Sleeping Like a Puppy

They took the elevator allocated for the President to the top floor. She was amazed at the sight beyond her.

This wasn't just a simple office. One would not be exaggerating if they said this was a condo.

There was a kitchen and a huge lounge with comfy furniture in the open space. Separated by a glass pane was a grand glossy oak table. The sign on the table read: LU BEICHEN, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER.

This man was a workaholic, so it was not strange for him to be this extravagant. The many days he had to sleep at the office could outnumber the days he stayed at home. Perhaps there was even a bedroom somewhere.

"Miss Shen, please sit on the sofa. President Lu will be here in a while," Assistant Wen said and closed the office's door.

She looked around one more time, afraid to touch anything were he to notice.

She understood his obsession with cleanliness and organization well. He was the one who specifically told her.

It was when they were still in universities. He had dropped his handkerchief on campus, so she went out in the pouring rain to find it. She found it after a long time and came back home with a fever.

At school the next day, she shyly handed him the handkerchief after having washed it multiple times by hand.

"Beichen, I found your handkerchief. It got dirty, so I washed it."

However, he did not even spare her a glance and just threw the handkerchief into the trashcan.

"I don't take dirty things back."

She was stunned.

He always carried the handkerchief with him, so she thought that it was an important item to him.

However, he just threw it away like it was a piece of paper. His excuse was that he didn't like dirty things, but she knew that he just didn't like things that she had touched.

She was undoubtedly sad because the boy who had promised to marry her was no longer present.

She kept his words to heart until this day and never touched his things.

There was a screen suspended to the wall and magazines of the latest volume on the coffee table, but she sat on the sofa obediently.

She browsed her phone. Who knew what "a while" meant, but as long as she passed this step, she didn't mind the wait. She could even wait all day.

However, time passed by and there was no sign of Beichen coming through the door.

She was bored and soon her yawns turned into snores.

Beichen knew that Yanyue was here to meet him, so he purposely made her wait. He hadn't seen her since that dreadful day and didn't want to see her either.

He had expected her to create a scene, but the room was surprisingly quiet when he walked into the office.

He looked around the spacious room and saw a bundle on the sofa.

To his surprise, the woman was curled on the cushion, sleeping soundly.

She was snoring lightly and steadily. Her face was like a puppy, and it seemed that she would never wake up if no one bothered her.

He observed her sleeping face for a while. He had never taken a close look at her before, but she was indeed beautiful. She had a natural beauty that surpassed Wanyue even though they were sisters. However, her heart didn't live up to her appearance. She was as black as coal.

His face was deep as he continued to look at her. No one could tell what he was thinking. Then, he walked over to open the door leading to the bedroom.

Bzzt! Bzzzt! Bzzt!

"Ah, no don't leave me!"

Yanyue was startled by her phone vibrating. She was in the middle of a bad dream and the vibration scared her.

She woke up out of breath. After calming herself down, she realized that she was still in Beichen's office. She checked her phone to see who called. It was just a scam phone number.

She looked around and didn't see him anywhere. She felt dejected because she knew that he purposely made her wait. She thought she wouldn't be sad, but it was harder than it sounded. But, if he wanted to play this game, then she would gladly bear with him.

There was no one on the whole floor so it was as quiet as a mouse, but she suddenly heard running water.

There was no one turning the water on in the kitchen sink, so she had to wonder where that sound was coming from.

Then, she saw the door nearby the glossy oak table. She went over and opened the door out of curiosity.

She pushed the door inch by inch, carefully checking her surroundings and the inside in case there was a bad person. She wouldn't be surprised if she encountered a thief because many people were jealous of Beichen.

However, she suddenly lost control of the door because it was suddenly yanked back from the inside.

Everything happened so fast that she lost balance and fell forward. She could only shut her eyes and screamed out while expecting to experience some pain as she landed on the marbled floor.

But that didn't happen.

Instead, she felt something soft and hard at the same time underneath her.

She opened one of her eyes and to her surprise, she was lying on top of a half-naked Beichen.

"Ahh!"

She tried to get up, but she slipped and fell back onto his body. Her bosom hit his sturdy chest and she grimaced in pain for a second.

