Lick Me Up If You Can Novel (Completed) - Chapter 176

“Good evening, Mr. Miller.”

The doorman smiled and greeted him. Ashley gave a short nod without a word, then brushed past him. With several shopping bags on his arm and a small potted plant in his hand, Ashley crossed the hall and paused before pressing the button for the private elevator. Standing in front of the private elevator, which was stopped on the top floor, Ashley spoke.

“Benjamin, was there a visitor?”

“Pardon? Ah.”

The doorman hurried over and stood beside him, answering.

“The guest who came with you yesterday went out for a moment and has returned. Since I saw him yesterday, I sent him up, but…”

As the doorman trailed off, glancing nervously, Ashley said nothing and pressed the button. While the elevator descended, he took out his wallet from his coat pocket and, with one hand, pulled out a bill and held it out. The doorman, though flustered, received the 100-dollar bill with a delighted expression.

“Thank you, Mr. Miller.”

Soon, the elevator doors opened, and Ashley stepped inside.

“Sir.”

The doorman called out to Ashley, who had stopped inside the elevator. He seemed to hesitate, glancing around as if wondering if he should speak, then carefully opened his mouth.

“Actually, um, the person who accompanied you was a little hurt…”

Ashley’s face, as he looked at the doorman, hardened coldly.

Just as the last bandage bought from the pharmacy was applied, the sound of the elevator reached him. Koi hastily swept the scattered medicines into a bag and tidied up the surroundings when, soon after, heavy footsteps were heard. At the sound of quick, heavy shoes crossing the wide hall, Koi hurriedly tried to stand up, unconsciously furrowing his brow.

Meanwhile, the sound of a door opening, closing, and then opening again followed. It seemed Ashley was looking for him. Koi took a deep breath, then opened the bathroom door and stepped out.

“Ash, you’re here?”

When he greeted him with an intentionally bright voice, Ashley’s broad back, which had been walking towards the next room, flinched. As Ashley slowly turned his head and their eyes met, Koi smiled awkwardly, and the color drained from Ashley’s face.

Ashley immediately rushed towards Koi, grabbed his arm abruptly, and yelled roughly.

“What happened? Who did this?”

Koi blinked in surprise at the more intense reaction than he had expected. He knew Ashley would be surprised, but not to this extent. Feeling somehow sorry, he quickly said,

“I-I’m fine. It’s not a bad injury, it just looks worse than it is…”

“Who did this to you, tell me!”

He truly seemed insane. His purple eyes were covered in gold, and his cold face was distorted with rage. He looked as if he would strangle the guy in front of him right then and there. Fearing something terrible might happen, Koi desperately tried to calm him down.

“A-Ash, Ash. It’s okay. Really. It just looks like this. Don’t be angry, calm down…”

Please, Koi looked up at him with pleading eyes. Ashley’s wildly flickering golden eyes gradually subsided. Soon, Ashley, whose eyes had returned to their usual purple, spoke. His voice was quiet and calm, somehow suppressed.

“Tell me, what happened.”

Koi hesitated, then nodded and managed a difficult smile.

“Can we talk sitting down?”

At his words, Ashley didn’t answer and suddenly picked Koi up. Startled by the unexpected situation, Koi instinctively wrapped his arms around Ashley’s neck and started to say, “Hey,” but Ashley silently walked with large strides into a room. In what appeared to be a lounge, one wall held a minibar fully stocked with alcohol, and various comfortable furniture was arranged around it. Ashley gently set Koi down on a gently undulating lounge chair, perfect for reclining.

I asked to talk while sitting down…

Just as he thought he felt like a patient visiting a therapist, Ashley stood up.

“Anything else you need?”

Koi judged that Ashley’s emotions had largely softened from his quiet voice. Relieved, he shook his head, and Ashley asked again.

“A drink? Are you okay?”

“Uh…”

Koi thought for a moment, then looked at the display case full of alcohol and answered.

