Once a Doormat Now Untouchable (Caleb and Sydney) novel Chapter 180

Contraceptives were routine in any doctor’s eyes. Given their current relationship, the moment Julian told her to shower, Sydney’s first instinct had naturally been to assume that.

She had come to him and asked to be his lover. There was no point pretending otherwise. It was better to accept it early. Then, if he grew tired of her one day, she could walk away cleanly.

Julian suddenly chuckled, scooped her up, and set her on the bathroom counter. He braced one hand beside her thigh, eyes glinting with amusement, and leaned close to her ear.

“Didn’t you say you’re my lover? Since when do lovers need condoms?” he deliberately teased her.

His tone was careless to the extreme.

Sydney had steeled herself for this, yet his words still made her flush. “That doesn’t matter. You still have to be safe.”

He adopted a mock–serious tone. “Safe from what? I’m not sick.”

Sydney flared. “Julian! This has nothing to do with being sick or not-”

He cut her off with a low correction. “Call me Jules.”

In her memory, he had corrected her like this countless times. He insisted on it. By their old pattern, if she did not comply, the conversation simply could not move forward. Thus, like handling a demanding client, she swallowed her feelings and said evenly, “Jules.”

Julian glanced down at her, and his cool gaze betrayed a hint of dissatisfaction. “Sydney, when you were little, you weren’t this insincere.”

Sydney lost her patience and snapped, “Jules! Happy now?”

That hit the right note. She was always like this with him: either impatient or coaxing when she wanted something.

Seeing the pleased arch of his brows, Sydney realized for the first time. ‘Does he actually enjoy this?‘

She pressed, “This isn’t about sickness. It’s about life and death.”

“Oh? Death?” Julian tilted his head, lips curling with feigned innocence, like a naive college boy. “Why would anyone die?”

Normally, Sydney didn’t even bother posting public health knowledge online. For her as a doctor, this was basic as air. But Julian’s deep, probing gaze made her breath falter.

She glared at him. “When sperm and egg meet, tell me–doesn’t that risk killing someone?”

Her expression was serious. Under the bathroom light, her flawless skin glowed with a peachy flush of anger, her breathing quick and uneven.

Suddenly, Julian lowered his head. Their breaths mingled. His throat bobbed once before his lips brushed hers.

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It was the lightest of kisses. He leaned back slightly and watched her trembling lashes. “No one’s dying.”

He would never allow such a thing. If they ever had a child together, that child would only live a charmed life.

Sydney’s thoughts scrambled. She missed the hidden meaning in his words and grew even more flustered. “Can you stop joking about this? I know you’ve probably had plenty of women before… Maybe even children-”

Before she could finish, he silenced her by forcing her lips apart and claiming her mouth with a deep, unrelenting kiss. His desire and dominance blazed through, laid utterly bare.

In the steamy haze of the bathroom, the air thickened with heat and intimacy. Every time his lips pressed hers, her legs went weak, her breath lost to him.

She tried to lean back, but he anticipated it. His large hand locked around her nape, and he toyed with her at will.

Soon, she could no longer resist, her voice breaking into fragments. “Julian…”

“Call me Jules.”

Even in the thick of passion, without once breaking the kiss, he never forgot to correct her.