After all, when she first arrived, she hadn't even had a chance to sit down and drink water before Ethan dragged her off for some cardio.
Where would he have found time to worry about the decor?
Maddie nestled against Ethan, her voice tinged with laziness and curiosity in the afterglow: "Babe, when did you buy this place?"
Ethan's palm stroked her smooth shoulder: "Just today."
Maddie propped herself up a bit, looked around at the ridiculously large primary bedroom, and asked, "This place is huge! Even the bedroom we're sleeping in right now is shockingly big, and it's in this location. How much did it cost?"
Ethan replied, "Not much, just over sixty million!"
Maddie felt as if she'd been struck by an electric current; the little strength she'd just recovered instantly vanished, her body went limp, and she nearly slipped right out of Ethan's arms!
"Six... over sixty million?" Maddie's voice trembled as she spoke.
Her family had done okay for themselves. By local standards, their financial situation was considered decent, but they could barely be called upper-middle-class.
Having around a million or so in savings back home already felt like a lot.
Nearly seventy million — that number was just too far out of reach for her.
She'd known Ethan was wealthy even back on the yacht, but the boldness of casually dropping over sixty million on a house was far beyond what she'd imagined!
The shock left her speechless for a moment, and she could only stare blankly at the uniquely shaped light fixture on the ceiling, feeling the insurmountable gap in wealth between them.
To casually spend tens of millions on a home, and be a college student on top of that — it was unbelievable.
Plenty of second-generation rich kids came from wealthy families, but the allowance they usually got wasn't that much. Still, for someone to spend this much at once, she couldn't even imagine how wealthy his family must be.
The gap between them was genuinely enormous.
After a moment, she put on her loose robe and stood barefoot on the warm wooden floor.
She walked to the bar in the living room and poured herself a glass of chilled red wine.
Deep red liquid rippled in the crystal glass. She held her wine, as if on a pilgrimage, and walked once again to the huge floor-to-ceiling window.
One couldn't help but be captivated by it.
Only standing here could you really feel the vibrancy of the city.
She took a sip of wine, the coolness and richness intertwining on her tongue, murmuring softly, intoxicated with a hint of dreaminess: "No wonder it's a place worth tens of millions. It feels different, even more incredible than what you see on TV."
Ethan had somehow come up behind her, also gazing out the window, his voice carrying a calm, world-weary tone: "Honestly, after living here a while, it just becomes normal. Right now it's still just the novelty of moving in."
Maddie couldn't help but shake her head: "I don't think I'd ever get tired of living in a place like this. This is a luxury home worth tens of millions, in such a lively part of the city, with river views this beautiful."
Her tone was full of longing.
Ethan looked at her profile, flushed and lit by the ambient light, and said casually, "Since you like it so much, you should move in and stay a while."
Maddie looked at Ethan with some surprise and said, "Babe, are you really willing to let me move in?"
Ethan reached out, brushing her wind-tousled hair with his fingertips, smiling as he said, "Of course. You're my woman, so naturally, you've got a place here. If not you, then who?"
"Babe..." Maddie's nose instantly tingled, and tears quickly filled her eyes.
"Hmm?" Ethan turned his head to look.
Maddie was deeply moved and said, "Did I do something good in a past life to end up meeting someone this wonderful in this one?"
A tremendous wave of emotion flooded over her.
Although she knew her place well, that she was one of the women he kept, and definitely not the only one by his side.
But Ethan was truly too good to her.
Being with him was happier than really falling in love.
She took the initiative to throw herself into Ethan's arms, tightly wrapped her arms around his waist, stood on tiptoe, and kissed him heavily on his cheek, filled with the scent of red wine and full of passion.
When she looked up, those moist eyes were filled with blatant desire and longing, her voice tinged with a hoarse invitation: "Babe... you still got it in you?"
This was the first time she'd taken the initiative like this, filled with an all-in kind of enthusiasm.
Ethan raised his eyebrows in surprise, looking at the little wildcat in his arms who moments ago had been completely wiped out, now his eyes burning with intensity. A playful smile curled at the corner of his mouth: "Careful what you ask for."
His gaze turned dangerous and intent.
Maddie smiled sweetly, a smile mixed with innocence and allure. She pressed her burning cheeks tightly against his solid chest, feeling his powerful heartbeat, her voice filled with go-for-broke resolve: "Then what are you waiting for?"
Ethan asked again, "You sure?"
"I'm sure... couldn't be more sure!"
Although she'd already exhausted herself just moments ago, she had only one thought: to melt herself completely into Ethan's arms.
That felt like an incredibly happy thing.
Faced with such an eager invitation, how could Ethan say no?
Maddie was gently turned by him, guided away.
Her hands trembled slightly against the huge, mirror-cold floor-to-ceiling glass.
Maddie lay directly against the floor-to-ceiling window...
Outside, the whole city was dazzling and alive at night, like fireworks set off just for her. On the glass, her flushed, intoxicated face and the tall, upright silhouette of the man behind her were both clearly visible.
The cold glass contrasted sharply with the scorching body heat.
...
The next day.
Ethan woke up early.
But there was no class that morning.
He got up, stretched, and turned to look at the center of the big bed.
Maddie was still deeply wrapped in the soft down comforter, breathing evenly and steadily, sleeping like an innocent child.
A playful smile appeared at the corner of Ethan's mouth.
Last night, the "little wildcat" who'd fought so bravely stood in stark contrast to the "wiped-out state" she was in now, deep asleep.
He was honestly a bit surprised Maddie could summon that kind of resilience and passion.
Although Maddie had still tapped out and surrendered by the end of the night, Ethan was still a little caught off guard. Something about it vaguely reminded him of Diana in certain moments.
However, it had also cost Maddie dearly; her two morning classes were clearly a lost cause.
Ethan changed into his workout clothes and went downstairs alone, putting in over an hour at the community's top-tier heated gym.
The resistance on the top-tier machines was just right, sweat flowing freely, washing away the last trace of grogginess.
There are 130 advance chapters ahead in my Patreon. If you are interested can check it out.
patreon.com/B_A_3439