[XXI]

"Let's fake a relationship," he said lowly.

She furrowed her eyebrows. "And what are we going to do then?"

"Like, we can go on dates and stuff–like pretend we're together," he explained.

Hazel frowned, not really knowing what Zac was implying. "So, you mean we pretend to actually be a couple? Like one of those reality shows?"

"That's right!" Zac gave her a thumbs up. "I know that you haven't been in love before, so I'll make sure to make this experience unforgettable."

'Why are you being so kind-hearted? What are you thinking?' These thoughts raced through Hazel's mind as she stared at him reproachfully. "If you really want to play the couple, then you could ring Mandy up. I'm sure she'll love that." She scoffed.

His smile faltered and he tightened his grip around her waist. "Do you really want me to find another woman?"

Her lips curled. "Well, that's your business, isn't it?"

"Really?" Raising his eyebrows up in the air, he stared at her like an artist looking into the person's soul. "Then why were you so angry when I was with Mindy?" he asked.

"I'm not. I was just defending Mandy's honor." Hazel lowered her head unconsciously as a blush coated her cheeks. She didn't know why she was so flustered by his question. Her hands fidgeted. He didn't allow her to brush it off. Zac grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" she answered decisively, without giving herself time to think. However, there was a mysterious ache in her heart that she just couldn't express. Instead, she decided to bury it, hoping that she wouldn't be able to feel it in the future.

A hint of disappointment flashed across his face. Frowning, his eyes darkened similar to a deep abyss. "Since you're being so generous," he snapped coldly. "I won't let you down." Without giving her a chance to reply, he let her go and strode straight to the doorway.

Hazel's jaw dropped. Was he really going to do it?

 Thinking of him holding another woman in his arms, the mysterious feeling she had buried started to spread like wildfire. She ran up to him.

"Hey!" she called. "I didn't say I wouldn't play pretend. There are just rules that we need to abide by."

He finally stopped. "What rules?"

"You shouldn't kiss me, hug me, or even try to sleep on my bed. Are we clear?" She placed her hands on her hips and glared up at him.

"Okay." His eyes glinted. Although he wasn't allowed to kiss her, she didn't say anything about touching her. As for sleeping on her bed, that's fine as well, since she didn't say anything about sleeping on his bed.

The next morning, Hazel went to the hotel. She didn't know what tricks her parents were about to play that she was about to stop them immediately. Otherwise, Zac was doomed.

As soon as he got back last night, Bob sent a video he had snapped to his wife and reported to her. Lucy's eyes were practically burning with fury when she saw lots of women getting out of the room one after the other.

"I have to remind Hazel to keep an eye on Zac. There are so many shameless women in the world." If it wasn't for her carelessness, she wouldn't have let another woman wreck her own marriage.

"I think Zac is self-disciplined. If you want Hazel to keep an eye on him, then she should do it secretly. Suspicions like that might just affect their relationship," Bob said thoughtfully.

Before she knocked on the door, Hazel managed to organize her thoughts in order to convince her parents. When she walked in, she immediately leaned on her mother's shoulder.

"Mom, you went a little bit too far last night. Just trust me, okay? My husband is not that kind of man."

Lucy sighed. "Hazel, your father and I have already been through this. We're more experienced in identifying those types of people. Besides, as the saying goes, spectators see more than the players. Since you're already in this marriage, it's inevitable for you to make the wrong judgment. We need a pair of objective eyes."

Hazel hugged her. "I know you care about me, but you really shouldn't plan this anymore. You always say that a fox cannot hide its tail. He won't be able to hide his nature if he's truly a cheater," she persuaded. "How about I'll take you out for the next few days, and you can observe him? Maybe you'll be able to get to know him then."

Hearing her words, Lucy glanced at her husband who gave their daughter a thumbs up. He honestly couldn't agree more with their daughter. It seemed that she had learned something from them over the years.

Half an hour later, Zac came with the car. Last night, he and Hazel created a three-day travel plan. They planned to climb mountains, go sea watching, drive to a farm by the countryside. All of these activities were completely relaxing.

The proud son-in-law acted as if he was their doting son.

