Lin Nianxi was a bit nervous.
Would he not like it?
Huo Jingmo was slightly taken aback.
He took the gift box, his slender fingers pulling open the satin ribbon and lifting the lid.
A dark gray titanium tie clip lay quietly on the black velvet lining.
It had no unnecessary decorations, its lines clean and sharp, with an extremely fine engraved pattern at the end.
Cold, restrained, understated.
Huo Jingmo picked up the tie clip, his knuckled fingers slowly tracing the engraved pattern, his fingertips lingering for a few seconds.
The man lifted his eyes, his deep, dark gaze falling on the girl’s nervously scrunched-up little face.
“It’s very beautiful. I like it very much.”
Lin Nianxi’s eyes curved into a smile, like a kindergarten child who had just received a little red flower.
Huo Jingmo held the tie clip, his knuckled fingers slowly tracing it once more.
He pinned the tie clip to the edge of the chest pocket of his white shirt, lowering his head to check its position.
“Your husband will wear it every day.”
The man’s voice was low and rich, sensual.
Something soft and warm bumped against Lin Nianxi’s heart.
“However.”
Huo Jingmo set the tie clip down. “The money your husband gave you is for you to spend on yourself. Not on me.”
Lin Nianxi blinked.
Huo Jingmo’s tone was unhurried: “By my count, out of the fifty thousand yuan allowance, you’ve spent less than twenty thousand. You haven’t spent enough.”
Lin Nianxi’s dark almond-shaped eyes widened slightly.
“So, you must accept punishment.”
Huo Jingmo said.
Lin Nianxi’s little face fell, her voice growing smaller and smaller. “Okay then. So… how will you punish me?”
Huo Jingmo reached out, clasping her slender wrist, and with a gentle pull of his arm, drew her into his embrace.
Lin Nianxi tumbled into the man’s broad chest, her nose bumping against the fabric of his shirt, the scent of fir enveloping her completely.
Before she could react, her waist tightened—
Huo Jingmo’s large hand wrapped around her waist, turning her sideways to lie across his lap.
Lin Nianxi’s brain short-circuited for two seconds.
This position was so embarrassing.
“Smack.”
A crisp sound echoed through the spacious dining room.
The man’s broad palm landed on her bottom with a firm but not heavy touch.
But the sound was too loud, too humiliating.
“Smack.”
A second time.
“Smack.”
A third time.
Lin Nianxi bit her lip, her ears reddening to the point of nearly dripping blood.
She was already twenty years old, yet she was being spanked like a child.
So embarrassing.
After the three strikes, Huo Jingmo’s large hand remained in place, not withdrawing.
He looked down at the little girl lying obediently across his lap, her ears red and unmoving, his voice low: “Remember to spend it tomorrow. If you don’t finish spending it, you’ll be punished again.”
He paused.
“And your husband’s punishment will be even harsher.”
At this moment, Lin Nianxi felt he was like a strict daddy.
Lin Nianxi nodded, her little face flushed.
The man’s large hand still rested on the plump, rounded curve of the girl’s slender waist.
He forced himself to withdraw his hand, gently placing it on the girl’s soft waist, helping her up from his embrace and settling her onto his lap.
The little girl’s face was flushed, her eyes lowered, obedient and soft like a well-behaved child who had been punished for doing something wrong.
Huo Jingmo’s heart melted completely.
“I… I remember,” Lin Nianxi said softly.
“Mm, that’s a good girl,” the man said, his long, slender hand gently smoothing her slightly disheveled, dark curly hair.
“Husband.” Lin Nianxi thought of her grandmother’s matter, hesitating but too embarrassed to bring it up.
She was struggling with how to broach the subject.
“Did something happen?” Huo Jingmo looked at this pitifully adorable little face, coaxing gently, “Tell your husband if something’s troubling you.”
“Your husband will solve it for you.”
His tone carried a reassuring strength.
Lin Nianxi mustered her courage, “My grandmother… she wants to meet you.”
“So this little non-trouble of a trouble has been making my Xi Bao so worried?” The man chuckled lazily, his large hand gently pinching the sweet, soft, pale little cheek of the young girl.
He had thought she’d encountered some enormous problem.
So it was just this.
“Mhm. I know you’re very busy…” Lin Nianxi said apologetically.
“No matter how busy work is, I can still make time for my Xi Bao.” The man said, glancing at the schedule on his phone, “Is tomorrow at noon okay?”
Lin Nianxi looked up in surprise.
Huo Jingmo, “I can spare two hours at noon.”
Lin Nianxi’s dark eyes sparkled with tiny glimmers of light. Overjoyed, she wrapped her arms around the man’s neck.
