Finally having cleared her thoughts, Christine Quinn headed towards the shower with her nightgown in hand.

Christine emerged from the bathroom, smelling fresh and fragrant.

When she came out, Skyler Jones was on the phone by the floor-to-ceiling window, his expression stern as she could vaguely see.

She slightly furrowed her brows and walked to his side, "What’s wrong?"

He had just ended the call and replied warmly, "Nothing, just work-related stuff."

"Troublesome stuff?"

Skyler chuckled lightly, casually tossing his phone aside and wrapped his arms around her slender waist, "Just delegating some tasks to subordinates, I won’t be discussing work matters for the next few days."

"Oh." Christine patted his arms, "Go take a shower; I’ve prepared the water for you."

"Help me get my pajamas."

"Okay."

Christine turned to get Skyler’s pajamas, but unexpectedly, as soon as she turned, Skyler’s long arm stretched out, pulling her back into his embrace.

"Christine..." His deep, enchanting voice brushed against her ear.

"Hmm?"

She looked at him and only then noticed the intense look in his eyes.

"Before the shower, let me do something first..." As he spoke, he had already tilted her head back and kissed her deeply on the lips.

"No..."

Christine instinctively evaded his kiss and pushed him away.

"Christine..." He didn’t expect her resistance, holding her tightly as she tried to pull away, his chin resting against her forehead, "What’s wrong?"

Christine’s hands pressed against his chest, shaking her head, "I can’t..."

"Hmm?"

"I..." Christine slowly lowered her head, lightly biting her lip.

Skyler gently lifted Christine’s chin, making her clear eyes meet his, "What’s wrong?"

Christine looked at him hesitantly, "Don’t you care? I..."

Skyler naturally knew what Christine was referring to, and he rested his forehead against hers, speaking softly, "Have you forgotten what I told you..."

"But..."

"As long as I know that I am the only one in your heart..."

"I haven’t explained to you what happened that night..."

"I know, it was Jonathon Gibson who carried you to the room that night."

"That night, the island residents invited us to a grand festival. I didn’t expect to get drunk after just a few sips of fruit wine, I..."

"Don’t say anything else, baby..." Skyler gently cupped Christine’s face full of guilt and self-blame, "If it weren’t for this incident, I wouldn’t have realized how much I care about you... Do you know how much it hurt me when I saw you sitting alone under the shower, letting the cold water pour on you... I hated myself so much, how could I have caused you such heartache again?"

Tears of grievance welled up in Christine’s eyes, "I wasn’t trying to hide it from you, because even now, I don’t want to believe that Jonathon would..."

Skyler gently wiped the tears from the corners of Christine’s eyes in a panic, "Don’t cry, silly girl... are you trying to make me feel even more guilty?"

Sniffling, Christine leaned into Skyler’s embrace, "I promise you, I won’t bring this up again..."

"Mm..." He tenderly kissed her.

She looked up at him, suddenly breaking into a laugh, and burrowed deeper into his embrace.

She quietly remained nestled in his arms, as if, at this moment, the whole world had come to a standstill.

After what seemed like an eternity, he softly suggested to the woman in his arms, "Shall I go take a shower?"

Christine stepped back from Skyler’s embrace and nodded obediently.

Before entering the bathroom, Skyler didn’t forget to drop a kiss on Christine’s forehead and reminded, "Wait for me."

"Mmm."

Only then did Skyler walk into the bathroom.

At this moment, Christine felt a sense of relief, no longer burdened as before, feeling that no matter what problems they encountered now, she would no longer be afraid because he was by her side, he would always protect her.

Christine’s sweet smile spread across her face, feeling that everything they’d gone through recently seemed to have invisibly strengthened their bond. She had never felt as safe being by his side as she did now.

"Ah!" Christine, who had been packing her luggage, was suddenly taken aback as someone embraced her from behind.

The person had just come out of the shower, exuding a fresh scent mingled with his faint masculine aroma, causing her heart to flutter slightly.

Christine put down the clothes she was folding and turned to face him, "Are you done with your shower?"