Mo Qingchen seemed hesitant to release her at first but after assuring him that she was perfectly alright, he removed his hands from her waist, and then he turned his stare to Rory.

"I need to warm-up, too. Are you up for a round?" Mo Qingchen asked, his eyes filled with mischief.

"Am I being appraised?" Rory asked mirthfully. Mo Qingchen smirked.

"Yes. I need to see if you are a good fit for her or not," he said seriously all of a sudden.

"Of course." Rory clapped his hands together. "Let me grab my gear," he announced.

As he walked away, Qian Meng glanced at Mo Qingchen, who looked utterly devilish standing there. "What are you doing?" she whispered.

"I wanted you to take self-defense classes. If he is not a good trainer, what is the use of learning from him?" he presented his argument.

"And you are testing him on my behalf because you are a professional?" Qian Meng teased.

Mo Qingchen arched his brow. "You think I can't beat him?"

"He's got medals… I doubt—" she stopped midsentence. "Well… let's see if you are worth your word, then!"

She challenged openly.

"Go sit there. Don't come close when we spar. You can get hurt," he instructed. The no-nonsense tone really did things to her. Ah, how she was drawn to this wicked side of his.

"I promise. Do I have to wait long?" she asked, trying to ignore the attraction she felt. It was so powerful that it was getting progressively harder to ignore.

"Why? Do you feel unwell? I saw you fall. You could have been seriously injured." His frown was back.

Qian Meng smiled warmly. "I'm fine. It's all part of being a ninja."

Mo Qingchen actually smiled back. A genuine smile. And she had to scramble away to the farthest corner of the room before she could push his sweet ass to the mat and defile him right there. She forced her body in the opposite direction.

"I'll be right there…" she said quickly over her shoulder.

"Be ready," he said, still smiling.

Why was he smiling at her like that? Had he no mercy? She practically tripped over her own two feet. She planted her butt on the ground and waited for Rory to come back.

When the spar began, Qian Meng couldn't really see a difference in their strengths. Mo Qingchen looked a little lethargic, whereas Rory looked like he was holding back. But soon, she saw the wicked jabs Mo Qingchen made. She followed his movements until Rory backed out.

She bounced up to her feet and closed the distance to hear Rory complimenting Mo Qingchen on his agility and strength.

Rory quickly took note of the situation and backed away, leaving them alone.

"See? I won," he boasted.

"Clearly, he let you win. He didn't want to hurt you," Yun Qian Meng poked. Mo Qingchen snorted.

"Ah!" he called out just as she was about to leave. "From now on, I will be your instructor," he stated firmly.

"You will?" She was stunned. He was willing to take time out of his day to teach her how to be a ninja.

"Yes." He flashed her a charming grin. "No one else." His tone was so inviting that she nearly ran to him.

"Okay," she responded dumbly. "No one else."

The thing about gyms was that the showers were hot and uncannily pleasant. How so? Yun Qian Meng felt refreshed after her class… even though Mo Qingchen had stared at Rory and her for the rest of the session, making sure everything was in order.

The water cascaded over her body, cleansing the exhaustion from her limbs. She was back in her office-clothes and glowing from the bliss of working out.

Mo Qingchen was already done and waiting outside for her. "We have to go somewhere before we head home," he announced.

"Where?" she frowned. She had finished work for today, but something could crop up.

"We're going shopping," he grunted, almost unwilling.

Qian Meng raised her brow in curiosity but didn't say anything else. She wanted to see what he was up to.

He refused to let her drive, so she was stuffed into the passenger's seat and at his mercy. They sped down the street and entered a huge store that Qian Meng recognized immediately.

"Are you trying to anger me?" she asked with a hint of bewilderment.

"Why would I do that?" he responded. There was no mirth in his eyes.

"This is a jewelry store… and they don't even keep my brand. Why should I go inside?" she pouted.

Mo Qingchen curled his hand around her waist and pushed her forward. "We need to get a ring for your finger. People will get suspicious if we don't wear anything on our hands," he mentioned.

Qian Meng's eyes dimmed. "I don't need something to bind me down to you. I already have the contract," she claimed.

"It is not about binding you to me. It's about other people seeing that we are together." He frowned at her. "Remember? We are a loving couple. And if people find out I proposed to you without a magnificent ring, do you think they will believe we are blissfully in love?" he asked.

His argument made sense.

"You just had to choose the store that didn't carry my brand," she said, peeved.

"Didn't know they didn't carry your stuff," he said smugly.

"Liar," she whispered, knowing well that he could hear her. But it was ignored.

They entered the store and the eyes of the clerk fell on her. Surely, if you are in this business or have been on the internet recently, you would see her face and know who she was…

Nope. No one recognized her.

"Mo Qingchen, do I look really different from my photos and videos?" she asked as he scanned through the glass showcases. He looked up briefly before his eyes were back on the plethora of jewelry.