Where did this wicked woman come from?

By six thirty, there were fewer customers in the café. Shan Ye waved his phone at him. "Ready, Fan Jin? I've made the reservation."

Fan Jin untied his apron and hung it in the kitchen, then picked up his coat and put it on. Zhang Nan was wiping down a table nearby. Seeing how hurriedly his boss put on his coat, he couldn't help smiling.

He's rushing off on a date, he thought.

"Let's go." Fan Jin walked over to Shan Ye.

They headed for the door side by side. Zhang Nan called after them, "Boss, Mr. Shan, have fun!"

Once outside, Shan Ye pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered Fan Jin one. "Taxi or car?" he asked, lighting his cigarette with it between his lips.

"Let's drive." Fan Jin took out his car keys. "It'll be easier to get home tonight."

Fan Jin turned to watch him blowing smoke. "Try to smoke less. It's bad for your health."

Shan Ye laughed. "You won't let me, Fan Jin?"

They walked shoulder to shoulder along the road toward the garage.

"I didn't say you couldn't. Just smoke less." Having said that, Fan Jin lowered his head and lit a cigarette himself.

Shan Ye burst out laughing. "You're quite a smoker yourself, yet you're telling other people to cut back. You've got quite a controlling streak, Fan Jin."

"What's a controlling streak?" Fan Jin asked in all seriousness.

Then he playfully blew at Shan Ye's face, exhaling all the smoke he had just inhaled right into it.

Shan Ye froze, then laughed. "You actually dared to blow that in my face." He took a deep drag, cupped the back of Fan Jin's head, and kissed him, passing the smoke into his mouth.

He didn't let him go for a long while.

Fan Jin glanced around. Luckily, there was no one else in the garage.

"Let's go." He put out his cigarette, a smile lingering on his lips.

They got into the car. The restaurant was downtown, in the World Trade Center area, a little over half an hour's drive away.

Shan Ye was getting bored in the passenger seat. Propping his head on his hand, he asked, "Has anyone ever liked you before?"

Fan Jin's long fingers rested on the steering wheel. He gave it some serious thought. "No."

Shan Ye suddenly sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"How boring. I wanted to hear stories about your past." Shan Ye was bored out of his mind. Hearing Fan Jin say no made him both happy and unhappy.

"Then tell me yours," Fan Jin said.

"Mine?"

"Yes. Has anyone ever liked you before?" He knew the answer without asking. Shan Ye was talented, tall, and handsome. There was no way nobody had ever liked him. Yu Chuan was a prime example, but there were plenty more like him.

Shan Ye suddenly perked up and sat straight. "Don't get mad when I tell you, okay? Girls in my class started liking me back in middle school."

Unsurprised, Fan Jin nodded. "And then?" he asked.

"That was when I realized I didn't like girls."

"How did you realize?"

Shan Ye thought about how he had figured it out. "I guess when I saw other couples secretly dating, I didn't envy them. I didn't really feel anything else, either."

"Then, in college, I knew for sure that I didn't like girls. I liked men."

"Why?" Fan Jin continued.

Shan Ye told him honestly. "Because I realized I only got physically aroused by men."

At that, Fan Jin's brows drew together almost imperceptibly. "Then you..."

"No!" Shan Ye immediately interrupted. "I've never been with anyone else. Only you. I'm very careful about that, Fan Jin."

Somewhat helpless, Fan Jin smiled and shook his head. "I know. I haven't even said anything yet."

He found Shan Ye adorable, sounding so anxious to prove that he hadn't been sleeping around.

"Hehe. I didn't want you to get the wrong idea." Shan Ye gave him a sweet smile.

The car soon entered the World Trade Center's underground garage. After parking, they took the elevator up to the first floor. Shan Ye had booked a fusion restaurant with dark-toned décor. From the window seats, they could see the whole street lit up at night.

"This way, gentlemen." A server led them to a booth by the window and handed them menus.

Shan Ye looked over the menu. "What would you like to eat?"

"Just order what you like."

Shan Ye marked a few dishes he thought Fan Jin would enjoy, handed the menu back to the server, and rested his chin on his hand as he watched him. Fan Jin was looking down as he poured water, the lines of his profile softened by candlelight.

"What are you looking at?" Fan Jin asked without looking up.

"You," Shan Ye replied, utterly unabashed.

Fan Jin pushed the glass of water toward him, the corner of his mouth twitching.

The food arrived quickly, and they chatted as they ate. Shan Ye continued talking about his college days, telling him what his undergraduate years had been like and what he had done during graduate school. Fan Jin listened attentively, asking him a few questions now and then.

Halfway through their meal, a woman who looked to be in her thirties approached, wearing a black dress and carrying a designer handbag.

"Fan Jin?" she called with a smile.

Fan Jin looked up, his brows furrowing slightly as though trying to place her.

"It really is you." The woman came closer, her gaze lingering on Fan Jin's face before shifting to Shan Ye. "Long time no see. Do you remember me? I'm Zhou Min. I used to live across from you."

Fan Jin put down his chopsticks, remembering her. When he had first bought his apartment, this woman had lived next door. Back then, he had done all the renovations himself, painting the walls and laying the floor tiles. Zhou Min had seen him a few times and offered to help by passing him tools and such.

"I remember." Fan Jin nodded.

Later, he had opened the café, and Zhou Min had moved away. Before she left, he had brought her coffee a few times to thank her for her help.

Zhou Min's smile widened, her tone growing warmer. "You still live there, right? I told you back then that doing everything yourself was too much work, but you wouldn't let me help more."

"I do."

"Are you still running the café? Is it still in the same place?"

Fan Jin nodded, his tone rather cool. "Yes."

"I passed by the other day and thought about stopping in, but I was in a hurry." As she spoke, she took her phone from her bag. "Have you changed your number? I saved your old one, but then I lost my phone and all my contacts."

Fan Jin recited a string of numbers. Zhou Min saved it, then asked, "Are you single now?"

Fan Jin glanced at Shan Ye. "No."

"Are you married?"

"...Not yet." Fan Jin drew a soft breath.

Zhou Min seemed a little relieved by that. Smiling, she leaned forward slightly, deliberately revealing the smooth skin of her chest. "Then shall we have dinner sometime?"

Beside them, Shan Ye dropped his fork onto his plate with a loud clatter. Absolutely not!

But the woman didn't even turn to look at him! She kept talking to Fan Jin.

"Cough, cough, cough-" He had just taken a sip of water and was now choking on it.

"What's wrong?" Fan Jin immediately stood, pulling out a tissue to wipe his mouth.

Only then did Zhou Min look over in surprise, meeting Shan Ye's warning gaze head-on.

Fan Jin was focused on wiping his mouth and didn't notice the sparks of hostility between him and Zhou Min.

Zhou Min looked at how close the two of them were, and her smile faltered. Once Fan Jin sat back down, she gave an awkward smile. "I'll leave you two to it, then." She put away her phone and smiled at Shan Ye. "I'll stop by your café another day."