The Engineer Falls for His Sweet-Scented Maid - Chapter 41: Yes

Nianhe’s thoughts were in turmoil.

Say yes to him?

He was Huai Shen, a son of the privileged families in the compound, so far above her.

Yet when he came close, she did not dislike it.

Even that liquor-scented kiss two nights ago had stirred a little secret happiness alongside her fear.

And if they really went out together, might she have a legitimate reason to stay?

She would no longer have to fear being sent back to Liuhe Village, or being harassed by scoundrels like Qiang Zhao.

But how would she get past Huizhen and Liping?

Huai seemed to read her concern.

“I’ll deal with my family. You don’t have to worry. Just tell me whether you want to.”

Nianhe looked at him.

His features were strong and stern. Those eyes, usually so distant when they rested on anyone, held only her reflection now.

Her mind was a muddle.

Go out together?

She lowered her head and looked at the buttons on his white short-sleeved shirt.

“You…” She bit her lip, her voice scarcely audible. “Are you only offering to take responsibility because you kissed me the night before last and feel you broke the rules?”

Huai’s brow twitched.

The more she thought about it, the more certain she became.

What did liking anyone have to do with it?

People in the compound cared above all about personal conduct. The Shens valued their reputation more than life itself.

Huai had been drunk, mistaken her for someone else, and done something improper.

A decent man like him would surely feel guilty when sober. Or he feared she would report him. That must be why he was forcing himself to offer her a relationship.

After all, he was an eagle in the sky and she was mud in the fields. How could he truly like her?

“Engineer Shen.” She turned her face slightly, avoiding his warm breath. “You really don’t have to do this. I’ll take what happened that night to my grave. I won’t tell anyone. You were drunk. Perhaps you mistook me for someone you used to like. I don’t blame you.”

Huai was so exasperated he could almost feel it hurting him.

This was the first time in his life he had confessed his feelings to a woman. Instead of being moved, she had invented an entire drama about drunken mistaken identity.

“Someone I used to like?” He took his hand from the wall and caught her chin, making her lift her face to his. “Who told you there was anyone before?”

Years of holding pens and drafting drawings had left light calluses on his fingertips. They felt rough against her delicate skin.

Nianhe had no choice but to look up.

“People at the mill say you don’t even look at the women in the arts troupe.” Her lashes fluttered. “Surely that means there’s someone in your heart already.”

“Do you believe everything people at the mill say?” His thumb stroked her chin twice. “I’ve never liked anyone else.”

She stared.

“Then the night before last…”

“I was drunk. Not blind.” He cut her off, his voice low and rough, meant for her alone. “I knew who I was holding and who I was kissing. Who else has that milk scent but you?”

Her face burned crimson.

How could he say such a thing aloud?

Humiliated, she tried to push his hand away. He caught her wrist instead and pressed her hand to the wall.

Now his body was close against hers.

Her old blue floral blouse crumpled, her full curves compressed. That swollen ache returned.

Sweetness stole into his breath from every direction.

His breathing deepened.

“I told you. I want to hold you. I want to kiss you.” He spoke close to her ear. “That isn’t drunken confusion. It’s what I want when I’m sober.”

Nianhe’s legs went weak.

He was usually so cold. How could he have such a ready supply of words like these, like some rogue?

“But…” She kept searching for reasons. “Auntie Liu won’t agree. If Sister-in-law Wang finds out, she’ll throw me out. Then I won’t even have somewhere to live.”

“I told you, I’ll handle my family.” He cut off her fears. “All you have to answer now is whether you want to.”

She looked at him.

In this unfamiliar place, he was the only person who stood up for her when she was bullied.

He would drape his shirt over her shoulders. Back her when she had no one else.

She had never been to school. She did not understand complicated things.

She only knew that with him, she felt secure.

“Then… if I say yes…” She swallowed. “Does that mean I don’t have to meet prospective husbands anymore?”

Watching her carefully calculate the practicalities, Huai could not help laughing.

“You don’t.”

“And I won’t be sent back to Liuhe Village?”

“Who would dare send you away?”

Nianhe drew a deep breath, as though making a momentous decision.

“Then yes.”

At those words, even the air behind the abandoned water tower seemed to still.

Huai looked at her, his eyes deepening.

He lowered his head and pressed his lips to her forehead.

Startled, she shut her eyes and trembled.

The fierce kiss she expected never came. Only a light touch.

“It’s broad daylight,” she whispered.

He drew back a little, his voice taut with restraint. “Afraid?”

Her cheeks burned. She quickly slipped under his arm and straightened her rumpled clothes.

“I-I have to go back and cook. Auntie Liu is waiting.” She took the shopping basket from the handlebars and hurried toward the main road, her head down.

After two steps, Huai called her back.

“Put the basket down.” He wheeled the bicycle toward her. “I’ll take you home.”

“No!” She grew anxious. “In broad daylight? If anyone sees us, how would we explain?”

“What’s there to explain? We’re going out together.” He was unconcerned.

“It’s still no good! Auntie Liu doesn’t know yet.” She refused to get on. “I’ll walk. You go first.”

Seeing how furtive she looked, Huai knew that pressing too hard could backfire.

Nianhe had taken barely two steps with her basket when a large, warm hand closed firmly around her wrist.

Huai moved forward with the bicycle to block her way. With one pull, he drew her, basket and all, back into the shadow behind the abandoned water tower.

“Ah!” Her startled cry broke off. He took the basket and set it on the ground among the dead leaves.

Her back met the rough brick once more, his tall body blocking her escape.

“Why are you running?” He braced one hand beside her, his voice low.

She looked up in alarm. The flush had not quite faded from her cheeks, leaving her fair skin pink. “I said yes. Auntie Liu really is waiting for me to cook. If I’m much later, she’ll scold me.”

“Lunch can wait two minutes.” He did not move away. Instead, he leaned a fraction closer, his chest almost touching hers.

The water tower shut out the midday summer sun. The corner held a trace of coolness, yet the air between them felt scorching.

Huai lowered his eyes to her chest, rising and falling rapidly with nerves.

Her long-sleeved blue floral blouse was loose, but the way she stood against the wall drew the front taut, faintly outlining breathtaking curves.

Threads of cloying milk scent escaped her collar and filled his nose without restraint.

“You were in such a hurry. Make this clear before you go.” He watched her face with unyielding insistence. “What are we to each other now?”