The sun was scorching during the day, but by afternoon, the sky had darkened.
By evening, thick clouds loomed overhead, threatening rain.
The air felt heavy and stifling.
The private physician, an older man, delivered a lengthy explanation that reached Lin Mo’s ears.
She furrowed her brows slightly and pointed at herself. “Huh? Me?”
The beautiful girl looked utterly surprised.
Xie Guanyan adjusted his silver-framed glasses with a single finger and addressed the physician. “You’ve misunderstood.”
Misunderstood?
The doctor was stunned. The notoriously unattainable “flower of high society,” Mr. Xie, was actually in a relationship?
And this girl looked so young.
But with a man and woman living alone together, how far could this “misunderstanding” really go?
“Really? Then you two…”
The physician’s brain nearly short-circuited as he scrambled for a plausible explanation. He glanced at Xie Guanyan. “A relative’s child? Your niece?”
Xie Guanyan: “…”
Suddenly demoted in status, Lin Mo frowned. “No, we’re peers. I’m his tenant, renting his place.”
The physician’s lips twitched.
Who would believe that?
Did Mr. Xie even need the rent money?
Xie Guanyan had no intention of explaining further. He coolly dismissed the doctor. “I’m not that frail. No need for supervision. You can leave.”
The physician, after all, was paid handsomely and relied on his reputation.
If he failed to properly serve Mr. Xie, his career in elite circles would be over.
He straightened his wig and smiled. “Then I’ll have to stay overnight with you, Mr. Xie.”
Xie Guanyan stared at him impassively. “Enough jokes. Go.”
Lin Mo plopped onto the sofa, crossing her legs. “Is it really that serious?”
The doctor nodded. “Secondary infections are a real risk. His fever just broke, and his body is at its weakest. If the virus attacks again tonight, it could be life-threatening.”
This wasn’t some exaggerated tale from the butler—it was genuinely dangerous.
Lin Mo glanced at Xie Guanyan.
The strikingly handsome man looked every bit the fragile beauty, making it impossible not to feel a pang of sympathy.
Her peach-blossom eyes shimmered with concern.
Meeting her gaze, Xie Guanyan chuckled softly. “If anything happens tonight, I’ll call him. Don’t worry.”
In the end, the physician was sent packing.
Xie Guanyan couldn’t stomach the idea of another man sharing his bed—or even staying in his home.
Suddenly, rain poured down in sheets.
A cool breeze drifted into the living room.
Lin Mo curled up on the sofa, reviewing her study materials.
Xie Guanyan hadn’t gone to bed yet either, working on his laptop from the couch.
His glasses glinted as his crystal-clear eyes focused on the screen—the picture of refined restraint.
Feeling the chill, Lin Mo looked up at him. “Stop working and get some rest. The doctor said you need it.”
At this distance on the sofa, the sweet fragrance of her skin reached him.
As much as he wanted to stay near her, the genuine worry in her eyes made him shut his laptop.
“Alright. You should rest early too.”
Her concern thrilled him to the core.
But more than his own happiness, he wanted her to be at ease—not weighed down by worry for him.
The tall, elegant man stood, his long legs carrying him toward the stairs.
All Lin Mo saw was his broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted silhouette retreating.
After more studying, the clock struck half past eleven.
Lin Mo grabbed her phone and headed upstairs.
Sprawled on her bed, she stared blankly at the ceiling.
For some reason, sleep eluded her.
Her phone buzzed.
She picked it up with slender, jade-white fingers—another verification message.
[Lin Mo, where were you all day?]
No need to guess who it was.
She wasn’t in the mood for his antics.
Her gaze lingered on Xie Guanyan’s chat window.
Truthfully, she was still worried about him.
She knew how awful fevers could be—the pounding headaches, the throat like shards of glass.
As a child, her parents would stay up all night tending to her, holding a straw to her lips so she could sip water.
If Xie Guanyan’s fever spiked again tonight, with one arm injured, even getting water would be a struggle.
That would be downright pitiful.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to watch over him.
First, she’d never shared a house with a man before.
Second—and more pressingly—she feared she might lose control and pounce on him!
The rain grew heavier, drumming against the windows.
Each drop seemed to strike Lin Mo’s heart.
In the next instant, she sprang out of bed.
If she’d already seen him shower, what was watching him sleep?
If something really happened to Xie Guanyan tonight, she’d regret it forever tomorrow.
Besides, she struggled to sleep in unfamiliar rooms anyway.
She could study while keeping an eye on him—two birds with one stone!
The only concern was whether Xie Guanyan would mind… or assume she had ulterior motives.
Slipping on her sandals, Lin Mo stepped out of her room and knocked on the door next door.
Knock knock knock!
The sudden sound made Xie Guanyan pause as he dressed, fresh from his shower.
It wasn’t hard to guess who it was.
With just the two of them in the villa tonight…
If Lin Mo was knocking, could she possibly—
His breathing grew rapid in an instant, chest rising and falling visibly, his eyes darkening with emotion.
