Chapter 108 What He Thought Was Flirting and What She Thought Was Flirting
The town has a unique tranquility late at night.
When Lin Xili came out of the bathroom, she carried a fresh and elegant herbal floral scent. She was using a locally made calendula soap from the town.
She walked barefoot on the cool floor, a towel draped over her shoulders, and water still dripping from her hair.
Huo Nanchen leaned against the headboard, intently flipping through a medical book in his hand, wearing a dark gray silk nightgown.
That was one of the sets of pajamas she bought for him; a button was undone at the neckline, exuding a sexy, hormonal aura.
The scene was so familiar; he had spent countless nights in the small town reading books while leaning against the headboard.
At that time, there was still a distance of unfamiliarity between them.
But things are different now.
Huo Nanchen sensed her presence, looked up from the book, and froze at the sight of her.
Lin Xili was wearing a slip dress that he had never seen before.
The light blue silk dress, with its narrow shoulder straps, accentuated her soft and perfect collarbone lines. The skirt hem only reached her upper thighs, revealing most of her slender, fair legs.
She had never dressed like that before.
In Huo Nanchen's memory, even in the most intimate moments, Lin Xili's home clothes were always conservative: long sleeves and trousers, T-shirts, cotton fabrics, and mostly plain white, gray, and beige colors.
At this moment, this outfit is like a silent temptation.
Huo Nanchen's gaze lingered on her for longer than usual.
His Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily, and his fingers tightened unconsciously, leaving slight creases on the edges of the pages.
"...Why are you dressed so lightly?" he finally asked. "Be careful not to catch a cold."
Lin Xili looked at the dress she was wearing. It was a dress that Wen Qing had insisted she buy and try when they went shopping together.
Her face flushed instantly. She walked to the dressing table, picked up a comb, and slowly combed her damp, long hair. "In the summer, didn't you say I could be affectionate with you in private?"
Huo Nanchen: "..."
He put down his book, turned off the air conditioner, lifted the thin blanket, got out of bed, and walked behind her.
Lin Xili saw him approaching in the mirror, and her heart involuntarily quickened its pace.
“I’ll dry your hair for you,” he said.
She took a hairdryer out of the drawer and handed it to him.
Huo Nanchen took it, plugged it in, and gently ran his slender fingers through her wet hair.
He was very skilled at it; he always did it whenever she washed her hair before bed.
The warm air hummed as Huo Nanchen held a hairdryer in one hand and used his fingers to comb her long hair with the other.
Lin Xili looked at the two people in the mirror.
He stood behind her, focused, his gaze fixed on her hair.
She was wearing a light blue sundress, and her shoulders gleamed like porcelain under the light.
The scene was so intimate it seemed almost unreal.
“Huo Nanchen,” she suddenly spoke.
"Hmm?" he replied, without stopping what he was doing.
"Do you like wearing this?"
The sound of the hairdryer continued. Huo Nanchen's fingers paused for half a second in her hair before continuing to comb it.
Lin Xili saw in the mirror that he had lowered his eyelids, his long eyelashes obscuring the emotions in his eyes.
"like."
The hairdryer stopped buzzing, and Huo Nanchen unplugged it, carefully putting it away in the drawer.
Lin Xili's hair was dry and lay softly over her shoulders.
She turned around and looked up at him. Huo Nanchen also looked down at her, his gaze slowly moving down from her eyes, gliding over the lines of her bare shoulders and neck, and then back to her face.
Suddenly, Huo Nanchen bent down and picked her up in his arms.
He gently placed her on the bed, the mattress slightly sinking, and sat down beside her, supporting himself with one hand on her side and gently stroking her waist with the other.
The silk nightgown felt smooth and slightly cool to the touch. His fingers moved slowly along the curve of her waist, applying just the right amount of pressure with a professional precision.
“You must be tired from the car ride today,” he said, his warm breath brushing against her earlobe. “Let me give you a massage, go to sleep.”
Lin Xili: "..."
She said sullenly, "Don't you have any ideas?"
He looked at her, his gaze as deep as the night. Lin Xili could clearly see the undercurrents surging in his eyes, a look that was clearly full of ideas.
"Yes." He admitted frankly, his fingers still gently pressing on her waist. "But you've been too tired all day. You've been taking care of Grandma and the children from morning till night. These next two days you'll also be trying on wedding dresses, buying wedding cakes and candies, checking out venues, and arranging all sorts of things."
You need to get some rest.
"Aren't you tired?" she asked him with a hint of coquettishness.
“I’m tired, but it’s different from yours. What you’ve expended today is your mental and emotional energy, which is harder to recover from than physical exertion.”
After all, taking care of her elder brother and sister-in-law's children, knowing the high level of caution behind her gentleness when caring for the two children, it's inevitable that she would be on edge.
Huo Nanchen moved his hand away from her waist and instead cupped her face, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb.
"We have a long future ahead of us."
It's not a fleeting passion, not a release of desire, but a genuine appreciation—a appreciation for her body, her condition, and their shared future.
Lin Xili raised her hand and covered his hand that was cupping her cheek, her fingertips gently tracing the knuckles and veins on the back of his hand: "Then you will sleep with me."
"Mmm," Huo Nanchen replied, lying down beside her and pulling a thin blanket over them both.
He stretched out his arm, and Lin Xili naturally rested her head on it, snuggling into his arms.
They were very familiar with this position; their bodies fit together like two puzzle pieces.
Her face was pressed against his chest, listening to his steady and powerful heartbeat, and smelling the ambergris scent emanating from him.
Huo Nanchen placed his hand on her waist, his fingers massaging her side with moderate pressure.
"Huo Nanchen," Lin Xili whispered in the darkness.
"Um?"
"We're really married." There was a sense of unreality in her voice.
"Mmm." He tightened his arms, pulling her closer into his embrace. "This time it's for real."
"Are you nervous?" Lin Xili asked.
Huo Nanchen was silent for a moment: "No, but I will take it seriously."
“Me too,” she said softly. “I will take it seriously.”
"The children had a great time today."
"Yes, they need this kind of environment."
"Don't you think I spoil them too much?"
No, you did a great job.
Why would you think that?
"The Huo family's children and grandchildren have had their time filled with studying and education since childhood, so I don't know what a normal, healthy parent-child relationship should be like."
These words were spoken plainly, but Lin Xili sensed the loneliness within them.
She recalled the stories Lu Qingshu had told her about the past. At least other people had parents, but Huo Nanchen's childhood, his mother's early death, his father's silence, the family rules, and the mission he carried.
Did little Huo Nanchen ever yearn for an ordinary, lively, and warm childhood?
“We can learn together,” she said softly. “We’ll have our own children in the future, and we’ll learn together how to be good parents.”
These words were spoken softly, but they were exceptionally clear in the quiet night.
Huo Nanchen's body stiffened for a moment, but quickly he lowered his head and pressed his forehead against hers.
"Okay, let's learn together."
Lin Xili rested her head on Huo Nanchen's arm, finding the most comfortable position in his arms, and soon her breathing became long and even.
Huo Nanchen looked down at the sleeping woman in his arms, at her peaceful sleeping face, at her slightly parted lips as she relaxed, and at the faint shadows cast by her eyelashes under her eyes.
His fingers gently brushed against the straps of her dress, the silk smooth and slightly cool to the touch. He exhaled silently before forcing himself to close his eyes.
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