Hearing this, Su Qiu froze in bed, clutching her phone. The next second, she lowered her gaze and glanced at the loose neckline of her slip dress.
She had just finished putting on her bra and pulled down her nightgown when the doorbell rang.
Su Qiu hurried over to open the door, stepping aside to make room.
Zhou Jingqian strode in, carrying the coolness of the summer night with him.
"Why are you here?"
Su Qiu's eyes brightened slightly as she looked up at him.
She had thought their first meeting after parting ways wouldn't come this soon.
Zhou Jingqian closed the door behind him, his gaze sweeping over the young woman's exposed snow-white shoulders, adorned only by two thin straps.
"The wedding rings arrived. I brought them over so you can try them on and see if the size fits." Zhou Jingqian said calmly, pulling a velvet box from his pocket.
The reason couldn't be more legitimate. Su Qiu harbored no suspicion, only lowering her gaze to fixate on the velvet box in his hand.
Zhou Jingqian hadn't forgotten the drowsy tone in her voice when she'd answered the phone. "Do you want to try them now, or sleep first?"
Su Qiu extended her hand directly, fingers spread open.
Zhou Jingqian chuckled softly, taking the women's ring out of the box.
Su Qiu's fingers were slender and fair. The ring slid on and settled perfectly at the base of her finger—neither too loose nor too tight.
A platinum diamond-set matching ring set, understated and elegant in style.
Considering she needed to type on her keyboard for scriptwriting, Zhou Jingqian had specifically chosen this lightweight, hassle-free design.
"Should I put yours on too?"
Su Qiu glanced at the ring on her hand, then looked up at Zhou Jingqian.
"Alright." Zhou Jingqian offered his hand.
Su Qiu took out the men's ring and slid it onto his well-defined ring finger.
Their hands, each adorned with a wedding ring, intertwined.
The feeling was strangely wonderful.
Before bed, Su Qiu hadn't been able to reach Zhou Jingqian by phone, and there was an indescribable ache in her heart.
Yet at this very moment, she was standing in her nightgown, putting a wedding ring on his finger.
Married life was indeed full of surprises.
Su Qiu touched the wedding ring on her hand.
She wasn't someone who liked wearing accessories—just as Zhou Jingqian had thought, having something on her hand affected her scriptwriting speed.
But she decided to wear this ring from today onward.
Su Qiu looked up at Zhou Jingqian. "Are you going to sleep with me, or book a separate room?"
Su Qiu was used to staying alone in hotel rooms on set.
She wasn't sure if Zhou Jingqian was accustomed to this level of hotel accommodation.
Zhou Jingqian looked at his young wife's bright eyes.
Her words were frank and straightforward, devoid of any hint of seductive invitation. Zhou Jingqian smiled. "I'll stay here with you."
A moment later, Zhou Jingqian's assistant delivered a change of clothes.
Su Qiu's gaze followed his retreating figure until the bathroom door closed and the sound of water began to patter.
It felt like a dream—before bed she couldn't reach him, and now he was here to sleep beside her.
Su Qiu sat back on the bed to wait for Zhou Jingqian. Glancing down, she noticed the wrinkled bedsheet and thought of Zhou Jingqian's obsessive-compulsive tendencies.
She quickly grabbed the corner of the sheet and smoothed it out.
Seeing that the items on the desk across the room were slightly disorganized, Su Qiu was about to slip on her slippers and go tidy them up.
Then, thinking better of it, she silently pulled her legs back.
When Zhou Jingqian emerged from the bathroom, Su Qiu was leaning against the headboard, yawning with her mouth wide open, the corners of her eyes soon glistening with moisture.
The question about the flowers was temporarily set aside.
Zhou Jingqian walked over, turned off the light, and lifted the covers to lie down.
Su Qiu silently scooted over, and he extended an arm to pull her close.
When she took the initiative, he never let her "initiative" fall flat.
In the darkness, Su Qiu kept her eyes lowered, her thick lashes fluttering incessantly as she pondered how to explain the flower delivery.
