Chapter 27
“Pick… pick me up?”
An Le’s expression was dazed, his beautiful eyes filled with a mixture of emotions: self-deprecation, disbelief, and uncontainable joy.
Seeing An Le’s fluctuating emotions, Lu Heng suddenly felt relieved.
He hadn’t been able to find out the specifics of An Le’s life at the An family all day, and his mood had become increasingly irritable and his temper short.
When Gu Qian called to tease him about neglecting his “little darling,” Lu Heng almost exploded. Only when Gu Qian said his “little darling” had been scared and asked him to pick him up did he understand that Gu Qian’s “little darling” was An Le.
Luckily, it wasn’t far; otherwise, An Le would have left long before he arrived.
He thought, in the future, picking An Le up and dropping him off would be perfectly acceptable.
An Le’s heart felt warm. Knowing Lu Heng had come to pick him up specifically, the usually tight corners of his mouth couldn’t help but curve upwards.
It wasn’t until they got into the car that Li Jie, while driving, complained, “I told you I was pulled out of bed in a hurry for something. It was to pick up the boss’s wife! You should have said so earlier!”
Lu Heng ignored him. After hearing this, An Le cautiously looked up at Lu Heng, wanting to confirm if Li Jie’s words were true—had Lu Heng really pulled someone out of bed to come pick him up?
An Le didn’t know how to describe his current feelings, because his single glance was caught.
Lu Heng pinched his small chin, asking, “What are you looking at?”
“No, nothing…”
An Le denied it, but his face turned red after his denial.
An Le’s thoughts were easy to guess; even without speaking, Lu Heng knew. He released An Le, the pent-up irritability of the day surging up. He directly kicked Li Jie’s seat.
Li Jie almost slammed on the brakes, turning around to yell, “If you want to raise the partition, just say so! Don’t kick me!”
Lu Heng didn’t pay attention to Li Jie’s cursing; he simply covered An Le’s ears and whispered in his right ear, “Don’t learn his bad words.”
An Le instinctively nodded, whispering, “Okay~”
Before the partition was raised, Li Jie heard their conversation and almost lowered the partition again to curse.
An Le’s heart beat rapidly. Raising the partition meant Lu Heng was going to release his pheromones. He looked curiously at Lu Heng, asking incomprehensibly, “Mr. Lu…”
Before he could finish, Lu Heng scooped him up into a hug, resting his head on his shoulder, his chin rubbing against his glands through the suppressor patch. “Le Le.”
In that instant, An Le dared not move, nervously asking, “Sir, what’s wrong with you?”
Lu Heng slowly tore off the suppressor patch, his voice hoarse. “Let me smell your pheromones.”
He hadn’t been able to find out what had happened in An Le’s past; it was as if someone had deliberately erased it. But he couldn’t directly ask An Le. This matter was like a fire burning in his heart, making him irritable and restless.
Luckily, An Le was here.
This wasn’t the first time An Le had his suppressor patch removed, but he was still afraid, because Lu Heng bit hard.
He trembled slightly in Lu Heng’s arms but, according to Lu Heng’s request, obediently released his pheromones to soothe him.
Lu Heng needed him.
Being needed was a kind of happiness, but it was more of a solace to the soul. An Le finally understood Xiao Xiao’s feelings.
Before, he didn’t understand why Xiao Xiao would wholeheartedly help him. Back then, Xiao Xiao had told him, “Le Le, being needed is a solace to the soul.”
Now An Le understood. He liked this feeling.
Lu Heng needed him, and he needed Lu Heng. It was mutual, just like he needed Xiao Xiao, and Xiao Xiao needed him.
An Le’s nose felt sour until Lu Heng proactively put his suppressor patch back on, without doing anything more out of line. He simply held him and said, “I’ve set the wedding date. In nine days.”
Nine days later was his heat cycle. With An Le by his side, he wouldn’t lose control again. Getting married then would prove everything to everyone.
“Ah… okay.”
An Le was a little dazed. He didn’t understand anything about marriage; Lu Heng’s arrangements would be fine.
“After the wedding, move in with me. There might be Lu family members coming to disturb you. At that time, you can use them to build up your courage.”
Lu Heng released An Le, his gaze serious as he continued to make arrangements, “You can’t always be this timid.”
Although he was willing to always protect An Le, with An Le’s personality, even with his protection, he would easily be wronged.
An Le nodded again, “Okay.”
He knew; if he hadn’t known this, he wouldn’t have gone out alone today.
After An Le finished speaking, he thought for a moment before asking, “Then… then after we get married, can I go to work?”
Lu Heng’s gaze showed a hint of doubt, “You want to work?”
An Le hesitantly nodded. He was self-deprecating about work, but he needed money.
He didn’t dare look at Lu Heng, secretly lowering his head, whispering, “Yes, I… I want to work. I want a higher salary than before.”
His previous painting salary was too low, only enough for his monthly living expenses; saving money was difficult, and treating his eyes was a pipe dream.
But if he had a slightly higher-paying job, even with his defect, as long as he secretly went to the hospital to get it treated after getting paid, he would be a normal person.
That way, Lu Heng wouldn’t know about his defect and wouldn’t dislike him.
After An Le finished speaking, he suddenly remembered something and added, “But… I don’t know much.”
He couldn’t even understand the work Xiao Xiao did, let alone do it himself. He could only do simple chores, hoping Lu Heng wouldn’t give him too complicated work.
Lu Heng thought for a moment and smiled, “Okay.”
He wouldn’t be such a beast as to refuse such a simple wish.
He raised his hand and knocked on the partition. Li Jie quickly lowered it. He hadn’t rested well at noon and was a little impatient. “I’ve never seen anyone whose romance is more troublesome than yours. This partition keeps going up and down. Just say it, what’s the matter again!”
If it weren’t for the high salary, he wouldn’t be serving a grumpy alpha who kept releasing pheromones.
Lu Heng was used to Li Jie’s temper. He didn’t say anything, only addressing An Le, whose face had turned red from Li Jie’s words, “Li Jie feels that his workload is too large. Come to my office, help me clean, tidy up, and make coffee. You can start tomorrow. How does that sound?”
It was best if he was in the same office, allowing him to train An Le while giving him a salary—two birds with one stone.
Only, it depended on whether An Le dared to go.
“Just tidying and… cleaning?”
An Le was a little hesitant. In the office, he could only tidy and clean. He could also learn to make coffee, but he really couldn’t do anything else.
Lu Heng nodded, “Yes, there are important documents in the office. Li Jie used to clean, but he finds it tiring, so you can help share some of the work.”
Hearing this, An Le’s eyes were full of smiles. He quickly nodded in agreement, “Then I can do it, thank you, Mr. Lu.”