Chapter 140: Tonight, You Are Not to Move an Inch

Chapter 140: Chapter 140: Tonight, You Are Not to Move an Inch

Miles Warren carried Claire Kendall into the elevator. Her fingers fiddled with the buttons on his shirt, and she murmured softly now and then.

’So docile.’

After unlocking the door, Miles Warren placed her on the entryway console and helped her take off her strappy high heels.

The very straps he had tied himself came undone with a simple flick of his finger.

He carried her to the sofa, then went to the kitchen to mix a cup of lemon honey tea. He brought it to her lips. "Drink this. Or you’ll have a headache tomorrow."

Claire Kendall obediently lowered her head and took two sips. The tea diluted some of the alcohol, and she seemed to sober up slightly, but only just.

With the buttons of her qipao undone, she sat on the sofa with her legs tucked beneath her, gazing up at Miles Warren. Her hair, soft and loose, cascaded over her shoulders.

He suppressed the urge to kiss her senseless.

"Come on, time for bed."

"I don’t want to sleep." She pulled his arm, making him sit down on the sofa.

Before Miles Warren could react, she shifted, bracing her hands on his shoulders. She swung one leg over, settling securely onto his lap, facing him.

She leaned in a little, her tone dead serious.

"I don’t want to go to sleep... I want to take you to bed."

Miles Warren’s body went rigid, his thin lips instantly pressing into a tight line.

His voice was strained. "Claire Kendall, stop messing around. You’re drunk, you’re not thinking clearly."

Her nose was almost touching his. Her breath was a mixture of whiskey and her own faint, alluring scent.

"Hmm? Am I drunk?" she giggled. "Being drunk won’t get in the way of me... fucking you."

As she spoke, she reached out and started fumbling with his shirt buttons, her movements clumsy yet eager.

In her daze, she couldn’t get the first button undone, so she moved to the second, tugging so hard it hurt Miles’s neck.

He grabbed her restless hands, his breath hot and searing. "Claire Kendall."

"Mmm~?" Her voice was a coquettish, seductive purr that could make anyone’s skin tingle. "What is it?"

The next second, she bit down on one of his shirt buttons. "Mmph," she mumbled around it, "it won’t open."

"Miles Warren, I’ve discovered you’ve hidden so many things from me. You’re so tight-lipped, I have to punish you."

"Punish me how?"

"I’ll punish you..." Claire Kendall paused, tilting her head as she seriously considered the question. "By making you stay on the bottom tonight."

Miles Warren’s breathing grew ragged, uncontrollably so. He gripped Claire Kendall’s waist, his usually calm and self-possessed eyes now surging with the hot, intense fire she herself had ignited.

Her finger traced circles on his chest. "Mmm, you’re not allowed to move tonight. Not even a twitch..."

Before she could finish, the man turned the tables, pinning her beneath him and crushing his lips to hers.

Her eyes grew hazy, her lips glistening from the kiss. With her hands pressed against his chest, she mumbled protestingly.

"You cheated."

"You can have the second half."

He teased Claire Kendall to the point of tears, her voice growing unbelievably soft and pliant.

Her mind was a fog, but she still remembered the qipao. "Don’t pull on it. It’s the star of the collection. Don’t get it dirty."

"Mm-hmm..."

’She wasn’t being good at all.’

「The next day.」

Claire Kendall woke up without an ounce of strength in her body. She had slept well into the morning, completely ignoring work, the office—all of it. She couldn’t be bothered.

She was too exhausted to lift a finger; she didn’t even want to open her eyes.

She let out a few instinctive whimpers. Her voice was terribly hoarse, and her throat even felt a little raw.

’Sore up top, sore down below, sore all over... I’m really paying for it now. What a night!’

The next second, something wet and sweet touched her lips. It was water, and she instinctively began to drink. It must have been mixed with some kind of soothing throat syrup; the cool liquid felt wonderful as it slid down her throat.

Miles Warren held the glass, adjusting the straw to make it easier for her to drink.

She was lying on her stomach, so close to the edge of the bed she’d fall off if she rolled over.

Miles Warren gently nudged the bundle of blankets she’d become. "Scoot over. Change positions."

"No more!"

Claire Kendall’s eyes flew open, the words escaping her lips on pure instinct.

"Hmm? What are you thinking about?"

It was only when she met his teasing, smiling eyes that she realized her mistake.

’Last night’s "second half"...’ She was wide awake now, her cheeks burning hot. ’I never want a second half again.’

Claire Kendall flopped back onto the bed and kicked at the covers, telling Miles Warren to get her some clothes.

"What about that qipao from yesterday?"

"I sent it to a professional cleaner. We’ll find some time to return it to Wallace Sutton," Miles Warren said, his thoughts perfectly clear. "And we can use the opportunity to discuss an exclusive partnership."

The dress could be returned, but the opportunity couldn’t be wasted.

Claire Kendall sniffled. "Dr. Warren, you really are a shrewd one."

"Miles Warren, about the Warren family..." Claire Kendall bit her lip. She couldn’t think of a better solution. "What if I go with you to apologize to your grandfather?"

"That’s not necessary, Claire Kendall. I don’t bring it up precisely because I don’t want you to feel guilty."

"I’m not— I don’t feel guilty. It’s just—"

She paused. "It just hurts to see... you’re Miles Warren, for crying out loud. For them to talk about you like that... it’s just too much."

Miles Warren set down the glass, the corners of his lips turning up in a faint, almost imperceptible smile.

’So her heart aches for me?’ he thought. ’I like the sound of that.’

Claire Kendall punched the comforter. "So what if you don’t have money? Who cares! Money can be earned."

"Honey, you just focus on saving lives at the hospital. I’ll go make the money! I guarantee I’ll make them eat their words!"

The word "Honey" slipped out so naturally that Claire Kendall didn’t even notice she’d said it.

"Oh, by the way, Wallace Sutton mentioned yesterday that the qipao was bought at auction by some big shot from Wall Street. How did you get your hands on it?"

"Well..." Miles Warren’s voice faltered.

’He didn’t really want to tell her.’

’He wanted his wife to keep feeling sorry for him.’

"Actually, I have a friend..."