Chapter 12: The Chaebol Heir’s Canary — She Needs Lots and Lots of Love

Jiang Qiuyan’s breath caught. It took a long moment for her to find her rhythm again, her heart hammering against her ribs as if it might burst through.

Looking at Shi Yu’s glazed eyes, she knew the little omega had been affected by her pheromones.

In a clear state of mind, she would never be this bold.

“Little Yu, do you know what you’re doing?”

Shi Yu held her fingers, staring at her blankly. Her eyes were lost and dazed, innocent and guileless.

All she knew was that the heat inside her was unbearable, and she wanted Jiang Qiuyan to help.

As for what she’d done…

Shi Yu looked down at those glistening fingers, her brain unable to process.

She leaned down, pressing her lips to that lovely pale hand, then nuzzled her cheek against it. Tilting her head slightly to look up at Jiang Qiuyan, her almond eyes shone bright with moisture, carrying undisguised desire.

Jiang Qiuyan swallowed hard. Her gland throbbed with aching pain, and it took every ounce of her willpower not to show the frightening side of herself.

She had to take it slow. She couldn’t scare the little cat.

Jiang Qiuyan curled her fingers, gently kneading Shi Yu’s cheek. “It’ll be uncomfortable here. Let’s move somewhere else,” she said, her voice low and husky.

She made as if to lift Shi Yu, but the omega clung tightly to her neck. Sweet breath fanned across her face, leaving nowhere to hide.

“Right here. Hurry~”

There was urgency in Shi Yu’s expression, but her voice was soft and sweet, sounding almost like a plea. That honeyed tone, mixed with her pheromones, drifted into Jiang Qiuyan’s ears and sent her heartbeat spiraling out of control again and again.

It raced, then slowed, then raced again, accompanied by a suffocating, oxygen-starved haze. At this rate, she might just pass out.

So when it came to temptation, all alphas were the same. She’d been unmoved before only because she’d never met someone she liked.

Her fingertips pressed down instinctively, gripping Shi Yu’s chin as she kissed her, rough and frantic, wanting to devour her whole on the spot.

To hold back that impulse, veins bulged at Jiang Qiuyan’s temples and her face turned scarlet. But Shi Yu wasn’t satisfied.

She’d waited this long, only for a kiss?

Kissing did feel wonderful, but it wasn’t what she wanted. What she craved was something more intimate, something that could fill the emptiness inside her and quell the scorching heat in her body.

Although the pheromones had dulled Shi Yu’s mind further, she hadn’t completely lost her ability to think. The sliver of reason that remained told her that Jiang Qiuyan was dragging her feet because she didn’t want to touch her.

A surge of hurt welled up in her chest. Fat tears rolled down, leaving Jiang Qiuyan at a loss.

“What’s wrong, Little Yu? Why are you crying all of a sudden?”

Jiang Qiuyan reached out to wipe her tears, but Shi Yu pulled away. The little omega sniffled, voice choked: “It’s okay. I didn’t do it right. I’ll just be alone for a bit.”

Shi Yu lowered her head and bit her lip, her mind churning until it reached a conclusion: she’d been too clingy and had annoyed Jiang Qiuyan.

She needed to please her. She still depended on her protection.

If Jiang Qiuyan lost interest in her this quickly, what would await her next?

Shi Huaixin’s twisted face flashed through her mind. Shi Yu shuddered, a chill shooting up her spine, and the heat in her body plummeted by half.

She braced herself against the counter and climbed down, standing properly before Jiang Qiuyan. Her hand reached out halfway, then froze and curled up awkwardly.

If she was this reluctant to do such things, she probably didn’t like being touched either.

“Miss Jiang, I was a bit rude just now. Please don’t be angry. I won’t do it again.”

Four sentences in total, and not a single one was what Jiang Qiuyan wanted to hear. With every sentence Shi Yu spoke, a vein twitched between her brows.

Without a doubt, this little one had been overthinking again.

Who knew what she’d imagined in that head of hers to say something so self-deprecating. Jiang Qiuyan felt a pang in her chest and pulled her into her arms.

“Haven’t I told you not to use that clever little head of yours to think?”

“You have.”

“Did you listen?”

“…”

Shi Yu felt that she was angry. Not wanting to make it worse, she didn’t argue a single point, keeping even her breathing soft.

Jiang Qiuyan rubbed the back of her head and sighed softly. “What were you thinking just now that got you so upset?”

“Nothing. I just got emotional for a moment. I’m sorry.”

Shi Yu’s head drooped even lower, like a child who’d done something wrong.

Maybe if she behaved, Jiang Qiuyan would soften, and then she wouldn’t send her away.

Looking at her like this, Jiang Qiuyan’s feelings were complicated: a flicker of anger at being misunderstood, helpless frustration, but above all, aching tenderness.

Shi Yu’s file was sparse, barely half a page. Beyond knowing that life at the Pei household had been hard on her, Jiang Qiuyan knew nothing of her past. What exactly had she endured to end up like this?

Other eighteen-year-olds were carefree little princesses. But Shi Yu had long grown accustomed to the fickleness of the world, becoming cautious and wary, reading everyone’s mood before making a move.

Jiang Qiuyan’s embrace was warm and carried the scent of her pheromones. Shi Yu calmed considerably, hesitating over whether to hug her back.

Jiang Qiuyan noticed. She took Shi Yu’s hands and placed them around her waist, pressing Shi Yu’s head into her chest.

“From now on, cry when you want to cry and laugh when you want to laugh. Don’t hold yourself back around me, and don’t worry about making me angry. I’ll never be angry at Little Yu, you hear me?”

She’d thought Shi Yu was overly cautious, terrified at the slightest disturbance. Now she understood: Shi Yu was simply afraid of falling back into her old life.

Her heart was full of anxiety, like someone standing at the edge of a cliff, constantly afraid of falling, because no one would reach out to catch her.

Opening her heart might not be easy, but she would give her lots and lots of love.

“Aren’t you going to answer me?”

Jiang Qiuyan pinched her ear gently, her tone smooth and warm, laced with her unique brand of indulgence.

“Mm-hm,” Shi Yu mumbled.

In truth, she didn’t know if she should answer Jiang Qiuyan, but her voice was so gentle that she couldn’t help wanting to respond.

Even if she couldn’t follow through, at least she was willing to keep up the illusion.

Jiang Qiuyan’s hand pressed against the small of her back, fingers hooking under her hem, teasing at the boundary.

“Then let me tell you a secret too,” she murmured, leaning down to nip at Shi Yu’s ear. Her voice was low and dark. “I was holding back because I was afraid of hurting you, not because I didn’t want to.”

The moment the words left her lips, pain lanced through Shi Yu’s ear, and at the same time, a cold hand settled on her back.

Jiang Qiuyan had been bracing herself against the counter, and the warmth had been leached from her palm. So when that cool palm met Shi Yu’s burning skin, the omega couldn’t help but shiver.

The omega was far too thin. The bones along her back stood out sharply. When she traced them with her fingertips, she could feel Shi Yu’s breath stall.

The little cat arched her back and leaned into her arms. Her heartbeat pulsed through skin into her palm, thump, thump, thump, each beat an invitation.

“I’ve been holding back until my stomach aches, and you went and misunderstood me like that. From now on, no matter how much you cry and fuss, I won’t listen.”

She caught Shi Yu’s lips in hers, her voice sticky and teasing. “You little ingrate.”