After Breaking Up, I Married A Top Alpha Movie Star And Fell In Love - Chapter 3

Qiu Ye lowered his gaze, his silver-rimmed glasses sliding down to the bridge of his nose. He was about to leave after speaking, but He Yuchen grabbed his arm.

“Qiu Ye, listen to my explanation first.”

Qiu Ye pursed his thin lips, locking all his emotions behind those transparent lenses. Coldly, he peeled He Yuchen’s fingers off his body one by one. His knuckles turned slightly white from the exertion, as if he were at the limit of his endurance.

“You were the one who brought the person back yourself.”

Qiu Ye’s tone was flat. He blinked heavily, unable to understand what He Yuchen possibly had left to explain. “Was someone holding a gun to your head?”

“President He.”

The title “President He” was spoken with a sense of both distance and pain.

“Qiu Ye, don’t talk to me like that.” He Yuchen hugged Qiu Ye from behind, the sparks of anxiety in his heart burning fiercer. “I didn’t know why he suddenly went into heat. You’re a Beta, you don’t understand Alphas…”

Qiu Ye forcefully broke free from He Yuchen’s embrace, interrupting him loudly: “I know all about the pheromone attraction between Alphas and Omegas. You don’t need to find roundabout ways to remind me.”

If he weren’t a Beta who couldn’t smell pheromones, perhaps he would have noticed the lingering scent of an Omega on the Alpha sooner.

Qiu Ye slammed the door shut and walked away quickly without looking back. He Yuchen chased after him, calling his name.

“I only gave him a temporary mark; it doesn’t mean anything at all.” He Yuchen frowned and grabbed him again.

The moonlight reflected off Qiu Ye’s face. His skin was so pale it seemed to glow, making him look like a mysterious creature that had just surfaced from the deep sea. He slowly turned his head, his gaze toward He Yuchen cold to the extreme.

“Qiu Ye, stop being angry, okay?”

“Believe me, there’s really nothing between him and me.”

Since childhood, people had always gone out of their way to flatter He Yuchen. Even with his own family, the Alpha had never acted this humble.

Qiu Ye took a deep breath and laid his cards on the table: “The matter of ‘partner swapping’ on the Firenze—you knew about it before we even boarded the ship. Didn’t you?”

Everyone knew; he was the only one kept in the dark.

He Yuchen’s expression changed. He frowned and asked, “Which busybody told you that?”

“It was that guy Ding, wasn’t it?” He Yuchen realized that Liu Mian had also been pushed into his arms by that man, and his eyes widened. He suddenly understood and continued to explain patiently, “This is all the mess Ding Zhao created. He did it because he’s had a thing for you for a long time.”

“I never intended to trade you. I didn’t tell you because I was afraid you’d overthink it and feel uncomfortable.”

The corners of Qiu Ye’s mouth twitched into a mocking sneer. “Is that so? Perhaps it’s just because President Ding isn’t high-status enough.”

“If there were a more worthwhile project, or someone more important to connect with, President He might not necessarily hesitate to part with his ‘love’.”

As Qiu Ye said this, his heart felt as if it were bleeding, yet he perversely insisted on making everything clear.

He Yuchen’s remaining patience was nearing its end. He said crossly, “Are you blaming me?”

“For something that never even happened?” He Yuchen raised his voice, appearing unable to accept Qiu Ye’s questioning and suspicion. “I said I wouldn’t give you away, and I won’t. Even if the Prince of the Universal Group came to ask, it would be the same.”

Qiu Ye’s brow furrowed. He looked up and said, “I am a person, not an object for you to pass around.”

“I’ve already apologized to you, but you simply refuse to believe me.” He Yuchen stepped forward as he spoke.

Qiu Ye let out a soft breath and countered, “You apologize, and I’m just supposed to pretend nothing happened and forgive you?”

“Qiu Ye, are you really going to break up with me over something like this?”

Amidst the sound of crashing waves, Qiu Ye looked at He Yuchen and nodded without a second of hesitation. He Yuchen’s expression went completely cold, and he turned and left.

In truth, Qiu Ye had long noticed the underlying issues in their relationship. As He Yuchen grew busier and his ambitions increased, their views on life and work had begun to diverge. However, because Qiu Ye was the secretary and He Yuchen was the boss, they had maintained a precarious balance.

Watching He Yuchen’s retreating back, Qiu Ye leaned his hands on the railing. He pulled a box of Caviar cigarettes from his pocket and took out a thin black cigarette. He rarely smoked, almost never in public, and only used it to refresh himself when he was exceptionally tired.

“Tch.”

A miscalculation.

The lighter was still in that side bedroom. He couldn’t bring himself to turn back and get it now. Qiu Ye didn’t know how many times he had sighed today. Just as he was about to take the cigarette out of his mouth, a crisp “click” sounded.

A slender arm reached out from the corner, naturally holding a lighter out to him.

The flame flickered to life against the dark night sky. Orange light danced across Qiu Ye’s face before being scattered by the sea breeze. With the cigarette between his lips, the peaks of his mouth looked soft and thin. He leaned down toward the flame.

The dim light illuminated the darkness. Qiu Ye looked up and saw that smiley-face mask again, nearly choking himself. The person wasn’t far away, dutifully holding up the silver lighter.

Qiu Ye poked the person’s arm, remembering the warmth of their body when they had supported him earlier, and slowly exhaled a cloud of smoke. Surely no ghost or monster would wear this season’s luxury brand suit just to scare people. Perhaps this person just liked to watch the drama unfold.

Secretary Qiu thanked the person calmly, still speaking in English.

A pair of deep eyes hid behind the mask, flickering alongside the flame of the lighter.

