Bondage and Marriage - 11

Putting aside for now the question of why Ian had visited this shop, Noah immediately sat down on the floor and hid his body under the product display. The employee also immediately lowered his body like Noah and asked, “Shall I bring you a hologram device?” The employee who had worked at this shop for a long time knew how to deal with reactions like Noah’s. This hotel wasn’t just visited by upright people.

When Noah nodded without making a sound, the employee immediately pulled out a face recognition-blocking hologram device from the pocket belt around his waist. It was a simple product that just needed to be worn on both ears. As Noah hurriedly put it on, his field of vision rippled for a moment before a white mask hologram covered his face. Just in case, Noah even flipped his hoodie over his vibrant blond hair to fully conceal himself.

With a pounding heart, Noah slowly and naturally stood up as if he had been tying his shoes. Since this was a place frequented by very wealthy people, it wasn’t the first time Noah had encountered someone he knew at this hotel. However, since Tanner was so adamant about Noah staying home (thanks to which almost all activities were possible indoors – swimming pool, horse riding arena, movie theater, library, even shopping by just calling the department store and having employees bring products to the mansion), most of the people Noah was acquainted with were decent folks who would never set foot in places like this.

Of course, there were still a few who recognized Noah. But the overall aura of Noah’s usual self versus his current self was so drastically different from head to toe that most people just assumed he was someone who resembled him and moved on. Occasionally when someone did realize it was Noah Frost, since it would be problematic for their frequenting of such a place to be known, they followed the unspoken rule of this hotel to pretend not to know each other, or they had been good sex partners.

However, Noah had absolutely no intention of letting Ian Miller see even a glimpse of his current appearance. What if Ian immediately recognized that it was Noah Frost? Then his own happy newlywed life would be completely ruined… Since the hologram blacked out the eye area, Noah pretended to examine the products while furtively observing Ian’s appearance. Ian had glanced at Noah but immediately ignored him with an indifferent expression. People walking around with face recognition-blocking holograms were commonplace at this hotel.

“Shall I quietly escort you to another entrance?”
“No, thank you for your consideration, but I’m fine. I’ll… just look around slowly, you go about your work.”
“Yes, understood. Call me if you need anything.”

After sending the employee away, Noah pretended to browse the merchandise while constantly observing Ian. Ian had a conversation with an employee at the counter, then began walking around the store. Just as an employee had stuck closely to Noah to explain things, Ian also had an employee tailing him, describing various items in great detail. Noah stole furtive glances at Ian, carefully observing what he was purchasing.

Ah… that’s… a product I’ve never seen before! Noah’s heart raced inwardly, but Ian merely glanced at it indifferently and kept walking past. Not only that, but as he wandered around without actually buying anything and merely glancing over items, Noah grew impatient. Why… if he came to shop, shouldn’t he buy something… As Ian mindlessly tossed five rubber-spiked rotors into his shopping basket, Noah thought he was just browsing aimlessly like a sea urchin.

Then suddenly, Ian turned and headed towards Noah. Thinking he might have been caught, Noah flinched and averted his gaze. Ian, who had come to the display where Noah was standing, stared intently at the rubber-spiked rotors piled high in his basket. Worried he might have been detected, Noah felt like he was sweating bullets. Come to think of it, no matter how much he changed his appearance, he couldn’t disguise his omega pheromones… He wished the shampoo scent would mask it… Whether Noah was anxious or not, Ian conversed with an employee.

“Does this product sell well?”
“There have been complaints that the vibrations are too strong, so it’s not a bestselling product.”
“Hmm. Then this one too.”
The employee respectfully answered “Yes” and made a note on the chart he was holding. As Ian looked up and down the display and was about to walk away, Noah couldn’t resist his urge and made an “ahem” clearing his throat sound. When Ian raised an eyebrow and turned back, Noah deliberately dumped about six of the new rotors he had been eyeing into his basket. Ian briefly gave Noah a “what is this?” look before completely ignoring him and heading to another product display.

