Chapter 7 : A warm hug

After eating, we sat in the living room to discuss some important matters between us.

He let out a heavy sigh as he held a paper. "I’ll admit, I was reckless when I said I would marry you. I didn't know if that was actually possible given our current situation."

I saw deep sorrow and anxiety on his face. My heart began to race with fear in those moments. I didn’t know why, but I felt like I was about to hear bad news. It seemed like he had a problem and didn't want to push through with the wedding anymore.

He looked down and held my hand tightly, apologizing. "I’m sorry if I can’t give you the grand wedding you deserve," he said.

I was stunned into silence. I looked down, feeling a sharp pain in my chest and a sense of disappointment, perhaps because I had hoped so much that my life was finally changing.

"So, you’re not going to push through with marrying me?" I asked sadly.

"What? No, that’s not what I mean. I want to marry you," he replied.

He moved closer and showed me the paper he was holding—it was a wedding application. "We have a big problem because of my family. I spoke with my uncle, and he said it's likely my mother and father won't approve of my plans."

He explained that what he meant earlier was about being unable to give me a grand wedding. "I wanted to give you a lavish wedding, the kind every girl dreams of, but I don’t think I can do that right now."

He mentioned that if his family opposed it, it was certain that no one would attend, and he didn't know anyone else who would come. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't force them, especially since there was so much at stake for his family.

"I’m thinking we should just get married at the city hall for now to make it official. Once everything is settled, we can hold another wedding at a resort, a church, a hotel—anywhere you want."

He cupped my cheeks and smiled, promising me, "I will marry you anywhere you like, but for now, please, let’s just get married at the city hall," he pleaded.

"Wait, is that the only reason why you were so worried?" I asked.

"I know girls want their wedding to be special, so I was terrified you would turn me down," he answered, pressing my hands against his cheeks.

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment. The fear I had felt vanished, replaced by a sense of thrill, especially knowing he was afraid I might reject him. I didn't know what to think; I know I’m not a beautiful woman and I’m also a broke. but it’s amazing to think that a super handsome, wealthy, and incredibly sweet man is pleading with me like this.

I could see the concern in his eyes, and I couldn't help but feel giddy from his tenderness. If this were a dream, I wouldn't want to wake up.

"It’s not a problem. If your worry is about not being able to provide a grand wedding, you don't need to concern yourself with that because I am ready to marry you anywhere," I said.

"Really? You're not joking?" He looked stunned, repeatedly asking to be sure.

"Of course not. Do you think I’d joke about something like this?" I replied.

Suddenly, he hugged me tightly, thanking me over and over. I was almost speechless at his reaction—he was clearly overjoyed by what I said. I couldn’t believe that a man who seemed almost perfect was so eager to marry someone like me.

He faced me and apologized. "I’m sorry, I was just so happy. It’s the first time a woman has actually agreed to marry me."

"Your first time? Wait, does that mean you’ve asked someone else before?"

He shook his head, his cheeks turning red as he recounted his past. "You know, when I was a child, I had a childhood friend and I asked her to marry me, but she refused. Since then, I became afraid and stopped talking to women."

I was surprised by what he said, and I wondered who the crazy woman was who would refuse to marry someone as handsome and wealthy as him. That was when I found out the girl he referred to was his former tutor, who was five years older than him.

"I was only seven years old back then, so she said she didn't want someone younger than her. From that point on, I never had the courage to ask a woman to marry me again," he said, covering his mouth in embarrassment.

"You were only seven when you proposed to her?" I asked.

He shook his head, unable to look me straight in the eye. "Let’s not talk about such embarrassing things."

I couldn't help but smile because he was making such a big deal out of being rejected by his childhood crush. My hands trembled; I wanted to pinch his cheeks because he looked so cute, and his ears were turning red from shame.

"But I don’t think there’s anything embarrassing about that. At least you were brave enough to say it," I said.

He turned back to me and held my hand to talk. "Right now, I don't care about what happened back then because I have already chosen the woman who will complete my life."

I felt giddy again at his words, and I couldn't help but feel shy, especially when he stared at me with his stunning eyes. Even though I had seen them many times, I never got tired of looking at them.

" He really is so handsome. Honestly, my ex-boyfriend was handsome too, but Xian’s charisma is just different. Every smile of his makes me feel at ease. Every touch of his hand gives me a thrill, as if electricity is flowing through my skin, tingling all over my body, " I whispered to myself.

He caressed my cheek, slowly moving his lips toward mine, intending to kiss me. I didn't understand it, but I felt no desire to stop him.

As our lips were about to touch, he suddenly stopped, as if he had remembered something.

"Wait, I just remembered something. Hold on, let me just get it," he said, standing up.

" W-wh-wat? "

I was stunned when he left me on the sofa. I was so disappointed that he didn't follow through with the kiss. I touched my lips and bit them, feeling regretful.

After a few moments, he came out of the room carrying a catalog and showed it to me. "Look at this. The internet says women love beautiful dresses," he said.

He showed me a catalog of wedding gowns and told me to choose what I wanted to wear. According to him, he was only given a three-day leave from work, so we had to hurry.

"You should also choose which resort we’ll go to after the wedding. I have a list of 5-star restaurants for our dinner; I want you to pick one," he said.

I was shocked when I saw them because I knew those places were very expensive.

"I’ll book the entire restaurant for our dinner so no one can disturb us," he added.

I was surprised by his plan and didn't agree because I knew he would spend too much. "It’s too expensive to rent a whole restaurant. Honestly, we could just have dinner at a simple place."

But he said he didn't want us to just have dinner at a simple place because he wanted to make that day special for me. "I know that for women, their wedding day is special. I’m already sad that I can’t give you the grand wedding you’ve always dreamed of, so I want at least our dinner to be extraordinary."

I just closed my eyes, overwhelmed by how giddy and touched I felt. He is so sweet and generous. I was a little worried about how much he was spending on the wedding, but there was nothing I could do if he insisted on spoiling me for our big day.

"Wait, Elaine, regarding your side of the family—is there anyone you’d like to invite to our wedding?" he asked.

"My side of the family?"

He mentioned that even though my parents were gone, he knew I still had other relatives, so he wanted to know if I wanted to invite any of them.

I shook my head, feeling a wave of sadness. It was true that I had other relatives, but I was never close to them, and in truth, they did nothing to help me get justice for the death of my parents.

"You know, the Volt family belongs to the twenty werewolf families of the Lycan clan that we consider kin. But honestly, we aren't close to one another, so I don't know if I can invite them," I said.

I looked down, mourning as I remembered my parents. "When my parents passed away and the Volts became impoverished, no one wanted to help us. I felt like they turned their backs on us just because we were no longer of any use to them, and I was the only one left of the Volt line."

Xian sighed and immediately hugged me. "We’re the same. Families in the Dracula clan only treat you like kin if you are useful," he said.

He held my hand and kissed it, making a vow. "Don't worry. Even if everyone turns their backs on you, I will make sure that I will never leave you. We will build our own family, and we will be happy forever," he said tenderly.

I felt the warmth of his embrace, and even though we had only been together for a few days, I felt so secure with him. My heart was overflowing with joy as I leaned into his arms, hugging him back tightly, knowing that the man by my side today is the one who will give me the love I need.