks. I have your ID card.” He leaned back comfortably against the headboard, twirling my ID card in his hand. “…I know, don’t worry.” I felt deflated as I sat at the foot of the bed, sighing. He seemed unable to bear seeing me so dejected and unwilling. Frowning, he stared at me and said, “Come here.” I didn’t want to go. But my body instinctively obeyed the boss’s order. By the time I came to my senses, I was already next to him. He reached out to pinch my face, pulling me closer as he said softly, “Be good.” His hot breath tickled my ear, making my heart race uncontrollably. Without realizing it, I replied, “Okay.” At the marriage registration office. I held the brand new marriage certificate in my hands, feeling a bit surreal. I never imagined I’d be getting married before even graduating college, let alone to my boss, and in such a whirlwind fashion. Lust really does make you lose your mind! Sitting in his car as we drove away, I still felt like this wasn’t real even after 10 miles. “Where to?” “Huh? Oh, back to school. I don’t have to go to work today, right boss? I should get marriage leave!” There had to be some perks to getting married. I carefully put the marriage certificate away in my bag. He glanced at me and snorted, “How ambitious.” Hearing him mock me, I immediately turned to glare at him. I stared so hard my eyes started to hurt, but he didn’t react at all, not even glancing in my direction. “We’re here. Stop staring, he’s all yours now. You can look all you want when we get home tonight,” he said teasingly. He pinched my cheek and turned my face towards the window, pointing outside to remind me. Oh, we’ve arrived at school. Apparently I had been staring at him for quite a while. Seeing his playful expression, I suddenly felt my face grow hot. But I still wanted to argue and defend myself. Then my brain suddenly registered what he said. ?? Go home? Who said I was going home with him tonight? I turned my head, about to question him, when I realized his face was extremely close to mine. I could see my own clear reflection in his pupils. “W-what are you doing?” “Why are you stuttering?” His hand was still pinching my cheek. He squeezed again, making my lips pucker up. He looked confused, but I could clearly see amusement in his eyes. Is he laughing at me?! I wasn’t stuttering, it’s just that he was too close and my mind flashed back to that wild, chaotic night. That night, he had been so passionate, almost unlike himself. Beads of sweat rolled down his chiseled jawline, our breaths intertwined, his grip on my waist inescapable no matter how I tried to get away… “What are you thinking about? Why is your face so red?” I felt my face grow even hotter. “N-nothing. Get away from me.” “Get away? Like this?” He said he’d move away, but he got even closer. So close that if I moved even slightly, my lips would touch his. I didn’t dare move an inch! I felt my face start to stiffen. His hand still gripping my cheek, he pulled me closer and pecked my lips. Seeing no reaction from me, he deepened the kiss. ! I felt my heart start to race. I could barely breathe. “Breathe,” he said huskily as he pulled away slightly. My head felt fuzzy. I let out a small gasp before gradually sinking into his expert kissing. When I got out of the car, my lips were swollen and red. My face was flushed and my eyes looked a bit dazed. Anyone could tell what had just happened. “Did you just get out of that Bentley? Look at yourself! Don’t degrade yourself like this!” As I got out of the car and walked towards the school gates, someone suddenly grabbed my arm forcefully and started berating me. Jack’s face was full of disappointment, anger, and gravity, as if I had betrayed him. “Do you even know how old he is? Did you enjoy it that much?” There were a lot of people coming and going at the school entrance. Hearing what Jack said, they all turned to look, as if I was some kept woman who had snagged a sugar daddy. Standing in the crowd, my swollen lips seemed like damning evidence. Feeling everyone’s judgmental stares, I felt awful and angry to the point of trembling. I never expected Jack would think of me this way, let alone humiliate me in public like this. I had liked him for five years, but now those five years felt like a joke. I couldn’t take it anymore. “Who are you to lecture me? When you were cuddling and being all lovey-dovey with someone