Seeing this scene, Hazel couldn't help but feel touched. She believed that he could be promoted to best actor of the year if he kept that up! He was great at acting!

Once they had returned, Bob and Lucy summarized their entire meeting.

"I've observed him very carefully. He doesn't have any vices at all. Plus, he's decent and well-educated," Lucy started.

Bob continued, "He works steadily, but he isn't a workaholic. Some people sometimes suck up too much to their in-laws and boast about themselves, but he isn't like them."

"The most important thing is that he's kind to Hazel," she said happily.

Hazel touched her forehead, shaking her head. 'My God. It's been three days, and he had already charmed the pants off my parents. Have my parents been drugged?' she thought to herself.

"Mom, are you sure you're not exaggerating? How can you tell that he's being sincere?"

Lucy snorted, poking her forehead. "Have you forgotten what my major was?"

"I know that you major in psychology, but you were never a psychiatrist!" Hazel pouted.

"Although I've never practiced it, I've definitely learned something from my experience. In my spare time, I've also been studying micro-expressions and mind-reading," she stated. "If a person is faking it, you could see it in his eyes or the little movements that he makes. Okay. For example, when you crossed the road, didn't you notice that he would naturally walk in the outer lane for your safety? When we were at the farm, he didn't let you touch anything with thorns. Although he said that it's because you're clumsy, you could see in his eyes that he's caring for you, not blaming you."

Really? After thinking about it for a while, Hazel just continually denied it.

Zac's acting skill was excellent. That's all. As for her mother, she was probably enamored by the fact that she had a son-in-law, that her judgment about the man actually being sincere was wrong. He was only pretending to be nice! What he said about her being clumsy was the absolute truth.

When they returned to their apartment, Hazel gave him a thumbs up. "I don't know how you do it, but you acted great! Hell, I don't think my parents will ever want to let you go at this rate."

Zac raised his eyebrows. "Who said I was acting?"

Smiling, she patted him on the shoulder. "All right. My parents aren't here now, so you can cut it," she joked.

Zac sighed in his heart. He was really not acting in front of them. In fact, he treated them as if they were his own parents. In time, he found that they were actually very easy to get along with. They were reasonable and amiable.

Hazel didn't notice the helpless look that crossed his face. Instead, she took out the calculator from the studio. Zac was the one who had paid for their expenses the past few days, and now she had to calculate how much she should pay him.

"You do know that you can spend all my money as long as our marriage is still set," he said frankly.

"Zac, you really don't have to do this," she insisted. "What if your savings get dried up?"

"Rest assured, okay? I have my ways to get money." Zac placed an arm around her shoulder.

What? Hazel couldn't help but scrunch up her eyebrows at his words. What else could he do except sell his body...unless...

"Zac, you aren't selling yourself, right?" she asked cautiously.

Zac almost choked at her question. How large was this woman's imagination?

He hurried to change the topic. "Honey, the only thing you should worry about now is our first date."

What? "Oh shit! It's about our fake relationship, right?"

Hazel had forgotten all about it. She thought that he was just joking on the spur of the moment. She didn't expect him to take it so seriously. "Well, where are we going? How are we going to do this?" she asked. Hazel didn't really have the experience with these types of things.

Zac smiled. He couldn't help but be attracted to her affectionate and innocent eyes. "I'll take care of everything," he stated. "All you need to do is look gorgeous."

'That's it? Was it a trap?' she was wondering.

To be honest, Hazel had never imagined that her first date would be with Zac, let alone in the Ferris wheel.

Listening to the relaxing music, looking down at the charming night scene below, and enjoying a romantic candlelight dinner, made her almost forget that this was not a real date.

Zac cut a piece of steak and fed it into her mouth.

"It's delicious!" She smiled brightly, and the dimples on her cheeks rippled under the candlelight. Her eyes were filled with joy and innocence. Zac couldn't help but spoil her a little more. After eating dinner, she looked at him with a playful smile and asked, "Zac, do you often use this trick to deceive women?"

He smiled beautifully and replied, "You are so silly and easy to please. I haven't met a woman as foolish as you."

She wrinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue. "I won't be deceived by you. I have an excellent pair of eyes."

He took a sip of champagne and said in a relaxed tone, "You know, no matter how smart or fast a rabbit is, it can't escape a lion!"

