James Black watched her eyes with a burning gaze.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

He couldn’t bear to look away for a long time.

Only when Jane’s small hand playfully poked his face, did he silently curve the corners of his mouth into a smile and then leaned down to kiss her once more.

At some point, she had stopped despising his kisses, no longer dodging them, and even took joy in such intimacy as well as in his kisses.

Despite attempts to hide it, this joy was unmistakable in her eyes—emotions he could always discern there.

It was different.

Dreams and reality were ultimately different.

In dreams, her eyes held guilt and pain for his death, but lacked any emotion that could be described as love.

But outside of dreams, her eyes were filled with attachment and fondness for him.

Only now, only after confirming that the emotions in the depths of her eyes were different from those in her dreams, did James Black’s heart finally settle back into his chest, little by little.

He had feared being deeply trapped in his feelings, suspecting that even her affection might have been an act.

Fortunately, that was not the case.

In the tranquil early morning, the faint gasps of their entangled bodies in the bed seemed all the clearer...

By the time Jane Sampson came to her senses, the sky outside the window was already bright. She lazily lay in James Black’s arms, yawning lightly, taking her time to gather some energy.

"Tomorrow, you’re sleeping in the guest room." Jane stretched her fair little feet and nudged the quilt that was still wrapped around her long legs. Counting on her fingers in front of James, she said, "I talked to you last night until it was so late. I went to bed that late and was dug up by you early in the morning, devoured completely—just how long did I actually get to sleep last night?"

Jane had thought before she went to bed last night that James had let her off the hook, only to find out he was waiting for her early this morning.

"If I’d known this, I would have preferred to die early and transcend! At least I could have slept until I naturally woke up in the morning." Jane grew increasingly agitated as she spoke, "What time did you wake me up?"

"Die early and transcend?" James now didn’t know whether to be angry or amused. "Is this the only thing you’ve learned after nine years of compulsory education, three years of high school, and four years at the university?"

James glanced at the time on the bedside alarm clock, shifted from under her, and stood up from the ground, though he didn’t forget to tuck the quilt around Jane, still nestled in the bed. Jane pouted, clearly scornful of his words.

James bent down and gently tapped her forehead with his hand, "You clearly enjoyed it, too."

"... " Jane’s face grew hot, "Who enjoyed that!"

"Still playing coy," James murmured with a low chuckle, then gently placed a kiss on her lips, "You keep sleeping; I’ll go for my morning exercise."

"Go, go, go! Hurry up and leave!" Jane grabbed the quilt and wriggled her entire self into it.

Embarrassed and frustrated.

The phrase popped into James’s mind. He stood by the head of the bed, savored the moment, and let out a soft chuckle before bending down to tidy up the room and then headed to the bathroom to wash up.

By the time he had finished washing up and came back, Jane had already fallen back into sleep.

He went over and freed the little head trapped under the quilt, looking at Jane’s pink-cheeked face, his heart felt tender.

Her sleep quality was enviable.

No wonder her skin was so fine it seemed almost translucent—the best skincare for a woman truly was a good night’s rest.