If she really wanted to watch him sleep...
Should he refuse?
He should refuse!
This wasn’t appropriate.
But an opportunity like this might never come again in his lifetime.
He wanted—no, he ached—to see her all night long.
His thoughts were a tangled mess, yet he couldn’t bear to keep her waiting. He quickly pulled on his clothes.
Opening the door, he found the exquisitely radiant girl standing there, her hair slightly disheveled.
She must have been lying in bed for a while—a single rebellious strand stuck up from her crown, unbearably adorable.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, forcing his voice to remain steady.
The moment he appeared, the fresh scent of lemon shower gel and his own cool, distinctive fragrance enveloped her.
The collar of his gray pajamas wasn’t buttoned all the way up, revealing the sharp, pale lines of his collarbone and the faint outline of firm pectoral muscles beneath.
It was utterly tantalizing.
Lin Mo’s face flushed the second she glanced at him, her lashes fluttering. “I—I thought I’d keep you company tonight. I can’t sleep anyway. I’ll just lie on the sofa,” she said, her tone earnest.
Then her mind, suddenly derailed, supplied an unbidden thought:
They say gray pajama pants accentuate… certain shapes. Is that true?
Her gaze flickered downward before she caught herself.
So hot—who spiked my drink?!
Her peach-blossom eyes were clear and bright. Xie Guanyan found himself utterly incapable of refusing her.
She treated him so well, as if he were a dear friend.
And how could anyone reject a friend’s kindness?
He would control himself.
“Thank you,” Xie Guanyan said softly, his voice warm.
He turned and walked back inside, Lin Mo trailing behind him, her eyes sparkling.
Gray pajama pants really do accentuate things.
And his—
She caught herself and lightly smacked her own cheek.
What kind of beast thinks like this when he’s sick?!
The bedroom was spacious, with a sofa placed near the window, neither too close nor too far from the bed.
“The sofa isn’t comfortable. You should take the bed,” Xie Guanyan offered, watching her intently.
If she agreed, he could fall asleep enveloped in her scent every night from now on.
Lin Mo shook her head. “No way. You’re the one who’s sick. I’m not planning to sleep tonight—I can catch up tomorrow.”
Tomorrow was Saturday; she didn’t have classes until Monday.
A daytime nap wouldn’t hurt.
He’s too considerate.
What kind of person lets the caregiver take the bed while the patient suffers on the sofa?
Xie Guanyan knew he couldn’t persuade her, so he didn’t press further, settling into bed instead.
His tall frame sank into the white sheets.
Lin Mo stood by the bedside.
Under the lamplight, her shadow fell across him, their silhouettes overlapping like two bodies entwined.
She looked down at him. “Tell me if you feel worse, or if you’re thirsty.”
“Okay.”
The beautiful man was impossibly docile, his voice tender and sweet.
Had Lin Mo paid closer attention, she might have noticed how carefully he arranged his posture—just enough to keep his hair from mussing.
She wasn’t completely inexperienced in caregiving.
When her younger brothers had fevers and the housekeeper was busy, she’d looked after them.
She reached out and pressed her palm to his forehead. Normal temperature.
Forcing her gaze not to drift toward his exposed collarbone, she said, “Get some rest. I’ll turn off the light.”
Click.
The room plunged into darkness.
After a moment, her eyes adjusted, faint light from the garden outside allowing her to make out shapes.
Lin Mo moved to the sofa, sat down, and pulled out her phone to review study materials.
She desperately needed academic rigor to purge the indecent thoughts swirling in her mind.
The lingering warmth of her touch on his forehead sent a thrill through Xie Guanyan, his eyes glinting with barely restrained excitement.
In that moment, he couldn’t help but think:
Those bodyguards hesitated for a reason.
Otherwise, how would I get to enjoy this kind of treatment?
This is bliss.
His dark eyes remained fixed on her in the shadows. When he noticed she hadn’t lain down but was instead staring at her phone in the dark, his brow furrowed.
“That’s bad for your eyes,” he said. “Turn on the small lamp. It won’t bother me.”
Lin Mo looked up. “Alright.”
She was happy to comply—eyesight wasn’t something to gamble with.
She needed them for, uh, appreciating the world’s beauty, after all.
The warm glow of the lamp bathed her as she focused on her notes.
Eventually, a yawn escaped her.
She blinked, puzzled.
Why am I getting sleepy?
Does just being in the same house make me drowsy?
She’d never tested the theory—she’d never slept in another room here before.
Her gaze drifted to the bed.
Xie Guanyan lay on his side, eyes shut, motionless as if deep in slumber.
She switched off the lamp and curled up on the sofa.
It was clearly expensive—plush and comfortable, just like a bed, if slightly smaller.
No point staying awake if she could sleep. If Xie Guanyan needed anything, he’d call for her.
Daytime studying was far more efficient anyway.
The room darkened once more.
Then, after a while, Xie Guanyan’s voice cut through the silence:
“Lin Mo… do you want to come sleep on the bed?”
