Apex Predator - Chap 27
Seeing Shen Dai with reddened eyes, his chest heaving, and lips tightly pursed as if to suppress all his grievances, Qu Moyu could not help but feel a bit of pity.
On further investigation, he found out that Shen Dai had indeed gone to the exhibition with a group of colleagues. It was just that at that particular moment, Shen Dai was coincidentally standing next to Zhou Lan, who happened to be an alpha as well.
What purpose did Zhou Lan have in deliberately leaving pheromones on an omega’s body? Considering his behaviour today, the answer to this question was now quite clear. Though he knew that Shen Dai would not be so bold as to do anything about it, he couldn’t accept an Alpha working alongside his Omega on a daily basis while harbouring desires for him.
So, forcing the other party into a hasty retreat had been absolutely necessary.
His expression softened. Holding his hand out towards Shen Dai, he said, “Come over here, let me hold you.”
Shen Dai lowered his head and replied, “You should leave. They’re all waiting for you.”
“I’m the boss. It doesn’t matter.”
“If you stay here…people will start to talk.”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Qu Moyu, offering him his hand. “Come over here.”
Qu Moyu’s hand was very wide. Its fingers were long and slender, its bones well articulated. The joints in his fingers contained a latent sense of power, and when his palm was turned upwards and outstretched, it seemed to convey an invitation and acceptance.
But in Shen Dai’s eyes, this hand was quite clearly a trap, as all Qu Moyu needed to do was to close his five fingers, and all who fell into it – whether by will or by force – would then be ensnared in his grip.
Standing in his own office, he still felt isolated and helpless, because everything as far as he could see – including himself- was the “property” of Qu Moyu.
He approached Qu Moyu slowly, then placed his hand in Qu Moyu’s palm. The very hand he had daydreamed about holding many times before failed in that moment to provide him with any warmth.
Qu Moyu pulled him into his arms. Gently pinching his fair and soft cheeks, he teased, “Is somebody feeling a little wronged? A bit upset now, hm?”
Shen Dai lowered his head. After some hesitation, he asked, “What was the whole point in you even coming here today?”
“If I said it was for you, would that make you a little less mad?” said Qu Moyu, giving him a kiss on the face. In a tone of voice like teasing a sulky kitten, he added, “Can’t you see that little boy has hidden intentions towards you?”
“That ‘little boy’ is only two years younger than you,” thought Shen Dai to himself. “So what should I do about it?” he whispered back,
“Isn’t it good that I’ve made him come to his senses?” Qu Moyu laughed, adding carelessly, “We’re all adults here. I don’t want to restrict you in any way, and I trust that you will respect the terms of our contract. But this is someone that you come into contact with every day, so try to avoid arousing any suspicion.”
Our contract. These two words had always sounded so grating to his ears. He understood Qu Moyu’s meaning. Despite being considered a wife only in name, whose status would never be publicly disclosed, or the fact they would eventually divorce, he would not tolerate any behaviour on his part that could be deemed inappropriate.
But why was it necessary for him to “invoke the rights of the first party” in such a humiliating way?
“Okay,” replied Shen Dai, without any expression on his face.
“Cheer up a little,” said Qu Moyu, reaching out once again to pinch his supple cheeks. Although this person appeared skinny, he was still soft in some places.
“It’s almost time to get off work. You better head back.”
He found this version of Shen Dai with a hint of temper to be uniquely charming, and much more refreshing than his usual obedient self. Glancing at his watch, he said “Head back with me. Meet at the parking garage at quarter past seven.”
“Tonight I have to….”
“Tonight I’ll take you out for dinner,” interrupted Qu Moyu, gazing at Shen Dai with that pair of deep and profound eyes. “A date with me, how does that sound?”
Shen Dai was dumbfounded. His heart began to race. In the next second, he realised – to his dismay – that although his anger towards Qu Moyu had not yet subsided, he could not help but be moved by this tiny bit of sweetness.