“Thank you, husband!”
Her voice was soft and sweet, filled with obvious delight. She clung to him like a playful little animal.
The faint fruity-woody sweetness of the girl drifted into his nostrils, her soft body pressed against his chest, her hair brushing against his chin.
Such an easily satisfied little girl.
Just agreeing to meet her grandmother made her this happy.
Huo Jingmo raised his hand to ruffle the girl’s hair, “No need to thank me. This is what a qualified husband should do.”
He paused, remembering something, and spoke with feigned calm, “Xi Bao, that ‘baozimen’ in your WeChat Moments… who are they?”
“Are they very important people to you?”
He wanted to clarify whether his young wife still held some other very important people in her heart.
He didn’t want his young wife using such an intimate term for others.
Lin Nianxi tilted her head to look at him, her dark almond-shaped eyes filled with innocence.
“‘Baozimen’ is internet slang. It means… friends. Just ordinary friends, not important people.”
Huo Jingmo fell silent for a second.
He felt relieved.
Just friends was fine.
He was thirty years old, usually dealing with either business terms or merger agreements, his WeChat pinned chats all work groups. Internet slang was like a language from another planet to him.
With a ten-year age gap between them, some things were already disconnected.
Huo Jingmo nodded slightly and said nothing more.
But Lin Nianxi keenly sensed the man’s slight unhappiness. She moved closer, resting her chin on his shoulder, her cheek against his neck, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness.
“You don’t like me posting those, do you? Should I delete my WeChat Moments?”
She hadn’t expected Mr. Huo to actually browse her WeChat Moments.
For someone as busy as him to look at her Moments, did it mean he cared about her a little?
The girl’s warm breath brushed against the side of the man’s neck, causing a tingling sensation.
“No need. Post whatever you like.” His voice lowered a notch, “I won’t restrict you.”
Lin Nianxi hummed in agreement, snuggling into his embrace and rubbing against him like a kitten that had found a warm spot.
Huo Jingmo’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly.
Her waist was too slender, easily encircled by one hand. When her body pressed against his, it was soft and warm, the sweet scent of fruitwood relentlessly invading his nostrils.
A familiar fire ignited in his lower abdomen, uncontrollably spreading downward.
Huo Jingmo took a deep breath.
“Go play,” he patted her bottom, signaling her to get up.
The man’s strength was restrained, but his tone carried an unnatural hoarseness. “I’m going to take a shower.”
He was afraid he wouldn’t be able to control himself.
Lin Nianxi didn’t think too much about it, obediently slipping out of his embrace and skipping lightly toward the second floor.
Huo Jingmo watched the white dress disappear around the staircase corner, lowered his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose.
He stood up and strode into the guest bathroom on the first floor.
The faucet was turned to the coldest setting.
Icy water poured over his head, streaming down his dark hair, past his tense jawline and the prominent Adam’s apple, sliding along his neck into the hollow of his collarbone.
The water flowed over his broad, solid chest, tracing the distinct contours of his abdominal muscles. The cold water split along the ridges of his lower abdomen, converging into fine streams that followed the grooves of his V-line downward.
The man thought of his sweet and obedient little wife, the soft fragrance of her body, her impossibly slender waist, and her full, rounded hips…
His hand reached below the tightly packed abs—
Thirty minutes later, Huo Jingmo turned off the faucet, wrapped a towel around his waist, pushed open the bedroom door, and walked inside.
A warm bedside lamp illuminated the room.
On the pink lace bedsheet, the girl lay sprawled in the center of the bed, her soft, pale, slender calves raised, her cute feet swaying in the air.
She had changed into a pink spaghetti-strap nightgown, the fabric thin, the hem barely covering the tops of her thighs. The position she lay in accentuated the curve of her waist, leading down to a plump, rounded silhouette.
She was engrossed in something on her phone, a smile on her lips, occasionally letting out a soft giggle.
This scene reignited the fire Huo Jingmo had barely managed to suppress.
Hearing the noise, Lin Nianxi turned her head.
Then she froze.
The man stood at the doorway, wearing only a towel.
His damp black hair was swept back, revealing his cold, sharp features. Droplets of water slid from his temples, past his defined jawline, and dripped onto his collarbone.
The light outlined the muscles of his chest and abdomen in stark relief. Eight distinct abs were clearly defined, the lines of his V-line extending downward, disappearing beneath the edge of the towel.
Lin Nianxi’s phone clattered onto the bed.
Her gaze uncontrollably slid from his chest to his abs, then from his abs to the towel that hung dangerously low. Her face flushed crimson.
Mr. Huo’s physique was just too good.
It was hard not to blush and feel your heart race when looking at him.