"Come here."

Lewis had already pulled her wrist to him and leaned forward before she could react. His sudden action caused her eyes to dilate, but it slowly closed at the warmth of his lips.

His hand reached for my jaw while he deepened the kiss. Devon didn't fight back and let him conquer her lips for as long as he wanted to. She would give everything to him, but her body wasn't the top of his priority. 

"Lu," she whispered while catching up to her breathing. Lewis rested his forehead after their long and passionate kiss.

"I love you." She confessed just to make sure he was aware of it.

"And I love you even more," he whispered back, with his chest moving in and out heavily. "God... it's so hard to resist you."

"Then, don't."

A shallow sigh slipped past his lips. "Then all that self-control we did will be for nothing."

Did that actually matter? Was the question she resisted asking. Of course, it mattered. 

Devon understood that if Lewis broke his oath of taking her before their wedding night, it would make them think about how they could break a promise in the heat of the moment. They didn't want to open that sort of opportunity to emerge in this relationship.

"I know. We'll hold on just a little longer." A smile resurfaced on her lips, brushing the tip of her nose against his. "We'll get there."

"Mhm." He puckered his lips and planted a peck on her lips.

The two of them stayed inside the car for a moment, just teasing each other and kissing in between. It continued until they went inside their place and fell asleep in each other's embrace.

******

The next day went on like usual. Lewis had to go back to reality while Devon stayed at home to study for her exams. Dion still dropped by with Mike, since the latter had been self-rehabilitating in Dion's villa.

"Derek," called Lewis right after Derek briefed him about the rest of his schedule for the day. "Can you look into what Julian is doing?"

Derek's brows furrowed as soon as he absorbed the strange order. "You want me to investigate the second young master?"

"Yes." Lewis nodded, linking his hand while his elbow rested on his desk. "Just what he is up to and if he is doing anything behind the scenes."

"Sure, Young Master. But may I know the reason for this?" Derek inquired, trying to understand his boss. 

Based on Lewis' expression, it seemed he was hoping they wouldn't find anything on Julian. Make sense, since Lewis had always protected his brothers.

"I just want to know," Lewis mumbled without casting him a look. "If you find something that can affect his career, keep it a secret and report to me immediately."

"Yes, Young Master." Derek didn't raise other questions since he had figured it would be pointless. After accepting the order, Derek excused himself politely.

When Lewis was left alone, his eyes glinted. It was unlike what Devon saw yesterday.

"Julian... don't give me a reason to sever our ties," he whispered solemnly. 

Of course, Lewis valued his family more than it seemed on the outside. He would drop his sword or even sacrifice an arm for them. That was why this situation with Devon and Julian felt tricky.

Personal feelings aside, he was also good at reading a person's character.

IF what Devon said was true and Julian was actually Quentin, then he had to be wary of him. 

Based on what Devon described, Quentin was someone who was selfish and wise. For someone who had lived his entire life as a person who stood among everyone, his ego would surely be much larger than the world.

Although Julian was a prideful person, there was always something in him that Lewis noticed but couldn't point what exactly. He only assumed it was because Julian had a rough childhood that he was aloof, but Lewis was now bothered by it.

Did Quentin, now living as Julian, accept them as his real family? Or did he keep them at a safe distance because of another reason?

Whatever it was, Lewis wanted to find out. He didn't want to doubt his brother or jump in to blindly side with either Devon and Julian. He loved both of them, after all. 

*******

Meanwhile, back in their place, Devon grinned from ear to ear as soon as Bella picked up the video call. The latter just woke up, still on her bed, while rubbing her eyes.

"Hey, Dev. what's up?" Bella inquired with a coarse voice.

Devon didn't answer but only raised her hand, showing the ring on it. When Bella noticed the little stone shining around Devon's finger, her eyes snapped open.

"What?!"

"Lu proposed to me yesterday," she relayed the news excitedly, blushing as she recalled Lewis' words yesterday.