He spilled some alcohol on his clothes, using its pungent smell to mask the ebony wood fragrance that Qu Moyu had left on his body. Only then did he dare leave the laboratory and head towards Qu Moyu’s exclusive parking lot.
Old Wu was already waiting there with the car. Shen Dai boarded the vehicle. Old Wu, who was in the middle of making a reservation at the restaurant, acknowledged him with a nod.
As soon as Qu Moyu got into the car, he wrinkled his nose: “Why does it smell of alcohol?”
“I poured a little on my clothes,” explained Shen Dai, “Otherwise people would be able to smell your pheromones.”
This time, Qu Moyu furrowed his eyebrows. He knew that what Shen Dai was saying made sense, but he was still displeased: “Old Wu, stop by the shopping mall first, we’ll get him a change of clothes.”
Shen Dai opened his mouth to speak, but said nothing in the end. Qu Moyu had the habit of not taking no for an answer, so any refusal from him would have counted for nothing.
Taking him to a menswear boutique, Qu Moyu then handed him over to the sales assistant, instructing, “Bring him a few sets of casual attire that he can wear to work and for daily use.”
“Alright President Qu.”
While Qu Moyu sat down and made a phone call, Shen Dai looked on as the salesperson held up piece after piece of clothing against his body.
Catching a glimpse at one of the price tags, he thought to himself, “There’s no way I can wear these to work.”
As he was trying on clothes, his phone buzzed twice. He opened it to find a message from Cheng Zimei: Why did you run off so quickly? The Crown Prince was in your office for so long! What did you even talk about!
This was followed by a very excited meme image.
Carrying some clothes in one hand, he sent off his reply: Just work.
She did not reply to his message after that.
Just as he had changed back into his own clothes and was heading out, he heard a pleasantly surprised voice call out “Yu-ge!” An exceptionally beautiful couple had walked in, arm in arm. It just had to be Qu Chengchen and You Baiyue, who even had their driver trailing behind them, carrying numerous shopping bags of different sizes filled with luxury goods.
Qu Chengchen raised his eyebrows, somewhat surprised: “Big brother actually goes window-shopping with Sister-in-law?”
“Is there something wrong with that?”
Qu Chengchen smiled and didn’t say anything, but as he looked at Shen Dai, there seemed to be a deeper meaning in his gaze.
Shen Dai, standing a slight distance away, was at a loss about how to react for a time.
“Yu-ge is bringing my older brother out to get new clothes!” exclaimed You Baiyue, walking a few steps over to face Shen Dai. “This outfit is still alright, but as a whole the brand doesn’t really suit you. It’s too businesslike.”
He turned his head and said to Qu Moyu, “Yu-ge, you don’t normally wear clothes off-the-rack. Why did you pick a place like this to buy him clothes? This style of clothing is way too dull for young omega like him.”
His tone was somewhat cute and petulant, yet also soft and gentle. Paired with his face, it could really make an Alpha go weak at the knees.
“Acting spoiled and childish” the way Qu Moyu liked, was just something Shen Dai could not bring himself to do.
“The clothes he wears are quite plain as well,” said Qu Moyu, smiling as he looked at You Baiyue. “In that case why don’t you help him choose? Though, I’m afraid that what you’ll pick will suit him even less.”
“Great! Come, I’ll bring you to a shop nearby.”
Shen Dai declined politely, “There’s no need. I’m usually at work, so it’s better to keep it plain and simple.”
“There’s much more to life than work! Trust me, I’ll make you look a lot better!” You Baiyue added cheerfully, “You and Yu-ge will actually seem like a match after that!”
Whether this jab had been intentional or not, Shen Dai let it fall on deaf ears, responding calmly, “Thank you, but there’s really no need.”
Qu Chengchen gave You Baiyue a wave. “Stop meddling with what people like to wear. Didn’t you say you were tired? Let’s go get dinner.”