else, did you ever consider how I felt?” He looked at me in disbelief, as if he hadn’t expected me to bring up his goddess. “She didn’t have anyone to take care of her. I was just looking after her.” Looking after… I let out a cold laugh. “Whatever. We’ve already broken up.” With that, I shook off his hand and tried to enter the school. I didn’t want to be gawked at like some circus animal anymore. But I had barely taken a step when he grabbed my arm again. “What do you mean we broke up?” “What break up? Have you not even looked at the message I sent you yesterday?” He took out his phone to check the messages. In that moment, my heart suddenly clenched painfully. Apparently being ignored hurts even more than not being loved. Even though I had told him we were breaking up, I still couldn’t help feeling upset. “You’re breaking up with me just because I took care of her? We’re just friends.” Some friend. Do friends need to be “taken care of” all night? Are friends more important than a girlfriend? I didn’t want to argue with him anymore. I tried to walk towards the school, but he kept holding onto my arm, insisting on clearing things up. A crowd had gathered around us. I felt on the verge of a breakdown. Why couldn’t he just let me go when I was trying to set him free? While he was still grabbing me, I caught a glimpse of my boss pushing through the crowd. I felt like the anger was making me hallucinate. The boss had already left, how could he be back? It wasn’t until he reached out to grip Jack’s shoulder, pulling him away from me and blocking Jack’s view of me, that I felt it was real. “Didn’t you leave?” I said softly from behind him. He didn’t respond, just turned his head slightly to look at me, his eyes reassuring. Suddenly, I felt at peace. Then he turned to face Jack, his aura imposing and expression severe. Jack was stunned, taking half a step back and opening his mouth wordlessly. My boss spoke slowly, but somehow authoritatively, “Stop harassing my…” ! Hearing him about to say “wife”, I quickly pinched him and glared at him from behind. He paused for a moment before continuing, “girlfriend. She has nothing to do with you anymore!” With that, he put an arm around me protectively and led me away through the crowd. After we had walked some distance, Jack seemed to get over his initial shock. He yelled angrily from behind us, “Who do you think you are?!” Hearing him shout, I wanted to turn back and look. But before I could, Lucas gripped my head and kept me facing forward. “What, still can’t let go?” he said softly in my ear, his breath tickling me. From afar, it probably looked like he was nibbling my ear. “You… just talk normally, don’t get so close. It tickles.” He didn’t say anything, just looked at me, waiting for my answer. Slowly, I started to feel the pressure. “I’m not hung up on him…” “Don’t forget, we just got married. Are you trying to make me a cuckold?” His tone was low, his eyes threatening. “…” “And if someone’s bullying you, don’t you know to call me?” I hemmed and hawed, trying to change the subject. It honestly hadn’t even occurred to me to call him. We weren’t that close… Even though we had just gotten married, he was always so cold and aloof at work. He seemed to radiate an icy aura when he wasn’t talking. How could I dare to bother him? “Why did you come back?” “Someone called me,” he said, glaring at me as if scolding me for not calling him for help myself. “They said you were being harassed at the school gates.” “Who was it? How do they know me? And I’m not avoiding calling you, I just didn’t have a chance. He was grabbing my arm the whole time.” I finally thought of an excuse, though it was also the truth. I held out my reddened arm for him to see, proving I was telling the truth. His gaze fell on my wrist, his expression suddenly turning cold. He seemed to radiate an icy aura, as if he had discovered some beast intruding on his territory. He reached out to encircle the red marks, caressing them as if trying to erase someone else’s touch. Seeing his change in expression, I felt a bit uncomfortable. I tried to pull my hand back, but he held on tightly. I could only try to change the subject. “Why me?” He stared at me silently. After a while, he let go of my hand and stood up. “I’ll pick you up tonight to go home.” “Huh? So sudden? I haven’t…”prepared yet. Before I could finish, he had already