CH 25.2

That night, when Xie Shuo finished showering, he sat alone quietly on the sofa once again.

Ye An put her slippers on and walked over to sit next to him.

Thinking of what happened earlier, she asked him, “I heard your brother say that you were discussing a development project with someone named Yan Fei. How did that go?”

Xie Shuo raised his gaze and asked calmly, “Why are you asking about this?” 

Ye An propped her chin on his broad shoulder and said, “When I went to the studio today, I met a photographer, and she turned out to be Yan Fei’s wife. We added each other’s WeChat too.”

She breathed into his ear, but since Xie Shuo had become accustomed to her always speaking to him so close, he didn’t push her away.

To prevent her from going over to Zhuang Yinian’s side and advocating for the project, he replied with rare patience, “It’s probably already negotiated. There’s no need to befriend her because of this project.”

Ye An felt guilty upon hearing these words. She did have this idea but didn’t think that he would shut it down so quickly.

Speaking of which, she had never attended any banquets since marrying into the Xie family, let alone befriending any of the ladies and networking

however, she wasn’t interested in these things, either.

Ye An leaned on his shoulder and looked up at his stern face, but the lamp lighting gave him a sense of warmth. His nose bridge was high, and his features were sharp.

His long eyelashes drooped, and the light cast a soft radiance on them.

Ye An reached out and gently touched his lashes, asking quietly, “You can’t sleep again?”

They would leave for the eyesight treatment tomorrow, and she was able to sense the change in his mood in the past few days.

Although he had always been pessimistic about the effects of any treatment, when it came time to it, he would always have the tiniest bit of hope.

Not only him, but she also felt restless.

Xie Shuo didn’t respond and frowned out of habit.

Ye An tilted her head. “Do you want me to sing a song to help you sleep?”

Xie Shuo: “…”

Seeing how he ignored her, Ye An said, remembering something, “I learned some head massaging techniques that are supposed to help with your sleep; do you want to try it?”

Her eyes were bright, and her expression was eager.

Xie Shuo still ignored her.

Whether he wanted it or not, Ye An stood up and knelt on the sofa, holding his head in her hands and angling it to the side.

“Stop moving!”

Her fair fingers found his temples and applied pressure.

There wasn’t much pressure, but her actions were pretty standard.

Xie Shuo was taller than her, so she could only straighten her back as much as possible to compensate. Her hair wasn’t brushed back over her shoulders, so there was light fragrance present.

After massaging for a bit, her arms and waist were a bit sore, so she lowered her head to say, “You’re too tall, so it’s hard for me to do it. Can you lie down?”

With that, she supported his shoulders, intending to guide his head to lie in her lap.

Her hands were suddenly caught.

Ye An looked up at the man’s handsome face becoming colder under the light. His gaze was deep, and his eyebrows were slightly knitted. 

He grabbed her fingers and removed them, with an expression that told her not to touch him.

Even though she had experienced this situation so many times, Ye An still couldn’t help but get annoyed.

What made her not good enough for him to be disgusted at her practically every day?

She spent so much effort trying to give him a massage, yet he didn’t even appreciate it!

“I’m done!”

Ye An was so angry that her liver hurt. She gave him a fierce look and put on her slippers to walk to the bed and go to sleep.

After a few steps, she suddenly stopped.

She turned and looked at the silent man in front of her–if the treatment was successful this time, and his eyesight could be restored, would she no longer have the opportunity to act as willfully as she wanted in the future?

Ye An scratched her chin thoughtfully.

No, she must take advantage of this last opportunity.

Ye An’s lips twitched and formed a sly smile. She suddenly sat in his lap.

She looped her arms around his neck and pressed her red lips against his ear. In a soft voice, she said, “If you don’t want me to massage your temples, then… how about I massage another place?”

As she spoke, a hand went down and pinched him mischievously.

The man’s abdominal muscles were so firm that she was unable to do so.

Xie Shuo’s face sank, and he frowned.

The breath in his ear was moist, like fine mist on the skin, and her freshly showered scent permeated his surroundings.

This time, they were extremely close, not like the other massage.

Ye An did as she pleased to him and withdrew her hand afterward. She asked, satisfied, “Did it feel good?”

She looked up to see his lips pressed tightly together. She was unable to restrain her impulse to touch them.

“Say something…”

In the next moment, her waist was grabbed.

Xie Shuo pulled her into his arms expressionlessly. One hand wrapped around her waist, while the other hand found her knee and hooked under her leg to pick her up directly.

……

What was happening?

With her body being picked up so suddenly, Ye An subconsciously wrapped her arms around his neck. Her eyes widened: ???He wouldn’t carry her out and leave her, right?

“What…are you doing?” She asked nervously.

As usual, Xie Shuo didn’t reply to her. Of course, he didn’t throw her out either. He only carried step by step to the side of the bed with a gloomy expression.

Ye An glanced at the nearing bed and suddenly thought in a panic: Was he finally changing after she complained about him being heartless and unfeeling every day?

This was too sudden, right?

Ye An was a little flustered.

Xie Shuo stopped at the bedside and found a spot to set her down. One hand remained on her side, blocking her escape as he looked down at her.

Ye An fell into the soft bedding and looked up at him in a daze. His sharp jaw and Adam’s apple were reflected in her wide eyes. The collar of his black pajamas was slightly open, revealing some of his chest.

There was a dark shadow covering her face, hot breathing that touched her forehead. 

The air was suffocating, and it was quiet enough to hear her heartbeat. 

Ye An was completely dumbfounded. She shrank back, her fingers involuntarily pinching the sheets. Although she did lust after his body, she had never thought that things would occur so suddenly…

Should she reject him… or take advantage of this chance?

She weighed the pros and cons.

So much to think about.

Reality soon proved that she overthought the situation. Xie Shuo only paused for a moment before letting go of her and walking over to the other side of the bed and tearing off the comforter.

Ye An’s confused expression: ???

You carried me over here and pulled out this move only purely to sleep with blankets in between us?

It took a long time for Ye An to return to her senses. She looked at Xie Shuo with a complicated expression.

……

Her gaze fell on his body, and a trace of worry appeared in her gaze

there… wasn’t anything wrong with him down there, right?

After Xie Shuo laid down, he no longer bothered with her and closed his eyes.

Ye An no longer had the courage to tease him even further after his actions just now. She silently made her way to the side of the bed and grabbed a quilt to bundle up.

The light turned off, and there were only breathing sounds left in the room.

Because of these events, Ye An couldn’t fall asleep for a long time.

That night, she dreamed of Xie Shuo recovering his eyesight.

The sunlight shone through the translucent glass window, and the flora outside the window bloomed. The man stood in the warm light with a straight posture and grave features. His eyes had regained their former vitality.

He looked at her, asking lightly, “Have we met before?”