"Haha! A role model? You are giving me way too much credit. I have just married Kevin for a couple of months. There is still a long way ahead of us. Who knows what will happen in the following days?" said Leena with a self-mocking smile. She never allowed herself to imagine her future with Kevin. Nor did she dare to. It just scared her that things might not turn out as she wanted.
"Cheer up, Leena. I am sure you have seen that Major General Gu is a good and reliable man. I have been working with him for a long time but never have I seen him dating any woman. Well, not until you showed up. Plus, he instantly married you. He must love you very much to do so." Lee carefully picked his words as he looked at Leena. He was suddenly nervous about what her reaction would be. He was praying that he didn't offend her in any way as doing so would cost him his neck once Kevin found out.
"Really? I hope you are right." Leena smiled bitterly. She believed that Kevin had never dated anyone before her but also knew that it was most likely because he was in love with Daisy. Just the thought of it made her heart cringe.
"What are you two doing here? I was looking for you everywhere." It was that baritone voice that made both Leena and Lee turn to where it came from. It was Kevin in his casual clothes. He didn't wear his uniform since he took the day off. Despite the casual look, his strong built resulting from his long term training in the army could hardly be concealed.
Is there anything you want me to do, sir?" replied Lee hastily. He was obviously desperate to end the discussion of his romantic life with Leena.
"Yes, a few of our guests are drunk and I need you to drive them home once the party is over," said Kevin as he watched the two people before him. He was wondering if they were talking about him before he arrived. He could still remember how fast Lee blurted out his little secrets in front of Leena and how she couldn't hear enough of them yesterday.
Got it, sir!" Lee answered delightfully. He was relieved to know that driving people home was the task his boss assigned him. According to experience, those people whom he needed to send home were mostly just junior officers as the senior ones had their own drivers. It was good to know that there was nothing to worry about tonight.
"Be careful on the road. And send them to their homes, not the army base." The thought of those drunken men brought a wry smile on Kevin's face. They over-drank because they were depressed to see that he was getting all the good things in life while they hadn't made any progress with theirs. Who could blame them for feeling like that, right? Kevin was married to a beautiful wife and was promoted to Major General after all.
"Yes, sir. The task will be fulfilled." One last salute to Kevin and Lee started walking towards the house. He didn't ask for the addresses of those officers any more because he had already written them down when Kevin visited them.
Leena sat aside silently with her head bent down the whole time Kevin was talking with Lee. She was absentmindedly kicking little rocks back and forth with the tip of her toes as if she couldn't care less about things around her at that moment.
"Why did you sneak out here alone?" asked Kevin as he settled himself next to Leena, his breath smelled of alcohol. Startled by his sudden move, Leena instantly scooched away from him. It was too late for her to realize that the bench was shorter than she initially thought. It was to her horror that she suddenly lost her balance! Luckily, Kevin caught her in time.
Now look at what you have just done to yourself. Do you still want to run away from me?" Kevin pulled her back and let her fall into his arms as he talked. He bent forward a little and rested his chin on her shoulder, his lips touching her sensitive ear.
"Are you drunk?" Leena angled her head to avoid his touch. She wanted to break loose from his embrace but the arms clenching her waist were too strong.
Yes, I am drunk. No, I am not drunk. Which one do you think I am?" The handsome man said. His face was serious but that faint playful smile at the corner of his lips gave his real stand away.
"You must be drunk," Leena said with confirmation after seeing the frivolous smile on Kevin's face. It was something new to her as she had never seen him smile like that before.
"Good job! That's a brilliant and rightful answer. Way to go, my dear wife!" He hugged her even tighter. Truth was, he was far from drunk. His alcohol tolerance was above average, and thus he wouldn't get drunk easily. It was nice to play a little trick on Leena though. That was why he answered her question with another question and didn't let her know how he really was.
Don't you have a weak stomach? Why would you drink so much?" His answer got Leena worried. However, she instantly found out that Kevin was lying as soon as she lifted her head and met his gaze. Her face flushed red as thoughts of what Kevin might be thinking flashed in her mind. What else could a man think of, given that he was a bit triggered by wine and had a beautiful woman in his arms? Of course, sex! Leena was suddenly wondering if Kevin had the ability to suppress his urges. The reality that he was able to refrain himself from making love to her for months long after they got married made her think that he was indeed in full control.
"Relax, I know what I am doing to my body. Now let's go inside. The guests will be leaving soon. We should see them out." Kevin stood up first and then held his hand out to Leena and waited for her to take his hand.
"Okay." It took Leena some hesitating moments before she reached out for Kevin. Regardless of how many doubts she had, there was no way for her to resist his charm and fall for him all over again.
Minutes more and they both found themselves standing by the living room's gate while bidding goodbye to their guests. Since most of the people who came to the party were Kevin's relatives and friends, Kevin did all the talking while Leena only stood beside him as she flashed her sweet smile.
Leena finally loosened up after all the people were gone and the room was cleaned. It had been a huge burden for her to stay in a room full of people she needed to please. She felt relaxed now as there were only Shannon and her left in the room.
"I think we are all done here. Go upstairs and have some rest, Leena. I will stay here for another few minutes and prepare some hot tea for your father. He had quite a few glasses of wine tonight." Like Leena, Shannon also felt relieved that she didn't have to play the perfect hostess anymore.