The sunset gradually spread across the sky, like a painted canvas of colors.
By the time Shen Yue returned to the apartment, night was approaching. Standing at the door, she hadn't even had time to retrieve her keys before the door swung open from the inside.
Raising her head, a beat too slow, she saw a tall, imposing figure standing in the doorway, blocking most of the light from within, which made his expression even more inscrutable.
The woman's eyes were dark, beautifully so, with a faint blush at the corners. Her voice was soft and gentle, "Xie—"
Before she could finish, a pair of strong, powerful arms wrapped around her waist. Shen Yue was practically scooped up by the man like a child, directly carried inside, and the door was hooked shut with his foot.
Shen Yue instinctively wrapped her arms around the man's neck.
Carried by the man onto the sofa, she sat on his firm, muscled thighs, facing him. His long arms encircled Shen Yue's waist, and his head was buried in the crook of her neck, his high nose pressing against her delicate, fair skin.
The scorching heat of his breath brushed against her skin, seeping in through her collar. As if sensing the faint chill emanating from the man, the delicate and fragile woman instinctively curled up, her full lips pressed together, her dark, beautiful eyes glistening with moisture.
Her soft, pleasing voice, uttered with cautious gentleness, could melt even the coldest heart.
"Mr. Xie, did someone upset you?"
He inhaled the sweet fragrance of Shen Yue's skin with a subtle sniff before looking up at the cause of his displeasure. From his commanding height, his brows were stern. He wasn't wearing his glasses today, and his dark pupils were burning with a tenacious gaze. "Have you forgotten what you promised me?"
Shen Yue vaguely remembered. She recalled promising Xie Jiangsheng that she would come to accompany him in the afternoon when she left that morning, but she had forgotten.
Thinking this, Shen Yue felt a pang of guilt. Xie Jiangsheng held her tightly, and Shen Yue didn't dare to move. Her dark pupils were filled with remorse and helplessness. "Mr. Xie, I'm sorry. I... I was too busy this morning and just forgot..."
Xie Jiangsheng's eyes deepened. He remembered that Shen Yue had lost her memory. Besides him, who else would recognize Shen Yue? Or what else could Shen Yue possibly be so busy with that it took this long?
He asked calmly, "What were you so busy with? Tell me, perhaps I can help you."
Shen Yue's eyelashes lowered.
"It's nothing," her soft voice carried a hint of melancholy. She looked up, "Mr. Xie, I fell."
Her face was expressionless, but her pitiably spoken words somehow carried a touch of grievance.
"It hurt a lot."
It was as if she were acting spoiled, or like a child who had been wronged outside and was now seeking comfort in an adult's embrace, her entire being, her entire heart, relying on the man before her.
Xie Jiangsheng felt a tingling sensation in his heart, as if an electric current had surged through his limbs, his heart skipping a beat.
Xie Jiangsheng's voice immediately softened, filled with immense patience. "Let me see. Does it still hurt now?"
Shen Yue smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners, dimples appearing faintly. Leaning into the man's warm and gentle embrace, she felt a sense of calm.
"It doesn't hurt. I went to the clinic to get it bandaged, that's why I'm back so late."
This served as an explanation, easily soothing the man's displeasure.
The man's voice grew deeper, tinged with a husky rasp. "It really doesn't hurt anymore?"
Shen Yue's eyelashes trembled slightly. She hooked her arms around his neck, the tips of her jade-like ears turning red. "No, it doesn't hurt anymore."
The man, who appeared gentle and refined on the surface, seemed to be losing his composure. He was fierce and forceful, and even his amorous peach blossom eyes revealed a hint of desire.
He stared at Shen Yue as if she were an oblivious prey caught in the gaze of a wild beast.
Darkness descended, and Shen Yue's mind went blank. Her nose was suddenly filled with Xie Jiangsheng's scent. He pressed her head down, and Xie Jiangsheng kissed her expertly, albeit with a lack of finesse or technique. Despite having a face that suggested great charm, he was remarkably inexperienced in kissing.
But his approach was wild and uninhibited, overwhelming Shen Yue. A faint mist appeared in her dark, beautiful eyes, the corners of her eyes flushed with a hazy beauty. Her long, thick lashes cast shadows, accentuating the fragility of her pale cheeks.
Later, he bit her lower lip with a punishing force, leaving a faint mark. His large, broad hand still controlled the back of her head.
His gaze darkened, his thin lips slightly pressed together. "If something happens, you must call me. Do you know how worried I would be?"
Shen Yue hadn't fully recovered from the fierce kiss and hadn't even heard what the man said clearly. It wasn't until he repeated himself that she nodded dazedly.
The man smiled in satisfaction.
Once she had slightly regained her senses, Shen Yue bit her swollen lips. After a moment of hesitation, she softly asked, "Mr. Xie, do you know my family?"
She wondered how terribly she had behaved before losing her memory to make her own parents hate her so much, and for her own younger brother to look at her as if she were an enemy.
It felt like a heavy stone pressing down on her heart, making it hard to breathe.
Xie Jiangsheng paused, his brows furrowed slightly. "So the reason you're back so late is that you went home?"
Shen Yue nodded. She felt a pang of sadness, her slender eyelashes trembling slightly. "...Yes."
Xie Jiangsheng's brows furrowed deeper, his gaze turning cold, his lips forming a straight line, and his displeasure intensified.
"Not really."
This was the truth.
Shen Yue looked up at the man's dark eyes, biting her lower lip as if she felt no pain. She lowered her gaze, turning her face away. "But you said before that we were boyfriend and girlfriend. Don't you know anything about my family at all?"
As soon as she spoke, Shen Yue felt the grip around her waist tighten abruptly. An intense pressure washed over her. He coldly raised his eyelids, looking at Shen Yue, his eyes filled with a chilling coldness, yet his voice was incredibly gentle.
Because Shen Yue kept her head down, she couldn't see the man's expression.
"Yes, we... are indeed a couple, but that doesn't mean I should know your family."
Xie Jiangsheng knew Shen Yue had misunderstood him. He had only meant that their relationship went beyond that of mere acquaintances, referring only to their physical connection, not their emotions.
However, Xie Jiangsheng did not choose to explain. On the contrary, he found it rather appealing.
He liked seeing Shen Yue's gaze solely focused on him, like a spoiled child, possessive and unreasonable. He only wished that Shen Yue would have eyes only for him, and that no one else mattered.
Not at all.