He clenched his back teeth so hard he didn’t make a sound, his black eyes fixed on Lin Tianxin’s lowered eyelashes. They trembled like startled butterflies, making his heart tingle and dulling the pain in his arm just a little.
“Damn it, be gentle… are you trying to assassinate your own husband?” he teased, his voice deliberately harsh, though it trembled not from pain, but from seeing her biting her lip, tiny beads of sweat forming at her temple. It felt like cats scratching at his heart.
Lin Tianxin ignored him, her tweezers probing the wound with precise, focused movements, her eyes frighteningly intent.
Her calm, surgical composure from her past life on the operating table had returned but her fingers still shook uncontrollably. This was Lu Ye, her husband for the rest of her life. She didn’t want him to feel pain or be hurt.
“Found it,” she whispered, pressing the tweezers sharply. Lu Ye let out a low groan as cold sweat slid down his forehead and along his jaw, dripping onto her hand, making her flinch at the heat.
The moment the bullet was removed, Lu Ye suddenly grabbed her wrist.
“You little girl, that was ruthless,” he panted, a grin tugging at the corner of his lips, his black eyes mixing wildness with care. “If this arm is ruined, you’ll have to serve me for the rest of your life.”
“It won’t be ruined.” Lin Tianxin shot him a glance and quickly pressed gauze against the wound to stop the bleeding, her voice softening. “I’ve practiced, don’t worry.”
She couldn’t tell him that her medical skills were exceptional in her past life or that she had been reborn so she made up a clumsy excuse.
Lu Ye raised an eyebrow but didn’t ask further.
He didn’t care what she had done before. She was his wife, someone he would protect with his life. Even if she had just graduated, he was more than willing to let her practice on him.
He lifted his uninjured right hand to her chin, forcing her to look up. The possessiveness in his eyes was almost tangible.
“What are you staring at? Is my face blooming?” he cursed, but his thumb gently stroked her lips soft and tender, bitten red from earlier. Seeing them made his chest burn.
Before Lin Tianxin could respond, he suddenly lowered his head and kissed her fiercely.
It wasn’t gentle; it was a wild, forceful claim tinged with blood and urgency, his tongue prying open her teeth and tangling with hers.
Zhao Qiang, watching nearby, was horrified: Am I even allowed to watch this?
Would the Commander kill him if he peeked?
He covered his eyes, but a crack allowed him to peek anyway holy hell! The Commander is amazing!
Lin Tianxin was caught completely off guard. Her nose filled with the scent of gunpowder and faint blood mixed with his unique, comforting masculine scent.
Her mind went blank with a “buzz,” and the gauze in her hands fell to the floor with a plop. She froze completely.
Lu Ye’s kiss was aggressive and rapid, consuming the air from her lungs. His wounded left arm still bled, the drops falling on their overlapping clothing but he didn’t notice, holding her tightly at the waist, as if afraid she would escape.
“Lu Ye…” she moaned, pressing her fingers against his solid chest, trying to push him away.
His kiss was too hot, too dominating, igniting heat all over her body.
Lu Ye loosened slightly, breathing heavily, flames burning in his black eyes as he stared at her flushed cheeks and swollen lips.
“This is interest,” he murmured, thumb again brushing her lips, his tone rough and husky. “You’ll pay me back later.”
Lin Tianxin panted, her eyes red. “You bastard! Injured and still acting wild!”
He was in pain, yet shamelessly teasing her before the wound was even treated.
Zhao Qiang, watching nearby, felt faint with anxiety and quickly coughed, trying to be discreet: “Um… Commander, Sister-in-law, I’ll stay outside and keep watch. Call me if anything happens!”
Without waiting for a response, he slipped out like greased lightning, thoughtfully shutting the door behind him.
The moment the door closed, Lu Ye laughed softly, uncontrollable: “My wife is perfect surgery hurts nothing at all. You’re the best anesthesia.”
Lin Tianxin rolled her eyes at his smooth talk men and their lies. Sweating from pain, he still acted so smug.
She continued wrapping his wound when Lu Ye suddenly said: “Wife, my stomach itches. Can you scratch it for me?”
He twisted his tall, strong body as if it really itched. His uninjured arm was holding the medical tools, so he couldn’t reach it himself.
Lin Tianxin froze, her cheeks flushing deep red, ears burning.
“Your belly?” she asked.
“Mm,” he said with a suggestive smile.
She set down the tools and began scratching. Somehow, his abs tightened under her touch. She warned: “Relax!”
He grinned mischievously, playful and teasing. “Can’t relax.”
“Lu Ye, behave.” Her ears burned. He was too bad.
“What? How am I misbehaving?” he said with a mischievous grin, dark eyes full of teasing. He arched his waist and said, “It’s really itchy, lower a little… yeah, right there.”
Her fingers moved stiffly, downward but that was… too far.
Realizing his trick, she pulled back sharply, snapped the medical kit shut, glaring at him, half embarrassed, half angry. “Lu Ye! Scratch it yourself!”
“Nooo, wife!” Lu Ye feigned a pout, lifting his injured arm slightly as if helpless. “My arm can’t move do you really want me to suffer?”
“Serves you right.” Lin Tianxin grabbed the medical kit and headed toward the bedroom, slightly flustered. “Wound’s mostly treated. You sleep in the living room tonight.”
Watching her flushed ears and nearly fleeing back, Lu Ye chuckled, eyes sparkling with mischievous triumph.
He licked his lips, savoring the softness of the kiss, muttering: “Little girl, and you’re even shy.”
He propped himself up, his left arm aching from the wound, yet he didn’t care, his gaze fixed on the bedroom, his expression softening into seriousness.
Lu Ye stood at the bedroom doorway, his uninjured hand shielding the injured one, wearing a rogue but appeasing smile: “Wife, open the door. It’s cold out here I can’t let my arm catch a draft.”
His voice softened, but still carried that mischievous undertone: “Earlier was my fault. I shouldn’t have teased you. Don’t be mad. I’ll apologize, okay?”
A few seconds of silence, then a click.
Lu Ye: I knew it, my little heart wouldn’t ignore me.
Lin Tianxin emerged, hugging a thick quilt, her cheeks still rosy, deliberately looking away. “Here, take it.”
She laid it neatly on the living room floor without looking at him. “The floor’s hard. Use it to stay warm. Don’t touch your wound.”
Lu Ye froze, staring at the quilt, then at Lin Tianxin’s taut profile, a flash of surprise in his black eyes, quickly replaced by playful mischief.
He stepped forward, his tall frame nearly enveloping her, voice low and teasing: “Wife, are you laying this for me?”
“Otherwise?” Lin Tianxin glared, ears red. “Because you acted like a rascal just now? Behave, sleep in the living room. Don’t try to come in.”
“Damn it, I’m the patient here!” Lu Ye pretended to frown, reaching for her hand, but she dodged. He chuckled, leaning close, warm breath on her face: “You really want me sleeping on the floor? What if the wound hurts at night and there’s no one to take care of me?”
“Zhao Qiang’s outside. Call them if anything happens,” Lin Tianxin stepped back, keeping her distance, turning to go to the bedroom. “I’m sleeping now. Don’t knock.”
“Wait!” Lu Ye called, sounding aggrieved. “At least get me a pillow! I can’t sleep on my arm!”
Lin Tianxin hesitated, then turned to the bedroom and tossed him a pillow.