After the Secret Wedding Rise of My Queen
Secret Wedding 225

Chapter 225 Heartless Little Minx

Suddenly, a muffled groan sounded in her ear, and the man stopped moving.

Isabel released her bite and turned to him.

The man lay motionless on top of her, silent for what felt like ages.

Just as Isabel was about to say something to break the awkwardness, the man got up without a word and walked into the bathroom.

The sound of running water echoed from the bathroom as the shower came on.

Sitting up, Isabel stared at the bathroom door. She didn't need to go inside to guess that he was taking a cold shower.

A pang of guilt suddenly hit her.

Pouting, she lowered her gaze to look at herself. Her clothes were in tatters as if a perfectly crisp sheet of paper had been crumpled into a ball. He'd taken almost every advantage he could just moments ago. If she hadn't bitten his shoulder so suddenly, they might've gone all the way. Isabel's hand instinctively went to her lower abdomen. It had only been a month. If they had done that, it could have severely affected the baby. She rubbed her temples, frustration mounting.

What is wrong with me?

Even without the baby, her feelings for Xander were more gratitude than genuine affection. If they ended up together like this, it would be unfair to him. She resolved to keep her head clear next time. She couldn't let his looks cloud her judgment.

With a groan, Isabel grabbed her head before lying back down, closing her eyes. But the sound of the running water kept echoing in her ears.

The bathroom door was well-insulated, so the noise wasn't that loud.

Yet somehow, it still kept her from falling asleep, leaving her restless.

Not long after, the sound of the shower stopped. Isabel stayed perfectly still, feigning sleep.

The soft click of the bathroom door opening reached her ears.

Isabel focused on keeping her breathing steady, trying her best to look convincingly asleep.

Soon, she heard his light footsteps approaching the bed. Each step was careful and deliberate, he didn't want to disturb her.

This level of thoughtfulness tugged at Isabel's heart.

Of course, she reminded herself, feeling touched wasn't the same as genuine feelings. Agreeing to be with him out of gratitude would make her no better than a heartless woman. Standing at her bedside, Xander stared down at her for a long moment.

"You heartless little minx. I'm suffering here, and you're sleeping like a log," he muttered softly.

Before Isabel could process his words, Xander leaned down and captured her lips in a lingering kiss that left a smack as he pulled away.

Then, he climbed into bed as if nothing had happened. He slid her head onto his arm and wrapped her in his embrace before falling asleep.

Isabel struggled to calm her racing heartbeat, desperately trying to keep him from noticing.

He had stolen pecks from her before but never like this. This time, it was like he'd been savoring her, leaving her lips tingling and numb, as though they'd been electrified.

Isabel recalled Xander's words about her sleeping like a log while he was suffering. She wondered if this was the reason why he had kissed her.

As these thoughts swirled in her mind, exhaustion eventually pulled Isabel into sleep without her realizing it.

The next morning, Isabel woke to find Xander staring at her.

Judging by his expression, she couldn't tell when he had woken up or how long he had been watching her.

She even wondered if he had done anything like last night while she slept.

The thought gave her a headache. Even if she suspected it, there was no way she could directly ask.

Asking would mean admitting she had been pretending to sleep.

It was better to play dumb.

"Morning," Isabel greeted, forcing a casual tone.

"Morning," Xander replied, his gaze dropping to her chest.

Noticing where his eyes lingered, Isabel internally rolled her eyes.

Seriously? First thing in the morning?

As she wondered what he was thinking, Xander slowly reached out toward her chest.

What the hell? Is he trying to grope me?

Isabel's eyes widened as she watched his hand move closer.

If this hand belonged to someone on the subway or a bus, it'd definitely be labeled as pervy. But attached to Xander, with his impossibly handsome face, it somehow didn't come off as creepy. Instead, it had the power to make hearts race uncontrollably.

Just as his hand was about to reach its destination, he stopped.

Isabel was relieved that he'd stopped himself.

She had no idea how she would've handled it if he hadn't.

"The emerald guardian angel pendant-give it back to me for now," Xander said.

"Huh? The emerald guardian angel pendant? Isabel blinked, glancing down at her chest. She realized that she had misunderstood him. He wasn't trying to touch her-he just wanted the pendant.

Pulling it out from under her clothes, Isabel looked at him skeptically. "Didn't we agree I'd return it to you after a year?"

Was he upset about last night and taking the pendant back out of spite?

That didn't seem like his style.

"It's almost Leslie's death anniversary. I need to have it with me for the next few days," Xander explained.

So that was it.

Isabel removed the pendant and handed it to him.

The pendant had been a token of love that Leslie gave to Xander. It made sense that he wouldn't want to part with it, especially now. It would've been inappropriate for her

to keep wearing it during this time.

In truth, she'd been pondering something for a while now.

Lately, she'd been dreaming a lot about Leslie-dreams so vivid they felt like memories. She suspected they weren't just random dreams but fragments of something that had actually happened.

At first, she thought she might've been the little girl who had been by Leslie's side.

But now...

She was almost certain that the child was Richard.

If that were true, then who was I? Why would I dream about Leslie?

She had a bold theory she dared not say aloud.

But Leslie had died in that fire, hadn't she?

A notification interrupted her thoughts.

She got a message from Richie.

"When are you coming? I need to prepare."

Isabel slapped her forehead.

She'd completely forgotten she had agreed to visit Richie today to check on him.

Richie ... Richard...

And that familiar figure...

She was going to get to the bottom of this today.

It wasn't long before Isabel arrived at the location Richie had sent her.

"I'm here," she messaged him.

Richie replied, "I'm in a video conference. Almost done. Come in-the door code is..."

After punching in the code, Isabel stepped into the villa.

The moment she entered, her pupils dilated in shock.

I knew it!