While on the other hand, Beichen was having a hard time concentrating. As soon as her chest rammed against his, he was reminded of the crazy night they had.

He had to admit that this woman was like poison. She could wake up his most animalistic instinct in a matter of seconds. Before this, no one had ever woken up to his desires before, not even his fiancee.

She was so close to him that he could smell her light lavender scent. His throat bobbed and he was aware of the change in his lower body. He pushed her to the side.

She was a devil indeed.

Yanyue got up following him and tried to compose herself from the shock as she looked away, embarrassed by his naked appearance.

Beichen sneered. In his eyes, she was only pretending to be pure.

He knew that she was a dirty woman who always indulged in the riches of her family.

That night wasn't her first time because he didn't see any blood on the bedsheet. This only meant that she wasn't a virgin. He suddenly felt disgusted and became angry.

"Why are you pretending to be shy? It's not like you've never seen a naked body before," he said condescendingly.

She blushed and didn't respond as if in acquiescence with his words.

However, he was wrong because she had only seen a man's naked body once and that was his. Now would be the second time and it was still his body that she saw.

She didn't want to complicate things further and said, "President Lu, I need to talk to you about the land rights. I'll wait for you outside."

Then, she closed the bedroom door and stood in front of his desk.

From this view, she could see the whole city. Everyone looked like ants from this height.

Soon, Beichen came out of the room, a little distant and cold.

She mustered up her courage and said, "President Lu, please sell me the lakeside land."

He wasn't interested. "And if I say no?"

She persisted. "That land is very important to me. I don't have the capital to compete with you, but I can try to compensate you in other ways and do whatever you want."

The man paused, then raised the corner of his lips, "Whatever I say?"

Yanyue saw the ambiguity of his smirk and felt a chill ran down her spine. She gulped and nodded her head. "Yes, I mean it."

"Then, call off the engagement," he said eagerly.

She was speechless at his request.

The engagement wasn't something that she agreed to. Grandma Lu suddenly came to her house that day and announced the engagement. She refused the idea, but Grandma Lu was adamant.

Her father was not against the idea because, according to his believes, his daughter had defaced the Shen family by sleeping with a man before marriage.

So, even if he secretly doted on her, he also needed to think about the whole family and could only marry her off to the person who was responsible.

He also worried that she might be pregnant and that would be bad if people found out that she wasn't married.

So, in the end, he had to decide the best course of action for his beloved daughter and readily agreed to the engagement between the two young children.

"I…you know well it wasn't my idea," Yanyue said softly.

Even though she didn't like the idea of forced marriage, she felt sad that he never thought about her at all. His only wish was to get as far away from her as possible. But, she wouldn't blame him because he loved his girlfriend. He could be loyal to a person if he wanted to.

"Then, you have nothing to offer so please leave," he said dismissing her.

But she really needed that land. Her dream was being realized little by little, so she couldn't give up now. She tried to talk to Grandma Lu, but the old lady was stubborn. She could only wait until things cool down to convince her again.

"President Lu, please I'll do anything!" She had never begged a person before. "I've already tried to cancel the engagement, but Grandma Lu she…she's a little stubborn. We can only wait until things are settled and then I'll try to talk to her again. But for now, if you're not satisfied, then I'm fine with whatever conditions you have as long as you give me the land rights."

Beichen was silent. He knew that once his grandma settled on an idea, she wouldn't change her mind easily. He also understood that this engagement was her idea, to begin with, so it would be hard for anyone to convince her, including her favorite person, Yanyue.

He never understood why his grandma favored this woman so much. In his eyes, she was the typical spoiled and entitled second-generation young lady, nothing comparable to Wanyue who was humble and prim.

If his grandma didn't hate his fiancee so much, then he would have married her long ago. Now, it was impossible for that to happen due to his sudden engagement with the woman in front of him.

But he had to admit that even though his disgust for her was deep, he didn't want to get rid of her completely.

His lips curled up and his eyes shimmered with a glint.

"I can give the land rights to you, but you know that I never do a losing business," he said as he walked up to her.

He lifted her chin and whispered in her ears, "Meet me in Bayside Garden at 9."

