2 AM.

Do Ha, who had woken up from sleep, lifted his eyelids.

As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, an unfamiliar space came into view.

For a brief moment, his mind felt hazy.

But soon he realized the presence of Yeo Eun sleeping in his arms and closed his eyes again.

This is Yeo Eun’s house, her bedroom.

Yeo Eun, who had made love with him several times last night, eventually succumbed to exhaustion and fell asleep, and he had fallen asleep holding her in his arms.

It was laughable.

That he, Cha Do Ha,

Had entered this old, crumbling villa, eaten food, drunk alcohol, and even had cheap coffee.

He didn’t just accept it passively.

He ate it all with a willing heart and even with gratitude.

If it had stopped there, it might not have been so ridiculous.

But not content with just that, he had passionately embraced this woman in this tiny room.

‘I must be crazy.’

Yes. This is madness.

There was no need to wonder why he had done such a crazy thing.

He had become intoxicated the moment their lips touched.

He had been completely enveloped by Yeo Eun, who emitted a sensual fragrance hidden beneath the scent of instant coffee.

Once enveloped like that and stepping into her bedroom, it was natural that he couldn’t escape.

In this place permeated with the intense scent of this woman’s skin that drove him mad, he had no choice but to embrace her.

This woman who said she was tired…

He had taken her mercilessly.

“Bastard.”

It was the same even now.

He felt an intense thirst for Yeo Eun, who was sleeping in his arms, breathing heavily.

If he had stayed asleep until morning, it might have been different, but now that he was awake, it was not easy to suppress his thirst.

“I shouldn’t become more of a bastard here, Seo Yeo Eun.”

Do Ha gently stroked Yeo Eun’s hair and released her from his arms.

He had followed a woman who had fled due to exhaustion and taken her like a dog.

Knowing that she was a woman who could never refuse him at any moment, he had taken advantage of that.

After thoroughly possessing her, only then did he feel pity.

And now, as his body stirred again, even that pity was about to be crushed.

“I’m leaving for your sake.”

Do Ha, who had carelessly thrown off his clothes, put them back on and gazed down at the sleeping Yeo Eun.

When he was possessing this woman, he hadn’t realized how cramped this place was, but now she was sleeping peacefully in a space as small and narrow as herself.

He reached down and lightly touched Yeo Eun’s cheek, then quickly withdrew his hand.

Then he immediately left her bedroom.

After taking one last look around Yeo Eun’s space, leaving behind a lingering attachment, he was about to head towards the entrance when it happened.

Along with a faint curse, the sound of someone trying to open the front door with an ill-fitting key was heard.

“Damn it. This door is always like this.”

A man?

If it was a man who had a key to this house, it must be Yeo Eun’s elder brother, Seo In Tae.

Do Ha waited leisurely in front of the shelf with family photos for the front door to open, and as soon as the yellow light flickered on, he put his index finger to his lips.

Seo In Tae, who had just entered his own home, was taken aback when a stranger gestured for him to be quiet.

“W-Who are you? Who are you to be in someone else’s house…”

“Your sleeping sister, don’t wake her.”

At Do Ha’s words, Seo In Tae’s eyes quickly scanned the inside of the house.

He had expected a violent reaction befitting a homeowner, but Seo In Tae was surprisingly docile.

He seemed to think Do Ha was some sort of debt collector chasing him.

“W-Why, why… how dare you come inside.”

Do Ha smiled faintly as he put on his jacket and nodded towards Yeo Eun’s bedroom.

“She said she would cook for me.”

Seo In Tae’s eyes, which had been alternating between Do Ha and Yeo Eun’s bedroom, grew wider and wider.

“So you’re not a debt collector, but Yeo Eun’s…”

Seo In Tae’s face, illuminated by the dim entrance light, turned pale.

“Don’t tell me, with my sister?”

Flushing red and blue, Seo In Tae finally took on the proper appearance of a homeowner and raised his voice.

“You, what did you do with my sister?”

Watching Seo In Tae, Do Ha let out a light snort as he walked to the entrance and put on his shoes.

“Keep your voice down. Your sister would be embarrassed if she knew you found out.”

Then he took out a business card case from his jacket.

“If you have something to say, say it to me.”

Do Ha’s face was cold as he handed his business card to Seo In Tae.

He found it amusing that Seo In Tae was raising his voice, acting like a big brother.

“Don’t tell your sister you saw me.”

As Seo In Tae’s eyes widened at his business card, Do Ha opened the front door.

“Call me when it’s daylight.”

As satisfying as the time spent with Yeo Eun in this shabby house had been, the reality that returned due to Seo In Tae was quite sordid.

The reason why Seo Yeo Eun complied with his unreasonable demands without resistance.

In the end, to protect her brother like that, she so obediently…

Do Ha smiled coldly and left the villa in Seongsu-dong, erasing all lingering attachments.

* * *

Her eyes opened at 7 AM out of habit.

Feeling extremely sore below her waist, Yeo Eun turned over and briefly lifted her eyelids.

Cha Do Ha.

Yeo Eun quickly sat up in bed and felt a strange sense of loss at the already empty bed.