He grinned at her confidently.

'Not necessarily!' Hazel thought to herself. An idea came to her mind. Her beautiful eyes sparkled like stars falling into the lake.

With a sly smile, she stood up and approached him. He stared at her curiously and was shocked when she sat on his lap seductively. Meeting his gaze, her forefinger touched his forehead lightly and swam along his tall nose to his thin lips. Her feather touch sent shivers down his spine.

The night wind blew her dark hair and gently stroked his face. He quivered a little as if an electric shock had run through him momentarily. Enchanted by her sweet smell, he could not help reaching out to hold her.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment.

He stared at her beautiful face without blinking. His eyes seemed to be lit up by candlelight, burning, with a strange and profound light.

In the light, there was only her shadow, as if there was only her in his world. The bright moon, the stars, the beautiful scenery, and everything in the world were suddenly forgotten. Only the two of them existed at that moment.

She smiled enchantingly as her finger continued to move down. It stopped on his solid chest, and slowly drew circles. With her touch, his breathing became labored, his skin warmed up and his face turned into a lovely shade of blush.

A victorious smile graced her face. She lowered her head slowly and blew in his ear. "See, even this rabbit could catch a lion unaware!" When she had finished speaking, she stood up and turned around to go back to her seat. Zac stretched out his long arm behind her and grabbed her little hand. "Is that all?" He frowned slightly. His tone had told her that he seemed to be a little dissatisfied.

"What else do you want?"

"You know it!" He pulled her towards him and trapped her in an embrace.

She opened her mouth to protest but before she could say anything, Zac pressed his lips against her mouth. He tried to move his lips a little and her body turned soft in his arms. If she wanted to play with fire, she must be prepared to get burned.

Recovering from the shock, she pushed him hard and beat him on the shoulder, but she could not get rid of him. Like a fierce fire, he soon melted her into soft water. Dazed by the warm sensation of his mouth, she lost her mind and fell into his arms dizzily.

Unconsciously, she embraced him back and let him do what he wanted with her.

When he let go of her, the Ferris wheel had stopped rotating. She blushed and hurried back to her seat. She felt dizzy as if she had drunk too much champagne and was a little drunk.

He narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at her with a smug expression on his face. "I thought you had an excellent pair of eyes.

Didn't you say earlier that you won't be deceived by me?"

Embarrassed and annoyed, she glared at him and said, "You broke the rule. You are not allowed to kiss me."

"I was not the one who started it." He smiled evilly.

"Is there a difference?" She raised her eyebrows slightly. In her mind, regardless of who initiated it, kissing was not allowed.

"Of course there is." He suddenly leaned over with a sexy grin. This time, she reacted quickly and kicked him hard at his calf.

He grunted in pain, "Don't get me wrong. I'm just providing you an example. The action I was about to do just now was called a kiss, and what I did before was called a lovely kiss. So from now on, I promise I will only give you lovely kisses."

Hazel was dumbfounded. 'What is he saying?!' she screamed silently.

When Zac was not treating her coldly, he was as agile as a whip. She could never win when a verbal battle was drawing near.

Nonetheless, it was best for her to eat quickly and quietly. Otherwise, she might be too angry to vomit blood.

Thus, she focused on eating and ignored him.

Getting out of the Ferris wheel, she kicked the small stones at her feet and muttered to herself, "This is no longer a simulated relationship, but an exploitation. Someone is trying to take advantage of me by playing dirty!"

He chuckled and raised his thick eyebrows. "You can also take advantage of me."

"Do you think I can take advantage of you?" She pouted.

"It depends on what you want." His tone was meaningful and inviting.

Her mind was deep in thought. Suddenly, a little starlight flew into her black eyes and lit up her dazed brain.

Right, she shouldn't stay passive and allow others to exploit her. She had to fight for her place in a relationship. Since this was a mock relationship, she would use Zac to accumulate experience. With this, she would surely attain a dominant position in her future relationship.

"I will arrange the next date for us!" Hazel announced excitedly.

"Okay." Zac smiled charmingly. "Well, I will wait and see."

Hazel looked at him with a weird smile on her face.