Lying on the bed, Lily Bennett suddenly turned over, startled. She glared angrily at the man before her, then reached out to grab the blanket to cover herself, but Maxwell Thornton pulled it back. Calmly, he said, "Have you ever seen a massage therapist let their client lie on the bed fully dressed?"
"But no massage therapist would remove their client’s underwear without asking for permission first!"
Unable to get the blanket, Lily buried her face in the pillow, regretting not asking Dr. Vương at the hospital to apply the ointment earlier. This was undoubtedly one of the most embarrassing moments of her life!
The man nonchalantly poured the ointment into his palm, rubbing his hands together to warm them, before gently pressing them against the delicate skin of the woman, massaging her carefully. Though his movements were professional and appropriate, deep down, Lily felt as though his large hands were intentionally exploring her body, sending shivers down her spine.
Unable to bear it any longer, Lily suddenly turned to Maxwell, "I don't feel any pain anymore, you can stop now..."
Her face flushed, and her heart fluttered with nervousness, but Maxwell acted as if he hadn't heard her. Despite her twisting and turning to show she no longer needed a massage, he pretended to remain indifferent, looking elsewhere.
"Your skin is thick enough that it doesn’t seem like you're the shy type, right?"
"Yes, I'm exactly that kind of person."
As soon as Lily said this, a large hand suddenly smacked her behind. The unexpected touch on such a sensitive spot left her momentarily frozen, as if struck by lightning.
The corner of Maxwell's lips curled into a teasing smile, “Relax, will you? Do you think I'm doing this without any shame? This is the first time I've ever applied ointment and massaged a woman."
Lily screamed in frustration, "Then stop! And stop focusing on the areas with the most flesh on my body."
As soon as she finished, she regretted it, because Maxwell was intrigued and asked, "Besides your chest and your backside, tell me, where else on your body has a lot of flesh?"
Lily looked up at him with a pleading face, hoping for mercy.
"Please, just stop massaging me."
Maxwell pressed his large palm firmly against her waist, responding with one word, "No."
"Then keep pressing. I'll just sleep!" Lily covered her face as if she were really going to sleep, hoping to sleep until the world ended.
Maxwell didn’t believe for a second that Lily could fall asleep in such a situation, so his mischievous hand once again tapped her behind. As expected, Lily shot up from the bed like a spring, glaring at him. "Are you a pervert? Why do you keep smacking my backside?"
"I'm not interested in anyone else’s, only in Dr. Bennett's. But weren't you asleep?"
Lily, "...?"
"If you're not sleeping, then get up and do some exercise before you go back to bed."
The man suddenly grabbed Lily's hand and pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her waist. His gaze was too intense for her to avoid, so Lily shut her eyes, annoyed, and said, "Are you crazy? My whole body hurts right now."
“Building mental resilience helps purify and strengthen the mind, enabling it to endure and handle challenges that affect your mental state. Haven't you heard of mental exercise before, Dr. Bennett?"
Maxwell’s lips curled slightly, "What are you thinking? Mental exercise is crazy? What if I insist on physical exercise instead?" he teased, "Or are you thinking of something else? I didn't expect Dr. Bennett to have such naughty thoughts."
Lily’s face flushed as she met Maxwell's dark gaze.
Who was thinking about anything inappropriate? Who was being naughty? He didn’t even explain properly, so how could I know what kind of exercise he was talking about!
Lily shyly glanced at Maxwell, who looked very pleased with himself. "Didn't you say we should exercise our minds? Now you're insisting on physical exercise! Two people sitting on a bed, one of them not even wearing any clothes. Does that seem normal to you?"
"Why wouldn't it be normal during mental exercise?" Maxwell asked casually.
Lily pressed her red lips together, realizing there was no point in continuing the argument. She couldn’t win against him no matter what she said. She stared blankly at the man, who had now closed his eyes as if he were enjoying a peaceful state of mind, his soul floating in tranquility like the still waters of a vast lake with not a ripple in sight.
Just then, a rough hand encircled her waist, gently pushing her down onto the bed. Lily froze. This was the most tender kiss Maxwell had ever given her since they met, as if he were holding her close, cherishing her with absolute gentleness and reverence, treating her as the woman he treasured and loved the most.
As her back sank into the pillows, Lily instinctively closed her eyes. He took her hand and wrapped it around his neck, igniting the most primal desires within her. If not for the sudden phone call breaking the moment of passion between them, Dr. Bennett would have surely been lying beneath Chairman Thornton, unable to hold back a moan…
The phone kept ringing, snapping Lily out of the dream-like state Maxwell had drawn her into. She pushed him away and retreated to the side. Her cheeks flushed red, her beautiful eyes misty, like a wounded fawn. Lily reached for the phone, but Maxwell had already grabbed it and answered the call.
“My phone battery suddenly died earlier, but it’s charged now. What was so urgent that you hung up on me earlier? I was worried something happened. Are you okay?” It was William Edsel’s voice, filled with concern, on the other end.
Maxwell’s dark eyes glanced at Lily with a knowing look before he casually responded, “Dr. Edsel, you know it’s rude to interrupt someone else’s dream, right?”
At that moment, Lily pounced on Maxwell, trying to snatch the phone away, but he shrugged and handed it to her with a cold remark, "He’s already hung up."
Hearing this, Lily couldn’t help but feel upset. She slapped Maxwell on the chest, "Did you disturb your own dream? Are you intentionally spouting nonsense to cause a misunderstanding?"
Maxwell suddenly caught her hand, bringing it to his lips for a soft kiss before smiling, "And if I did, don’t you see how hard I’m trying to control myself?"
Lily’s face turned even redder as she nervously suggested, "Maybe you should take a cold shower? That might help..."
"Do you really want me to put out the fire that way?" His eyelashes fluttered as he lowered his gaze, long and thick, veiling his deep-set eyes, making him look almost pitiful, irresistibly so.
Lily hadn’t expected things to escalate like this, so she seriously told him, "Sorry, but this wasn’t part of our agreement. I’m not just a random person to help you relieve your temporary desires."
"You're right, but could you really be so heartless? I’ve met someone heartless like you before. Though I know you’re not her, why does my heart still ache so much? I've thought about giving up, about loving someone less and loving myself more. But I can’t. I spend all my time worrying about you, longing for you, only to realize in the end, I’m the one drenched in sorrow. The world is so vast, yet I have no place to belong. Lily Bennett, is there any chance I could belong to you?"
Maxwell lifted his eyes to look at Lily, his lashes framing his earnest gaze. "So, do you want to know what it feels like to burn?"
Lily fully believed that Maxwell would do something crazy, so she immediately shook her head, "How about I help you... with my hands, would that be okay?"