Hearing that, Shermaine couldn’t help but think, “Why does it feel like I’m being nuzzled by a hungry wolf who’s clearly got his eyes on a mate?”

Shermaine said calmly, “You can borrow my body wash?”

She wasn’t so easily charmed.

Joshua agreed, but seeing Shermaine remain unfazed and emotionally steady, he kept calm and patient, quietly biding his time like someone lying in wait.

Right after that, he gently released his hold on her, making no further moves.

He just said softly, “Sheary, I’ve already moved all your things over.”

“Okay.”

Shermaine shuffled over to Joshua’s room in her slippers.

The room was nearly twice the size of her old one. She’d barely set foot in there before, but now, with a bold move, she was moving in for real.

Outside the window, the moon shone bright in a star-sparse sky. The cool-toned room basked in a warm glow—spacious yet not cavernous. With her belongings moved in, it felt even more lived-in and complete.

By the window stood an antique piano, its well-worn keys bearing witness to its age—a truly precious instrument.

“Can you play the piano?” Shermaine asked.

“I can,” Joshua replied.

“Play something for me?” she asked.

Joshua led her to sit in front of the piano and gently lifted the lid. “This was my mother’s piano,” he said softly. “A token of love from my father. After she passed away giving birth to me, it’s been with me ever since.”

He could play, but it had been years since he last touched the keys.

When he was a child, every time he played the piano, his father would have an emotional breakdown, as if the music brought back memories too painful to bear.

Even at their engagement, his father never appeared—reportedly. He hadn’t returned to the York family in ten years. His mother died giving birth to him, so Joshua grew up without a shred of parental love. No wonder his childhood was anything but easy.

Even though Owen raised him, there were wounds in his heart that could never truly heal. That was why, when she remembered how she had been taken, her hatred for Jameson and Madeline only deepened.

Madeline had been living a high life, pretending to be her mother all these years—but her days were numbered. As for her real mother, after so many years with no word, she had most likely met with foul play.

Those two were nothing but wicked sinners.

They deserved nothing but divine retribution.

Shermaine said softly, “You have me now.”

This was probably the only words of love she ever spoke to him while they were together.

It was simple, yet enough to warm his heart.

1/2

Chapter 202

Joshua smiled, warmth shining in his eyes. “Yes, from now on, I’ll always have you with me, Sheary.”

He thought to himself, “Maybe from the very first glance at Shermaine, I was already captivated. She was as radiant as the moon–it really was a sight. But back then, I didn’t understand the stirrings of love. Fortunately, it isn’t too late—we finally found our happiness ever after!”

Joshua’s elegant fingers landed on the piano keys, and a gentle melody began to weave through the room.

It was a melody Shermaine had never heard before.

The melody was tender and lingering, sending sweet shivers through the listener and making it easy to become intoxicated by its charm.

It was like a man whispering sweet nothings into a woman’s ear, or two lovers nestled together in a boat, drifting across a moonlit, rippling lake, lost in each other’s embrace.

Shermaine listened with great pleasure, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Yet it was the pianist himself who captivated her most.

Unlike his usual composed and sensual self, Joshua at the piano radiated a magical allure—something utterly mesmerizing that made it impossible to look away.

As the last notes faded away, Shermaine asked curiously, “I’ve never heard this melody before—is it your own composition?”

“Yeah, I played it thinking of you, Sheary.”

Improvising like this—only a true genius could listen to the whispers of all things and spin them into moving melodies.

Shermaine, usually so unflappable, now felt gentle ripples stirring in her heart. She looked at him and softly said, “Play it for me again.”

Joshua grinned playfully. “How about a kiss, Sheary?”