Stolen Kiss

This is my first book, and it has shortcomings in every respect. Please buy with caution, and feel free to check out my other stories:

Ongoing: My Precious Girl, an innocent, sheltered sweetheart x a disabled Daddy who abides by every rule, marriage before love, an old flame rekindled;

Completed: Captive Sun, a high-and-mighty beauty x a loyal puppy, running away while pregnant, mutual salvation. Please add them to your collection, muah~

[Blurb]

Headstrong, forthright heiress x free-spirited drifter

An unconventional rough man and a pampered lady | Marriage before love

-

Her fiance cheated on her, and the other woman was his perfect match in looks and status.

Tu Zhun had grown up surrounded by luxury and comfort. She had never suffered such an indignity!

In a fit of anger, she ran away from home. In an even greater fit of anger, she picked a blind marriage from the marriage lottery.

She was the one who asked to get married, and her dowry was a blank check.

At the time, Pei Kongqing had dyed his hair an outrageous white and was utterly destitute, with a faint air of death about him.

At the marriage registry, he looked down at her, seemingly warning her: "No one in the Pei family has ever divorced."

Tu Zhun refused to back down: "Funny, no one in my Tu family has either!"

-

Six months into their marriage, Tu Zhun's friend talked her into making up for their missed honeymoon.

Water trickled nearby, and a condom was within reach. She secretly slipped out from under the covers and peeked into the semitransparent bathroom.

In the thick of night, she suddenly woke up.

Pei Kongqing was sleeping on the floor with a pillow in his arms.

First the blanket rolled off the bed, then a living person followed.

She was crazy! Completely crazy!!!

As she thought this, she edged closer.

Reason told her to get away, right now, at once. But her instinctive response was to prop herself up and gently press her lips to his.

The instant their lips touched, Pei Kongqing's eyes snapped open.

-

One morning later on, a soft breeze was blowing.

The grass was lush and soft as cotton, as if she could lie down on it without hurting herself.

Tu Zhun leaned back and fell into the familiar embrace.

Pei Kongqing: "What are you up to now?"

Tu Zhun: "Fortune-telling."

He asked, "Did you divine what happens next?"

Tu Zhun closed her eyes in resignation as his kiss landed, laughter in his voice.

Pei Kongqing chuckled. "Did you divine anything else?"

Before she could answer, he swept her up in his arms.

She patted his chest. "Hey, it's broad daylight!"

Pei Kongqing grinned mischievously. "Honest people have nothing to hide."

[Reading Guide]

* Six-year age gap. No intimacy before the heroine is an adult.

* Both leads are each other's first, happy ending. The heroine is not a chaste, perfect maiden, and there are some regrets.

-------------------- Upcoming Book --------------------

My upcoming book, Sinking into Silence, will be my next project. I'll start writing it soon! Please add it to your collection~

[Blurb]

Gentle, tender, deaf sweetheart x scheming, obsessive big shot who's starved for love

Marriage before love | Age gap | Modern-day stand-in bride | Slightly possessive | Healing

-

Fog rose that night, so thick the moon vanished from sight.

A crack opened in the bedroom door, and cold white light slowly spilled through.

A man came in softly, taking care not to make a sound.

The light stretched his tall shadow longer, lightly veiling Jiang Ting's narrowed eyes.

A moment later, dense steam drifted out through the bathroom door. The gap faced a full-length mirror.

The reflection blurred into a dim streak of light. He raised a hand, and the mirror revealed his well-defined upper body.

A snow-white towel hung loosely around his waist, and clean water traced a winding path down his abdomen...

His form came into sharp focus, and Jiang Ting shyly looked away.

His damp, heavy warmth soon pressed against her. Jiang Ting saw his lips move.

He leaned closer, his strong arm reaching behind her neck, his broad hand pressing gently against her stomach.

This wasn't some alluring flirtation. He was in a hurry to have her.

At the height of their passion, his calloused thumb and forefinger held her hand and gently guided it to his throat.

Jiang Ting watched his lips move: If it hurts, cry out. If it feels good, cry out too.

Not sure? Maybe wait and see?

Jiang Ting stared at his lips. Narrow at the top and full at the bottom, they were beautiful. She wanted to kiss them.

But she couldn't.

When it was over, he lay on top of her like a lion, panting as hot, humid air brushed her ear.

He was speaking.

But she couldn't hear what he said.

He tenderly kissed her earlobe, then her neck.

In their three years of marriage, he kissed her everywhere except on the lips.

Jiang Ting knew she was a substitute. She was only meant to endure, never to ask for anything.

-

For once, Jian Huaizhen managed to get home before dark.

As he passed the flower shop at the foot of the mountain, he thought of the roses on the dining table.

They were always a clear peach-pink, always perfectly formed, with a gentle quality that seemed never to fade.

He had once thought they were fake, until he plucked a petal, pinched it between his fingers, and squeezed out a thin layer of flower juice.

When he looked up, he met his wife's eyes, bright as the stars.

Now, his wife stood with her back to him in the light outside the flower shop, a wall of roses behind her making her glow, pure and radiant.

The shopkeeper was a handsome young man with delicate features. He wrapped a flower for her in kraft paper and lace.

Jiang Ting signed to him: I'll put it in a vase when I get home, so there's no need to go to so much trouble.

The man signed back: There may still be thorns on the stem. This way it's pretty and safe, and it suits you.

Jiang Ting smiled gently and thanked him.

Jian Huaizhen lowered his eyelashes, casting a pale shadow over his dark eyes, which seemed to mingle with the confusion of the trees' shadows.

He straightened his cuffs and idly toyed with a sapphire cufflink.

An uncontrollable restlessness suddenly stirred inside him. His gaze furtively drifted toward her rosy lips.

In three years of marriage, he had dared to touch her everywhere, even her toes. Her lips were the one exception.

He stubbornly believed they were sacred territory, and that he had to wait for the princess's permission.

He knew perfectly well that she was not the one who should have married him.

His princess should have belonged to a prince adored by all, not to a lonely wretch like him.

-

"I like you when you are silent: it is as though you were absent.

You hear me from far away, and my voice does not reach you.

It seems as though your eyes had flown away

and it seems that a kiss had sealed your mouth."

From "I Like for You to Be Still" by Pablo Neruda

Later, Jian Huaizhen added another line:

"Your silence is bright as a lamp, simple as a ring,

You are like the night, with its stillness and stars."

[Reading Guide]

1. A bittersweet romance, 12-year age gap, both leads are each other's first, happy ending. No shipping faction preferences, please.

2. Tingting is not mute, but she was born unable to hear, so she cannot speak. She willingly became a substitute bride, and Uncle Jian loves only Tingting from beginning to end.

3. Uncle Jian is no saint. He has had a difficult life and has truly lived by the blade, ruthless and merciless. He married for both practical considerations and genuine affection.

4. Pregnancy and a little one feature in the story. The child is a catalyst that helps thaw the relationship between the two leads. Please, please distinguish fiction from reality.

Both quoted lines are from "I Like for You to Be Still" by Pablo Neruda.

Theme: Be strong, confident, independent, brave, and live well.