After Falling for the Handsome CEO - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: The “Pity Tactic” Worked Quite Well

Yan Yu had kept Shen Jin tangled in bed until nearly dawn before finally leaving. Before walking out, he looked at the deathly still face on the bed without a trace of emotion. Seeing the body covered in purple bruises and red marks, a flash of disgust resurfaced in his eyes.

The mere thought that this body had been sold to someone else and handled so roughly made him feel a wave of revulsion. He couldn’t even fathom if he had been insane to spend the entire night entwined with him.

By the time Yan Yu returned to his residence, it was already morning. Just as he pulled the car in, he spotted Xie Li asleep in a hanging chair on the porch, which made him freeze in his tracks.

The villa’s maid heard the noise and hurried out, greeting him with a smile: “Young Master, you’re back.”

Yan Yu furrowed his brows and said nothing. After opening the car door and stepping out, he fixed his gaze on the person sleeping in the hanging chair and asked softly, “What happened with A-Li?”

He felt a pang of guilt, wondering if his stubborn insistence on leaving last night had upset Xie Li or caused him to throw a temper.

“Oh, Young Master Xie,” the maid, Wang Ma, said with a gentle smile as she looked toward the handsome young man. Her voice softened. “You may not know, but when you left suddenly with such a dark expression last night, Young Master Xie was worried sick. He called you several times but you didn’t answer. He couldn’t sleep a wink, so he got up early and sat there in the chair waiting for you.”

Yan Yu was momentarily stunned. The rage that had been fueled by Shen Jin dissipated slightly, and he temporarily pushed the image of the half-dead boy lying motionless on the bed to the back of his mind. A slight smile touched his lips: “A-Li… was waiting for me?”

Wang Ma nodded vigorously and chuckled, “Of course! Besides you, who else could make him stay up all night, braving the wind and getting bitten by mosquitoes!”

“I understand. You can go back to your work.” Yan Yu’s smile broadened. He felt a surge of joy—didn’t this mean A-Li’s heart was finally beginning to open up to him?

Beaming, he walked toward Xie Li with light steps, afraid of waking the sleeper. He crouched down in front of him, smiling gently as he whispered, “You fool. It’s so early; why weren’t you sleeping in your room?”

The person in the chair seemed stiff from sitting too long; he suddenly swayed and nearly fell. Yan Yu rushed forward to catch him, wrapping an arm around his waist and letting Xie Li’s head rest against his chest. He laughed softly, “Still sleeping? You almost fell.”

Xie Li nuzzled against his chest, seemingly not yet fully awake. He slowly opened his drowsy eyes, blinking with a daze that was undeniably moving. His voice was soft and airy: “Mmh… A-Yu? You’re back?”

Hearing those words, Yan Yu felt as if his heart had been lightly scratched by a willful cat—a pleasant itch. He couldn’t help but smile as he pinched Xie Li’s cheek: “If I didn’t come back, how much longer would you have sat here waiting? Why are you so silly?”

Xie Li’s face reddened slightly at the intimate gesture. He smiled and pushed him away, rubbing his nose with a bashful grin: “I didn’t wait long. I only sat here for a little while…”

Despite his words, Xie Li secretly wished he could strangle that guy surnamed Shen. If it weren’t for him, why would Yan Yu have ignored his objections and left last night?

It had forced him to resort to this “pity tactic”—sitting out here in the early morning, enduring the chilly wind and mosquito bites! Why did he have to suffer like this?

Damn that Shen Jin! But…

“A-Li,” Yan Yu said, stroking his face and sighing softly with a mix of heartache and helplessness. “The morning wind is so strong and your health is so frail. What if you catch a cold?”

Looking into Yan Yu’s eyes, which were filled with a smile as gentle as water, Xie Li knew: the pity tactic had worked quite well…