“Okay!” You Baiyue then asked Qu Moyu, “Where is Yu-ge headed for dinner? How about we join you?”
Shen Dai felt his heart tighten with anxiety. He looked towards Qu Moyu, hoping he would refuse. After all, this was their “date”. Even if it was partly to make it up to him, which wasn’t exactly what he wanted, he couldn’t help but have some expectations.
But Qu Moyu’s eyes were fixed on You Baiyue, who was so stunning he appeared to glow. He agreed without hesitation.
Shen Dai quietly kept his eyes down, indescribably uncomfortable. In his heart he kept admonishing himself to stop – stop placing any more expectations on Qu Moyu.
Qu Moyu had reserved a restaurant with a night view overlooking the busiest part of the Central Business District. Their menu featured contemporary Chinese dishes that were exquisite in both presentation and taste; it would have been indeed a fitting location for a date.
Shen Dai ate his meal in silence, listening to the three of them bring up anecdotes from their childhood. Perhaps it was the presence of You Baiyue, but the two brothers of the Qu family were for once not at each other’s throats. Instead, he was the real outsider here, who couldn’t understand anything about what they were saying or take part in any of their stories.
He only hoped that the dinner would end soon so that he could go home and work on his thesis.
Having eaten till he was about seventy percent full, he then got up to go to the restroom.
After using the toilet, he stood in front of the restroom mirror staring at himself. His expensive clothes were made with great attention to quality and workmanship. Compared to the cheap sweatshirt and shirt that he was wearing before, this cashmere sweater and casual trousers that cost tens of thousands really made him look a lot more stylish.
Clothes made the man: they were the disguise necessary to live amongst mortals in this secular realm. But the nature of disguise was ultimately deception. Even if he wore clothes of comparable value to the people sitting at the table with him, they still did not belong to the same world.
He really didn’t know what he was doing here.
While he was lost in thought, a figure appeared in the mirror and gave him a playful look.
Shen Dai kept his head down and pretended to be washing his hands. You Baiyue came over beside him and said with a smile, “Not bad! Yu-ge has never taken anyone clothes shopping before. He usually doesn’t waste time on boring things that he can pay others to do.”
“My clothes got stained,” replied Shen Dai indifferently, before turning around to leave.
You Baiyue stepped around to evade him. With an expression on his face that looked both innocent and wronged, he said, “Why are you always so resistant to me. You act as if I‘m trying to do something to you. Are you suffering from a persecution complex?”
“Why are you so interested in me?” countered Shen Dai. “Am I a threat to you?”
You Baiyue was stunned for a moment, but then, he laughed. “Far from it! In fact, I really hope that you’ll be able to handle Yu-ge. Better to keep business within the family, right? Wise up a little. I can actually help you.”
“There’s no need.” Shen Dai frowned as he looked at You Baiyue. “I don’t wish to engage with you – either of you – any further. I believe I’ve made myself quite clear on this point. Keeping this up would be too impolite.”
You Baiyue could not stop himself from laughing. “Oh? So I’m impolite. What are you going to do about it? You really don’t know a good thing when you see it, do you? Don’t you want to get Yu-ge’s mark? Don’t pretend that you don’t – I won’t believe it.”
“Why do you keep bringing up something that even you can’t get? Aren’t you being little obsessed?” replied Shen Dai, with disdain.
You Baiyue gave him a wide-eyed glare and retorted, “Not only are you unable to tell a good thing when you see one, you also rate your own abilities too highly. When playing around with top Alphas, things like money, fame, and benefits are all not difficult to get. With a bit of know-how, even a mark isn’t entirely out of reach. But you’re so funny, what you really want from him are feelings.”
“You might be the one with the complex, I don’t – “
“Top alphas don’t have feelings.” You Baiyue stared at him intently, the veins in his eyes gradually dilating. “Their life’s philosophy can be summed up in one word, “to win”.
