It was already one o'clock in the morning when James returned to South Lake.
He was afraid that the sound of taking a bath would wake up Elizabeth, so he took a quick bath in the guest room before he went to the master bedroom.
He gently pushed the door open and didn't turn on the light. As soon as he walked to the bedside, Elizabeth woke up.
"You're back?" She sat up with the quilt in her arms, "Why do you come back so late? Aren't you going to work tomorrow?"
James felt a little guilty, "Did I bother you?" He had obviously walked very lightly.
"No." Elizabeth shook her head, "I thought you hadn't come back yet, so I didn't sleep deeply."
In fact, she was not entirely truthful. While waiting for him, she was also thinking about Zena and Xavier. He wasn't with her, so she couldn't sleep soundly.
"Mmm." He didn't go to get the pajamas and went straight to the bed with the bath towel, "Go to sleep, honey."
"Is your friend in a better mood now?" Elizabeth asked, resting her head on James's arm. Her voice sounded a little lazy and sleepy because she had just woken up.
James glanced at her through the moonlight and
said, "Yeah."
When he went out, he only said that one of his friends was in a bad mood and he was about to have a look. He did not tell her whom he was going to meet. He lied, but that was because he had his own worries.
They were close to each other, and Elizabeth clearly smelled the smell of alcohol, "Did you drink?"
"Well, a little bit. I just drank one glass of wine."
"Didn't you drive there? How could you drink? That was so dangerous!"
"I really just drank a little bit. It doesn't matter."
Elizabeth glared at him discontentedly, "You can't do this again. Even if you want to drink, you can call for a ride-hailing service."
"Okay, I see." He hugged her more tightly, "Just sleep."
"Why do I feel like you're being perfunctory?"
James rubbed her hair into a mass of tangles, "Why do you say this?" He snorted and got closer to her face, pretending to be suddenly enlightened, "Oh, you're dissatisfied because I didn't make love with you tonight, right?" His voice was deep and he said with an ambiguous smile, "Come on. I'm not afraid of you!"
Elizabeth was amused, "Are we fighting? Why do you say that you're not afraid of me?"
"In a way, sex can be regarded as a fight." James thought for a while and said seriously, "Listen, honey. Some of the postures are like those in wrestling, judo, kickboxing, and fencing. You have a pleasant experience when using different postures, right?"
Elizabeth was stunned.
The words he said seemed to make sense, but his smile and expression were so seductive that she couldn't help but fantasize.
"Now you..." Elizabeth thought for a moment, "Stop it!"
"I haven't started yet. How can I stop?" James winked at her and said with a smirk, "What do you think? Do you want to use different postures in these sports?"
After that, he even added, "I'm sure you'll be satisfied!"
Elizabeth patted him on the shoulder, "You're so shameless!"
"The path of learning and exploring is long and far-reaching. You won't be able to learn anything if you're not shameless."
Elizabeth opened her mouth, but she didn't say anything. Anyway, she couldn't outargue him!
"Hey, honey, why do you close your eyes? We haven't studied the postures yet."
Hearing the sound of running water in the bathroom, Zena opened her eyes and raised her eyebrows. There was no love in her eyes at all. Instead, there was a bit of rejection and disgust.
Ha-ha..
She thought, "How did you treat me when I was so nice to you and chased after you crazily? Now, I don't want you anymore, but what are you doing? Are you giving me alms or taking pity on me? Or, do you really love me a little bit?"
"But, no matter how you treat me, I don't want it anymore. Unless..."
Unless what?
Could that day really come for her?
She closed her eyes in disappointment and dejection. Forget it. She didn't want to think about it anymore.
After coming out of the bathroom, Xavier habitually wanted to go out, but he stopped when he was about to reach the door. A few seconds later, he walked back and looked at Zena. After thinking for a while, he lifted the quilt and got on the bed.
After lying for a while, he took a deep breath, turned over, and gently held Zena from behind.
He closed his eyes and tried to suppress the discomfort in his heart. Although he knew she was asleep and might not be able to hear his words, he said in a soft tone as if he was talking in his sleep, "Zena, I'm sorry to wrong you."
"It's all my fault. I don't know why I'm like this. I know that you are disappointed, but so am I." Yes, he was also disappointed. How could he still be like this after so many years? Elizabeth... was an exception.
However, the woman he was going to marry was Zena, wasn't it?
"But I..." He sighed, "I will go to see a doctor and receive treatment. I will make myself a normal man. Give me some time, okay?"
Zena opened her eyes again and looked at her front blandly. She felt uncomfortable and depressed as if she had eaten something bitter.
She smiled with melancholy, "How long should I give you? I've given you more than a decade. Isn't it enough?"
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