“You’re welcome,” the person replied in standard Chinese. Their voice sounded different than when they spoke English, though it was just as deep.

Qiu Ye froze. His heart rate climbed secretly as he realized this person must have overheard his conversation with He Yuchen. He frowned, and the hand holding the cigarette swayed imperceptibly.

Just as the sea breeze was about to blow out the light, the person reached out, cupping their hand into a semi-circle to shield the flickering warmth for Qiu Ye. The tiny flame pulsed in the boundless darkness, beat after beat, mimicking a hidden heartbeat.

After finishing the cigarette, Qiu Ye went to the steward to open a new cabin. Fortunately, the Firenze had extra guest rooms; otherwise, he would have had to spend the remaining dozen hours staring awkwardly at his ex-boyfriend.

Qiu Ye hadn’t yet decided how to face his boss with this new status, so he contacted the Minister of Personnel first to request his annual leave. Perhaps, resignation should also be put on the agenda.

Minister Wang: You rarely take leave. Are you going out to have fun?

Secretary Qiu: Yes, I’m going to use up all my accumulated leave at once.

Minister Wang reminded him that according to the platform’s process, for leave exceeding three days, President He needed to sign off in the system for the process to be complete.

Secretary Qiu: Okay.

Minister Wang: The girls in the President’s office will probably feel like the sky is falling when they hear you’re taking such a long break.

Secretary Qiu: You’re joking. I will hand over my work properly.

After He Yuchen walked away, he felt a twinge of regret. He turned back to look for Qiu Ye, but the deck was already empty.

In the ship’s bar, which stayed open until dawn, small lamps cast an amber glow.

“Big brother, what time is it? Why did you call me out!” Xu Zilong complained while yawning, his finger tapping the bar counter.

Ice spheres swirled in the golden liquid, making a lonely clinking sound against the walls of the whiskey glass. He Yuchen leaned against the bar, picked up the crystal glass, and drained it in one go—drinking fast and hard. He said succinctly, “Qiu Ye and I broke up.”

Xu Zilong froze, an expression of disbelief on his face. He whispered, “For real?”

In many people’s eyes, Qiu Ye was the shadow He Yuchen could never shake off. He had followed him since their student days and had stayed by his side until now. Therefore, in Xu Zilong’s view, it was impossible for Qiu Ye to take the initiative to break up. He asked softly, “You brought it up?”

However, He Yuchen shook his head, his expression souring as he told Xu Zilong what had happened that night.

After understanding the situation, the young Master Xu propped his forehead with his hand and said, “So, you’ve been dumped by your own secretary?”

Proud as he was, He Yuchen naturally wouldn’t admit it.

The phone on the table vibrated twice, popping up with Qiu Ye’s leave application. Xu Zilong took a sip of his drink and leaned over, curious. “This overachiever is actually taking leave?”

“Do you think he’s playing hard to get?”

Those last few words clearly pleased He Yuchen. He raised an eyebrow and said, “He likes me so much; he’s definitely trying to use this chance to act difficult.”

Over the years, Qiu Ye had always been by He Yuchen’s side—running errands and providing cover during school, and handling company affairs after graduation. Xu Zilong didn’t deny their feelings, he just doubted whether Qiu Ye even knew how to play hard to get.

He Yuchen put his arm around Xu Zilong’s shoulder and finished his drink, boasting to his childhood friend: “Within two weeks, he’ll definitely come crawling back to me.”

“Sure, sure.” Xu Zilong was so sleepy his eyelids were fighting to stay open, and he let out another yawn.

Accompanied by the long blast of a whistle, the massive white hull of the ship slowly docked at the port.

Lu Mingchuan, wearing sunglasses and a mask, stepped off a private shuttle boat and dove into a van. The black business van wove slowly through the evening rush hour traffic, taking over an hour to reach the Fengqi Chaoming Mansion.

Two days ago, the furniture flown in from Italy had finally arrived, and the vast penthouse was decorated exactly how Lu Mingchuan liked it. The only thing he was dissatisfied with was that his manager had taken the liberty of hanging a giant poster of him in the most prominent spot in the living room.

“I’m doing this to motivate you to reach new heights in your career,” the manager said, tucking her ear-length hair behind her ear and tossing a bottle of sparkling water—his new endorsement—to her artist. “By the way, I ran into Qin Yanting on the ship. He didn’t give you any trouble, did he?”

Lu Mingchuan shook his head and unscrewed the water. That man had debuted during the same period as him and had always been a rival.

As soon as his manager left, Lu Mingchuan took down his own poster and hung up two masks of different styles. He leaned down slightly, his profile as sharp and clear as a glacier; his high nose bridge and slightly recessed eye sockets revealed the Alpha’s quarter-foreign ancestry.

Lu Mingchuan’s kiss fell upon the cool mask, his movements carrying a near-devout tenderness.

He thought that Qiu Ye was neither a fox nor a rabbit.

Qiu Ye was simply Qiu Ye.

So, when Lu Mingchuan received that phone call, he rushed over without a second thought.

Secretary Qiu was drunk for the first time in his life. He looked back at the name of the bar.

No Defenses Tonight.

Truly a good name.

Just as Qiu Ye was about to take out his phone to call a designated driver, a blond guy with a lip piercing sidled up to him from behind.

“Hey handsome, you alone?”

Qiu Ye swayed, waving his hand in refusal. “Sorry…”

“Sorry, he’s with someone.”

A deep, husky voice whispered right against his ear, sending an electric shiver through Qiu Ye that made his reactions lag by half a beat.

Lu Mingchuan pulled Qiu Ye into a nearby dark alley, bracing both hands on either side of the other man’s shoulders, trapping him in the small space.

“Qiu Ye, do you still remember who I am?”