Suddenly, Zhou Jingqian's palm settled on the top of her head, his long fingers gently stroking through her hair.
His voice was low. "Go to sleep first. We can talk about anything tomorrow."
He hadn't come to "interrogate" her.
He just wanted to see her.
Hearing this, Su Qiu decided not to dwell on it anymore. She curved her lips and murmured a soft acknowledgment, shifting her hips in his embrace to find a comfortable position.
The room that had once held only her scent gradually filled with the crisp, woody fragrance of Zhou Jingqian.
It smelled wonderful. Su Qiu quietly breathed it in.
She found herself less sleepy now. Opening her eyes, she tilted her head slightly, using the moonlight filtering through the window.
Zhou Jingqian had closed his eyes, his lashes casting faint shadows beneath them. His breathing was steady, as if he were asleep.
Su Qiu's gaze traced from his brows and eyes down to his high-bridged nose, finally resting on his thin lips.
She had thought the two of them had already progressed to the kissing stage.
She'd expected that this time, he would kiss her.
But he didn't.
Su Qiu lay still, waiting for a moment.
After confirming Zhou Jingqian was truly asleep, she slowly lifted her head, then leaned down, pressing her lips gently against his.
Strange.
Last time he kissed her, her heart had pounded so fast it felt like it would burst from her chest—a feeling completely beyond her control.
This time, when she initiated the contact, there was only a faint coolness, as if two pieces of flesh had simply touched.
Having kissed him, Su Qiu considered her marital milestone complete. She tilted her head, about to lie back down, when a hand suddenly caught her lower back.
Her entire body was pulled uncontrollably onto Zhou Jingqian, and the man slowly opened his eyes.
In the darkness, their eyes met, and their breathing gradually intertwined.
Zhou Jingqian raised his hand, brushing his fingers—still wearing the wedding ring—across her fair, delicate cheek.
He swallowed hard, his voice hoarse as if laced with gravel. "Want to kiss?"
Su Qiu blinked, her ears warming slightly, but she answered honestly, "Mm."
After a pause, she added in a softer voice, "But… don't kiss for too long."
Zhou Jingqian let out a low chuckle. He lifted his hand to cup the back of her head, drawing her toward him as he captured her lips with his own.
Su Qiu's lashes trembled. That pleasant, tingling sensation from last time returned.
It really was different—when she kissed him, she felt nothing like this. Only when he kissed her did it happen.
This time, Zhou Jingqian kissed her gently. Whenever her breath ran short, he would pull back slightly, leaving room for her to catch her breath.
Once she could breathe smoothly again, he would continue.
In the end, Su Qiu had gone completely soft in his arms, like a marshmallow melting under a fireball.
Zhou Jingqian's palm pressed against the small of her back, the fabric of her nightgown crumpling into fine creases under his touch.
He pecked at her lips with varying pressure.
His large hand traveled slowly upward from her slender waist, grazing the nape of her neck before coming to rest on her pale, bare shoulder.
Several times, his knuckles brushed against the two thin straps that looked like they would snap with a single tug.
But he didn't pull. He only traced them lightly.
"Mm…"
Su Qiu clutched tightly at his collar, letting out an unconscious, soft nasal sound.
Zhou Jingqian's gaze darkened in an instant. With a flex of his arm, he turned over and pressed her down onto the pillow.
He braced himself beside her, his body looming over hers entirely.
Su Qiu curled her fingertips. She slowly opened her eyes, her gaze hazy and veiled with a mist of moisture.
The spacious room fell silent, leaving only the sound of their intertwined breathing—entangled, unwilling to part.
Physical attraction was like a storm at sea—arriving in an instant, sweeping through the entire body.
By the time Su Qiu realized what was happening, Zhou Jingqian's teeth had already gently caught the thin strap on her shoulder.
Su Qiu let out a soft sound and raised her hand to push him away, but what came out instead was a pliant, tender murmur: "Zhou Jingqian…"
Calling his name at a moment like this wasn't so much a protest as it was an invitation laced with seduction.
