CHAPTER 93: CHAPTER 93; YOUR SPECIES

"Your species is very protective," she observed. "Even of those you barely know. It’s... not entirely terrible, I suppose."

Coming from Shuyin, that was practically a declaration of affection.

"We should get you dried off properly," Lu Yuze said, trying to return to practical matters. "And I need to change. I’m dripping all over the floor."

"Mmm." Shuyin looked down at the puddles they were creating. "Yes, that does seem problematic. Though I don’t understand why humans build pools indoors if they’re going to be so concerned about water on the floors."

"That’s... that’s not..." Lu Yuze stopped himself, realizing that trying to explain the logic of indoor pools to someone who apparently thought sleeping while floating in water was normal would be an exercise in futility.

"Let’s just go," he said instead. "Before someone else comes looking for us and gets the wrong idea."

"The wrong idea about what?"

"About why we’re both soaking wet and you’re in a robe and....." He cut himself off, realizing he was making it worse. "Never mind. Just... come on."

As they made their way toward the stairs, Ah-Ling appeared at the top, his expression carefully neutral despite taking in the scene below: his soaked master, the equally wet Mistress, in nothing but a robe, puddles everywhere.

"Master, I... shall I prepare fresh clothes for you both?"

"Yes," Lu Yuze said gratefully. "And Ah-Ling?"

"Yes, Master?"

"What we just discussed about last night, about keeping certain things private?"

"I understand perfectly, Master." Ah-Ling’s expression didn’t change. "I see nothing, know nothing, and will report nothing. As always Master."

"Thank you."

As they climbed the stairs, Shuyin leaned closer to Lu Yuze and said quietly, "He thinks we did something sexual in the pool, doesn’t he? After all, just imagine two wet opposite sex humans tangled together.."

Lu Yuze nearly tripped on the stairs. "What? No! That’s not, why would you even...."

"His expression. The carefully neutral one. That’s what humans look like when they’re pretending not to know about other humans’ mating activities." She sounded more curious than bothered. "I’ve observed it before."

"Please stop talking," Lu Yuze said, his face burning yet again. "Please."

"You’re very easy to embarrass, handsome," she observed. "It’s almost entertaining."

"I’m so glad I can provide entertainment," he muttered, but deep down a red flush was building on his face.

"You do," she said seriously, completely missing his sarcasm. "Most humans are boring. You’re less boring than average."

From Shuyin, that was probably the highest compliment he was going to get.

As they reached the top of the stairs and headed toward their respective rooms to change, Lu Yuze found himself thinking about the morning’s events.

He’d panicked. Had jumped into a pool fully clothed to save someone who hadn’t needed saving. Had ended up in a thoroughly compromising position with his contract wife. Had his entire sense of composure shattered by the simple fact of her nudity.

And through it all, Shuyin had remained completely calm, completely unbothered, as if none of this was particularly unusual or alarming.

She’d spent the night in a pool. Sleeping. Floating.

As if it were the most natural thing in the world.

As if water were her home.

Lu Yuze pushed that thought aside for later analysis. Right now, he needed dry clothes and a very strong cup of coffee to warm his body and keep calm.

And maybe, just maybe, he needed to start putting locks on the pool room.

Not to keep Shuyin out.

But to keep himself from having any more heart-stopping moments of finding her floating motionless in the water.

Because his cardiovascular system could only take so many shocks in one twenty-four-hour period.

And between the Chen family, the deaths, the investigations, and now this?

He’d reached his limit.

At least until tomorrow.

When he was sure there would be some new impossible thing to deal with.

Because that was apparently his life now.

Married to a woman who slept in pools and killed people with her mind.

And somehow, despite everything, he was starting to think he was okay with that.

Even if it did keep giving him heart attacks.

He showed her to her guest room and soon Ah Ling brought packaged clothes for her to use. Before Lu Yuze went back to his master bedroom to take a shower, Ah Ling dropped some clean clothes for him.

Lu Yuze stood under the scalding shower spray, trying to process the morning’s events while washing away the chlorinated pool water. His silk pajamas lay in a sodden heap on the bathroom floor, probably ruined beyond repair.

He’d jumped into a pool. Fully clothed. At dawn with all the coldness...

To rescue his wife who hadn’t needed rescuing.

His wife who had somehow spent the entire night sleeping while floating in water.

His wife who’d been completely naked and utterly unbothered by that fact.

Lu Yuze groaned, leaning his forehead against the cool tile. The image of her jade eyes opening suddenly, her arms wrapping around his neck, her naked body pressed against him...

He turned the water temperature down several degrees.

This was ridiculous. He was a grown man. A CEO. He’d negotiated billion-yuan deals without breaking a sweat. He’d faced down hostile takeovers and corporate espionage with perfect composure.

And yet one small woman with glowing eyes had reduced him to a flustered, embarrassed mess.

Though to be fair, she wasn’t just a small woman. She was... something else. Something that apparently found water as natural as air, that could sleep while floating, that had looked at him like his panic over finding her motionless in a pool was the strange part.

Your species is very protective.

Your species.

Not "our" species.

Lu Yuze filed that away with all the other small slips she’d made. The way she talked about humans was as if observing them from outside. The way she’d killed Chen Ting and his entire family with her mind. The way she’d healed Yuyan from an impossible poison using tears that turned to pearls.