When Taylor tossed Leonora onto the bed and knelt over her, his hands pinning down her wrists, she couldn't help but smirk. As he leaned in, she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Is this all you've been thinking about?"
She had only agreed to give it a try yesterday, and here he was, already eager to pursue the matter.
Taylor's intentions were written all over his face.
Leonora's teasing smile invited Taylor to kiss her. "How long has it been since you've let me touch you?"
In reality, it had only been a little over 50 days since they last were intimate—not that long, really. But to Taylor, it felt like forever.
In the midst of their playful banter, Leonora still had her arms around his neck. "If you can't hold back, you can always find someone else."
Taylor laughed. "I know all about that tough little attitude of yours. You just love giving me a hard time. I'll listen to your bluff, but I won't provoke you."
"Besides, I'm not interested in anyone else."
With that, he leaned in to kiss Leonora on the lips, swiftly undressing her. Their playful tussle lasted until 11 PM when Leonora received a message on Messenger from Shania, reminding her to come home early. Only then did Taylor let Leonora go, tidying up and driving her home.
Leonora's mom, Shania, knowing her daughter was in a relationship, had become quite considerate. Instead of calling to urge Leonora home, she sneaked her messages.
On the way back, Taylor thought about Shania's change of attitude and proudly said, "My mother-in-law seems to have a high opinion of me."
If it weren’t for that, she would have called Leonora to come home early.
Leonora rolled her eyes. "You're just trying to make yourself look good."
Shortly after, the car stopped in front of Leonora's house. Taylor got out to escort her and, unable to part with her, kissed her several times before finally letting her go.
With his hands in his pockets, watching Leonora's figure gradually disappear, Taylor felt at ease. What he wanted, he was sure to get. Whether in the past or the present, Taylor was always confident and never allowed himself to fail.
---
Upstairs, Leonora entered the house just as Shania came out of the master bedroom.
Seeing Leonora return, she casually greeted her. "You're back."
If this were a few days earlier, she would have made some sarcastic remarks. But now, she didn't.
"Mom, you don't have to wait up for me. Go to sleep first," Leonora said.
"I wasn't waiting for you. I was working on lesson plans," Shania replied, quickly changing the subject. "By the way, Arielle, there are a few things I need to talk to you about."
Shania adopted a stern tone, and Leonora, changing her shoes, looked at her mother seriously, bracing herself for a lecture.
"You can date all you want, but please, save having children for after marriage. It's common these days to have children out of wedlock, but it's still not ideal," Shania scolded, in a manner reminiscent of a teacher.
"Nowadays, young people have all sorts of issues. Our friend, Zhang Logan, her daughter got married last year. Before the marriage, the couple never had intercourse; the man said it was out of respect for her daughter."
"Zhang Logan's daughter was moved, thinking she had found a good man. But after the wedding, they discovered the man was impotent. Now both families are in an uproar over this."
"Of course, Zhang Logan's family wants a divorce, but the man refuses, saying he doesn't want the bride price back and suggesting they just live without children."
"Zhang Logan only has one daughter, who is young and healthy. Why should she sacrifice her right to be a mother for a man?"
"So, the two families are still disputing the divorce."
In the story, Shania's main point came through. "That's why I just said what I said to Arielle, afraid she would take our old words as gospel and dare not stray from the path, even slightly. What if she really met someone like Logan, her son-in-law? Wouldn't that ruin her life?"
"So, let's not meddle too much and suppress the child's nature."
After Shania made her point, Devon couldn't help but remark, "No wonder they say Logan hasn't been in good shape for the past six months, aging rapidly."
With Shania putting it that way, Devon naturally wouldn't contradict her, remaining silent. Otherwise, letting their daughter marry someone unsuitable would indeed ruin her life.
Later, the old couple whispered and discussed the renovation of their house before going to sleep.
In the guest room, after taking a shower, Leonora returned to her bedroom and soon fell asleep as well. These two nights of good sleep were rare for her lately. Yet, thinking about what Shania explained to her, that her recent easing of restrictions was with marriage in mind, Leonora's heart couldn't help but skip a beat. Because she and Taylor... she had no idea how far they could go together.

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