Chapter 50: The Man in Her Bed
Chapter 50: The Man in Her Bed
It was the spell she set before going to sleep that woke Xiang Ling as a new day arrived in the outside world. She woke up to the gentle embrace of dawn seeping into her Spatial Realm, its soft tendrils coaxing her from the depths of slumber.
Yet, as consciousness tiptoed back into her senses, she encountered an unsettling presence, an unexpected weight tethering her to the moment. It didn’t take long for her brain to realize that something was wrong.
She felt something heavy wrapped around her waist and something hard was pressed against her back. Her eyes immediately flew open and as she looked down toward her abdomen, she noticed a bare and muscular arm wrapped around her waist, securing her in an embrace she neither invited nor anticipated.
Her heartbeat sped up as panic danced at the fringes of her awareness, igniting the urgency of the moment. With cautious movements, she slowly turned her head to look over her shoulder and caught a glimpse of someone sleeping behind her. It took every ounce of her self-control to not scream out loud in horror.
It took her a while to calm herself down as she didn’t want to alert the invader. She struggled to turn around and face the bold person who had dared to sleep in her bed. At the same time, she summoned her spiritual energy to teach that person a lesson. However, she was left frozen in shock the moment she turned and her gaze landed on a very familiar person. The person sleeping next to her was a man - one she recognized immediately.
Li Dao Ming, her fourth husband, lay ensconced in the confines of her bed. His ash black hair was spread across the pillow and over his broad shoulders that were as bare as the rest of his upper body. The blanket had slipped down and it was currently resting right above his hips, covering his lower body but leaving his upper body on full display.
Xiang Ling was unable to even think properly let alone say anything about the absurd reality she was experiencing. Was she dreaming? She thought as her gaze took in the softness that the man carried on his face in his sleep. At that moment, he looked so harmless and approachable - a stark contrast from his usual cold and domineering aura.
Her eyes didn’t stop their journey just at his face. No! They were bold enough to trail a path down his throat to take in every little detail of his finely built upper body that was creating some improper thoughts in her mind.
"Have you looked enough?"
The sudden question scared her and caused her to gasp as her eyes flew back to his face only to find his eyes wide open and staring right at her. "I... I didn’t..." She was at a total loss for words and failed to voice out a proper sentence.
Xiang Ling watched another miracle happen as a very rare smile suddenly curved the corners of Dao Ming’s lips. He looked so different from the man she had been living with for the past week.
"I must thank you for the generosity you showed me last night. Thank you for treating my injuries and helping me recover." He spoke the words softly as he rested his head in the palm of his right hand while looking at her with his deep gray eyes.
It took Xiang Ling a few precious moments to understand what his words implied and as soon as the realization dawned on her, she jerked her body up into a sitting position and stared at the man with her jaw hanging wide open.
"You..." She pointed her finger at the man who was still lying there on the bed in front of her as if he hadn’t shaken her entire world with his confession. "... You are the wolf from the previous night!"
Her words didn’t come out as a question because she was already sure about her guess. No doubt, she found those gray eyes familiar. "You... You are a spirit wolf..." She whispered the words to herself as she realized that another one of her husbands was hiding his true identity in a mortal body.
"You are not a mortal."
The man smiled at her words. His eyes twinkled as if heard something funny. He looked straight into her eyes before he whispered - "Neither are you."
"Huh?"
Xiang Ling stared at the man in shock and it took a few seconds for her struggling brain to realize that she had made a huge mistake the previous night. "What are you talking about?" She struggled to think of a way to get out of the problem she had created for herself by exposing her space and powers in front of Dao Ming.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice the man moving at all. One moment everything was normal and the very next moment, she felt a force pulling her arm down and then the man rolled her on her back against the mattress while he hovered over her. His hands caught her wrists and he pressed her hands on the mattress on either side of her head.
Xiang Ling was breathing sharply as she stared into Dao Ming’s eyes. His body was almost pressed against hers and his face was way too close for her to look anywhere but in his beautiful eyes.
"Ten thousand years of cultivation, a spatial realm, medical knowledge, divine powers..." He started counting one by one. "... you still dare to say that you are a mortal?"
Xiang Ling had no idea what to say. At this point, was there even a way for her to keep lying?
The man didn’t wait for her response and continued, "You never lost your memories. The truth is... you aren’t her. You are not Chen Xiang Ling." He brought his face closer to her throat and inhaled her scent before he whispered the words against her ear - "You smell like stardust."