Chapter 201: Chapter 201: A Stolen Kiss
After all this time together, Alice York had gone from being clueless and uneasy to knowing exactly what Wyatt Sterling wanted with just a single glance.
And right now, he wanted her.
He wanted her with a desperate, searing passion.
"No kissing..." Alice blocked him with her hand just as his scorching lips descended. "There’s a security camera in the elevator. Someone will see."
’The last thing I want is to put on a live show.’
"Just a quick, secret kiss." His scorching lips tickled her palm as he spoke.
Her fingertips curled inward.
The word "secretly" sent a thrill through her heart. Before she could even agree, he was already cupping her face.
His large hands perfectly shielded them from any prying eyes. A sudden heat bloomed on her lips. She felt as flustered as if it were her first kiss, momentarily forgetting how to react.
But a simple press of their lips, devoid of deeper passion, apparently wasn’t enough.
The man coaxed her in a low voice, "Open up."
As if in a trance, she obeyed, parting her lips. He immediately pressed his advantage, his tongue slipping inside to tangle with hers, kissing her until her thoughts dissolved into a chaotic mess.
DING.
The elevator arrived at their floor.
Their lips parted after a brief, intense tangle. He moved his hands away, but upon seeing the dazed look in her eyes, he quickly brought them back, covering up the sensual sight.
"Third Uncle, I can’t walk like this."
The kiss had left Alice’s head spinning, and he still had her pressed against his chest, making it impossible to walk properly.
Wyatt Sterling said, "Then shall I carry you?"
"No." Alice shook her head. "If you carry me and someone sees, they’ll definitely think we’re rushing off to... you know."
A smile bloomed on Wyatt Sterling’s lips. "It’s perfectly normal for a grown man and woman to come to a hotel for a romantic evening."
It might be normal.
But Alice was self-conscious and always worried about people talking.
「Back in the suite.」
Alice reached for the light switch, but Wyatt grabbed her hand, pulling it back and pinning her against the wall of the entryway. She gasped, and his mouth captured hers once more.
This kiss was far more intense than the one in the elevator. There was no need to hide, no need to hold back, and no fear of prying eyes—only the pursuit of pure satisfaction.
They were locked in a passionate kiss, unable to part, her entire being seemingly consumed by his presence.
"Third Uncle, did you get my phone back?"
Even while being kissed so intensely, Alice still found an opportunity to ask about her phone.
Her response was a swat on the behind.
"Is this really the time to be worried about your phone?" Wyatt’s hand caressed her slender neck. They were both breathing heavily.
Alice felt her lips must be swollen and tingling; he had kissed her so fiercely. "Well, I’ve already asked. Did you get it back or not?"
He chuckled in exasperation, confirmed that he had, then lifted her by the waist. "Wrap your legs around me."
Every time he lifted her so effortlessly, Alice felt like a little rag doll.
She clung to his broad shoulders and wrapped her legs around his waist.
It was a stable position; even if he let go, she wouldn’t fall easily. Except, of course, for the few times when things got too rough and she, completely spent, would start to slip, relying entirely on his strength to hold her up.
CLICK.
The lights flicked on.
As Wyatt carried her toward the bedroom, Alice gently scratched the nape of his neck and said in a small voice, "Third Uncle, I haven’t eaten dinner yet. I’m starving."
"I’ll make sure you’re full in a little while."
Alice’s fingers dug into his neck a little harder. "I mean I haven’t eaten *dinner*."
Wyatt chuckled. "I know."
"If you know, then why are you..."
"I timed it for your arrival. I’ve already ordered food; it’ll be delivered soon,"
he said in a gentle voice.
Alice tilted her head back to meet his gaze. "Then why are you carrying me into the bedroom?"
Wyatt’s expression was perfectly straight. "To do whatever we want."
"..."
The food arrived quickly. Alice was so hungry she felt like her stomach was stuck to her spine, and she ate a great deal.
Wyatt Sterling asked what she had discussed at the Hawthorne residence that made her so happy upon her return. At first, Alice was a little afraid to tell him, worried he would get angry. Even if it was just an act, it would still require her and Felix to appear in public as a couple.
The pleasant atmosphere suddenly grew tense.
Wyatt looked up at her. "You don’t want to tell me, or you don’t dare to?"
’The pressure...’
Alice swallowed the food in her mouth and took a sip of water to steady herself before confessing, "I made a deal with Eldest Young Master Hawthorne. I’m going to pretend to be with him so my grandfather will think I’ve won him over."
Wyatt’s expression turned to ice. "And what does he get out of this deal?"
Alice’s eyes darted everywhere but to him. "Eldest Young Master Hawthorne wants to gain some advantages from his grandfather. And, well, he has a fiancée, so he doesn’t want me getting entangled with him. That’s why he proposed the deal. This way, I can achieve my goal, and he has an excuse for his fiancée."
Truthfully, Felix Hawthorne hadn’t mentioned his fiancée when they’d made the deal, and she had been too embarrassed to bring it up, afraid it would make her look like she had ulterior motives.
But on the way back, she’d thought about it and concluded this must have been part of his reasoning.
"Is that what he told you?" Wyatt asked.
Alice shook her head. "I guessed."
After she said that, she flashed him a wide, placating smile.
Wyatt placed a piece of meat in Alice’s bowl. "Just eat."
Alice looked at the meat in her bowl, then suddenly leaned closer to him. "You’re not angry?"
Wyatt was calm. "It’s not that serious."
Alice studied his expression, skeptical. "You’re really not angry?"
Wyatt looked at her. "We may be in Arden, but if he tries to forcibly take someone who belongs to me, it won’t end until one of us is dead."
"..."
’Someone who belongs to me.’
’It won’t end until one of us is dead.’
Coming from Wyatt Sterling, words like that were no joke.
Alice ducked her head with a smile and muttered, "Who says I belong to you? We haven’t even made things official yet."
The girlish bashfulness Alice displayed in that moment was utterly captivating, and Wyatt couldn’t take his eyes off her for a long while.
After a moment,
Alice heard Wyatt ask her, "When you were at the Hawthorne estate, did you see their Miss Hawthorne?"
"No, the Hawthornes are protecting her very well. I didn’t get to see her. But I did hear Finn Hawthorne mention a few things about his sister. Apparently, she’s had a really tough life, working all sorts of part-time jobs just to get by. She entered the workforce so early she never even finished her education. Mr. and Mrs. Hawthorne must be absolutely heartbroken."
Alice spoke as she ate, and she was almost full by now.
Wyatt put down his chopsticks and leaned back, his tone casual. "The Hawthorne Family will compensate her."
Alice agreed. "Well, of course. She’s a young lady who should have lived a life of luxury, but instead, she’s spent more than twenty years drifting and struggling. The Hawthornes have been searching for her for just as long. Now that they’ve finally found her, they’ll surely spare no expense to give her the best of everything as compensation."
Wyatt said, "The Hawthornes will also select a suitable fiancé for her."
"Really?" Alice was surprised. "Isn’t that a little fast?"
’Logically, you’d think they’d want to spend a few years living with their newly found daughter, making up for lost time before considering marriage.’
’Would the Hawthornes really be in such a hurry to find her a fiancé?’
’The family has long been powerful enough that they don’t need strategic marriages to maintain their position. They probably wouldn’t, right?’
"I was just speaking casually. It might not happen," Wyatt said as he stood up, grabbing a cigarette case and lighter before heading toward the terrace.
He was going outside for a smoke.
Alice watched his retreating back, a strange feeling stirring in her heart. ’If Mr. and Mrs. Hawthorne really are going to choose a fiancé for Miss Hawthorne,’ she wondered, ’who would they pick?’
