Chapter 447: A little jealous

"Rory!"

Seeing Rory walk over, Vincent was just about to set down the book in his hand and stand up when Rory piped up.

"Don’t move."

Rory stepped over quickly and sat down beside him, reaching out to unbutton his shirt.

"I just came to take a look at the cubs; I’ll leave once I’m done. You keep reading."

Vincent: "..."

His deep, captivating eyes narrowed slightly as he watched her slender, ivory fingers deftly unbutton his clothes. Not a single word on the pages could register in his mind anymore; his breath was filled entirely with the faint, enchanting fragrance she brought with her.

Rory’s fingers gently brushed over him with a tender and focused touch, as if she were feeling some priceless treasure.

Vincent looked at her, his throat bobbing almost imperceptibly.

Suddenly, he let out a low, soft chuckle. His voice carried a trace of lazy hoarseness, like a feather lightly scratching at one’s heartstrings.

"Rory..."

"Hmm?" Rory raised her head to look at him. "What’s wrong?"

Vincent spoke in a slow, leisurely rhythm, trailing off with a light, drawn-out tone that felt like a delicate hook. "Did you... really come just to see the cubs?"

With those words, Vincent extended his long-fingered hand. His dry palm covered the back of Rory’s hand, guiding it to press firmly against his chest.

"Coming only to see the cubs... when the cubs’ father is right here—don’t you want to look at him too?"

"I do! Of course I do."

Rory gave Vincent’s chest a few soft pats, then leaned into his reading nook and reached up to cup his face.

"I was just thinking I’d admire you properly right after checking on the cubs!"

Vincent wrapped an arm around Rory’s waist and raised his other hand, tapping her forehead gently with the pad of his finger.

"Shouldn’t it be: look at the cubs’ father first, and then look at the cubs?"

He murmured softly before catching Rory’s lips in a gentle bite.

"Or is it that now Rory has the cubs, you don’t care for me, the cubs’ father, anymore?"

"I don’t! I didn’t..." Rory denied it frantically, quickly moving to coax him. "Of course you’re the most important in my heart! It’s precisely because they’re the cubs I had with you that I love them so much."

Vincent chuckled and pulled her close into his chest.

"Why are you so nervous? I was only teasing you."

How could he ever actually be jealous of his own cubs?

"I thought you were really jealous! Here I was anxiously coaxing you, and you were just playing with me?!" Rory reached up to pinch Vincent’s cheek. "Just watch how I punish you."

Vincent put down his book, leaning back seamlessly so that Rory rested flat against his chest.

"I’m ready. Feel free to punish me however you like, Rory."

Carefully avoiding the two eggs, Rory leaned down and bit right onto Vincent’s throat.

"Nngh!"

Vincent let out a sudden muffled groan, his throat bobbing violently.

"Rory... here too..."

Looking at where his finger was pointing, Rory readily indulged him.

The two messed around for a while.

Afterward, Rory rested in Vincent’s arms. Reaching out casually, she picked up the book he had been reading and flipped it open.

The next second, she snapped the book shut instantly and tossed it aside.

Phew, close one! Nearly let cursed knowledge seep into my brain.

"What’s wrong?" Seeing Rory act as if his book were a plague to be avoided, Vincent was slightly puzzled. "Is there something wrong with the book?"

"The text in this book is too glaring—it’s not suitable for my eyes," Rory explained with absolute earnestness.

Vincent: "..."

She looked so serious that he almost believed her.

"Fair enough. Military textbooks can indeed be quite dull for you." Vincent pinched Rory’s cheek with a smile. "Next time, I’ll prepare some comics and novels for you instead."

Rory nodded, then suddenly asked, "There’s a male stranger downstairs. Is he a friend of Yuel’s?"

When she went to sleep earlier, she hadn’t heard anything about the Security Department coming, so she didn’t know the man belonged to security. "Oh right, he was wearing a uniform too."

"He’s from the Security Department, here to investigate the Bree incident," Vincent answered. He opened his optical computer to check the time—two whole hours had passed, and Yuel still hadn’t gotten rid of the guy.

Vincent pulled up the living room’s surveillance feed.

A holographic projection of the living room instantly appeared before the two of them. When Vincent saw the person sitting on the sofa, his brow furrowed slightly.

Hiran? Why him? No wonder Yuel hadn’t managed to send him packing after all this time.

"It’s him!"

Looking at the male in the monitor, Rory finally got a clear look at his front profile this time—and immediately remembered where she had seen him before. It was the strikingly handsome male she had caught a glimpse of shortly after transmigrating here!

Vincent looked down at Rory. "Rory, do you know him?"

Rory replied, "When I first arrived here, I saw him once. He was so handsome that he completely stunned me at the time."

"Stunned?" Vincent stared at Rory. "Do you think he’s handsome?"

Rory felt a surge of guilt under Vincent’s gaze. She quickly tried to defend herself: "I had just arrived back then, okay? I had genuinely never seen such a handsome male before, so I was naturally stunned!"

As she spoke, she wrapped her arms around Vincent’s neck. "Now that I get to look at all your faces every single day, I’ve become completely immune. Looking at that male again now, he just seems... totally ordinary."

Suppressing a smile, Vincent held onto Rory’s hand. "I only asked a single question—what are you so nervous about, Rory?"

Rory broke into a mental sweat. If you guys start getting jealous, I can barely keep up with coaxing all of you! How could I not be nervous?!

"I was nervous," Rory said, reaching up to pinch Vincent’s chin. "But I was nervous because I care about you too much and was afraid you’d get jealous!"

Vincent looked at Rory in surprise. The smile in his eyes deepened instantly, and the playfulness that was originally just teasing dissolved into pure, lingering tenderness.

"Is that so?" He chuckled softly, applying a bit of force with his hand to pull Rory even tighter into his embrace. "Seeing how nervous you are about me, I’ll tell you a secret then."

"What?" Rory asked instinctively.

Vincent’s gaze lingered on her pretty eyes and slightly parted lips. Moving in closer until his breath brushed against her ear, he whispered in a seductive murmur that only the two of them could hear:

"Actually... I really was a little jealous just now."

Rory wasn’t surprised at all. "I could already tell earlier!" He isn’t even pretending anymore.

Nuzzling his face into the crook of Rory’s neck, Vincent breathed in deeply of the unique fragrance on her skin. "But I’m not jealous anymore—because Rory just coaxed me back."

Downstairs.

Having finished questioning Yuel regarding the Bree matter, Hiran suddenly asked, "Where’s your Female Master? How come I haven’t seen her come out?"

He was quite curious to see what kind of female had managed to tame Yuel.

"My Female Master has gone to rest. It’s enough for me to handle this matter; there’s no need for her to step out," Yuel stated calmly. "Now that everything has been made clear and I’ve handed over all the evidence you requested, you can leave."

For Yuel to entertain Hiran for two full hours was already his limit. Any longer, and he would throw the man out of the castle himself.

"Alright then." Hiran nodded. Since Yuel wouldn’t let him see her, he wouldn’t push it. The Central District was only so big—there would always be an opportunity to meet.