The Monarch Butterfly - Chapter 1

What were the odds of running into my ex-wife while playing Truth or Dare?

I had never calculated them.

But I was genuinely startled and instinctively stepped backward.

Unfortunately, my drunken body had no strength, and high heels made a maneuver that difficult impossible.

My left foot caught my right, and I fell backward.

Someone caught me by the arm.

Pulled by her momentum, I pitched forward instead.

Straight into a familiar embrace.

The juniper scent I had smelled so many times slipped into my nostrils.

Without thinking, I rubbed my face against her neck.

Her skin was smooth and faintly cool. Bathed in that crisp juniper fragrance, I grew intoxicated all over again.

Even her hair smelled good.

I started nibbling on it too.

A hand seized the back of my head and tore me away from her.

“Chu Tianshu, open your eyes and take a good look at who I am.”

Lu Zhiyao’s hand slid to the back of my neck and closed around it—not hard, but firmly enough to keep me from moving.

I gazed at her blearily.

“Lu—Lu Zhiyao… Why are you here…?”

“That’s the same question I’d like to ask you.”

“We’re divorced. Don’t tell me you followed me here on purpose?”

“Try getting some of that nonsense out of your head.”

I laughed.

“Jiejie…” I suddenly called her by the intimate name I used to use.

Her eyes darkened.

I reached out and hooked an arm around her neck.

“Jiejie, fancy running into you today. Why don’t we sleep together?”

“You just said we’re divorced.”

“So what if we are? Can’t I have a one-night stand?”

“…”

I was pressed against the floor-to-ceiling window.

The glittering nightscape outside was wasted on me.

Someone had undone my collar and was kissing the hollow of my chest.

“Lu Zhiyao… You’re so gentle…”

The moment I finished speaking, she picked me up.

I was drunk, but I still remembered to add, “Not on the sofa. The sofa at your place is ridiculously hard.”

She did not slow down.

When I sank into the soft bedding, I finally let out a breath of relief.

“Lu Zhiyao, I missed you so much.”

“…Don’t say things like that to your ex-wife. It’s a complete lack of boundaries.”

“Can’t I say it in bed? You can forget it once we get up.”

“Chu Tianshu, shut up.”

“Hmph. We’re divorced. You don’t get to tell me to shut up anymore. Lu Zhiyao, don’t think I’m still your dog! I stopped being a dog a long time ago!”

“Heh.”

Someone pinched my cheeks.

A wet, scorching kiss landed on my lips.

My body responded at once, shivering with excitement.

My face grew so hot it felt ready to catch fire, and the heat muddled what little sense I had left.

Someone stroked my cheek. A mocking voice sounded beside my ear.

“The moment I kiss you, your face heats up. How are you any different from a dog?”

“…At least I’m not your dog anymore.”

“Fine.”

She gave a cold little laugh.

Then she thoroughly wore me out until I passed out.