abandoned me and left. Leaving me standing there bewildered… My phone suddenly buzzed. I took it out and saw he had messaged me saying he’d pick me up at 6pm. I…” So domineering and high-handed. How annoying. Back at the dorm, I realized he hadn’t answered either of the two questions I asked him. I pouted. Whatever, I don’t want to know anymore! Lost in thought, I felt someone gently tap me. “Lily, what’s going on with you and Jack? There are a bunch of posts on the school forum saying you hooked up with some rich guy and dumped Jack.” “Isn’t he always flirting with this girl and that girl? Some idiot must be spreading rumors. It’s all nonsense!” “I already cursed them out for you. Don’t worry, we’ve got your back!” Seeing my roommates’ concern and unconditional trust in me warmed my heart. “Jack and I broke up.” I didn’t want to tell anyone about my sudden marriage to my boss yet. I could hardly believe it myself. “I have nothing to do with him anymore.” My tone was light. “That jerk, good riddance! You’re way too good for him. You’re such a beauty, you could have any guy you want.” “Exactly! Girl, I’ll introduce you to some guys. I know tons of eligible bachelors!” “Haha, the guys you’d introduce? No thanks.” My roommate glared at her. “What’s that supposed to mean? The guys I’d introduce to Lily would be top-notch!” “Haha, yeah right. Dream on.” Just as my roommate was about to playfully hit her, there was a knock at our door before it opened. We all turned to look. To our surprise, it was Jack’s goddess – Emma White. She looked around the room before fixing her gaze on me, her eyes scrutinizing and hostile. “Are you Lily Evans?” I was confused. Why was she looking for me? My roommates exchanged glances, recognizing her as well. But they tacitly remained silent, just coldly staring at her. Emma waited a moment. Seeing I wasn’t responding, she walked over and pointed at me. “I’m talking to you. Are you deaf?” From the corner of my eye, I saw my roommate about to stand up to protect me. I held her back and stood up myself. “Yes, that’s me. What is it?” “Come outside. I have something to say to you.” “Whatever you have to say, you can say it here. We don’t have anything that needs to be discussed privately.” She paused for a moment. “I’ll let you have Jack. You give me Lucas.” Lucas – my boss. Seeing her entitled attitude, I almost laughed. Did she really think my boss was something I could just give away?! “What, you think you get to decide this?” I said mockingly. “Does Jack know you’re trading him away?” “Just tell me if you agree or not.” I let out a cold laugh. “What do you think? I don’t know what Jack sees in you that makes him so devoted.” Jack is truly blind. “You still like him, don’t you? This benefits both of us.” “First of all, these two men aren’t objects to be traded. Secondly, I think you need to get your head examined. Lastly, get out of our dorm!” As soon as I finished speaking, my roommates all stood up in unison, gesturing for her to leave. She had opened her mouth to curse at me, but seeing so many of us, her bravado deflated significantly. She turned to leave, but not before threatening me: “You just wait!” After she left, my roommates burst out laughing. “Damn girl, you’ve gotten so sharp-tongued! You should have told off that jerk like this before!” “Yeah, haha! You need to keep being this fierce, you hear me?” My roommate put her arm around my shoulder, speaking earnestly. I nodded at them, agreeing with an “Okay.” It felt so good to have my roommates backing me up. Otherwise I might have been too timid… Suddenly my phone on the desk buzzed with a message from my boss. [By the way, I forgot to mention – not only are we going home together today, but we’ll be living together from now on. Remember to pack your things. I’ll pick you up at 6.] For the first time, I felt like my phone’s notification sound was way too loud… The screen wasn’t locked, so not only did I see the message, but my roommates saw it too. “Ahh!! Lily! Are you moving in with your boss? That super handsome boss who’s around our age?” “…Um, yes.” I felt a bit guilty, not daring to say that I had already slept with my boss. “That’s awesome, Lily! This is exactly what you should do. We’ve been telling you forever that your boss was into you, but you never believed us!” He really wasn’t into me. It was all my fault… But I couldn’t say that out loud. It would sound so unconvincing. My boss was asking me to live with him – who would believe me if I said he wasn’t interested in me? I chose to keep my mouth shut. At 6pm. [I’m here at the east gate. Come out.] I slowly dragged my suitcase into his line of sight. Feeling his stare burning into me, I unconsciously quickened my pace… “It took you half an hour to walk this short distance? Why don’t you wait until 6am tomorrow to come out?” “Oh, you meant 6am tomorrow? I didn’t know. