After the bedroom quieted down, Xu Nanyin lay back on the bed, typing on her phone.
[Why did you bid so high?]
[Also, were those congratulatory ads in Port City your doing?]
She couldn’t help but ask.
Maybe because she had more cocktails tonight—the alcohol was light but still more than usual—Xu Nanyin felt slightly tipsy.
Nervously waiting a long time, no reply.
It was past midnight, over an hour since the auction ended. Had he already gone to sleep?
Xu Nanyin decided to bother Secretary Jiang Chen, who had just posted on Moments and was probably still awake.
[Has your boss gone to sleep?]
[Why isn’t he replying to me? Are you by his side?]
[Does he sleep earlier than you?]
[Secretary Jiang, how do I ask him so he’ll spill everything?]
Jiang Chen got several messages and thought something urgent happened. He quickly opened them and laughed at the last two.
Jiang Chen: [Boss sleeps earlier than me. Isn’t that reasonable?]
Otherwise, he’d be the boss by now.
Jiang Chen: [Boss returned to Villa 75 an hour ago. I’m 98% sure he’s not asleep—he just hasn’t checked his phone.]
Xu Nanyin sat up from bed.
Waiting another ten minutes, still no reply from Song Huaixu.
She went to the small balcony.
Not far away, the lights of the seaside road lit up the coast dimly, but Villa 75 was out of sight.
Rubbing her face, she knew she couldn’t sleep without answers tonight.
She slipped on slippers and went downstairs.
Her parents had long gone to their rooms, the house silent, servants in their quarters.
Xu Nanyin opened the door; the night breeze blew her slightly curled black hair.
She wore a square-neck, puff-sleeve, high-waisted nightgown that reached her ankles, full of European charm, accentuating her full figure.
Usually chauffeured everywhere, she seldom walked—especially at night.
Halfway there, she sobered up a bit.
She seemed a bit tipsy.
But having left the door, she thought, rather than returning home, she might as well finish the walk.
The road was incredibly quiet, only occasional waves crashing on rocks, oddly soothing.
Though the car ride was just a few minutes, she had walked over twenty minutes.
When she arrived at Villa 75, Xu Nanyin’s lips parted, panting, cheeks flushed from exertion.
The butler was in the living room; hearing the doorbell and seeing her face, he was a bit shocked.
A girl coming alone at midnight?
When he opened the door, Xu Nanyin smiled softly, “Hello, I’m looking for your master… um, is he asleep?”
The butler led her inside, “Master is swimming.”
Xu Nanyin glanced at the courtyard pool; there was no one, not even a splash.
The butler pointed downwards, “In the basement. You can’t see it from here; the skylight at the back is open.”
Xu Nanyin said, “Oh.” Song Huaixu could swim? Did he do everything?
The butler only escorted her to the entrance, signaling she should go down by herself. She hesitated but stepped into the quiet space.
The basement was cooler.
First time entering, Xu Nanyin’s eyes wandered over the hallway and walls, where classical paintings hung. One showed two melting candles.
She slowed her pace, turned around, and finally heard water sounds. Holding her skirt, she followed the noise and saw a huge swimming pool.
The lighting was dim, so she didn’t see anyone. Walking along the edge, suddenly, water splashed right in front of her.
Startled, Xu Nanyin stepped back; her skirt was splashed and wet.
A man with a handsome face emerged, water rolling down his neck, shoulders, and chest muscles into the pool. His black hair was tousled yet incredibly sexy.
She had never seen Song Huaixu like this.
Caught off guard, Xu Nanyin froze and looked away, “Why don’t you say anything?”
Song Huaixu glanced at her flushed ears, “Why are you here?”
Xu Nanyin remembered her purpose and stepped around the water, squatting on the dry poolside beside him.
“I messaged you, but you didn’t reply.”
She complained, “You ignored me for so long.”
“Sorry, I didn’t see it.”
“Now I know, no one swims at midnight.”
Xu Nanyin noticed some dust on her foot, took off her slippers, held up her skirt, and prepared to use her hand to splash water and clean it.
She was clearly unguarded.
From his higher viewpoint, when she lifted her skirt, a flash of pale pink at her slender ankle peeked through the gap.
A gentleman should not look improperly.
Song Huaixu turned his gaze away at once, fulfilling his duty.
