After saying that, Jinno Sumire pulled Hikari along and quickly left the dining room, clearly not wanting to keep listening to Jinno Takashi.
Jinno Takashi, seeing this, only smiled.
He stroked his beard lightly and turned to the personal maid beside him, "Rangiku, take Sumire and my son in law back to their room and serve them well. Tonight you stay over there to help. You don't need to come back to serve me."
"Yes!", The young maid named Rangiku nodded obediently and followed behind Jinno Sumire and Hikari.
Both Hikari and Jinno Sumire noticed that the maid who had been standing beside Jinno Takashi during dinner was now following them.
Jinno Sumire whispered angrily to Hikari, "That's my father's personal maid. She's probably been sent to spy on us."
"What do we do?", Hikari asked.
"Just keep up our relationship and don't let anything slip," Jinno Sumire said.
Hearing that, Hikari let her keep holding his arm as they left the dining room together.
After leaving the dining room, Jinno Sumire took Hikari for a long walk around the Jinno house under the excuse of showing him around.
Halfway through, the maid named Rangiku disappeared.
Jinno Sumire could not help letting out a breath, "Hikari-kun, let's go. Back to my room."
"Okay," Hikari answered.
They let go of each other's hands, but still walked close together.
.
.
.
His mood had been pretty good, but when they arrived in front of her room, Jinno Sumire's expression suddenly darkened slightly.
Noticing this, Hikari turned to look and saw a figure standing in the courtyard outside Jinno Sumire's room.
It was none other than the maid Rangiku sent by Jinno Takashi.
"Lady Sumire. Young master in law," Seeing Jinno Sumire, Rangiku hurried over and bowed.
"What are you doing here. Aren't you supposed to be serving my father tonight?", Jinno Sumire frowned.
"The family head told me to come serve Lady Sumire and the young master in law tonight," Rangiku said humbly.
"There are maids in my courtyard. I don't need you," Jinno Sumire said coldly.
"I… the family head told me I must come serve you and the young master tonight. He said there is one more person now and was worried there would not be enough staff here," Rangiku was bent so low her head was almost touching the ground, not daring to look up.
Jinno Sumire frowned deeply, stayed silent for seven or eight seconds, then finally said, "Fine. You can stay in the courtyard. If I don't call you, you are not allowed to come in."
"Yes. I will obey all your orders," Rangiku quickly agreed.
Jinno Sumire did not bother with her anymore, hooked her arm around Hikari, and quickly went into her room.
Jinno Sumire's room was very large. Calling it a room was not even accurate. It was about the size of a normal person's home.
But the spacious room did not have many decorations, only simple tables, chairs, and cabinets, with a large bed placed in the center.
"Hikari-kun, sit," Jinno Sumire said, bringing Hikari to the table.
Hearing her, Hikari sat down, and Jinno Sumire sat down with him.
Feeling her still lightly holding his arm, Hikari gently pulled it out.
The soft part of her body happened to brush against his arm, making Jinno Sumire's body tremble slightly.
Now that they were inside her room, there was no one else around.
Hikari planned to do what he did when they were alone before, pulling his arm back and moving away to keep a normal distance.
But just as he moved a few steps away, Jinno Sumire quickly stood up, shifted her hips, and sat back down next to him.
Seeing Hikari's puzzled look, Jinno Sumire explained, "The maid outside named Rangiku is my father's spy. She was probably sent to watch us."
"My father might still be suspicious of our relationship. So even in here, it's better if we don't sit too far apart."
"Otherwise, through the light and shadows, Rangiku outside might notice and go report to my father."
Hearing that, Hikari nodded, "Okay, I understand."
"Aunt Sumire, are we going to spend the night together tonight?", Surrounded by the faint elegant fragrance coming from the noble mature woman beside him, Hikari asked.
"Yes… I originally wanted you to go sleep in the guest room later, but to avoid my father's suspicion, it has to be like this," Jinno Sumire said helplessly.
