<em><b>Chapter </b><b>241 </b><b>Touch </b>and Temptation </em>
<em>Chapter <b>241 </b>Touch and Temptation </em>
<em>But her kiss–clumsy as it was–set him aze. </em>
<em>James didn’t dare move. Didn’t dare kiss her back. All he could do was silently recite meditation <b>charts </b>over and over again, reminding himself to act like a decent human being. </em>
<em>Lily, however, had no such intention of behaving. </em>
<em>In her muddled drunkenness, she vaguely remembered how nice James‘ chest looked. </em>
<em>And how nice it probably felt. </em>
<em>If she were sober, there was no way she’d even nce at it, let alone touch it. If she so much as bumped into him while his shirt was unbuttoned, she’d have scurried away like a startled rabbit. </em>
<em>But now? </em>
<em>Now she was fearless. Unfiltered. Unleashed. </em>
<em>She wanted what she wanted–and saw no reason to hold back. </em>
<em>ncing at the elegant curve of his pale neck, she swallowed hard and reached out, grabbing the front of his shirt with both hands. </em>
<em>“Take it off! Show me your chest,” she barked at him. “Or I’ll bite you!” </em>
<em>What? </em>
<em>James froze. </em>
<em>No one had ever asked him to strip before–much less demanded to see his pecs. </em>
<em>He’d always thought that once he and Lily finalized their divorce, he’d go overseas with Le and register their marriage. When that time came, they’d be honest with each other<b>, </bpletely transparent. </em>
<em>But this was their first time meeting in person. </em>
<em>And she was clearly drunk. </em>
<em>He really didn’t think it was appropriate to go shirtless in front of her. </em>
<em>His ears turned red as he cleared his throat awkwardly. “Le… You’re drunk. You shouldn’t- </em>
<em>She was drunk, yes–but she could/still tell he was refusing. </em>
<em>Stingy man. He wouldn’t cooperate with her even a little. </em>
<em>Fine then–she’d help herself. </em>
<em>She shot him a re full of drunken indignation and popped open the top three buttons of his shirt. As she worked, she mumbled under her breath, “Won’t even let me look at your chest… stingy bastard! 1 </em>
<em><b>want </b>to look, I want to touch–you can’t stop ine<b>!</b>” </em>
<em>And with that, she boldly reached out and gave his chest a firm squeeze. </em>
<em>James felt like his entire body had just gone up in mes. </em>
<em>He never imagined the girl who’d seemed so meck would turn around and manhandle him like <b>this </b><b>while </b>drunk. </em>
<em>And even worse… </em>
<em>His body was reacting to it. </em>
<em>Shame crawled up his spine. He couldn’t even bring himself to look at her. </em>
<em>Clearing his throat again, he mumbled hoarsely, “Le… don’t touch… don’t-” </em>
<em>She ignored himpletely. </em>
<em>The more he protested, the more she doubled down. </em>
<em>His chest didn’t just look amazing–it felt amazing too. Firm, warm, and springy. </em>
<em>So satisfying </em>
<em>She was getting addicted. </em>
<em>Her hand wandered lower, and she began to resent his shirt. It was getting in the way. </em>
<em>Scrunching up her not–so–lovely face, she grumbled, “Elias<b>, </b>I want to see your abs.” </em>
<em>“I told you to take off your shirt. You won’t. What, are you too scared to show your abs? You’ve got them, but you won’t let anyone look… You’re so stingy. Those abs are wasted on you!” </em>
<em>“I…” </em>
<em>James really couldn’t. </em>
<em>He’d already stretched his self–control to the breaking point. </em>
<em>He was terrified that if he lost itpletely, he’d scare her away for good. </em>
<em>“Stingy bastard,” she muttered under her breath. “Won’t even let me look. I don’t even care anymore. It’s not like you’re the only guy with abs! If I’d known you were this stingy, I should’ve just gone to a gigolo club instead! I’ve got money–1 can/tip them all I want. I–Le will let you look!” </em>
<em>James knew it was all just drunken nonsense. </em>
<em>From their chats, he could tell she was the sweet and proper type. No way she’d actually go to some club and ogle male escorts. </em>
<em>But hearing those words still made his stomach twist in jealousy. </em>
<em>Before he realized what he was doing, his fingers were unbuttoning the rest of his shirt. Then, he grabbed </em>
<em>her hand and pressed it t against his abs. </em>
<em>She let out a giggle. </em>
<em>It was ridiculous how happy she looked, running her hands over his chest and stomach like she’d just found buried treasure. </em>
<em>Meanwhile, her touch was driving James insane. </em>
<em>He felt like a wild beast trapped in a cage, each stroke of her fingers stoking the fire under his skin. He was moments away from breaking loose–tearing down everyst wall he’d built. </em>
<em>But Lily remained blissfully unaware. </em>
<em>Once she’d had her fill of his abs, her attention drifted back to his lips–those warm, soft lips she’d been dreaming about. </em>
<em>She leaned in clumsily, cupping his face and pressing her mouth to his. </em>
<em>Even as she kissed and nibbled at him, she still had the audacity to grumble. </em>
<em>“Elias, didn’t you tell me to stop moving? Told me to get off?” </em>
<em>“Well, I’m kissing you. I’m biting you. What are you gonna do about it, huh? If you’ve got the guts, then kiss me back!” </em>
<em>And with that, she deepened the kiss, her delicate fingers unlocking thest restraints on his body. </em>
<em>James couldn’t hold back anymore. </em>
<em>He was no saint. </em>
<em>There were no gods untouched by desire–not really. </em>
<em>They were all just people. </em>
<em>He grabbed the back of her head, pulled her in, and flipped the script–letting his fire consume them both. </em>
<em>Together, they burned. </em>
<em>They burned through the night, through everything that had ever kept them apart, until nothing remained. </em>
<em>Not even ashes. </em>