He furrowed his brows.
“Sit down, just wash your feet here.”
Xu Nanyin shook her head, “It’s not clean like this.”
The girl was considerate.
Song Huaixu smiled softly, lifting his hand to help splash water.
His large palm made plenty of water splash.
Xu Nanyin obediently let him help.
“I don’t know how long I walked to your house, I’m tired.”
Song Huaixu’s eyes left her feet, frowning slightly at her constant soft complaining.
“Walk?”
The distance from her house to here wasn’t short, especially for a delicate girl, and it wasn’t safe.
“Yeah, I walked here. You can’t refuse my questions later.”
Xu Nanyin emphasized how much she valued their talk tonight.
“Don’t walk alone at night anymore.” The man’s voice was steady. “If you come, let someone pick you up.”
“You didn’t reply to me. Who would pick me up?”
Xu Nanyin looked at him.
“You can contact Jiang Chen; he knows everyone’s contact info here.”
Song Huaixu stared at her.
“Got it?”
Seeing his serious face, she realized she’d forgotten the danger tonight.
“Got it.”
She moved her toes, feeling clean, slipped on her slippers, and noticed a clean towel nearby.
“Can I use that? It’s wet and uncomfortable.”
Song Huaixu said calmly, “Yes.”
Hearing his agreement, Xu Nanyin immediately dropped her skirt and stood, heading toward it.
But her slippers were wet, and she slipped, screaming as she fell into the pool.
Water splashed everywhere.
For a moment, she felt weightless, panicked, and water flooded her mouth…
The next instant, she was caught by a strong arm around her waist, pressed against a hard body, and the chaotic scene before her turned into something she dared not look at before.
Xu Nanyin clung to that arm, feeling around to hold his neck.
Her gauzy skirt floated underwater, wrapping around him with the flow.
Her nails scratched him, finally steadying herself.
At this moment, he was her only lifeline—she feared falling from him.
Song Huaixu growled softly, paused slightly, then turned his head to brush her wet cheek. His voice was low, “Holding on so tight?”
She was clutching him and pressing down on him, their movements unsteady.
The warmth seemed to press out from the already low neckline.
Droplets rolled down their bodies, disappearing where they touched. She now looked like a bewildered mermaid.
Xu Nanyin felt the pool was especially deep and panicked.
“Song Huaixu, don’t let me fall. Is your pool very deep…?”
He was tall; the water reached his shoulders standing up. If she fell, she definitely couldn’t touch the bottom.
She tried to use him to climb up, moving up and down.
Song Huaixu’s Adam’s apple moved, tightening his grip to lock her in, avoiding torture. His thin lips brushed her hair as his voice deepened.
“Don’t move.”
His palm moved down, lightly slapping her hip with water.
Xu Nanyin was incredulous, ears flushed, and dared not move—slowly sliding down by inertia.
She couldn’t help but cling to him again. Although in cool water, he was burning hot.
“I want to go up.”
Xu Nanyin pleaded, face red.
“Can’t you swim up yourself?”
Song Huaixu raised an eyebrow.
If she could, would she still be holding him, biting her lip unhappily?
“No.”
His free hand cupped her face, making her look at him.
“Then why did you publicly clear up that you saw my good swimming stats?”
Her own words weren’t like that.
Xu Nanyin blushed, denying, “I didn’t say that.”
Their eyes met; his gaze shifted from her eyes to her lips. She held her breath, understanding the meaning.
The surrounding water seemed to start boiling.
Song Huaixu whispered, “How do I walk like this?”
His hand went underwater to part her, but her skirt had already floated up, so he only touched her.
Xu Nanyin shivered.
He lifted her up, supporting her.
Her wet skirt floated and settled between her legs, thin enough to almost dissolve, slowly rubbing.
She sat on his forearm, feeling not only his incredible strength but also intense warmth.
Song Huaixu was tall and strong, with broad arms.
Sitting on him, she felt their bodies tightly pressed.
The water was sometimes cold, sometimes his heat.
Very different from toys; she craved that warmth and moving slightly only made her want more.
Xu Nanyin suddenly thought, “If only I weren’t wearing underwear,” and moved a bit more noticeably.
“Are you treating my arm like a toy?”
Song Huaixu tilted his head.
“You’re hot, water’s cold.”
