Chapter 469

The pills were for Shermaine’s chest pain, an ache caused by her body producing too much milk. But when Joshua asked, she blinked and paused for a moment.

It wasn’t exactly an embarrassing topic. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to tell him.

Her chest hurt because of excess milk?

It just didn’t seem like something worth explaining to a man. Even if she said it, what could he do? It wasn’t like he could help.

Shermaine straightened her posture and replied with a perfectly serious face, “Nothing major. Just a bit of a headache lately.”

They had only been apart for a short time, but that didn’t mean Joshua had forgotten how well he knew her.

In fact, the more convincingly she answered, the more suspicious it sounded.

Joshua studied her expression closely. His hand, still resting lightly on her waist, traced a slow arc along her skin. His gaze dropped, voice low and deliberate. “Sheary, when did you learn to lie to me?”

Shermaine raised an eyebrow. “I’m not lying.”

Everyone had a bit of acting skill when they needed it. She wasn’t about to fold.

Joshua chuckled softly, every note laced with indulgence. “If you won’t tell me, I’ll call in one of my men. He used to be a doctor. One look at that medicine and he’ll know exactly what it’s for.”

Shermaine rarely took medicine. Even when she had a cold, she preferred to sleep it off. So the fact that she’d actually bought painkillers? It worried him.

Shermaine didn’t say anything.

Joshua leaned in and kissed her lips. “Sheary, just tell me the truth,” he murmured, eyes filled with concern. “Don’t make me worry, okay?”

She nearly caved right then and there. His voice and his expression chipped away at her resolve. But at the last second, she stopped herself. Cradling his face in her hands, she smiled and said, “It’s really not a big deal, so don’t overthink it. And don’t ask again.”

That was when Joshua noticed something rare: an unusual tightness in her expression, a subtle awkwardness she never showed.

If it had been serious, she would never have hidden it. She definitely wouldn’t look like this.

'So I was the one overreacting,' he wondered.

Before he could ask again, Shermaine started to rise, clearly intending to leave.

Joshua wasn’t ready to let her go. He tugged her back into his arms, resting his head in the crook of her neck. Her scent filled his lungs. “Fine,” he said quietly, “I won’t ask anymore.”

Shermaine arched an eyebrow, chuckling inwardly, 'Good.'

But now that things had calmed down, she could feel the ache in her chest starting to build again.

She definitely needed a painkiller soon.

Still perched on Joshua’s lap, she lazily toyed with the collar of his shirt. “Then go get me some warm water.”

“Okay.” Joshua agreed without hesitation. But as he leaned in, he caught her scent again, different from usual. Somehow, a faint, sweet milkiness clung to her skin.

His lips trailed from her neck to her ear, where he gently bit down on her earlobe before pressing a kiss to her lips. “One kiss first, and then I’ll go.”

Shermaine let out a quiet hum, granting him permission.

Joshua’s eyes darkened as he leaned in and kissed her deeply.

It had been too long. The moment their bodies touched, it was like fire meeting ice, so sharp, familiar, and overwhelming. That ache of missing someone, the tension and longing, surged all at once and swallowed them whole.

The plush bed beneath them shifted slightly.

Joshua tightened his grip around her waist. One hand braced against the mattress, the other laced tightly with hers.

Shermaine reached up and pulled off her pale blue wig, revealing her long, silky hair cascading down her back.

Her lipstick had long since been kissed away. What remained was her bare lip, lush, glistening, impossibly soft and red.

Their kiss deepened, breath tangled with breath.

It wasn’t just passion.

What lingered between them was a quiet kind of longing, unresolved but undeniable.

He had missed her, and she had missed him just as much.

Joshua was always intense, domineering and precise. His throat moved with a visible swallow as he pressed her down and murmured, breath warm against her skin, “Sheary, did you miss me?”