Serena hurriedly sat up, grabbed a piece of clothing draped over the back of the sofa, and threw it on without even checking what it was.
"I, um... I'll go make us something to eat."
Without waiting for Xavier to say anything, she sidestepped him and got to her feet.
She rushed into the kitchen and turned on the tap, letting the sound of running water drown out everything else. Only then did Serena dare to clutch her chest, gasping for air.
Her heart was still racing. She pressed her hand to her chest, trying to calm her wild emotions.
After a few minutes, she finally settled down a bit.
Looking down, she realized she was wearing his shirt.
The man was tall, so naturally, his clothes were large.
The shirt she had on came down to just below her thighs, conveniently covering her rear and more private areas.
Her long, fair legs peeked out from beneath the hem of the shirt, looking especially enticing.
Serena frowned, torn between changing clothes first or starting to cook.
In the end, she decided to cook first.
She could skip the meal, but that man... he'd used so much energy earlier. He had to be starving...
Turning to get ingredients from the fridge, she suddenly locked eyes with Xavier.
He was now only wearing a pair of shorts. His upper body was bare, revealing tanned skin and sharply defined abs.
The muscles rippled slightly with each breath.
That body, paired with that face...
Serena subconsciously swallowed. "Why aren't you resting? What are you doing staring at me? Are you hungry? Wait just a bit, I'll make some food-won't take long!"
Xavier smirked and drawled, "Serena, how hungry are you?"
"I... I'm okay!" she replied, confused by the sudden question and glanced at him.
"It's only five o'clock. Can you hold out a bit longer until it's officially dinner time?"
"Sure, but... why?"
He suddenly moved closer, one large, warm hand wrapping around her waist. "You're more tempting than any food. I think... before dinner, I could feast on you a little first."
Her heart skipped a beat. Before she could react, he scooped her up into his arms.
She instinctively clung to his neck, panicking, "What are you doing? Didn't we just...?!"
"That was then. This is now."
"Xavier! Put me down! Have you lost your mind?!"
He took long strides toward the bedroom, ignoring her protests.
"Haven't I already lost it? My insanity is called Serena! I've been sick for twenty years!"
"..."
Another intense round of battle followed.
By the time he finally settled down, Serena no longer felt the slightest bit hungry.
Every inch of her body was sore and limp, so exhausted she didn't even want to open her eyes.
Night had completely fallen by then.
Forcing herself to glance at the alarm clock on the bedside table, she saw it was nearly eight.
This man had kept her in bed for another two hours!
So this was his so-called 'a little while'?!
Figures. A man's mouth is full of lies! The better-looking they are, the better they lie!
Closing her eyes again, Serena just wanted to sleep.
Then came a gentle shake on her arm. "Serena... I'm hungry."
"???"
Serena didn't even have the strength to roll her eyes.
"I'm too tired to cook. Figure it out yourself."
"I couldn't bear to let you do it!" he said, wrapping an arm around her waist, pressing against her back. "Tell me what you want-I'll have it delivered!"
"Delivered?" Serena, eyes still closed, muttered, "Aren't you afraid Uncle Blaze will find out you're here?"
"Of course I wouldn't be dumb enough to use anyone from the Blaze household. Don't worry, I've got my own people on it!"
"Your own people?" Serena's eyes flew open. "Aren't your people the Blaze family's people? Wait... have you been secretly raising your own loyal crew under your dad's nose all these years?!"
Xavier kissed her eyelid with a sigh. "Silly girl, what kind of look is that? Don't worry, I'm not planning a coup to steal my dad's throne! Even if he wanted to hand me the X Group, I wouldn't want it!"
"Then who are your people?"
"They're just my people," Xavier said matter-of-factly. "All these years, I've been running my own business outside the X Group. My dad's wanted me to work in the company for years so I could take over one day. But I'm really not interested. I just want to focus on the things I enjoy doing."
"Afraid he'd sabotage my efforts to force me back, I kept my private company's details under wraps. Not even my closest friends know what I really do."
Serena nodded slightly. "You didn't break the law, right?"
"Of course not! I'd never do anything illegal!"
"Good."
She didn't ask more, just closed her eyes again, teetering on the edge of sleep.
"You're not even curious what I actually do?" he asked.
"It doesn't matter. As long as it's legal, the rest doesn't matter. As long as you like it."
Hearing that, the arm around her waist tightened noticeably.
"Serena, thank you. Your support means more to me than anything."
Twenty minutes later, Xavier quietly got out of bed, threw on a gray loungewear set, and left the bedroom.
He opened the door. A young man in a black hoodie held up a takeout bag. "Boss, got everything you asked for."
Xavier stepped aside. "Come in first."
The young man walked right into Serena's apartment without hesitation.
Looking around at the modestly sized living room, he couldn't help but smirk, "Boss, what's going on? You having a moment of nostalgia or something? Why are you staying in such a tiny place?"
Xavier ignored him. "Cut the crap. How'd the task I gave you go?"
The man pointed at the plastic bag on the dining table. "Didn't I already get the food you asked for?"
His face darkened. "I don't have time for riddles. Report properly and then get lost!"
The young man wasn't the least bit intimidated. Instead, he grinned and glanced toward the bedroom.
"Boss... what's with the rush to kick me out? Don't tell me you've got a beauty stashed away in here?"
***