Zhou Jingqian's gaze darkened. He looked at the woman in his arms, desire rising and falling in his eyes several times before he finally closed them.
He pulled the two thin straps back onto her shoulders. The next second, he swung himself off the bed, his footsteps sinking into the bathroom.
Su Qiu lay on her back, arms sprawled limply at her sides, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Waiting for that throbbing sensation to fade on its own.
When Zhou Jingqian returned, his body no longer radiated heat but carried the cool, fresh scent of a shower.
His breathing had steadied.
Su Qiu's cheeks had also lost their flush.
The couple had both entered sage mode, lying flat and still.
Zhou Jingqian: "Sleep?"
Su Qiu murmured a soft reply, barely audible as a mosquito's buzz.
She didn't move, waiting for him to reach out before she turned onto her side and nestled into his embrace.
The next morning, just as dawn broke, Zhou Jingqian woke first.
The little wife in his arms was still fast asleep, most of her body tucked into his embrace, arms and legs wrapped around him like a sleepy koala.
He raised his hand, using his fingertip to brush the stray strands of hair from her forehead.
A moment later, Zhou Jingqian lifted his head and swept his gaze across the room. He didn't see the bouquet anywhere.
They hadn't held a wedding yet, and very few people knew Su Qiu was married. It was only natural that she had admirers.
Zhou Jingqian lowered his gaze, looking once more at the woman in his arms. His dark eyes slowly settled on her lips.
He leaned down and brushed them lightly with his own.
At nine in the morning, Su Qiu woke up.
Seeing the empty side of the bed, she was still groggy and thought Zhou Jingqian's visit last night had been a dream.
Until she raised her hand to rub her eyes and touched the cool ring on her ring finger.
Su Qiu brought her hand up to look at it, smiling with satisfaction.
But where was he?
Su Qiu tilted her head and called out toward the small sitting area outside: "Zhou Jingqian?"
No response.
Su Qiu picked up her phone and dialed. This time, the call connected after two rings.
Su Qiu: "Hey, did you go back?"
Zhou Jingqian: "At the gym."
Hearing that, Su Qiu suddenly—and inappropriately—remembered last night, when in her fluster she had accidentally touched the firm abdominal muscles beneath his sleep shirt.
Su Qiu cleared her throat. "Then when are you coming back?"
Zhou Jingqian: "Right away."
After hanging up, Su Qiu slipped on her slippers and got out of bed to wash up.
While brushing her teeth in front of the mirror, she noticed the faint pink hickey on the side of her neck.
The mark was actually very light, but her skin there was so fair that it stood out all the more.
After washing up, Su Qiu didn't bother changing out of her nightgown. She kept wearing it.
Walking out of the bathroom, Su Qiu glanced at the table—the scattered bottles and jars had indeed been neatly organized.
Zhou Jingqian returned faster than she expected. Not long after he walked in, the breakfast Su Qiu had ordered arrived as well.
The two sat side by side at the dining table, just like they did at home. Su Qiu drank her oat milk while Zhou Jingqian sipped his coffee, neither of them speaking.
Only when Su Qiu finished the last sip of her oat milk did Zhou Jingqian look up at her, his tone casual: "What happened to the flowers you received?"
Su Qiu: "…"
If he hadn't mentioned it, she would have almost forgotten about the bouquet.
Zhou Jingqian set down his coffee, his tone sounding gentle and unbothered: "From one of your admirers?"
Su Qiu's brows furrowed slightly as she shook her head. "No, he's not my suitor."
The disgust in Su Qiu's eyes was unconcealed, plainly visible before her.
In front of Zhou Jingqian, she was gradually letting her guard down.
Having spent this much time with her, Zhou Jingqian knew the young woman to be gentle-natured and uncontentious—this was the first time he had ever seen such an expression in her eyes.
"Xiao Qiu."
His tone grew heavier as he turned her, chair and all, to face him, his expression carrying a seriousness that left no room for her to evade: "What happened? Can you tell me?"