After spending the entire afternoon wrapped up in Shen Zhirou, Lu Yao finally remembered she had a bit of work left unfinished. She pulled out her laptop but didn’t want to sit in a chair to review it. Instead, she simply leaned into Shen Zhirou’s embrace and went over the reports her subordinates had revised. This was yet another exception for Lu Yao—she was the sort who kept work and personal life strictly separate. Work was work; she would never cling to someone and have them keep her company like this. And yet, that’s exactly what she was doing now.
Lu Yao’s brows furrowed slightly. She could sense that her decisions had shifted quite a bit because of Shen Zhirou. She couldn’t say whether the change was good or bad, but it left her feeling deeply unsettled. Especially since she’d been abandoned once before, Lu Yao was reluctant at her core to fully trust Shen Zhirou. She feared that someday Shen Zhirou might hurt her too. But right now, with things as they were, Lu Yao figured she might as well lean into the clinginess. After all, it seemed Shen Zhirou enjoyed it?
Her work didn’t take long. She pointed out a few spots that needed fixing for her subordinates and quickly closed her laptop. Shen Zhirou kept her arm looped around Lu Yao’s waist, reclining against the bed to keep her company.
Lu Yao’s arms wound back around Shen Zhirou’s neck. She pressed a lazy kiss to Shen Zhirou’s lips and nestled deep into her embrace.
Shen Zhirou’s long arm curved around to draw Lu Yao’s waist closer. She lowered her gaze to the woman in her arms, who was squinting up at her like a contented cat—a far cry from the focused intensity she’d shown while working.
Shen Zhirou dipped her head to kiss Lu Yao’s forehead, teasing with a smile, “Has Little CEO Lu finished up? You’re like night and day—cool and aloof when you’re working.”
She left the rest unsaid, her ear tips flushing pink with embarrassment.
Lu Yao’s interest piqued instantly. She hooked her arm around Shen Zhirou’s neck, pressing her soft lips to the corner of Shen Zhirou’s mouth and lingering there. As she peppered light kisses, she murmured, “Jie Jie, so what am I like in bed? Why stop there, hmm?”
She pulled back just enough to fix her cool gaze on Shen Zhirou, staring intently as if she wouldn’t drop it until she got an answer.
Shen Zhirou’s eyes flicked to Lu Yao’s, her throat going dry. She tamped down the rising heat in her chest and met Lu Yao’s gaze with gentle eyes, replying obliquely, “You’re beautiful in bed.”
“Beautiful where? My lips? My eyes? Or somewhere you can’t see? Hmm?” Lu Yao’s smile widened at the sight of Shen Zhirou’s reddened ears and averted gaze. She kept pressing, determined to draw it out.
“Jie Jie, cat got your tongue? Forgot where? Want me to help you review?” Lu Yao’s lips had drifted to Shen Zhirou’s long, pale neck, her warm breaths sending shivers of heat across the skin and turning it flushed.
Shen Zhirou steadied her breathing before speaking. “And how exactly would you review?”
Her voice came out husky as she looked at Lu Yao, who sat facing her in her lap.
With bold grace, Lu Yao reached up and slipped one strap of her nightgown off her shoulder. The gleam of her skin made Shen Zhirou look away—though her eyes were hopelessly snagged on the little red mole just below Lu Yao’s collarbone.
Lu Yao found this version of Shen Zhirou endlessly amusing. She leaned in to kiss her ear tip, teasing softly, “Jie Jie, I know what you like most. Sweet here?”
Shen Zhirou’s breath hitched from the provocation. She had an early flight in the morning and had planned to simply hold Lu Yao close for a good night’s sleep, nothing more. But with Lu Yao tempting her like this—and she wasn’t some unflappable saint—she couldn’t resist. She shifted, leaning down to take that little red mole into her mouth.
Lu Yao knew how much she loved kissing her there and arched closer to oblige, her body melting limply into Shen Zhirou’s arms. She coaxed her into repeating what she’d had no intention of doing again.
At five the next morning, Shen Zhirou’s phone alarm blared. She needed to pack quickly and head back to Jiangbei City. Gazing at the deeply sleeping Lu Yao in her arms, her heart turned to mush. She didn’t want to go at all. If not for knowing her Yaoyao would be back in Jiangbei in just a day or two, Shen Zhirou might have called in sick to stay.
Her eyes soft and tender, she lingered on Lu Yao’s face for a long moment before brushing a light kiss to the corner of her lips and easing her onto the bed.
Lu Yao’s skin was so delicate, as if even the firm mattress was too much for it. No sooner had Shen Zhirou settled her than Lu Yao’s brows knit in discomfort, even in sleep.
Shen Zhirou got out of bed and freshened up, neatly packing her clothes along the way. As she prepared to leave, she glanced at Lu Yao a few more times. Her crow-feather-like lashes fluttered slightly as her long legs carried her to the bedside in a few strides. She leaned down slightly and planted a gentle kiss on Lu Yao’s forehead.
Lu Yao wasn’t sleeping comfortably to begin with. Feeling the warm breath on her forehead, she squinted her eyes open a little. Seeing that it was Shen Zhirou, her arms instinctively wrapped around her. “Are you heading back?”
