Seeing that the atmosphere was about to get awkward, Cedric decided to change the topic. "At what time are we going to the beach?" 

She shot him a look. "What do you mean 'we'? No matter what time everyone is going, you are staying behind to rest." 

His heart warmed from her caring tone. No one had ever shown him such care aside from his sisters, who had to do it secretly to avoid getting scolded by their parents. "Actually, I feel much better now. Didn't I already take medicines?" 

Most importantly, he had the most effective cure right beside him, of course he would be better in seconds. 

She placed her hand on his forehead to feel his temperature, then grabbed his hand and took his pulse. Still not satisfied with the results, she asked for a thermometer. Luckily, Lin Jian had one so she had him measure his temperature. In the end, she agreed that he was indeed alright. 

Even so, she was still cautious. "Why don't we go out later?" 

weighing the options, he decided that staying back with her and spending some time alone was much better than going to play at the beach with everyone else so he quickly agreed. 

She tilted her head and raised an eyebrow when she saw him nod. Why did it feel like he was a little too happy about this?" 

… 

Meanwhile, when they got Cheng Yu's message, the others decided to go first and let the duo join later. 

Lin Jian proudly flaunted with his nose in the air. "It would have been tragic if we went back to B City with her treating him like an enemy. But since he has a love master—me—for a romance tutor, they will be on friendly terms even if they won't be dating." 

"What the heck is a romance tutor?" Lanni found it laughable. 

Luna went along to tease. "Some love master, huh. You are not even dating yourself yet you claim to be able to teach other people how to woo girls?" 

Although Lanni and Luna were teasing him, they were actually happy for their friend. It would be awesome if she got someone to take care of her. Of course, they would give Cedric a good beating if he dared to break Cheng Yu's heart. They were just a little unhappy about not being able to spend time with her. 

When Lin Jian heard them, he retaliated immediately. "Who is single? My Ruby agreed to give me a chance!" 

"Uh… What?" Ruby was stunned. 

"She did? When did that happen?" Lanni and Luna were puzzled. 

"Should I open a bottle of champagne for you?" Xingyu offered.

Xiehan cast him a sidelong glance. "If he is serious about it, that is." 

"Hey! Of course I'm serious. Am I such an unreliable jerk in your eyes?" 

"Aren't you?" It was a unanimous chorus, everyone glaring at him, including Ruby. 

Lin Jian was speechless. 

"Let's play basketball." He suggested, to change the topic of focus away from himself. 

"No balls." Xingyu reminded immediately. 

"What do we play then?" He sulked. 

Lanni glanced at the calm sea and pulled Xiehan's hand excitedly. "Let's go for a swim!" 

'Thanks Lanni.' Lin Jian muttered inwardly as he anticipated Ruby's reaction. 

"I don't know how to swim." She sounded bummed as she spoke up in embarrassment.

He grabbed this golden chance and tried to hide the excitement in his eyes. "That's okay. I can teach you." 

"But… I'm scared of the water." She bit her lip nervously. 

He held her hand gently as he led her towards the water. "Don't worry, I will not let you feel scared." 

Thinking of something, his excitement was heightened by leaps and bounds. He had just been wondering how he could prove himself within such a short time and a chance presented itself on a golden platter. 

In such a situation, it was common for a man to try and take advantage of the girl's vulnerability to make inappropriate moves. But from the number of times that his female friends had ranted to him about being taken advantage of, he knew that she would find it repulsive if he did the same. 

Hence, he thought of a way to teach her without touching her inappropriately. 

He led her to a part where the water reached his waist and stopped. "This part is not deep so you can easily stop when you feel tired. Besides, the sea is calm so you can relax. Let's first get you used to the water." He helped her float with his hand under her tummy to make her feel less scared then slowly let go when she could float on her own.

At the side some distance from them, Luna watched with a chuckle. "They actually look good together. But what's up with Xiehan and Lanni? I feel like they're hiding something." 

Xingyu felt that way too, but he brushed it off. "Every couple has their own secrets. They don't seem to be fighting so I don't think we should try to intervene." 

"I know, I'm just curious." Luna couldn't figure it out no matter how she thought about it. However, Lanni would definitely tell her whatever was going on when she was ready, so she didn' t try to probe. "Right. Honey, do you have a lot going on tomorrow?" 

"Not too much. Is there something wrong?" He asked as he splashed some water onto her already dripping hair. 

"I scheduled an emergency meeting with shareholders tomorrow in the afternoon. You are one of them." 

"I will be there on time. What's the emergency, though? I can help you sort it out." He offered. 

"What if it's troublesome?" She didn't dare to take up too much of his time. 

"If it's troublesome, then I will get Jian and Xiehan to help." 

Indeed, there could never be a problem too huge for three CEOs. Even though one of them was not a CEO, he was a business genius as well. "Thank you my love." She hugged him. 

A roar suddenly resounded. 

Lanni burst into laughter as she stopped swimming. "Sis, is that your stomach grumbling? Because I swear, I thought I heard thunder." 

"Hey! That's mean. Why would it be me?" Luna complained. 

"Because you are the one who gets hungry every two minutes?" Lanni teased. 

Lin Jian stopped teaching Ruby and held her hand, swiftly leading her towards the land. "You really heard thunder, Lanni." 

The sky darkened in a flash as soon as his words were out and in the next f ew seconds, a louder roar of thunder resounded.

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