CHAPTER 58: OUR ROOM

"I never dated Rafael. Our relationship was only—"

"I know, Bianca. You don’t need to explain more about what you two had in the past. I might get jealous if you keep saying another guy’s name instead of mine," Adrian said, pretending to sulk a little, though his eyes still held a warm glint.

He was genuinely thankful that Bianca had been honest with him, it meant she trusted him.

"So, you don’t hate me? You’re not disgusted by me? Not disappointed?" Bianca asked again, still unsure if she could believe it.

"No. I wasn’t exactly a saint myself. I have no right to feel disgusted with you because, if we compare pasts, I’m pretty sure if I told you about my love life, you’d be the one feeling disgusted with me." A faint smile tugged at his lips.

"I like you not because of your body, but because of your heart. Because of your uniqueness. Because of your kindness. Because you’re you. And even if you don’t love me yet—" he corrected himself with a little smirk, "—I’ll make sure you fall in love with me, Bianca."

Adrian’s words made Bianca’s chest tighten with emotion. She was so touched that her eyes began to sting. He still liked her, he didn’t care about her past at all. Heart swelling, she naturally wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.

"Thank you... for understanding," she murmured against his shoulder.

Adrian hugged her tighter and whispered, "When we get back to New York, I want you to agree to my request—to help me see if I’m really in love with you or not. Once we’re back, we’ll erase everything in our contract. For the next year, I want you to sleep with me and help me figure it out. Can you do that, Bianca?"

Bianca’s heart raced, but she nodded. "Yes."

He looked at her with a faint smile. "And I want to be able to hold you whenever I want, wherever we are. If I touch you and you don’t like it, you can tell me to stop. But... I hope you won’t."

Her cheeks warmed, and she nodded again. "Okay," she said softly.

***

When they arrived in New York, the sun had already set, replaced by the glow of the moon. As usual, Adrian’s driver picked them up at the airport and drove them straight to Adrian’s apartment.

At the apartment, just as Bianca was about to enter the room she used to stay in, Adrian suddenly stopped her.

"Where are you going?"

"To my room," she replied.

"That’s not your room anymore. From now on, your room is with me. You remember your promise from yesterday, right?"

Adrian took Bianca’s hand, guiding her toward what was now their bedroom.

Once inside, Adrian wrapped his arms around Bianca’s waist from behind, pulling her close. "So, what do you think of our room? Do you like it?" he whispered softly in her ear.

The room—Adrian’s, no, theirs—was minimalistic, with a monochromatic color palette. The furniture was kept to a minimum, the wallpaper matched the bedding, and the simple yet bold interior design gave off a cozy and elegant feel.

Bianca gently freed herself from Adrian’s arms and turned to face him. She smiled sweetly, looking at him with affection. "Yeah, I like it."

"I’m glad you like it," Adrian said with a warm smile.

Bianca never imagined that her two-week vacation in Japan could mean so much. Honestly, at first, she had felt incredibly unlucky to be chosen by Adrian as his contract wife. But now, her feelings were the complete opposite of what they had been before. She was deeply grateful that the person Adrian had chosen for this arrangement was her and not another woman.

Hypocritical? Yeah, maybe. But only because she had just discovered that Adrian was actually kind, considerate, and had a soft, romantic side. She found herself hoping he could change from his hedonistic, reckless lifestyle.

And if, within the next year, Adrian’s feelings for her proved to be real and lasting, not just a passing desire, Bianca would open her heart to him.

"You know, being your contract wife doesn’t seem so bad after all," Bianca teased, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Adrian let out a short scoff, shaking his head with a smirk. "See? On top of being kind, rich, and handsome, and let’s not forget, I’m amazing in bed. So really, you’ve got nothing to complain about," he replied with confidence.

Bianca rolled her eyes. "You’re too full of yourself."

"Not full of myself," Adrian corrected smoothly, still smirking. "Just confident and honest."

They exchanged amused smiles until Bianca broke the moment. "I’m gonna take a shower."

"You are? The bathroom’s over there." Adrian pointed at one of the white doors in the corner of their room.

Bianca nodded and headed over. After the long flight, her muscles felt stiff and tired. A warm soak sounded perfect to loosen them up.

She had just settled into the bathtub when the door suddenly opened and Adrian walked in, wearing nothing but a white towel slung low around his waist. Since the tub faced the door, Bianca froze and instinctively crossed her arms over her chest.

Seeing him half-naked made her cheeks heat up. The bubbles that had covered her were starting to dissolve, making the water far less private.

"Y-you..." she stammered, caught between shock and embarrassment.

"I’m taking a shower too," Adrian said with a teasing grin, strolling toward the sink like nothing was out of the ordinary.

"But I’m still taking a bath," Bianca protested and tried to sink further into the water.

Adrian, holding his toothbrush, glanced over at her. His eyes briefly skimmed over her body in the water before returning to her face.

"I know. You can keep soaking, I’ll just use the shower. Won’t take long."

"B-but—"

"What? You embarrassed?" He gave her a sly, playful grin. "No need to. I’ve already seen it all... and felt it too." he smirked.

Bianca shot him a sharp glare, her cheeks still burning.

The shameless man wasn’t wrong, but still, even after everything they had done, she somehow felt shy when Adrian saw her bare. Maybe she just wasn’t used to it yet.

Adrian stepped into the shower, clearly in high spirits, even whistling a cheerful tune as the water ran.

***