Chapter 324: Young master Huo
Lin Qian snapped breathlessly, her face flushed red as she furiously wiped her lips with the back of her hand.
His low chuckle reverberated in the quiet hallway. "A jerk?" His eyes glinted dangerously as he leaned closer. "I can be much worse than that."
Before she could escape, his hand caught her chin, tilting her face up, and he kissed her again. Harder. Longer. This time, he didn’t stop until her knees nearly buckled beneath her.
When he finally let her go, his gaze trailed downward, lingering on her body.
The baby-blue dress she had worn to the award ceremony hugged her figure perfectly. Elegant, yet undeniably alluring. Against her delicate frame, it highlighted every graceful curve, every line that made her beauty impossible to ignore.
Jealousy flashed in his eyes. "You went out looking like this tonight?" His tone was accusing, almost biting.
Lin Qian frowned, pushing his chest again, though her strength was no match for his. "What I wear has nothing to do with you!"
His laugh was low, but his eyes burned with hunger. "Nothing to do with me?" He traced the fabric at her waist with his long fingers, his touch light but possessive. "Everything about you has to do with me."
Her breath hitched, but she bit her lip, refusing to give in.
The truth was—this man terrified her and comforted her all at once. He was young, powerful, devastatingly handsome, and no one in the industry knew she was involved with him. To outsiders, she simply had a mysterious backer, a protector who shielded her when things grew too harsh. But no one knew who.
And for a long time, she had insisted it remain that way. She had even asked him not to interfere when her name was dragged through the mud before the awards, not wanting his shadow to eclipse her fight.
But seeing him here, now—her chest tightened with an unfamiliar ache.
She thought back to Hua Jing’s declaration earlier, that Fu Jingrong was her husband.
It was a love that had passed countless hardships to get where it was at the moment. Thinking about it, they might had missed countless opportunities to be together in the past and for Lin Qian, she suddenly didn’t want to wait anymore.
What if, she wondered, this man in front of her—this domineering, reckless man—what if he was the one standing beside her publicly? What kind of life would that be?
He was overbearing, yes. Infuriating, yes. But with her... he was attentive. Careful in ways no one else ever saw. He caught her when she fell, shielded her when she broke, kissed her like she was air itself.
The thought was dangerous. And yet—her resolve melted just a little.
She took a shaky breath, then, on tiptoe, leaned upward and pressed her lips softly against his.
For the first time tonight, he froze.
The man who always pushed, always demanded, always took—was momentarily stunned into stillness. His hand at her waist tightened, as if confirming this wasn’t a dream.
Her eyes were clear as water when she pulled back just slightly. Then, with a boldness that surprised even herself, Lin Qian whispered, "Don’t just stand there."
His chest rose sharply. His self-control shattered.
This time, when he bent down, it wasn’t force but fire.
And Lin Qian, for once, didn’t resist.
The man had always been domineering in the past, yet tonight... tonight, he was unexpectedly gentle. Lin Qian did not know what to do with such tenderness. Her body trembled beneath his touch, sweat trickling down her smooth skin, but the waves of pleasure only rose higher and higher, drowning her reason.
Through the haze, she forced her eyes open into narrow slits. And when her gaze finally landed on him, her lips curved into a faint smile that blossomed like a flower in the night. She wanted to speak, to say something, anything, but before she could, her body was suddenly shifted again—his strength overwhelming, stealing the words from her throat.
By the time the heat finally ebbed away and the temperature in the room cooled, the world had quieted. The man cradled her steady in his arms, his chest rising and falling in a controlled rhythm. His gaze lingered on her, dark and unreadable, as though it was everywhere at once yet focused only on her small face.
Lin Qian was fast asleep, her breathing soft and even. Strands of hair clung to her damp forehead, her skin flushed, her beauty magnified by exhaustion and sweat. She looked... irresistible.
His chest tightened.
He could not help but think back to the first time they had met.
Back then, she was just a student—buried in endless student loans, her family suffocating under the weight of debt. Desperate, her parents had tried to sell her off to an old, wealthy man. The deal had been arranged in some sleazy hotel, the kind of transaction that was more cruel than business.
But fate had other plans.
By some twist of chance, Lin Qian stumbled into his room instead. And that night—when their eyes first met—something inside him shifted. He had been curious. Then fascinated. And eventually... obsessed.
He never understood that possessiveness, that strange compulsion that told him she had to be his. But from the moment he saw her, there was no going back. It could only be her.
One step led to another, and here they were now.
Holding her in his arms, the feeling was stronger than ever. He wanted to shield her, to hide her away from the dazzling stage that seemed to consume her. But reality was cruel. She belonged to the spotlight, and he could only sigh helplessly, praying that fate would be merciful to them both.
His arms tightened slightly around her sleeping body, as though fearing she might vanish the moment he let go.
But then—
Ring—Ring—
The sharp trill of his phone cut through the stillness.
His eyes narrowed, his expression freezing over. Slowly, he reached for the device on the nightstand. One glance at the caller ID, and his brows furrowed deeply. The warmth that had softened his gaze just moments ago evaporated, replaced with bone-chilling coldness.
He swiped to answer.
"..."
Before he could even speak, a furious voice erupted from the other end, crackling through the receiver.
"Huo Zi! Where the hell are you?!"
