He suddenly lowered his head, his gaze falling on Lin Tianxin’s pale lips. The panic he had suppressed just moments ago surged violently into a tide of rage.
“Fine?” he growled hoarsely, his voice rough as if sandpaper had scraped it. “You tell me you’re fine after falling from that height?”
Lin Tianxin froze under his roar. When she looked up, her eyes collided with his inside them roiled a storm: fear, anger, and a burning intensity that seemed ready to consume her.
She opened her mouth, about to insist she was okay, but he scooped her up horizontally before she could speak.
“Lu Ye!” she exclaimed, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck.
“I’ll shut your mouth myself if you don’t.” His voice was cold and hard. He strode toward the alley, holding her firmly, each step fast and urgent, yet his arms steady as a mountain.
He glanced down at her still-pale face in his arms, his Adam’s apple rolling as raw, wild energy surged through him if he had been a moment later, if he hadn’t caught her…
He dared not imagine it.
The thought struck him like a giant hand squeezing his heart, pain making him gasp for air.
The wind at the alley entrance picked up, tossing his hair and revealing eyes blazing with fury.
He glanced at Lu Yao, who was crying and sobbing beside him, and barked, ice-cold: “What are you standing there for? You’re not carrying her don’t you have legs?”
Lu Yao shivered at his shout. Her cousin was terrifying.
Annoying!
Lu Ye carried Lin Tianxin toward the parked car. She felt as light as a feather, yet her weight pressed heavily against his chest. He lowered his head, brushing his nose against her sweat-damp hair, voice softening abruptly. “You’ve got guts, following someone you know isn’t good.”
Lin Tianxin buried herself in his neck, smelling the familiar scent of soap mixed with gunpowder. Slowly, the lingering fear faded.
She mumbled, “You… you knew already?”
“If I didn’t, you’d be dead by now.” Lu Ye gritted his teeth, voice rough and wild, but laced with deep concern. “Next time you dare meet someone alone, see how I deal with you.”
His grip tightened, as if letting go would make her disappear.
When she fell from the balcony, he felt the world collapse. Fearless in everything else, he only feared something happening to her.
In the car, Lu Ye didn’t start the engine immediately. He leaned over to fasten her seatbelt, staying close, forehead pressed to hers, eyes swirling with emotion as if trying to pull her into them.
“Lin Tianxin,” he said hoarsely, fingers caressing her cheek, “remember this: stay away from all shady people. If anyone dares so much as touch a finger on you, I’ll tear their bones apart.”
His words were harsh and domineering, impossibly unreasonable.
His fingertips, calloused from years of handling guns, brushed roughly against her cheek but the heat of his touch made her heart flutter.
The fire in his eyes hadn’t dimmed. His Adam’s apple rolled, and curses burst out unchecked: “Damn it! I risked my life on the frontlines fighting those bastards, and you… you’re here playing heart-to-heart with a spy? Do you think you’re made of iron?”
Lin Tianxin shrank back but didn’t argue. The smell of gunpowder on him hadn’t dissipated, a clear sign he’d just returned from a mission. The insignia on his military collar gleamed, yet now, because of her, he was frantic like a caged predator.
“I…” she started, wanting to explain she was collecting evidence, but he grabbed her chin before she could speak. His grip was firm, almost punitive, yet his eyes were fixed on her, overflowing with fear worse than his anger.
“What ‘I’?” Lu Ye cursed low, thumb brushing her pale lips. “Don’t do anything you shouldn’t. I’ll handle it. Say one more word, I’ll kiss you myself.”
If not for being outside, if not for the adrenaline just now, he would have kissed her the moment he saw her.
He didn’t release her chin, but his eyes softened slightly. That harsh energy was all mingled with relief.
He muttered a low “damn,” hoarse and heavy: “Are you an idiot? Knowing she’s a spy, you still go with her upstairs? You trying to make me a widower?”
Lin Tianxin’s eyes reddened, but she stubbornly replied, “I was just trying to collect evidence…”
“Evidence my ass!” Lu Ye suddenly let go, then lightly pinched her chin what he thought was gentle already left marks. “Do you know what I do for a living? And you’re charging forward like that? If anything happened to you, I could tear down that whole den and still not get you back, got it?”
His rough words poured out like rapid-fire, but in her ears, they set her heart aflame.
Seeing the red veins in his eyes, she whispered, barely audible, “I’m sorry.”
Apologies worked, but she still felt wronged. Hmph. After all that fear, he was still mad at her!
Lu Ye being mad was terrifying. He was serious, like a leopard.
Hearing her soft “sorry,” his anger flared not at her, but at himself for not protecting her.
He stared at her reddened eyes. The stubborn defiance beneath her lashes, like a little kitten hurt and refusing to bow, made his chest ache and tingle.
“‘Sorry’ is it?” he muttered harshly, then abruptly bent down, lips crashing on hers without warning.
The kiss was fierce and urgent, with the commanding force of a soldier, leaving no room for refusal. It carried every ounce of fear, anger, and the overwhelming relief of having her safe.
His hand on her neck pressed firmly, punitive yet easing slightly as she instinctively flinched, sliding to support the back of her head and deepening the kiss.
Lin Tianxin’s mind went blank. Her lips ached from the pressure, yet she could taste the tang of gunpowder and sunlight on his tongue. She felt his racing heartbeat and the possessive care in the kiss, as if drowning her in concern.
Outside the car, Lu Yao had reached the door. She gasped, covering her eyes, toes digging into the ground her cousin was too wild! In broad daylight…
Lin Tianxin pushed Lu Ye away, wiping her lips, glaring. “Lu Yao’s still outside.”
Even inside the car, Lu Yao had seen everything. If he was shameless, he couldn’t expect her to be any less.
“You want me to kiss you in front of her? Fine, I can embarrass myself for once,” he said deliberately.
His smile curved naturally, though he glanced sideways at the car window, thinking: Annoying!
He didn’t intend to kiss for long just a taste. The main goal was to divert her attention. Better her think of him than those terrifying moments.