After the shopping spree, Lin Guo led Chen Yuxi and Jia Jia to a private rooftop restaurant overlooking the city skyline. The night air was cool, the lights sparkling below, and the energy between them thick with unspoken tension.
"You really handled Yue Xinyan well today," Lin Guo said, voice low, teasing, as he poured her a glass of wine. His hand brushed hers—briefly, deliberately, possessive.
Yuxi's cheeks warmed. "I just… didn't want to make a scene."
He leaned closer, dark eyes glinting. "You didn't. But I liked seeing you stand your ground. Confident, calm… irresistible."
A shiver ran down her spine. She tried to hide it, laughing nervously. "You always make everything sound so intense."
"I make everything about you intense," he murmured, leaning just close enough that his breath brushed her ear. "Because you're mine. And I don't share."
Jia Jia excused herself for a moment, giving them the privacy they both knew they wanted. The air between them shifted. Lin Guo's possessiveness was no longer subtle. His hand lingered over hers, thumb brushing lightly, reminding her that she was claimed, observed, and adored.
"You… scare me sometimes," Yuxi admitted, voice soft, flustered.
He smirked, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "Good. You should be afraid of how much I want you. How much I protect you."
Her pulse thundered, heart racing in the quiet intimacy of the rooftop. Tipsy from wine, flustered from his intensity, she realized she wasn't resisting anymore. She didn't want to.
"You know…" she whispered, almost shyly, "I think I… like this side of you."
Lin Guo's smirk softened into something rare, almost tender. "You're mine, Yuxi. Always. And now… I think it's time you knew it fully."
The city lights blurred around them, but in that moment, the world narrowed to just the two of them—their proximity, their tension, and the undeniable pull neither could resist.