Chapter 118: Side Story 6
It was 4 p.m.
Xu Jinnan had said she would be staying home with their daughter today, so Viola had a relatively light workload.
She had spent most of the day in her office, finishing up some essential tasks, sending documents to Xu Jinnan for approval, and occasionally calling her.
After a call, her phone buzzed with a message.
She paused, then picked it up.
It was from one of the technicians, inviting her to a social gathering that evening.
She exhaled slowly, a flicker of disappointment in her eyes, then politely declined.
She rarely attended such events, only having done so a few times with Xu Jinnan, who valued the tech team and often socialized with them.
She was closer to them than to most of her other colleagues.
She sat up straight, her posture stiff and formal in her tailored suit, and opened her chat with Tong Jia, which was pinned at the top of her list.
Their last conversation had been yesterday.
She hadn’t messaged Tong Jia today, and neither had Tong Jia contacted her.
She opened Tong Jia’s Moments feed and saw a recent post, from half an hour ago: Clocking out.
She must be home by now.
Viola closed the app, gathered her things, and left the office.
—
Back at the apartment, she didn’t have to call out or check for shoes at the entrance; the silence, the emptiness of the space, told her Tong Jia wasn’t there.
They were living in Tong Jia’s apartment. After getting married, Viola had suggested buying a larger place, but Tong Jia had said they didn’t need to yet, that this apartment was still relatively new.
Viola had respected her decision, simply handing over all her savings to Tong Jia.
She changed her shoes and went to the kitchen, taking a bottle of plum juice from the refrigerator, then sat down on the sofa.
The apartment, decorated by Tong Jia, was cozy and inviting, not luxurious, but filled with personal touches, a reflection of Tong Jia’s personality, her tendency to… leave things wherever she happened to be using them.
Viola, who had always been meticulous about tidiness and order, had gradually adapted to Tong Jia’s… organized chaos, the scattered belongings a reminder of their shared life, their love, their home.
She took a sip of the plum juice, the sweet and sour flavor Tong Jia’s favorite, a taste she had also grown accustomed to, having rarely indulged in such sugary drinks before.
She suddenly realized how many of her habits were now Tong Jia’s habits.
She had come to enjoy their evening ritual – standing on the balcony, the cool night air a welcome contrast to the warmth of the apartment, each with a bottle of plum juice or iced tea, chatting, kissing, then returning to the bedroom…
She knew she shouldn’t have brought up the baby again last night, but she hadn’t been able to help herself.
And she shouldn’t have mentioned Qiao Rui, shouldn’t have asked that question – Do you still have feelings for her?
She put down the bottle and lay down on the sofa, her long legs stretching out, the fabric of her suit wrinkling slightly as she shifted, her fingers unconsciously tracing the pattern of the upholstery.
She was reminded of the day they had first gotten together…
—
Shen Shu hadn’t been pregnant then.
Xu Jinnan and Shen Shu had had a disagreement, and Viola had driven Xu Jinnan to Shen Shu’s apartment.
Tong Jia had opened the door, the scent of alcohol heavy in the air.
Xu Jinnan, without a word, had gone straight to the bedroom to find Shen Shu, while Viola had remained at the entrance.
Tong Jia, leaning against the wall, had looked at her, a playful smile on her lips. “Aren’t you coming in?” she had asked, her short, silver-gray hair falling across her face, obscuring one eye. She tucked it behind her ear. “Miss V?”
Viola, smiling faintly, had stepped inside, closing the door behind her.
“I told you my name,” she had said.
“And I have a name too. Why do you keep calling me ‘Miss Tong’?” Tong Jia had retorted, her hair falling across her face again. Viola’s hand had instinctively reached out, tucking it behind her ear, then she had realized her fingers were cold, her body still chilled from the outside air.
The contrast between the coolness of her fingertips and the warmth of Tong Jia’s skin had made them both freeze for a moment.
But Tong Jia hadn’t pulled away.
“She had a lot to drink?” Viola had asked, hearing Xu Jinnan and Shen Shu’s voices from the bedroom, assuming Shen Shu was the one who was drunk.
Tong Jia shrugged. “Shu Shu, yes. Me, no,” she replied, then, pushing herself away from the wall, she had walked towards the bedroom. “Want some water? Or something else?”
“No, thank you,” Viola had replied, following her.
She had seen Xu Jinnan holding Shen Shu, her voice soothing.
“I’ve never even met that woman! How could I possibly be involved with her? Silly, getting upset over something like that.”
Shen Shu had pushed Xu Jinnan away, and Xu Jinnan, bending down, had pulled her into a hug. “Okay, okay, my wife isn’t silly. I’m the silly one. Let’s go home, okay?”
“But you met her behind my back…”
“I don’t know how she appeared. It really wasn’t my fault. Don’t cry, wifey. We’ll talk about it when we get home. You’re drunk…”
Viola and Tong Jia had exchanged a look, and Tong Jia, leaning closer to Viola, had whispered, “Did you go with Xu Jinnan on her business trip yesterday?”
Viola had shaken her head. “CEO Xu went alone.”
