Boom!
That hoarse “It’s me” exploded in Su Qiao’s mind like a thunderclap.
It was Gu Changfeng!
All her reason and vigilance collapsed in an instant. With trembling hands, she almost yanked the door bolt open.
“Creak—”
The old wooden door swung inward.
Outside, a tall, exhausted figure stood motionless in the cold moonlight.
It was him.
It really was him.
Gu Changfeng was wearing an ill-fitting set of dark blue civilian clothes, as though he had gotten them from somewhere at the last minute. His clothes were covered in dust, and there were several tears around the hems of his trousers. He looked utterly travel-worn and battered.
He had lost weight, and his skin had darkened. A ring of stubble had grown along his jaw, making his sharply defined face look even harder and more weathered.
Only his eyes remained the same.
In the dim corridor, they still shone like two cold stars, fixed unwaveringly on her.
Su Qiao’s nose suddenly stung, and her eyes instantly reddened.
Before she could say a single word, the man outside had already moved.
He stepped inside in one stride, slammed the door shut behind him, and locked it.
The next second, an overwhelming scent of gunpowder, dust, and intense masculine presence enveloped Su Qiao completely.
He pulled her fiercely into his arms.
The embrace was filled with irresistible force, almost as though he wanted to press her into his very bones.
His solid chest was burning hot, and his powerful arms held her like iron bands, locking her tightly against him.
Su Qiao was squeezed so tightly that her bones almost hurt, and she could barely breathe, yet she did not struggle.
Her cheek was pressed firmly against the rough fabric of his clothes. The familiar scent of him surrounded her, bringing her an inexplicable sense of security. She could clearly hear his heart pounding wildly inside his chest, “thump, thump, thump,” beating so violently it seemed as though it might leap right out of him.
That embrace was filled with the lingering fear of nearly losing what he had finally regained, as well as an overwhelming, desperate possessiveness.
After a long while—so long that Su Qiao thought she was about to suffocate—Gu Changfeng finally and slowly loosened his arms.
But he did not let her go.
His hot hands instead cupped her face, the rough calluses on his thumbs gently brushing against her delicate skin.
He lowered his head and carefully examined her inch by inch. His gaze was focused and almost ravenous, as though he wanted to engrave every detail of her appearance into his soul, making sure she was safe, making sure he wasn’t dreaming.
“I’m back.”
He looked into her eyes and finally spoke. His voice was terribly hoarse, as though it were filled with gravel.
Those three simple words seemed to have exhausted every ounce of strength in his body.
Looking at his bloodshot eyes, his dry, cracked lips, and the exhaustion and lingering fear he could no longer conceal, something deep in Su Qiao’s heart was fiercely touched.
All her worry, anxiety, and fear transformed in an instant into an overwhelming ache for him.
She rose onto her toes, wrapped both arms around his neck, and took the initiative to press her warm lips against his dry, cracked ones.
Gu Changfeng’s body suddenly went rigid.
Then, in those deep, unfathomable black eyes, two flames instantly ignited like a wildfire!
Almost immediately, he took control of the kiss.
The next moment, the kiss transformed from tentative tenderness into a storm-like intensity.
He no longer restrained himself or held anything back.
Like a beast that had finally broken free of every shackle, he kissed her fiercely, his emotions bordering on punishment, overwhelming her with the pent-up longing he had suppressed for so long.
“Mmm…”
Su Qiao was kissed until she kept retreating, her body growing weak. She could only cling to his shoulders to keep herself upright.
Gu Changfeng scooped her up into his arms and carried her several steps to the door, pressing her firmly against the cold wooden panel.
“Click.”
With one hand, he undid the fastenings of her nightdress, and the silky fabric slipped from her smooth shoulder, revealing a large expanse of pale skin gleaming in the moonlight.
“Rip—”
He roughly pulled off his own inconvenient civilian jacket, revealing a strong, muscular, bronze-colored chest beneath, crisscrossed with several wounds that had only recently scabbed over.
Then he lowered his head, his burning lips tracing down along her neck…
In the spacious room, only muffled breaths and the sounds of clothing being torn apart remained, intertwining and intensifying beneath the ambiguous night.
……
No one knew how much time had passed before the storm finally subsided.
Su Qiao lay weakly in Gu Changfeng’s arms, utterly drained of strength, while the man holding her finally regained a trace of reason from his nearly uncontrolled state.
He carried her to the bed, gently placed her beneath the soft covers, then climbed in beside her and wrapped his arms tightly around her from behind, resting his chin against the top of her head.
Neither of them spoke.
Only their heartbeats and breathing intertwined in the quiet room, forming the most moving melody.
Only then did Su Qiao belatedly notice that his clothes were still damp.
Not from sweat, but from dew.
After completing the mission, he had not even returned to the military camp to report. Instead, he had gone straight from the battlefield, spent more than ten hours on a stuffy train, and then walked several kilometers through the night, enduring the elements and rushing all the way back.
All just to see her.
The realization made Su Qiao’s heart melt completely.
In the darkness, Gu Changfeng gently rubbed his chin against the top of her head.
He tightened his arms around her and buried his face in the crook of her neck, taking a deep breath as though he wanted to inhale her scent completely into his lungs.
Then, in a voice hoarse beyond words, he leaned close to her ear and slowly uttered a sentence that made her instantly freeze.
“The things you sent me saved my life.”