Willing to Be for Her - Chapter 18

Luo Xuan’s weary heart clenched instantly. She wiped the trickle of bl00d from the corner of her mouth, skillfully suppressing the dizziness while politely responding to Lan Leren.

“Thank you, I’ll be there on time… Secretary Lan.”

Hearing Luo Xuan address her so formally felt strange to Lan Leren. They had only met a few times, during Ning Yiqing’s small wedding ceremony after their marriage registration, which had been kept out of the media.

“Miss Luo Xuan, is there anything else?”

“I just wanted to ask… is she alright?”

“Yes, the President is asleep,” Lan Leren replied, maintaining her professional composure and revealing nothing more about Ning Yiqing’s current state.

Luo Xuan simply said, “That’s good,” and hung up.

Clutching her phone, Lan Leren let out a deep sigh.

When she arrived at the villa, the room was thick with pheromones, the cloying sweetness lingering in the air. Even as an Omega, she had to inject a suppressant to avoid being affected while working.

The scene was even more shocking up close. The sofa looked as if it had been drenched in water, its embroidered cushions and even the carpet soaked through and needing replacement.

Ning Yiqing lay sprawled on the sofa, wearing only an oversized white T-shirt, her eyes vacant. Mottled red marks marred her jade-like neck, like a goddess fallen from the heavens, melted into water by the intensity of the pheromones.

One could only imagine the intensity of the encounter that had taken place here.

It was the first time Lan Leren had witnessed her usually composed and dignified CEO in such a disheveled and vulnerable state. Though the sight was breathtakingly beautiful and unforgettable.

Later, she noticed that President Ning seemed to be wearing Luo Xuan’s clothes.

After composing herself, Lan Leren knocked on the bedroom door and glimpsed a woman’s graceful silhouette nestled beneath silk sheets.

“President Ning, Luo Xuan said she’ll be back on time tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Le Ran,” the woman replied, her body trembling slightly at the mention of Luo Xuan’s name. Her dark hair cascaded like water, its alluring strands tugging at the heartstrings.

Now, her body bore the marks of their intimacy.

She had experienced such encounters before, but they offered only fleeting pleasure, insufficient to hold her captive.

Yet yesterday, what she had felt wasn’t merely the joy of climax, but the profound bliss of being with Luo Xuan, of being marked by her.

Hearing Ning Yiqing’s hoarse, trembling voice, Lan Leren hesitated before asking, “President Ning, are you sure you’ll be alright here alone? After being marked, Omegas typically crave the comfort of their Alpha’s presence. You must be in considerable discomfort.”

She struggled to understand Ning Yiqing’s actions. While the CEO was known for her self-restraint and disciplined nature, it seemed unnecessary to torment herself with normal physiological needs.

*Luo Xuan has already marked me. Why is she still acting so hot and cold, keeping me at arm’s length?*

*Unless… this was an accident.* Lan Leren retreated from the room as if she had stumbled upon a great secret.

*Could it be that President Ning, during her heat cycle, couldn’t control herself and seduced Luo Xuan?*

The word “seduce” felt strange, but a C-Class Alpha without a bite inhibitor would find it nearly impossible to resist marking an S-Class Omega.

*Stop, stop! Gossipmongering about the president—I’m not trying to get fired! Even though Ning Yiqing is always kind to her subordinates, if I dare overstep my boundaries, I can kiss any chance of a promotion or raise goodbye.*

The sound of the closing door brought Ning Yiqing to complete stillness. She clutched the corner of the blanket, abnormally suppressing her craving for pheromones.

Yet the Cherry Pheromone had already seeped through the wound on her gland, coursing through her bloodstream. Her entire body was saturated with the cloyingly sweet scent, blooming without restraint for another.

Her body still retained the sensation of being completely opened, a feeling that seemed to replay endlessly, like a lingering melody from a vinyl record.

She had to admit: last night was an accidental descent into ruin.

*Moist, hazy, shattered, intertwined—so many words could describe that exquisite moment.*

But such beauty was wrong.

She couldn’t allow mistakes in her life.

Luo Xuan woke up with a start on her dormitory bed, drenched in cold sweat and her face unnaturally pale. The high fever made her feel on the verge of fainting.

She forced herself out of bed and stumbled out of the room, where she ran into Chi Li carrying afternoon tea downstairs.

“Xuanxuanxuan! How have you become so haggard these past few weeks while I’ve been obsessing over job interviews? Have you been taking your medicine on time?”

Luo Xuan nodded. Except for yesterday’s special circumstances, she had been taking her medicine regularly.

“You don’t look well,” Chi Li wrinkled her delicate nose. “I’ll take you to the hospital for a checkup. Now that all my job offers have come through, I have plenty of time.”

“Is it the company you wanted most?”

“Yep!”

Luo Xuan’s dull eyes lit up like summer fireflies, sparkling with radiant innocence. “Then we can finally go to that amusement park you’ve always wanted to visit! And get the limited-edition cat paw ice cream and win that giant plushie!”

Smiling, Chi Li listened to Luo Xuan’s rambling, her gaze fixed on her friend’s bright eyes. Bathed in the soft light of dawn, Luo Xuan’s silvery-white hair swayed in the breeze, tiny dust motes dancing around her, making her seem to glow.

“Then you need to take good care of yourself,” Chi Li said. “We still have so much to do.”

“I will,” Luo Xuan replied, her smile gentle, her eyes warm. The melancholy and shadows seemed to vanish in that moment.

After parting ways with Chi Li, Luo Xuan had just stepped out of the school gate when a flamboyant dark green sports car screeched to a halt in front of her.

Luo Wei rolled down the window, her sunglasses-clad face radiating an aggressive aura. “Sis, get in. I need to talk to you.”

Glancing at the time—already half past five—Luo Xuan shook her head. “I’m busy today. Let’s talk another time.”

Watching Luo Xuan turn away, Luo Wei suppressed her rising anger. She recalled her mother’s assessment of Luo Xuan: “She’s impervious to both persuasion and threats—truly heartless.”

But Luo Wei knew Luo Xuan’s weakness.

“Hey, I wanted to talk to you about Yi Qing. Still too busy?”

After the torrential rainstorm that night, many leaves had fallen from the cherry tree in the villa’s courtyard. In contrast, the glass greenhouse now housed several new pots of moonflowers and fragrant honeysuckle, creating a serene expanse of white.

The villa was eerily quiet, just as it had been on that rainy night. Silver strands of Luo Xuan’s hair cascaded down her cheeks, swaying gently in the breeze.

She ascended the steps one by one, her mind echoing with Luo Wei’s earlier words:

“I’m here to persuade you to leave Yi Qing voluntarily. You don’t belong in our world.”

“You don’t understand the rules here. You’re only loved if you provide value. Useless people are just pretty, delicate toys.”

“Do you understand? She doesn’t need someone useless, especially a naive, dreamy, romantic child like you, trapped in a crystal ball.”

Luo Xuan knocked on the walnut door of the study. Ning Yiqing’s gentle, clear voice responded:

“Come in.”

The room still radiated a pristine, icy aura. The woman sat regally in her chair, her slender figure draped in a black satin gown. Her jade-like hands toyed with snow-blue prayer beads, exuding an unparalleled air of noble elegance.

The natural bond that typically arises after permanent marking seemed absent between them.

Luo Xuan lowered her gaze, her face pale, lips crimson, like a sinner awaiting judgment.

Ning Yiqing, wearing silver-rimmed glasses, looked up, his gaze carrying an unfathomable depth and an unapproachable air of profoundness.

“Xiao Xuan.”

“Mm.”

“Prepare yourself. Let’s go see the sea.”