Noah had to sheepishly put the products back on the display one by one.

“Noah? What are you doing?”

Startled by the familiar voice, Noah turned around to find that while he had been anxiously watching Ian, Alex had changed back into casual clothes and come up to the shop. Raising his eyebrow, Alex barely recognized Noah from his outfit.

“Is there someone you know here?”
“Yeah… I can’t let anyone know I frequent this place.”

Having never seen Noah be so cautious before, Alex turned his curious gaze to where Noah had been watching. Ian was standing in front of the central stage android, having a serious conversation with an employee. Noah’s eyes sparkled. Is he going to buy an android? If he’s buying an android, he doesn’t really need anything else… But when Alex saw Ian Miller, he had an unexpected reaction.

“Huh? That guy…”
“Why, do you know him?”
“Not directly, but I know his face. He’s quite famous around here.”

If even Alex, who practically lived at this hotel, knew him, did that mean Ian frequented this place often? Come to think of it, Ian had mentioned the name [Tear] during their phone call last time. As Ian continued conversing with the employee in front of the android, Alex explained while glancing at him.

“He’s famous for various reasons. There aren’t many people who claim to have slept with him, despite him coming here often. Rumor has it he invested quite a bit in the construction of this hotel, or that he’s related to the president… Oh right, there are also rumors he might be in the mafia.”

Noah listened attentively to Alex’s explanation. For whatever reason, Ian Miller, who frequently visited this place, was well-built and seemed wealthy, but his name wasn’t well known. Since very few claimed to have slept with him, he was so famous that all sorts of rumors swirled around him. Noah was certain about one thing though – Ian wasn’t in the mafia. If Ian was in the mafia, there’s no way his father would have approved their marriage…

“So no one has been with him at all?”
“Not no one. But he’s very discreet and only sleeps with people he can trust to keep quiet, so that’s why. But from what I’ve heard, you know Tanya?”

Yes, Noah knew. Tanya was, well… an extremely famous alpha in this world. But he wasn’t famous in a good way – his nickname was “The Crazy Bitch” because of his feral nature. Tanya, despite being an alpha, always preferred to be the one getting railed. Of course, everyone has their own sexual preferences, so up to this point it was understandable. But Tanya was on another level entirely. It was a legendary story in these circles about how one day, Tanya said he needed “another hole to get fucked” and immediately gathered some gore enthusiasts to perform a live body modification surgery in the basement.

“A close friend of Tanya’s once slept with that guy and it was…”

“It was…?”

Alex lowered his voice very quietly while glancing at Ian.

“Mind-blowing, that’s what. They say once you sleep with him, you can never forget it. That after just three times together, there’s no one who wouldn’t become obsessed with him. After hearing that story, Tanya desperately tried to sleep with that guy for a while. But ultimately failed.”

“Wow…”

It was rare to hear such high praise in this hotel… Hearing that his stamina was mind-blowing only made Noah look forward even more to his wedding night with Ian. As Noah and Alex were conversing, someone came out of the office connected to the shop and approached Ian. It was the shop owner. Noah’s eyes sparkled as he watched Ian converse with the owner and head into the office. Alex noticed Noah’s reaction and gave Ian an odd look.

“What, you want to sleep with that guy too?”

“Well…”

When Alex asked in a slightly sharp tone, and it was indeed true that Noah wanted to sleep with Ian, Noah trailed off. Alex let out a sigh-like laugh and patted Noah’s back. “You’re getting married, Noah. No more wandering eyes allowed.” Hearing Alex’s joking remark, Noah felt a twinge of guilt. But he couldn’t bring himself to say that was the person he was marrying, so Noah changed the subject and walked with Alex to meet some acquaintances they had become friendly with at the club.

Alex played along with the changed topic and affectionately put his arm around Noah’s waist, stealing one more penetrating look at Ian entering the office before turning his head away.