The incident that happened two years ago still haunted Vivian to this day. It was her worst nightmare.
Not because she had lost her most precious possession overnight. But rather, in that one night, her reputation was ruined.
For a long time after that, she could not even bear to be in close proximity to a man, much less communicating with one. Even shaking hands with a member of the opposite sex would trigger her fear.
Now that she had recovered, she had thought that she could accept being with Finnick.
Unexpectedly, her body still instinctively rejected any form of intimacy with a man.
Seeing how disappointed Finnick had become, she was filled with a pang of unspoken guilt.
What if Finnick thinks that I’m playing hard to get on purpose? Or that I’m being pretentious? After all, they were married. Besides, she had also given her consent. So, for her to reject him at the eleventh hour in such an abrupt way when the going was getting good…
No man would be able to bear such a humiliating rejection.
With that thought in mind, she gritted her teeth and cautiously approached Finnick. Putting her arms around his neck, she made the move to kiss him, wanting to reignite the lust within him.
Just as sudden as she was, Finnick picked her up gently and laid her on the bed.
Thinking that he was going to continue where he had left off, Vivian tensed her body in preparation. This time, she wanted to make sure her body would obey and not instinctively push him away again.
She waited in anticipation of what was coming. However, Finnick did not make any sensual move. On the contrary, he took the blanket next to him and covered her body.
Stunned, Vivian braced herself to ask, “Are you angry with me?”
As Finnick sat down on the side of the bed, he looked at her with a pair of calm, soothing eyes and replied, “No.”
“Then why…”
“Why don’t I continue?” Cutting her off by finishing her question, he brushed her cheeks tenderly with his fingers before whispering softly to her, “Because I hope you will enjoy it too, instead of merely putting up with me.”
Truthfully, he was aroused by her body. As a matter of fact, he wanted her there and then.
If he had not cared for her in the first place, he would have persisted or even forced himself on her. After all, as a man, holding oneself back after one’s carnal desire had been awakened was a difficult feat to pull off.
However, he cherished Vivian too much to give in to his selfish desire.
And because he cared, he did not want their first time to turn into a dreadful memory for her.
If he had been selfish, how different would it be between him and the man who had hurt her two years ago?
Vivian did not expect such tender admission from Finnick. At that moment, she felt her heart was deeply touched by his sincerity. The feeling of love blossomed in her.
Men and women are different. For a woman, caring for a person meant giving herself to him. For a man, caring for a person meant being patient for her.
Her eyes flickered as she curled up under the soft blanket, her uptight body finally relaxing. “Thank you, Finnick.”
He chuckled, stood up, and walked to the chair next to the table before sitting down. “Today, you’ll be the one sleeping on the bed.”
Feeling aghast, she asked with concern, “Then what about you? Don’t you have to sleep?”
“The bed is too small, and there’s only one set of blanket anyway. Forget it.”
Vivian frowned and reasoned, “Although the bed is small, it is wide enough to accommodate the two of us. Come, squeeze in. You should sleep with me tonight.”
Finnick suddenly gave her a knowing look, “Vivian, are you challenging my self-control?”
She froze immediately.
She almost forgot that she had tempted Finnick to his limit today. Maybe even past that. Yet she had not given herself to him. He must have been holding his carnal desire back earnestly, and for me to even ask him to sleep with me…
She was too disregardful of his needs.
Not daring to speak anymore, Vivian obediently covered herself with the blanket tightly and laid still.
…
Meanwhile, in the study, elder Mr. Norton was busily pacing back and forth anxiously.
Just as Mr. Zane walked in, elder Mr. Norton hurried over and nervously asked, “How is it? How’s the two of them?”
“They’ve retreated into their room. As for what happened next, I don’t know exactly,” answered Mr. Zane honestly. After all, he did not dare to eavesdrop.
Nodding, elder Mr. Norton sighed, “How I wish those two would be more considerate of this geezer here and just bear me a great-grandchild sooner.”
“Don’t worry too much about that, sir,” consoled Mr. Zane with a look of concern on his face.
“I nearly forgot,” exclaimed elder Mr. Norton as a thought suddenly hit him. His face turned cold right at that moment as he requested, “Have you managed to find out more about that photo today?”