"I'm sorry, Hikari-kun. I have to trouble you again," Jinno Sumire apologized.
"It's fine. But will Aunt Sumire feel uncomfortable with us staying in the same room tonight?", Hikari asked politely.
"This… should be okay," Jinno Sumire answered calmly, though her heart was beating a little faster.
She had wanted to pretend she felt nothing, but hearing Hikari's words still made her heart race.
After all, in more than twenty years, she had never been alone in a room with any man before. This was the first time.
And it was in her own room, spending the night with Hikari, her daughter Jinno Ai's childhood friend.
It would be a lie to say she did not care at all. In fact, she felt very awkward right now, her face slightly warm.
But to avoid the maid outside seeing through the act and telling Jinno Takashi, she had no choice but to stay in the same room with Hikari for the night.
Hikari noticed her unease and politely said, "Aunt Sumire, how about this. You sleep on the bed and I'll sleep on this chair."
If it were at his own place, Hikari would not wrong himself, but since it was Jinno Sumire's room and he was supposed to be helping her, he naturally would not take her bed.
But Jinno Sumire quickly shook her head, "No, no. It's already troublesome enough to have you act as my husband. If I also make you sleep on a hard chair, I would feel really bad."
"And… Rangiku was deliberately sent by my father to spy on us. She is monitoring us outside right now."
"Based on how we have been acting, if we sleep separately, one on the bed and one on a chair, my father will definitely suspect our relationship when he finds out."
Jinno Sumire rejected Hikari's suggestion.
"Then Aunt Sumire and I sleep on the same bed?", Hikari raised an eyebrow and looked at the light blue bed in the center of the room. It was indeed big enough for two people without any problem.
"Yes, my bed is quite big. Two people sleeping on it will not… not be crowded. It's fine. Hikari-kun, you don't need to… to be too nervous. It's just acting, just cooperating with Auntie's act."
Perhaps afraid that Hikari might feel embarrassed or nervous about sharing a bed, Jinno Sumire even tried to comfort him.
But in fact she herself was extremely embarrassed and shy right now, her fair and pretty face already flushed with two patches of red.
On the other hand, Hikari was very experienced. Hearing her, he remained calm and just nodded, meaning he had no objection.
They sat at the table and chatted a bit longer. When it seemed about time, Jinno Sumire said, "It's getting late. If we drag it out, Rangiku might get suspicious. Let's go… go to bed."
"Okay."
After agreeing, Hikari politely took off his shoes and went into the bathroom to wash his face and hands, preparing to go to bed clean.
But as soon as he walked out of the bathroom, he saw Jinno Sumire standing by the bed, getting ready for sleep.
Her hands were raised at her waist, untying the sash of her kimono, clearly about to go to bed as well.
But when she had undone it halfway, Jinno Sumire suddenly realized today was different from usual. She was not alone in this big room, so she absolutely could not sleep naked.
Coming back to her senses, she hurriedly put her kimono back on.
But Hikari, who had just come out, still accidentally saw her round and smooth fragrant shoulder and a large expanse of fair, smooth back.
There was even a fleeting glimpse of her upper chest.
Jinno Sumire quickly put her kimono back on and nervously turned around. Seeing Hikari already out of the bathroom and meeting her eyes, she immediately knew he had probably seen something.
Her heart skipped a few beats, but she kept her face calm.
As if nothing had happened, she even spoke in an elder's commanding tone, "Alright, Hikari-kun, come to bed. Auntie will sleep on the left. You sleep on the right."
Maybe to hide her shy embarrassment, Jinno Sumire climbed onto the bed and lay down as soon as she finished speaking.
Hikari did not say anything and, after she lay down, he followed her instructions and lay on the right side of the bed.
The mattress in Jinno Sumire's room was probably very high quality, very soft and comfortable, and also very big, at least two meters wide.
Plus both of them were sleeping at the very edges of the bed, so the distance between their bodies was not that close.