“Could you, um, mix a little whiskey with ginger ale?”

Feeling somewhat embarrassed under Ashley’s steady gaze, he added awkwardly,

“Bill made it for me once, and it was really good. Um, if it’s too much trouble, you don’t have to…”

Mid-sentence, Ashley turned and walked towards the display case. Koi lay there, watching Ashley move, feeling a bit dazed.

“Here.”

“Thanks.”

Koi took the glass Ashley handed him and, delighted, immediately brought it to his lips. Just as he was about to drink, Ashley’s voice cut through his ears.

“I left out the whiskey. Don’t drink alcohol for a while.”

The drink entered his mouth by a hair’s breadth. It was plain ginger ale with no alcohol whatsoever. Disappointed, Koi set the glass down, and saw Ashley downing neat whiskey in one gulp. He wanted to ask why Ashley could drink and he couldn’t, but this wasn’t the time. Even Koi, who had no sense of tact, knew that much.

“Alright, Koi.”

Ashley, who had placed his empty glass on the tea table, spoke.

“Now, tell me everything.”

Sitting on a sofa a few steps away, he continued with an expressionless face.

“Why didn’t you keep your promise? I told you to stay home, didn’t I? Why did you go out on your own? And how did you get those injuries?”

It suddenly felt like an interrogation. Koi held the half-full glass of ginger ale with both hands, fidgeting with it on his stomach, and began to speak.

“Um, well, you see…”

Recalling Ashley’s questions, he searched his memory to explain in sequence.

“I didn’t break my promise. No, I did, but there was an unavoidable reason…”

Ashley didn’t press him further, just watched him. Under the silent pressure, Koi reluctantly began to speak.

“The, the boss called, you remember when we first met again? I was caught at the police station then…”

As he painstakingly explained the situation at the time, Ashley listened silently. After a brief explanation, Koi returned to the present.

“But he still hadn’t picked up the car since then. The boss said, since I left it, I should go get it, or he’d deduct it from the money he owed me…”

When Koi stopped speaking and closed his mouth, Ashley finally asked a question.

“So you went to Nelson’s house? How?”

To his question about transportation, Koi answered honestly.

“I took the subway, and the bus… I even hitchhiked.”

Ashley said nothing. He stared intently at Koi, then quietly asked,

“Nothing happened?”

“Huh? No. Nothing happened. The injuries were from something else…”

Finally, it was time for the main point. Ashley seemed to have already guessed what was coming, but Koi felt he still had to say it himself.

“I went to Nelson’s house and we had a bit of a fight. That’s how I got the injuries. But it’s okay, I got the car back. I returned the truck and got the check. That’s all.”

Koi opened his mouth to smile, as if everything was resolved, but then cried “Ah,” and his face twisted. His torn lip stung, and he quickly brought his hand to it, then was momentarily flustered by the clear blood on his fingers. Ashley immediately stood up and pulled out the handkerchief from the breast pocket of his suit.

“Th-thank you…”

He thought Ashley would give it to him, but instead, Ashley sat on the edge of the lounge chair where Koi had been lying and pressed the handkerchief to Koi’s lip himself. Koi awkwardly lowered his hand, which had been suspended in mid-air, as Ashley, gently pressing his lip to stop the bleeding, spoke.

“I understand you tried to handle it alone.”

There was no emotion in his quiet voice. Koi held his breath, curious and anxious about what Ashley was thinking. Ashley continued in the same calm voice.

“Koi, if you could smell, you’d know how angry I am right now.”

At those words, Koi blinked in surprise. He thought Ashley had calmed down, but he hadn’t. Indeed, a thick layer of pheromones emanated from Ashley, but Koi didn’t notice it at all. Only the faint golden glint in Ashley’s purple eyes conveyed a hint of his rage.

“What did I tell you? Didn’t I say you shouldn’t hide anything from your lawyer?”