Last night, she had made love with him here for a long time.

She had also tasted extreme pleasure that made her feel as if all the cells in her body would burst and her very existence would disappear from the world.

The two of them had fallen asleep tightly embracing each other, their flesh pressed together and legs intertwined.

In that moment, she had felt happy, deluded into thinking she was loved by Cha Do Ha.

The frantically entangled hearts of the two who had reached climax quietly reverberated through the silent room.

So she had truly been able to sleep peacefully for the first time in a long while.

But he was gone.

Only her clothes were strewn about on her bedroom floor, with no trace of Cha Do Ha to be found.

Not in the living room, not in the kitchen, not in the bathroom.

Cha Do Ha was nowhere to be found.

“I guess he left.”

It was foolish of her to think he would stay until morning.

Swallowing her hollow feelings, Yeo Eun went straight into the bathroom and stepped under the shower.

Her body, which had been touched by Cha Do Ha last night, had become so sensitive that just the water brushing against her skin made her remember his touch.

Looking at the red marks left by Cha Do Ha all over her body, she recalled his face as he roughly explored her.

He was truly beautiful, with those black eyes brimming with fiery passion as he persistently possessed her.

And his embrace after they finished, pressing his lips to her forehead as he held her tightly, was tearfully warm.

Yeo Eun’s eyes turned red as she carefully recalled Cha Do Ha.

The more she had him, the more she had to lose him, but she shouldn’t put her heart into a relationship like this.

Shaking her head, Yeo Eun quickly finished washing herself.

After finishing her shower and leaving the bathroom, Yeo Eun almost collapsed to the floor.

It was because In Tae was sitting at the kitchen table, looking at her.

“Elder brother!”

Yeo Eun called out to In Tae reproachfully, clutching her startled chest.

“How long have you been there?”

“I just woke up and came out of my room.”

At In Tae’s answer, all sorts of thoughts crossed Yeo Eun’s mind.

He just woke up and came out of his room?

Then when did he come home?

Did he perhaps meet Cha Do Ha?

Is that why Cha Do Ha left?

“When did you… come home?”

As she asked cautiously, In Tae answered without any particular expression.

“At dawn. I told you I was coming, but I guess you were too deep in sleep to notice.”

Even as she watched In Tae answer nonchalantly, Yeo Eun’s heart pounded with anxiety.

He said he came at dawn, could he possibly have seen Cha Do Ha?

If he had, he wouldn’t be this calm.

Yeo Eun asked carefully, her eyes filled with worry.

“Did you… run into anyone?”

“Anyone? A debt collector?”

In Tae asked with wide eyes, then soon smiled faintly.

“There was no one. I came in carefully, looking around. I’ll leave carefully too, looking around.”

So don’t worry.

In Tae laughed lightly as if her worry was silly and stood up from his seat.

“I came to get some clothes. I didn’t want to ask you to bring them to me.”

In Tae scratched his head and slowly approached Yeo Eun.

“I also don’t like the idea of a young lady going in and out of motels.”

Standing directly in front of her, In Tae looked at her with eyes full of concern.

“Yeo Eun.”

For some reason, In Tae’s voice cracked pitifully as he called her name.

“Your elder brother will get back on his feet.”

In Tae gently brushed Yeo Eun’s wet hair and smiled faintly.

“So don’t push yourself too hard.”

Huh?

* * *

Feeling uneasy about In Tae’s ambiguous attitude that she both understood and didn’t, Yeo Eun hurried to work.

8:40 AM.

Arriving at the Strategic Planning Headquarters of Hanju Group’s main office, Yeo Eun placed the speech she had edited yesterday on Cha Do Ha’s desk, then made herself a cup of coffee and returned to her seat.

After 20 minutes had passed, she felt the air outside the office become tense.

It seemed Cha Do Ha had arrived.

Yeo Eun stood up from her seat and quietly waited for him to open the door and enter.

Her heart began to beat faster, racing ahead of her.

Finally, the door opened and Manager Kim Jung Joo’s smiling face appeared.

Yeo Eun unconsciously swallowed.

It was because Cha Do Ha revealed himself behind Manager Kim Jung Joo.

Cold and firm eyes, arrogantly sealed lips.

This was not the man who had eaten the food she made deliciously last night, complaining that the coffee tasted bad.

He was no longer the man who had made her burn with secret pleasure in her bed.

The face of Hanju Group.

Perhaps the future of Hanju Group.

This is Cha Do Ha, the head of the Strategic Planning Headquarters playing a pivotal role in the group.

Yes, this is the true identity of this man.

Yeo Eun, who briefly made eye contact with Cha Do Ha, quietly bowed her head.

The scent of cedarwood wafted from Cha Do Ha as he passed by her without a word.

Until he disappeared into his office, Yeo Eun’s heart felt like it was riding a roller coaster alone.

Yeo Eun lowered her head, dejectedly breathing in the chilly air he had left behind.

Manager Kim Jung Joo approached.

“Seo Yeo Eun.”

Manager Kim Jung Joo, wearing his usual kind smile, pointed to Cha Do Ha’s office door.

“Go in. He’s looking for you.”