But Hikari could still feel that Jinno Sumire was nervous. Her breathing was not steady.
That was not surprising. From how she was acting, Hikari guessed she had probably not slept in the same bed with a man for a long time, so being nervous was normal.
With Jinno Sumire's astonishing charm, being alone in a room with a man or even sharing a bed was definitely a risky thing.
But she did not show much worry. Whether it was because she trusted Hikari or because of her confidence as the Jinno family head, she mostly showed awkwardness rather than fear.
And Hikari had seen it all, having had deep exchanges with all kinds of women and even multiple species. So although Jinno Sumire's mature charm sometimes made him take a few extra looks, that was all. He would not suddenly do something like a night attack.
Seeing Jinno Sumire lying quietly on the other side, even though the blanket over her chest was still rising and falling, her eyes looked as if they were about to close.
Hikari did not think much of it. He also pulled up his blanket and prepared to sleep.
But just as the two of them were about to endure the night peacefully like this, a shadow outside the window suddenly grew larger. It was clearly the maid Rangiku getting closer.
Seeing this, Hikari frowned slightly. He did not like being watched while sleeping, even through walls and windows.
Turning his head, he saw Jinno Sumire also looking toward the window. She had clearly noticed Rangiku's spying as well.
"Aunt Sumire, should we do something?", Hikari asked when he saw her serious expression.
"Yes. Rangiku is my father's spy. We cannot let her see us sleeping so far apart, or she will definitely suspect. We should… get a bit closer first," As she spoke, Jinno Sumire quickly moved her body toward the middle of the bed.
Then she reached out and lightly tugged at Hikari's clothes a few times, telling him to move closer too.
Soon, both of them were in the middle of the bed, now very close, less than two fists apart.
Even without turning his head, Hikari could already smell the mature woman's faint fragrance.
The well traveled Hikari had some skill in identifying women by scent.
Smelling the mature, nectar like fragrance at his nose, it was very pleasant, but it also made him a little puzzled.
Whether by looks or age, Jinno Sumire was undoubtedly a charming mature woman, and she even had a daughter, Jinno Ai.
Although her looks and figure were still graceful and beautiful, the natural scent of her body should have been the rich fragrance of a mature woman. But what Hikari smelled was mainly something else.
Like a half blooming flower bud, it was even similar to the innocent youthful scent of her daughter Jinno Ai, which was really strange.
But besides that, there was another thing that also puzzled Hikari.
Now that they were this close, was Aunt Sumire not embarrassed?
Hikari turned his head, a bit curious, to look at Jinno Sumire, who probably had not slept in the same bed as a man for many years.
But he found that she was not paying attention to that. Unlike Hikari, who was thinking about all this, she had her brows knit in concentration, as if seriously thinking about something.
After thinking for a while, Jinno Sumire suddenly said to Hikari, "From my observation, Rangiku is definitely a spy sent by my father. He absolutely still doubts whether our relationship is real. That's why he sent her tonight to find out if we are really husband and wife."
"Based on my father's personality, if nothing happens between us tonight, he will probably decide that our relationship is fake…"
Hikari immediately asked, "Then what do we do?"
"I have an idea that can solve this problem and dispel my father's doubts, but… but…", Faced with Rangiku's spying, Jinno Sumire seemed to have a plan, but she looked like she had trouble saying it to Hikari.
"What is it, Aunt Sumire. Is there something you need my help with?", Seeing her hesitation, Hikari asked.
"N-no. I can do this plan myself. I don't need to trouble Hikari-kun. It's just… could you cover your ears?", Jinno Sumire suddenly said with a red face, sounding embarrassed.
"Cover my ears?", Hikari looked at her in confusion.
"Yes… I plan to make some noise for Rangiku to see, so my father won't doubt our relationship. After all, a man and a woman alone in a room with no sound at all is obviously not right…"
Jinno Sumire said, her pretty face slightly flushed.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
[email protected]/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining P@treon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through P@treon.