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.” I started to turn around and go back. But he grabbed the hood of my sweatshirt. “Where do you think you’re going? Get in the car.” He dragged me into the car, efficiently tossed my suitcase in the trunk, and got in himself. He moved so quickly, as if he couldn’t wait to be alone with me. My heart suddenly fluttered a bit. Did he really like me? “You haven’t eaten, right? What do you want for dinner?” I was being silly. He was just hungry and impatient to eat. “…Anything is fine. You decide.” He turned his head and stared at me, then tilted his chin up slightly as if gesturing at something. I looked down at myself. My clothes seemed fine. “What is it? Is there something on my face?” He didn’t say anything, but leaned towards me. His breath fanned across my face. It smelled nice. I suddenly felt flustered. What was he trying to do?! “You…” Is he going to kiss me again? “Seatbelt.” His arm reached across me to fasten my seatbelt. “We’re about to leave.” “…Oh, okay.” Help!! Thank goodness I didn’t ask out loud. That would have been so embarrassing! I suddenly felt my face heating up. I quickly tried to cool it down with my hands. He didn’t notice, right… I sneakily turned my head to glance at him, only to find myself staring straight into his deep eyes. Then I heard him laugh out loud. … He figured it out!! I felt like my face was about to burst into flames. “Why is your face so red?” He knew very well why. I turned my head away, showing him the back of my head in protest. After a while, I heard him say, “Alright, don’t be mad. I’ll kiss you when we stop the car.” !! My eyes suddenly widened. What kind of thing was he saying? “That’s not what I meant!” I turned to glare at him, only to see his grin stretching from ear to ear. He was teasing me again. How annoying. He pinched my cheek. “I’m done teasing you. Let’s get out, I’ll treat you to dinner.” Just as he was about to open the door, I quickly grabbed his face and pulled him towards me, planting a firm kiss on his cheek. After the sneak attack, my own heart started racing uncontrollably. Taking advantage of his stunned state, I quickly said “I’ll get out first” and ran off. I was afraid of getting caught and having my plan backfire. But I also knew I could run from the immediate situation, but not forever. After all, it’s not like we’d never see each other again. But… whatever. I got my revenge for now. I looked up to survey my surroundings. Luckily there was only one building nearby, otherwise I wouldn’t have known where to go. Before I could walk over, I felt a hand grip the back of my neck. “You think you can kiss me and run?” The man’s voice was low and husky, his lips right next to my ear, his breath tickling me. A tingling sensation suddenly spread throughout my body. “I…” I shrank back a bit, wanting to retreat and put some distance between us. But as soon as I moved, he gripped me even tighter. “You what?…” He was about to lean in closer to speak when he saw someone walking towards us. He gave my neck a squeeze and said in a low voice, “I’ll settle the score with you later.” Then he let go of me and looked up at the approaching person. “I saw you from far away. What are you doing standing around out here? Feeding the mosquitoes? Come on in, we’ve been waiting for you.” The man tilted his head and stood on tiptoe to look at me. … “Hello, I’m Lily Evans.” “Hi there, I’m Henry Shaw. You can call me Henry.” After greeting me, Henry turned to Lucas and said with a wink, “I didn’t expect you to bring such a beautiful woman without saying anything. We thought you were single – Charles was going to set you up with someone.”
🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “NovelMaster” app 🔍 search for “296059”, and watch the full series ✨! #NovelMaster #现实主义Realistic #浪漫Romance #励志Inspiring #校园School #重生Reborn
Leave a Reply