“Mm, it’s about time. I need to get ready to catch my flight. It’s still early—you sleep a bit more.” Shen Zhirou’s voice was soft and gentle as she coaxed Lu Yao, who clearly wasn’t fully awake yet.
Lu Yao let out a hum, furrowing her brows slightly as if her arm had been prodded by the hard mattress. Her eyes curved upward as she looked at Shen Zhirou, a hint of grievance in her gaze.
“You’re not even going to be here—how am I supposed to sleep well? This feels awful.” Seemingly annoyed at the hotel mattress for being too hard, Lu Yao vented her frustration by pounding it twice with her fist.
Seeing this childish side of Lu Yao, Shen Zhirou tucked a strand of long hair behind her ear. She reached out and took the hand Lu Yao had just used to pound the mattress, bringing it to her lips for a kiss. “Don’t be mad. Your skin is already so fair and delicate—look, you pounded the mattress twice, and it didn’t even flinch, but your hand is all red now.”
Seeing the furrow between Lu Yao’s brows smooth out, Shen Zhirou continued coaxing her. “Isn’t it just two more days until we can go home? Do you want me to come pick you up then?”
Lu Yao’s heart stirred for a moment, but thinking of her original plans and principles, she didn’t voice her inner thoughts. Calling Shen Zhirou over to accompany her on this business trip had already broken her usual rules—she didn’t want to make any more exceptions for her. Instead, she lifted her gaze and refused. “No need. I’ll have my secretary come pick us up. You rest well at home. You’ve worked hard these past few days.”
Shen Zhirou’s gentle eyes met Lu Yao’s, which were now clear and alert—she was obviously awake now, and her tone had cooled by a few degrees, slipping back into that strictly businesslike demeanor.
Shen Zhirou let out an almost imperceptible sigh. She straightened up, her gaze shifting to Lu Yao. The ambiguous atmosphere between them had been shattered, as if their two days of entanglement had been nothing more than a dream. Now that the dream had ended, all the improper intimacy was supposed to stop.
“Alright then. I’ll wait for you at home. Time’s running short—I’ll head out first.” Shen Zhirou’s eyes lingered on Lu Yao for a moment, fixating briefly on her thin, soft lips before quickly looking away.
She wanted to kiss Lu Yao again, but with Lu Yao staring at her so coldly, Shen Zhirou felt a bit at a loss for a moment. In the end, she simply picked up her things and said goodbye.
Jiang Chen had already driven the car downstairs to wait for her. He dropped Shen Zhirou off at the airport before heading back to the hotel.
Shen Zhirou boarded the flight back to Jiangbei City. By the time she landed, it was nearly time for work, so she skipped going home and headed straight to the company.
Seeing her return looking travel-worn, with wrinkles on her shirt, Zhao Tongtong smiled and asked, “Where have you been? You look like you just got back from out of town.”
Shen Zhirou didn’t keep it from her. She stowed her clothes in her locker before wiping down her workstation with a wet wipe and explaining to Zhao Tongtong, “I just got back from Linhai City. She was there on a business trip, so I went to keep her company for two days.”
Zhao Tongtong noticed Shen Zhirou’s ear tips turning red and teased her with a light laugh. “Not bad—you two have only known each other a few days, and you’re already so inseparable? Wasn’t she only gone on the trip for a few days? And you still had to go keep her company. Looks like your girlfriend is pretty clingy.”
Shen Zhirou smiled with pursed lips, neither confirming nor denying it. Was her Yaoyao clingy? It depended on the situation—she was quite clingy in bed, but once they got out of it or her needs were met, she turned cold again. Shen Zhirou shook her head, pushing the thought aside.
There wasn’t much work in the morning, so Shen Zhirou poured herself a cup of tea and started slacking off. After a moment’s thought, she sent a WeChat message to her pinned contact.
Shen Zhirou’s slender, pale fingertips tapped out a line on her phone: “I’ve made it back to the company. Everything’s fine, just… a little missing you.”
After hitting send, her ear tips flushed bright red. She covered her ears and took half a minute to calm down. Luckily, everyone around her was also slacking off, so no one noticed what she was doing.
However, the WeChat message Shen Zhirou had sent didn’t change anything despite the weekend companionship. It sank into the sea like a stone, with no reply.
As for Lu Yao, she had gone out that morning for a meeting. In the afternoon, she instructed her subordinates to prepare all the materials and take them away, bringing her work to a close. It wasn’t until lunch with her business partners that she finally had a chance to glance at her phone. When she saw the WeChat message from Shen Zhirou, the corners of her lips curved up slightly—but then, as if struck by a sudden thought, her expression chilled once more.
She had been making far too many exceptions for Shen Zhirou lately, and that was something Lu Yao simply couldn’t accept. All she wanted was a suitable marriage partner who wouldn’t cause any trouble. She had no intention of falling in love with the woman, much less pursuing some absurd romance. Had her own attitude been too indulgent these past few days? Was that why Shen Zhirou had sent such an ambiguously flirtatious message?
Lu Yao’s brows furrowed faintly. She didn’t like the feeling at all.
