Her arms were wrapped around his neck as he slowly lowered her, but he didn't let her go of her completely. Their foreheads touched, breaths mingling. "Zhi Hao," she breathed, her voice trembling like the last note of a love song, "I'm yours forever, for eternity."
He kissed her lips, softly, reverently, as though sealing a vow neither time nor fate could break.
After a few seconds, her lips parted under his, soft and yielding, tasting like promises and everything he had ever longed for.
The world beyond the windows could have crumbled, and Zhi Hao wouldn't have noticed. All that mattered was the way she fit against him, like she was made for his arms.
His hand slid up her back, fingers threading through her hair as he deepened the kiss, slow and aching.
She responded with a sigh against his mouth, her body pressing closer, as if she, too, was afraid the moment would slip away.
When he finally pulled back, it was only far enough to see her face, flushed, eyes shining with the kind of tenderness that could undo a man.
"You once asked me what I wanted from this life," he said, brushing his thumb along her cheek, gazing into her shy eyes intimately. "I didn't know then. But now, I do. I want this, us. Every moment, every breath, every version of forever, just you... You are enough."
She smiled, fingers resting gently over his heart, listening to that wild heartbeat that went wild for her. "Then you have it! I will always be here."
With a quiet laugh full of joy, he gathered her back into his arms, lifting her once more, cradling her like the most sacred thing he'd ever held.
He turned slowly, letting the soft hush of the room wrap around them as if the evening itself was blessing their vow. She was glowing.
"I will never let go of you," he promised against her temple. "Not even when the stars forget to shine."
And in the silence that followed, there was no need for music. Their hearts beat in perfect time.
Suddenly, a soft knock interrupted their little moment.
"Master Lu, madam Lu..," one of the guards called them through the closed door. "The car is ready and everything is set up."
"All right, we will be out in a minute." He got an anklet from the drawers and assisted her to put it on before locking the tiny closing lock.
"Don't lose this anklet, it has the GPS locator in it." Its material wasn't something you could just untighten or cut easily. You would need the special tools, and before they could do that, they would have already located her whereabouts. He had to do this for her safety.
"All right." She actually didn't mind. Seeing they were set to go, they opened the door, exiting before closing it.
Hand in hand, they walked through the corridor over to the sitting area, dressed like royalty, but armored like warriors. Tonight's gala would sparkle with laughter and secrets—but somewhere in that room, danger would be watching. And waiting to strike, they had to be prepared physically and mentally.
Coming over to the sitting area, they found Lu Ting Zhou, ready in a black suit with a white shirt. He was all dressed up and looking good to go.
"You are going?" Lu Zhi Hao hadn't expected that; he eyed him for a minute before settling down on the couch in tow with his wife.
"Yes, Grandma said I can go out and have fun. That place could probably cheer me up, so I decided to join you guys." He politely responded, his face half-smiling and a little nervous. You could tell from the way he was rubbing his hands together.