Chapter 260 Extra Chapter 3
After going back and forth several times, she was extremely exhausted and under great mental stress. In the middle of the night, Josh didn't know why, but she leaned against the wall and fell into a deep sleep in Xie Jue's arms.
As she gradually regained consciousness and felt the warm body beside her and the breathing that was not in her own rhythm, she was startled and suddenly opened her eyes to look to the side.
The worst-case scenario that was anticipated did not occur.
Xie Jue was already awake, lying on his side, staring intently at her.
His face was still pale from blood loss, but his eyes were much clearer, and a satisfied smile, as if he had survived a disaster, played on the corners of his mouth.
"Sister... I made it through." His voice was still a little hoarse, but it was no longer weak.
Josie's heart finally settled down, and she breathed a long sigh of relief, still feeling a lingering fear: "You really... scared me to death!"
Seeing her relieved expression, Xie Jue's eyes shone even brighter. He tentatively asked, "Sister...does the promise you made to me yesterday still stand?"
“Of course it counts.” Josie nodded without hesitation, her eyes gentle. “What do you want me to promise you?”
As soon as she finished speaking, Xie Jue's eyes suddenly became deep.
He didn't answer, but gave the answer through his actions.
He propped himself up, with an undeniable resolve, lowered his head, and precisely captured her slightly parted lips as she asked a question.
Josie's mind went completely blank for a moment.
This kiss, initially tinged with tentative anticipation and a cautious tenderness, was like a butterfly gently touching a petal.
Xie Jue closely watched her reaction, and when he realized that she did not immediately push him away, nor did she show any disgust or anger, the emotions that had been suppressed for years and were as fiery as volcanic lava instantly broke through all the shackles.
Josie was stunned. When she came to her senses, Xie Jue's kiss became urgent and deep, carrying an almost savage sense of plunder and assertion of dominance. It was no longer a younger brother's attachment to his older sister, but a man's most direct and ardent demand for the woman he had longed for.
Between their intertwined lips lay his years of suppressed love, his desperate gamble, and the prelude to a brand new offensive.
Like a lone wolf finally freed from all its shackles, he eagerly licked and gnawed at the long-awaited spring, wanting to imprint all the love and waiting accumulated over the years onto her through this kiss.
"Thank you...you..." she gasped, her cheeks flushed, her lips swollen from the kiss, her eyes filled with shock and panic.
She wanted to rebuke him, to reaffirm their "sibling" relationship, but when she met his incredibly bright eyes, filled with churning pain, longing, and a hint of cautious pleading, all the words that were on the tip of her tongue choked her.
Xie Jue did not force him to continue. He stepped back slightly, but his forehead was still pressed against hers, their hot breaths mingling together.
His voice was terribly hoarse, carrying the weariness and stubbornness of someone who had given up all hope.
"Sister...don't push me away anymore." He held her hand with such force that it almost hurt her, but then relaxed slightly after realizing it, as if she were a fragile treasure. "I'm not a child anymore, and my feelings for you are no longer those of a younger brother to his older sister."
He raised his other hand, his fingertips gently tracing her slightly swollen lips, his gaze focused as if performing some kind of ritual: "I love you, Josie. It's a man's love for a woman, a love that wants to possess you, embrace you, and stand with you in all the sunshine and rain."
Josie's heart pounded violently; his words were like pebbles thrown into her seemingly calm lake of heart, stirring up towering waves.
She looked at the still-dry bloodstains on his pale face and felt his body trembling slightly from blood loss and excitement.
She had actually felt it over the past two years, but she was unwilling to think about it deeply or dare to confront it.
She used the identity of "younger brother" to confine him at a safe distance, and also numbed her own senses.
But now, he has bluntly torn down that barrier.
“Your injury…” She avoided his burning gaze, trying to steer the conversation back to a “safe” area.
Xie Jue's lips curled into a wild and bitter smile. "These wounds are nothing compared to being able to watch them have you."
Josie fell silent. His gaze, his aggression, made her realize that the man before her was no longer the child she had picked up from the tent area who needed her care.
Seeing the vulnerability revealed in his wolf-like eyes, Josie sighed. She couldn't change her feelings for him so quickly.
She seemed to see his predicament, but having come this far, he didn't want to back down anymore.
A flash of ruthlessness crossed his eyes. "Sister, you are my everything. If the result is that they separate you from me, then I would rather never go back."
He admitted he was despicable and that he was pressuring her.
He also wanted to take advantage of his sister's soft heart towards him to create an opportunity for himself.
Looking at Xie Jue's bloody wounds, she suddenly understood.
These are all estimated to be superficial injuries; no one here can truly harm him.
The only one who can hurt him is himself.
What a wolf cub!
She took a deep breath and finally looked up to meet Xie Jue's gaze, which seemed to devour her.
Her eyes no longer darted away, but were filled with complex emotions—helplessness, heartache, and struggle—which ultimately transformed into a gentle firmness.
“Xiao Jue,” she spoke softly, but her voice reached his ears clearly, “I can’t immediately see you as my man…”
The light in Xie Jue's pupils dimmed and died instantly.
"But... I will try to accept you."
Xie Jue's half-closed eyelids suddenly lifted, and a huge wave of joy crashed over him, making him almost unable to stand.
Josie reached out and gently touched his injured cheek. Her fingertips were slightly cool, yet they seemed to possess a magical power to soothe any wound: "Your injury makes me feel bad too... So, could you please not try to get my attention like this in the future? If you want anything, you can just tell me directly."
Her words were like heavenly music, instantly dispelling all the gloom and uncertainty in Xie Jueqi's heart.
He opened his arms and pulled her into his embrace again, this time with much gentler movements, filled with immense tenderness.
He buried his face in the crook of her neck, greedily inhaling her breath, his voice muffled and choked with sobs: "That's enough... those words are enough..."
As Josie felt his body trembling, the last trace of hesitation in her heart vanished.
She hugged him back and gently patted his back, as if comforting a lone wolf that had finally found its home.
“But Xie Jue,” she whispered in his ear, “you have to understand that my world doesn’t only include you. If you ever feel that I have mistreated you and you do this to me, I will regret my decision today.”
Xie Jue raised his head, his eyes still holding a hint of stubbornness, but now filled with a firm resolve: "All I've ever wanted is a place by your side. As long as I can openly protect you and have you... I don't care about anything else."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
