Mei’s heart skipped a bit.
She had always known Lucian was handsome, but this was the first time she had looked at him from such a close distance.
Fresh out of the shower, a few drops of water still clung to his damp black hair before slowly sliding down the side of his face.
The bathrobe hung loosely over his broad shoulders, revealing part of his collarbone.
The coldness he usually carried seemed to have faded a little, making him look less distant than before.
She stared without realising it.
No wonder so many women would fall for a man like him.
“What are you staring at?” Lucian asked, his voice as cold as ever.
His words startled Mei.
Only then did she realise she had been staring at him all this time.
Her heartbeat quickened, and warmth spread across her cheeks.
Embarrassed, she lowered her head at once, wishing she could disappear.
“What are you doing on my bed?” Lucian asked, looking at her indifferently.
Mei froze before hurriedly looking down at the bed beneath her.
Only then did she realise she was still sitting on it.
Embarrassment flooded her.
She quickly climbed down and stood beside the bed with her hands clasped together, not daring to look at him again.
Lucian glanced at her before giving a faint scoff.
Without another word, he walked towards the adjoining room, opened the door and went inside, quietly closing it behind him.
The moment he disappeared, Mei finally let out the breath she had been holding.
She placed a hand against her chest, she could not understand why she became so nervous whenever he was around.
It was as though his presence alone filled the room, making it difficult for her to relax.
Several minutes passed before the door opened again.
Lucian walked out wearing a simple black T-shirt and a pair of black shorts.
The casual clothes made him look younger, but they could not hide his tall figure or broad shoulders.
His damp hair rested against his forehead, and the faint scent of shower gel lingered around him.
Mei glanced at him again.
The memories of that night at the penthouse surfaced without warning.
She remembered kissing him, sitting on his lap while his hands held her waist firmly, refusing to let her move away.
The broken memories came one after another, making her cheeks burn.
Even the tips of her ears turned red.
Afraid that Lucian would notice, she lowered her head again.
Mei looked at him in surprise.
“If I don’t sleep on the bed, where am I supposed to sleep?” she asked quietly.
Lucian closed his eyes.
“The floor.”
His tone was calm, as though asking someone to sleep on the floor was the most ordinary thing in the world.
Mei stood there speechless.She looked around the room.
There wasn’t a spare quilt, a blanket or even a rug big enough to lie on.
Was he really expecting her to sleep on the cold floor?
Her gaze shifted from the bed to the empty space beside it.
For a second, she wondered if she should quietly climb back onto the bed after he fell asleep.
She quickly dismissed the thought.
If he woke up and found her there, he would probably throw her out without hesitation.
She was too tired to argue.
After standing there for a while, she quietly picked up an extra pillow.
Her movements were light, almost silent.
Seeing that Lucian had no intention of stopping her, she turned around, left the bedroom and gently closed the door.
The manor was already quiet, everyone had all retired for the night, leaving only the warm wall lamps to light the corridors.
Mei slowly walked downstairs to the main living room.
She remembered seeing a long sofa there while Aunt Momo had been showing her around the manor.
Walking over, she placed the pillow beneath her head before carefully lying down.
The sofa was narrow and not particularly comfortable.
Every time she moved, she felt as though she might fall off, but it was still far better than sleeping on the cold floor upstairs.
She curled up slightly and slowly closed her eyes.
As sleep gradually claimed her, the events of the day replayed in her mind.
She had been forced into a marriage she never wanted and had become Mrs Fu.
No matter how hard she tried to accept it, one thought refused to leave her mind.
Becoming Mrs Fu was something she would always regret.
Early the next morning, Lucian came downstairs after searching the master bedroom for Mei.
He had expected to find her there, but the room was empty.
Thinking back to the previous night, he suddenly remembered telling her to sleep on the floor, he slowed his footsteps.
Almost immediately, his eyes landed on a small figure curled up on the sofa in the living room.
It was Mei.
Perhaps because she had slept on the narrow sofa all night, her brows were tightly knitted together, as though she were trapped in an unpleasant dream.
Even in her sleep, there was a faint trace of uneasiness on her face.
Lucian stood there quietly, looking at her, for some reason, she looked much smaller than he remembered.
His gaze lingered on her slightly furrowed brows.
Almost without thinking, he slowly raised his hand, intending to smooth the crease between them.
Before his fingers could touch her, the sharp ringtone of his phone suddenly broke the silence.
Lucian withdrew his hand and answered the call as he walked towards the French windows.
“What’s wrong?” he asked coldly.
On the other end of the line, Dominic immediately replied, “Young Master, we’ve tried recovering the CCTV footage from the penthouse that night, but someone had already hacked into the system. The files were erased very cleanly. Our technicians believe they may have been permanently deleted.”
Lucian’s eyes darkened.
Someone had deliberately deleted the surveillance footage.
The more he thought about it, the stranger that night became.
Who had gone to such lengths to erase every trace of what happened?
“What else?” he asked.
Dominic hesitated for a moment.
“There are also the headlines…”
“Get straight to the point.”
“Someone deliberately leaked photos of you carrying Miss Mei yesterday. Since the events at the appraisal, every major media platform has been reporting it. Right now, the news about your relationship with Miss Mei has become the number one trending topic, the good thing is that they didn’t see her face.”
Lucian’s expression remained unreadable.
“What are they saying?”
“They’re claiming you’ve fallen for a mysterious woman at first sight”
A cold glint flashed across Lucian’s eyes.
“Remove every article. I don’t care what it costs.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“And find out who published the story first.”
“I understand.”
After ending the call, Lucian opened the search engine on his phone.
The headlines immediately filled the screen.
Fu Group’s Young Master Personally Carries a Woman Into His Home
Who Is the Woman in Lucian Fu’s Arms?
Fu Group’s Cold CEO Shows His Gentle Side for the First Time
Lucian stared at the headlines, his expression growing colder with every passing second.