Xu Nanyin mumbled with a red face, her lower back resting on his palm, her voice soft, “It feels good.”
She felt good.
He did not.
She stopped and moved repeatedly, rubbing him.
Song Huaixu’s Adam’s apple moved slightly. He set her on the poolside, grabbed the scattered skirt fabric, and tucked it between her knees.
“Clamp it.”
Clamp? Clamp where?
Xu Nanyin was still thinking those words sounded a little risqué but didn’t hesitate in action.
Even his hand was caught in the fabric, entangled so she couldn’t move.
“Let go.”
Song Huaixu’s eyes darkened.
“No.”
She barely managed to refuse; the itch hadn’t gone away—entirely caused by him.
Song Huaixu could easily separate her but didn’t.
His hand pushed a little through the fabric with moderate pressure, pressing where it indented slightly.
His voice was low, “Really don’t want to?”
She suppressed all his rising emotions, the voice mixed with desire, sounding sexy and charming.
Xu Nanyin hummed uncontrollably, instinctively bending her knees to clamp tighter.
Just as the movement began, he pressed down, and she landed on the poolside tiles.
Thanks to her nickname being Zhu Zhu, she’d long been interested in collecting pearls from shells.
At this moment, she was like a defenseless shell, letting someone’s fingers probe for natural pearls.
Once they found the precious pearls, they wouldn’t let go, holding tight to take them out.
But this shell had an extra layer of fabric; the pearl embedded in the flesh was wrapped, unable to be taken.
The fingertip’s temperature was high, the wet fabric cool, alternating heat and cold, making Xu Nanyin blink.
The water droplets on her lashes trembled, teetered, then finally fell.
By her ear, Song Huaixu asked, “Want more?”
The silent, empty basement floor.
Xu Nanyin’s unsteady breathing was especially clear, softly calling this place cold.
Between the silky white fabric, the veined arm appeared faintly, water flowing all over her body back into the pool.
Leaving the basement, the entire villa was so quiet, it felt like no one else was home.
Wrapped in a large towel, her calves weakly dangling in his arms, eyes closed, she pondered how it came to this.
All because he went swimming at midnight.
Now she was soaking wet, uncomfortable in her dress, and exhausted from the earlier incident.
“Is anyone outside?”
She only showed her eyes, also wet and red at the corners.
“No one will come without my order.”
Song Huaixu brushed the towel off her face, looking at her flushed cheeks.
Xu Nanyin didn’t believe him.
“You didn’t even know when I arrived.”
The butler had brought her in directly.
The man was shirtless, with marks where her nails had dug into his arms, broad shoulders, narrow waist, strong and vigorous.
“If there were anyone, they would’ve come asking just now.”
Xu Nanyin didn’t admit the voice she couldn’t suppress earlier was hers.
She still needed to use his bedroom to bathe, dry her hair, and dry her nightgown, returning exactly as she came.
“Do you have clothes I can wear?”
“Do you think so?”
“Bathrobe, or your clothes.”
What difference did it make?
It was her first time on the second floor here—different from Ning City, more desolate, and the dark colors reminded her of a horror movie.
The portrait oil paintings on the walls quietly watched the man carry the girl upstairs, stopping outside the master bedroom.
After Xu Nanyin landed and leaned against the door, her legs still weak, her mind clear again, she pushed him out.
The butler, hearing the movement upstairs, saw his master standing outside the bedroom door.
A lock clicked inside.
No doubt, it was Miss Xu inside.
Seeing the claw marks on the man’s back, it was obvious a woman made them, but he pretended not to see.
Though he didn’t know what exactly happened after a night’s sleep, he knew something had occurred.
After this intense intimacy, she was locked outside?
Song Huaixu turned his head, “Go make a bowl of ginger soup.”
The butler nodded, cleared his throat, and cautiously asked, “Do you want me to make some cooling tea too?”
Song Huaixu: “You can keep it for yourself.”
The butler closed his mouth and left silently.
Song Huaixu went to wash in the guest room, hearing no movement in the adjacent master bedroom, guessing she wasn’t done yet.
Afterward, he went straight to the study. Apart from Xu Nanyin’s previous messages, there was one from Jiang Chen an hour ago.
He casually opened it.
Jiang Chen: [Miss Xu seems to want to interrogate you hard.]
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