Tong Jia had clicked her tongue. “This is going to be difficult to explain.”
Xu Jinnan had gone to Lincheng on short notice after receiving a call from a business partner.
Tong Jia had just heard about it on the way over, something about Xu Jinnan meeting a woman at a hotel in Lincheng, and Shen Shu, wanting to surprise her, had walked in on them.
“CEO Xu isn’t that kind of person,” Viola had said.
“We both know that, but it doesn’t matter. Shu Shu saw it with her own eyes. And apparently, that woman is Xu Jinnan’s ex-girlfriend, Xiao Shu or something. It’s a recipe for disaster. I’d be jealous too,” Tong Jia had said, her voice low, leaning closer to Viola as she spoke.
Viola had caught the subtle fragrance of gardenia, Tong Jia’s pheromones.
She had looked down at Tong Jia, half a head shorter than her, her gaze lingering on her delicate features, the soft curve of her neck, the gentle rise and fall of her chest beneath her pajama top.
“You’re right,” she had said softly.
Tong Jia, pleased with her agreement, had looked up, their eyes meeting briefly before she looked away.
Xu Jinnan had lifted Shen Shu into her arms and carried her towards the door.
“I’ll take her home,” she had said.
Viola had offered to drive them, but Xu Jinnan had said, “No need. You didn’t sleep well last night. Just take a taxi. I’ve already called for a driver.”
—
In the end, Viola hadn’t left, because as she was about to, Tong Jia had asked, “Miss V, now that we’re both off work, would you like a drink?”
They had sat on the sofa, a selection of alcoholic beverages on the coffee table – wine, beer, and baijiu.
“Choose whatever you like. I usually prefer beer,” Tong Jia had said.
Viola had taken a beer, effortlessly popping the cap off with her thumb and handing it to Tong Jia, then taking one for herself.
She clinked her bottle against Tong Jia’s, glancing at the empty bottles and cans scattered on the table and the floor. “Someone’s been busy,” she commented dryly.
Tong Jia, leaning back against the sofa, chuckled. “Most of those are mine.”
Viola, seeing her smile, smiled back. “I know you have a high tolerance.”
“Of course,” Tong Jia said. “They don’t call me ‘Thousand Cups Tong’ for nothing.”
Viola chuckled softly. “But…” she began, then paused.
Tong Jia turned to her, and Viola, taking a sip of beer, met her gaze. “Even with a high tolerance… leaving me, an Alpha, alone with all this alcohol… isn’t that a little… dangerous?” she asked, her voice a low murmur, the last word emphasized slightly.
“Oh…” Tong Jia said, looking at her, a playful glint in her eyes. “But Miss V, you seem like a… good person.”
Viola’s carefully constructed facade of indifference crumbled, and her lips curved into a smile. “Miss Tong has a lot of faith in me, doesn’t she?”
They finished their beers, a comfortable silence settling between them.
Tong Jia opened another bottle. “Want to watch a movie?” she asked.
“Sure,” Viola replied.
Tong Jia grabbed the remote. “What kind of movies do you like?”
“Suspense,” Viola said. “What about you?”
“Porn—” Tong Jia began, then quickly corrected herself. “Wong Fei Hung.”
Viola paused, a flicker of amusement in her eyes. “Interesting choice.”
Tong Jia coughed, her face warming slightly. What was I about to say?
She browsed through the movie selection, finally settling on a suspenseful romance about a married couple whose relationship had grown stale, the wife, dissatisfied with her husband’s lack of attention, bringing home a lover…
The opening scene was quite explicit.
After about fifteen minutes, Tong Jia, her face flushed, was about to suggest changing the movie, then, seeing Viola’s calm demeanor, she decided against it.
On the screen, the wife brought her lover home, their passion a fiery, uninhibited display, the camera lingering on their bodies, their every touch, every moan, amplified by the silence of the living room, the close-ups revealing even the beads of sweat on their skin.
Tong Jia’s cheeks burned, and she licked her lips, suddenly regretting inviting Viola to stay, and her choice of movie.
And her own body, after months of abstinence, was responding to the images on the screen, a warmth spreading through her, her skin tingling.
And Viola, an A-class Alpha, was a potent presence, her pheromones a subtle yet undeniable allure.
She couldn’t deny the attraction she felt towards Viola, her gaze lingering on her profile, her sharp features, her strong jawline, which, while seemingly cold and distant, somehow… didn’t feel that way.
Her gaze drifted downwards, Viola’s coat draped over a nearby chair, her suit jacket unbuttoned, revealing the crisp white shirt beneath, her figure tall and slender.
The image, so cool and composed, so… restrained, was strangely arousing.
Tong Jia took a deep breath, taking a large gulp of beer to quell the sudden heat rising within her.
Viola, hearing her swallow, the soft sigh that followed, her throat tightening slightly, opened another bottle of beer and took a long drink, then, after a moment of silence, unbuttoned the top button of her shirt and said softly, “Jia Jia.”
Tong Jia turned to her, their eyes meeting.
“Want to kiss me?” Viola asked, her voice a low murmur, her gaze intense.