"Dev!!" Bella gasped as she sat upright, not caring about her tousled hair. "Really?"

"Really." Devon nodded, biting her lower lip to stop herself from grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh, my gosh! Congrats~!" Her best friend's eyes teared up, genuinely happy for Devon and Lewis. "I'm so, so happy for you!"

Although Bella was certain Devon and Lewis would marry each other, she was still happy to hear the news. Not to mention Devon personally relaying the news moved her.

"Yes. I've been trying to make it so obvious to Dion, but he still hadn't noticed." Devon glanced at the door as she had left Dion in the living room.

"Gosh. What do you expect from him? He is disappointingly slow and I still couldn't understand why I liked him." 

"You said he is the best."

"No, he is not. It's all for show!" Bella flushed as she huffed, feeling like Dion scammed her. Being friends with Devon also meant Bella had to spend a lot of time with Dion. Hence, she got even more disappointed at how childish Dion could be. 

"My Mister Wang is the best~! He actually called me yesterday out of boredom." Her eyes instantly twinkled upon recalling her long call with Derek.

"He called you out of boredom?"

"Yes!" Bella's answer was as quick as the speed of sound. 

"Bella, why do you look so happy when he only talks to you when he is bored?" asked Devon out of pure curiosity. Not that she had anything against Derek, but those were obvious red flags. Bella was just too blinded to realize that.

"Huh? Of course, because..." The rest of Bella's words rolled back to her throat as she couldn't find a good reason to twist it.

"Bella, I know you like Mister Wang, and I have no say in your affair. But, please don't forget about yourself." Devon let out a deep sigh, seeing the frown on Bella's face. "If a man puts you at the bottom of his priority list, you shouldn't make him your top priority."

"Right... I should be his top priority," Bella mumbled. 

Devon let out a soft chuckle while shaking her head. "You should be second."

"What?" Bella's brows furrowed in confusion. Although she had enough dating experience, she hadn't been in a serious relationship where settling down was on the table. 

"It's just my opinion that in a relationship, we should prioritize ourselves first before our partner. Because if we love and respect ourselves, we have more love to give." 

"I think I love myself enough."

"Then, that's good to hear." Devon smiled, not questioning Bella's claims. "I root for you and Assistant Wang."

"I root for us too~!" Bella giggled with her cheek burning in red. 

Devon's eyes could not help but soften while studying Bella's blissful expression. Bella surely liked Derek more than she liked Dion in the past. This type of love was beautiful but at the same time dangerous. 

"Oh, right! It's still my break. Do you want to go shopping?" Bella proposed after a minute. 

"As much as I love to accept your offer, I can't. I am currently reviewing for my exams." A frown reigned on Devon's face as she sighed.

"Girl, didn't I say working too hard is bad for the baby?"

Devon's brow raised as she glanced at Bella. The latter was the culprit for the brief misunderstanding in the Qin residence.

"But I really need to study," she muttered.

"Okay. Shopping is out of the list. How about lunch? Or we can stay in a cafe? Dion, Mike, and I can help you!" Bella insisted, thinking that her idea wasn't bad at all. Four heads were better than one, right?

Devon pressed her lips together, thinking about her proposal. Honestly, Devon wasn't having a hard time studying, as she had read and comprehended more books as the empress. But she still wanted to prepare and study even more.

"I'll tell Dion about it," she answered without agreeing or denying it.

"No need! Just get dressed! I will call them and let them know~!"

A sigh escaped Devon's lips before she nodded helplessly. "Alright, then."

"Okay, bye bye~!"

As soon as the call ended, Devon stared at the phone for a moment. She couldn't help but appreciate all the good things in this lifetime. She had Lewis who would support her through and through. Friends who didn't judge her or bore malice. And a path she could choose to take.

"There is more in this life than Quentin," she whispered as she nodded and smiled subtly. "I'm not alone anymore, brother."