Then he pushed her chin away.

Yanyue's knees became weak that she almost slumped down onto the floor. Luckily, she held onto the table for support. She saw the danger in his eyes.

She immediately knew what he meant by that. A tear dropped down her cheeks. She had no choice but to do as followed for the sake of her mother's company.

Yanyue went to her studio and distracted herself with the new project.

She only designed women's clothes, but Jason begged her for a new suit for his upcoming event.

She had only designed one male outfit in her whole career, and it was for Beichen's twenty-third birthday.

She never thought about coming in between him and her sister and had kept her feelings to herself all these years. His twenty-third birthday was special because it was also when he inherited the Lu Group's company. So, she only wanted to give a special gift to him and hoped that he would cherish it. That was enough to satisfy her ego.

However, his birthday already passed, but she never managed to give it to him.

This time, Jason who had been by her side since childhood finally asked her for something. She didn't want to disappoint him, so she decided to take on the project.

After all, the event was also special for Jason as he was going to accept the Best Actor Award. She wanted him to be the most memorizing celebrity that day, so she had to focus extra hard on making the best suit for him.

The sun had already set when she got out of the working zone. Time moved by fast when one least wanted it.

She took a taxi to Bayside Garden. Her heart became heavy as she got closer to the villa.

Bayside Garden was one of Beichen's many private villas. The Lu Group was so wealthy that it was not wrong to say that they owned the whole country. Furthermore, his father, who was a direct descendant of the royal bloodline, was the current king of Country Y.

The villa stood on the bay's cliff, hence its name. It was secluded as it was the only one around the bay area. To be exact, the whole bay also belonged to the Lu Group, so no one was allowed to build on the land.

Finally, she arrived and her whole body felt like a lump of ice.

She paid the taxi fare and walked to the gate. It opened as if it had expected her presence.

The walk to the actual building was long, but it was good because she needed to prepare herself mentally and this was a great time for doing that. She purposefully delayed her steps.

She reached the main building after forty minutes, considering her dilly-dallying along the way as well.

Like the gate, the door also opened as if Beichen knew that she was here.

She thought that he was probably stalking her, which she wouldn't be surprised if there were cameras following her. His security was important for the country since he was the prince among his many other important aliases, such as the Lu Group's President.

He had an older brother who was next in line to inherit the king's position. But his brother was rarely mentioned so no one knew much about him.

He also had a younger brother. It was Jason. Unlike the two older brothers, Jason was more interested in the entertainment world, so he turned there for his endeavor. He was a celebrity with millions of fans around the world and appeared on the news daily.

However, the one that caught Yanyue's eyes was the second son, Lu Beichen. She fell in love with him when she was eight. Her father was a general who stood side by side with the king to protect the country, so she practically grew up with the Lu boys. However, just because they grew up together did not mean that Beichen would favor her.

Her eyes turned watery thinking about the past. No matter how sincere she was, he would never look her way, so she was thoroughly confused when he made this condition.

She didn't want to betray her sister anymore, but he gave her no way out. Her mother's legacy was too important to neglect, so in the end, she could only live with regrets for the rest of her life.

"Miss Shen, please follow us to the bedroom." The person who spoke to her was a middle-aged woman who was followed by some younger ones.

Of course, there were maids to welcome her. She felt ridiculous because she was nothing more than his pet, a plaything that he could easily toss away after he was tired with it.

The woman took her to a room on the second floor and the others began to remove her clothes as soon as the door shut.

She retreated. "What are you guys doing?!"

"His highness wants you cleaned," said the older woman.

True to their words, the huge bath was filled with bubbles. There were even rose petals scattered all over the water.

This would be romantic if they were a pair of inseparable lovebirds, but she was his enemy instead.

They dressed her up after the bath, but she wouldn't call it dressed up; what she wore was a skimpy lacey nightgown. She never realized that his taste was this heavy.

The gown was so transparent that one could practically see her body without removing it. Worst of all, the maids didn't give her any underwear, so she was basically naked.

"His highness will be here shortly."

The way they spoke was concise and brief. It almost sounded like they were trained robots devoid of emotions.

After preparing everything, they left her alone in the room.