CHAPTER 71: CHAPTER 70: DRUNK

"Then you don’t mind if I help you prepare, do you?" Sienna Thornton stared at him, as if trying to see through whether he was truly drunk or pretending.

He nodded earnestly once more.

"Alright then," Sienna glanced at the guest bathroom with only a shower, and patiently said, "Just sit for a moment."

She went to the master bedroom’s bathroom to check. Indeed, there was a constant temperature massage bathtub, installed right next to the floor-to-ceiling window. She rinsed it slightly with the showerhead and adjusted the water temperature to fill it up.

Returning to the guest bathroom, Simon Forrester was sitting with his head back on the toilet, staring blankly into space, his face flushed, breathing heavily, not asleep, lost in thought.

Sienna Thornton walked over and tried to help him up, "I’ve prepared the water for you, go back to your room to wash."

"No," he said, though his body was honestly leaning on Sienna’s shoulder to stand up, "I want to wash outside..."

Sienna laughed, "This ’outside’ of yours, I fear, is not the guest bathroom at home?"

He stayed silent, lost in thought.

The two stumbled towards the master bedroom, Simon’s swaying body nearly knocked Sienna over several times.

"Fortunately, I’m tall enough; otherwise, you’d have dragged me down." Sienna gasped.

Simon replied lazily, "And you have the nerve to say that. As a woman, aren’t you distressed to be so tall and built like a horse?"

Sienna was amused but not petty enough to argue with a drunken man. But not arguing didn’t mean she was meek. She retorted, "And you, an artist, pretending to be blind here?"

Simon chuckled mischievously, "Isn’t it just being blind..."

Sienna ignored him, pushed him into the master bath swiftly, glanced at his waist, and said, "Alright, you’re on your own now, I’m leaving."

As she spoke, she placed a towel and bathrobe by the tub, "I’ve left the towel and bathrobe here for you. Just so you don’t fall asleep and soak too long, I’ll knock in half an hour. Be sure to wear this, and I’ll come in to help you out."

She wasn’t sure if Simon, drunk as he was, could put on the bathrobe himself, but it was better to say it in advance, right?

Standing behind her, Simon was fumbling with his belt buckle, unable to undo it after a long time. She was about to close the door to leave but, seeing his struggle, couldn’t help but return to help him sit by the tub.

Squatting down, she undid the stubborn belt buckle for him.

—

Sienna suddenly looked up...

The man’s warm breath hit her face, carrying the scent of smoke and alcohol, yet it wasn’t unpleasant. The smoke came from the high-quality Cuban cigars he always smoked, and the alcohol surely wasn’t cheap either, making the combination oddly agreeable.

His brow was prominent, eyes deep, and upon closer inspection, his pupils were a deep brown, like amber or stars in the sky, sparkling, as they gazed at her affectionately. His slightly curved eyes seemed to hold a galaxy.

Sienna’s heart skipped a beat, her index finger and thumb snapped forcefully, a "snap" sound, the buckle undone.

She instinctively looked—despite being drunk and relaxed, his abs still had a solid shape, a testament to long-term exercise.

Really impressive, Sienna marveled: This guy’s physique is top-notch! Even the navel is beautifully shaped!

Adult men and women, neither were innocent.

Sienna swallowed and softly praised, "Your abs are stunning."

"Do you want to feel them?" Simon’s voice was very low, in this enclosed space, it sounded particularly rich and magnetic.

Sienna swallowed, tilted her face to look at him, her long, enchanting phoenix eyes soft and moist, asked gently, "Can I really? Will you accuse me of harassment once you’re sober?"

Typical of wanting to misbehave but lacking the guts.

Simon leaned his head back, closed his eyes, smiled with the corners of his lips, "If you take responsibility, then it’s not harassment."

"..."

Sienna pursed her lips, stood up briskly, "The water is ready. I’ll come back in half an hour to get you out."

Simon remained seated, an ambiguous smile on his lips.

Sienna closed the door behind her but didn’t go far, afraid something might happen while Simon bathed, so she sat waiting on the chaise lounge by the floor-to-ceiling window in the master bedroom.

Bored, she observed Simon’s master bedroom.

Staying here for almost a month, it was her first time entering his room.

Under thirty square meters, not much furniture, all in natural wood color. A king-size bed integrated with the headboard and bedside table, the chaise lounge she now sat on, and a uniquely shaped table, with only a distinct lamp on top.

Beside the bed was an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, matched with heavy yet slightly airy khaki blackout curtains. Perhaps due to a separate study and walk-in closet, the master bedroom remained simple.

Looking at the clean and meticulously arranged white bedsheets, Sienna thought the room felt more like a showroom than a home, yet the well-designed lighting compensated for its chilliness with warmth.

She lay on the chaise lounge, mind drifting, injured leg resting on the ground, planning to wake up in time to call Simon out.

But whether it was the comfortable lounge or her own fatigue, she quickly felt her eyelids heavy. She thought, maybe just a short nap...

Back in school, after working late on problems, a twenty-minute nap always refreshed her...

In a daze, Sienna dreamt.

Years later, on a sunny afternoon, she lived with a man in a similarly simple, cold showroom. From the bathroom, the man called her, "Candy, bring me a towel..."

She handed the baby in her arms to the nanny, turned to get a clean towel for the bathroom, the steamy shower glass blurred the man’s silhouette, yet she saw clearly, that man had a physique as tall and strong as Simon.

The man turned to take the towel from her, she wanted to see his face clearly...

"Ah!" Sienna woke with a fright from her dream.

Quick naps came with wild dreams.

She turned, searching for a comfortable position to sleep, but suddenly bumped into a warm, smooth body.

The dream still fresh, with a child, a nanny, the man in the shower was likely her husband.

And the solid body before her...

"Ah!" Sienna screamed, struggling, kicking off the blanket, fumbling for the light switch but couldn’t find it.

The solid body reached an arm around her, mumbling, "Sleep..."

Sienna pushed him, struggling even more.

She thought she had traveled to the future, with a husband, a marriage, and a child...

Fear spread from her head down to her limbs... yet her right leg was unresponsive, unable to escape the embrace.

She kicked hard, her right leg throbbed painfully, her hands touched hard plaster...