187: Chapter 187 You...you licked your fingers...

Wang Yang speared a piece of steak and held it to her lips. "Come on, let's return the favor."

Ye Xueying opened her mouth to take it, and as she chewed, the curve of her lips grew wider and wider.

The two of them went back and forth like this, and before they knew it, they had polished off more than half the food on the table.

There was one last piece of steak left on Ye Xueying's plate. She cut it in half, put it in her mouth, and chewed twice.

She left the other half on the edge of the plate; she really couldn't eat any more. "I'm so full. I can't finish it."

Wang Yang glanced at the half-piece of steak on her plate, reached out his fork, speared it directly, and put it into his own mouth.

Ye Xueying froze. "Th-that... that's what I've eaten."

Wang Yang chewed and swallowed. "I know. What's wrong?"

Ye Xueying's face turned red again, flushing from her cheeks all the way to her ears. "N-nothing."

Her voice was as quiet as a mosquito's hum. She lowered her head and began drawing circles on the tablecloth with her finger.

He had eaten the steak she had eaten; it had her saliva on it. He didn't find her disgusting.

Her heart was beating so fast it felt like it was about to jump out of her throat, but her heart felt as sweet as if a honey pot had been overturned.

Brother Wang ate her leftovers. This thought circled her mind over and over again, and with every turn, the corners of her lips curled up a little higher.

Wang Yang looked at her, head bowed but with the corners of her lips curled high, and laughed. "What are you thinking about? Smiling like that."

Ye Xueying raised her head and touched her face. "I-I'm not smiling."

Wang Yang raised an eyebrow. "Not smiling? The corners of your mouth are almost reaching your ears."

Ye Xueying hurriedly reached up to cover her mouth, her eyes wide and round. "Y-you're not allowed to look."

Wang Yang chuckled. "Alright, alright, I won't look. You can go back to secretly enjoying yourself."

Ye Xueying put her hand down and glared at him, but her lips were still curled up; she couldn't control it at all.

Wang Yang picked up the tiramisu, scooped a spoonful with a small spoon, and held it to her lips. "The last one, dessert. Once you finish this, I won't feed you anymore."

Ye Xueying opened her mouth and took it, but a little bit of cocoa powder got on her upper lip.

Wang Yang reached out, his thumb gently wiping across her upper lip to remove the cocoa powder, and then he brought his thumb to his own mouth and licked it.

Ye Xueying's eyes went wide, and she froze there as if she had been hit by a paralysis spell. "Y-you, what are you doing?"

Wang Yang smiled. "Can't let it go to waste."

Ye Xueying's face was so red it was about to explode. She buried her face in her palms, her voice leaking out muffled through her fingers. "Y-you're too much."

Wang Yang leaned back in his seat, watching her looking so shy she wanted to crawl under the table, feeling incredibly satisfied. "How is that too much? Is helping you wipe your mouth too much?"

Ye Xueying peeked out with one eye through her fingers, watery and filled with both feigned anger and shyness. "Y-you... you licked your finger..."

Wang Yang laughed. "What's wrong with licking my finger? It'd be such a waste not to lick off the cocoa powder. Besides, you had something on your mouth, and I helped you wipe it off; isn't that perfectly normal?"

Ye Xueying bit her lip, unable to speak. Normal, my foot. Who normally wipes someone's mouth with their finger and then licks it off themselves?

But she wasn't angry at all; in fact, she felt a slight, indescribable thrill. When he licked his finger, his eyes were looking at her. That image was etched into her mind, and she probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

Wang Yang watched her face, which was blushing so hard it was almost smoking, and didn't tease her anymore. "Are you full?"

Ye Xueying took her hands away from her face, took a deep breath, and tried hard to make her voice sound normal. "Full. I really can't eat any more."

Wang Yang nodded and pressed the call button. The Waitress came over, Wang Yang paid the bill, stood up, and reached out his hand to her.

Ye Xueying looked at his hand, hesitated for a second, then placed her hand into his. Wang Yang gripped it and pulled her up from her seat.

The two walked outside. Ye Xueying followed beside him, head bowed, her fingers gently curling in his palm.

Throughout that meal, from start to finish, her face hadn't returned to a normal color. It had been red from the Cinema to the restaurant, and from the restaurant until now.

But her heart was sweet, from the tip of her tongue all the way to the bottom of her heart. Walking out the restaurant door, the afternoon sun had already slanted westward, turning into a warm orange-yellow that fell upon them.

Wang Yang led her toward the parking lot. "This place is not bad. We can come here often."

Ye Xueying bit her lip. "Come again? Today was so embarrassing."

Wang Yang turned his head to look at her. "Embarrassed? How were you embarrassed?"

Ye Xueying glared at him. "It's all your fault. Kissing... kissing me. And licking your finger."

Wang Yang laughed. "That's not called being embarrassed, that's called romance. Besides, it was half off, what a bargain."

Ye Xueying reached out and pinched his arm—not hard, like a cat scratching. "You only care about the half-off discount. I think you did it on purpose."

Wang Yang laughed and held her hand, interlacing their fingers. "Purpose? Purposefully kissing you? Hmm, that was indeed on purpose. Who told you to look so pretty when you close your eyes."

Ye Xueying's footsteps faltered, and she almost tripped. Her heart beat a few beats faster. She kept her head down, not daring to look at him, but the corners of her lips were curled high.

He said she was pretty again. He'd said it several times today. She remembered every single instance in her heart, the kind she would write in her diary when she got home.

The two walked to the car. Wang Yang opened the passenger door, and Ye Xueying bent over and sat inside. He closed the door, walked around to the driver's seat, sat in, and started the car.

The car was very quiet, and the heater hadn't fully warmed up yet, but Ye Xueying didn't feel cold at all.

She leaned back in her seat, turned her head to look at Wang Yang's profile—his brow bone was high, his nose bridge straight, his lips slightly pursed. These were the very lips that had just kissed her.

Her finger lifted unconsciously, and she gently touched her own lips. Wang Yang glanced at her from the corner of his eye, the corners of his mouth slowly curling up.

"What are you thinking about?" Ye Xueying put her hand down and looked out the window, feigning composure. "Nothing. Looking at the scenery."

Wang Yang laughed, not exposing her. The car drove into the traffic, and the orange-yellow sunlight shone in through the car window, falling upon them both.

Ye Xueying leaned back in her seat, watching the streetscape fly by outside the window. Her heart felt as sweet as if she had just finished an entire cup of tiramisu. It was the most delicious tiramisu she had ever eaten in her life.

... The black X5M slowly stopped on the side of the road outside the Shopping Mall.

Ye Xueying took a look outside and was stunned. It wasn't taking her home, nor was it returning to the Municipal Government compound; it was a Shopping Mall she had never been to before.

She turned her head and looked at Wang Yang. "Brother Wang, why are we here? Aren't you taking me home?"

Wang Yang turned off the engine, turned his head to look at her, with a smile on the corners of his mouth. "What's the rush? Accompany me for a stroll, will you?"

Ye Xueying blinked. "Stroll? Are... are you going to buy something?"

Wang Yang leaned back in his seat, his fingers tapping lightly on the steering wheel. "Can't we go for a stroll without buying anything? I just want to spend more time with you. Look, it's not dark outside yet; why go back so early? Walk around with me, consider it digesting after the meal, okay?"

Ye Xueying's face flushed slightly.