She was a woman who would answer the phone immediately after one ring, as if always waiting for my call. She stood there, always ready within Do Jun’s reach.

A long sigh escaped Do Jun’s lips. As his suspicions about Yoon Ga Eun grew, Do Jun felt a more intense thirst for her. Unable to resist his thirst for Ga Eun, Do Jun grabbed his coat and left the CEO’s office.

Ga Eun arrived at the factory and entered the hidden workspace the factory manager had concealed. There, a sample dress made of NCT fabric was hanging on a mannequin.

“Is this the final version?”

The factory manager, as if demonstrating, made a small hole at the edge of the fabric. Then, as he rubbed the fabric together, creating friction, he showed Ga Eun how the hole disappeared without a trace.

“I’ll borrow this dress for just one day.”

The factory manager looked puzzled at Ga Eun’s sudden proposal.

“Luckily, the dress size fits me perfectly.”

Ga Eun hid the dress in her bag and hurriedly left the factory. While waiting for a taxi in front of the factory, a suspicious car caught Ga Eun’s eye. When the taxi arrived, Ga Eun pretended not to see that car and got into the taxi.

As the taxi departed, Ga Eun directly confirmed that the black car was following behind.

‘Is it my stepmother, or is it Ji Do Jun?’

Ga Eun felt uneasy about the black vehicle that maintained a constant distance while following her. As they entered the apartment complex, the black vehicle vanished without a trace.

After paying and getting out of the taxi, Ga Eun surveyed the area around the apartment with her eyes. At that moment, a familiar voice caught Ga Eun.

“Where have you been at this late hour?”

Turning her head towards the voice, she saw Ji Do Jun standing there.

“Weren’t you supposed to be working overnight at the company?”

Ga Eun asked casually while hiding her bag behind her back.

“I came because I missed you.”

For a brief moment, Ga Eun’s eyes wavered at Do Jun’s unexpected words. She quickly stepped back as he took a step forward.

“If you run away like that, I won’t be able to control myself.”

Do Jun held Ga Eun’s hand tightly and wouldn’t let go. Inevitably, Ga Eun had to enter the elevator while holding Do Jun’s hand.

Even in that short time while the elevator was moving, Ga Eun felt like she couldn’t breathe.

−Ding.

As soon as the elevator stopped, Ga Eun tried to run into the house after letting go of Do Jun’s hand. But as if he already knew her plan, Do Jun gripped her hand tightly and wouldn’t let her go.

“Why did you go to the obstetrician?”

At Do Jun’s question, Ga Eun’s heart started beating as if it would burst at any moment. She had to start acting as if nothing was wrong.

“Obstetrician?”

She feigned ignorance and looked straight into Do Jun’s eyes.

“The obstetrics building at Siheung Intersection.”

Do Jun knew exactly where the obstetrics building Ga Eun had visited was located. Ga Eun tried hard to find her composure and continued to give the excuses she had prepared.

“Ah! I had a dinner appointment with a friend.”

Do Jun’s intense gaze lingered on Ga Eun’s lips as she spoke.

“Which friend?”

Ga Eun mumbled her words as she opened the front door and entered, pretending nothing was wrong.

“Jung Ah’s friend. Apparently, she’s had dinner with me before too.”

Ga Eun, who had taken off her shoes first in the entryway, quickly moved to hide in her room. At that moment, Do Jun grabbed Ga Eun’s wrist tightly and wouldn’t let go.

“You might forget, but your friend doesn’t?”

Do Jun’s voice had a sharp edge to it. At that moment, Ga Eun was seized by an ominous feeling that he had caught a flaw in her lie.

“I contacted Jung Ah first using the number in my phone contacts because you asked about her. Jung Ah explained everything about Ji Soo. Though I don’t remember meeting her before.”

Ga Eun smiled casually at Do Jun, as if trying to prove that her lie was the truth.

“So you can remember if someone explains it to you?”

Ga Eun, who had been very tense at Do Jun’s unexpected question, briefly relaxed and answered.

“I heard that explanations help in finding lost memories.”

Before Ga Eun could finish speaking, Do Jun pressed his body close to hers.

“Then, I could make you remember too.”

Ga Eun couldn’t understand what Do Jun’s words meant.

“Our first night, I mean. I’ll explain it with my body so you can remember.”

Do Jun pulled Ga Eun’s arm and held her tightly in his arms. His arms tensed, as if showing that she could never escape from his embrace.

In three years of marriage, she had realized two things.

That no matter how hard she tried, she could never receive this man’s love, and that Ji Do Jun was someone who couldn’t love anyone but himself.

It took 3 years to accept that fact, and now the emotion called love was neither urgent nor necessary for her.

Ga Eun pushed Do Jun hard as he held her. Do Jun’s eyes wavered slightly, seemingly surprised by Ga Eun’s unexpected action.

“I told you. Don’t touch my body.”

Do Jun’s forehead wrinkled deeply as Ga Eun showed strong rejection. He was a man who had never lived a life of being rejected by anyone even once.

“That request is difficult to grant.”

An arrogant voice enveloped her ears, as if Ga Eun’s defiance was laughable.

“Do I need permission to touch what’s mine?”

Do Jun grabbed her arm, looked straight into her eyes, and warned her.

“You were the one who begged to be held first. Whether it ends with once or several times is for me to decide, not you.”

Ga Eun felt fear as she realized she had properly touched Do Jun’s pride. He was a man who would use any means necessary to grasp what he wanted in his hands when he had something he wanted to possess.

There was only one way to escape this situation. To brazenly shake his rationality.

“Maybe I wanted that then. Not now.”

Ga Eun scratched Do Jun’s heart with sharp words. As cutting words flowed from her mouth, Do Jun stared at her lips for a moment, lost in thought.

“You and I lying in bed isn’t when you want it. It’s when I want it.”

Ga Eun threw back the exact words Do Jun had said to her in bed three years ago.

“I don’t want it now.”

Ga Eun stared at Do Jun with cold eyes. Then she immediately turned and entered her room.

As the door closed, her heart pounded as if it would burst at any moment. For Ga Eun, spitting out fierce words of rejection was several times harder than being rejected.

She remembered the doctor saying to be careful with marital relations in early pregnancy. Ga Eun kept seeing Do Jun’s eyes that looked like they would devour her at any moment.

Ga Eun tried to find her rationality. Just solving the fashion show problem at Jayoung Fashion tomorrow was overwhelming enough to give her a headache.

Not long after, she heard the sound of the front door closing, as if Do Jun was going out. Only then did Ga Eun leave her small room and move to the living room. She was hungry from not eating properly all day.

Ga Eun went straight to the kitchen and took out all the side dishes from the refrigerator. Then she put the side dishes and rice in a wide, deep bowl and mixed them. Saliva pooled in her mouth as she looked at the bibimbap with sesame oil added.

‘Let’s eat first. We’ll think after eating.’

Ga Eun eagerly shoveled the bibimbap into her mouth. Her morning sickness seemed to be better than before, making her feel like she might gain some weight.

Only after eating all the bibimbap, which was too much for one person, did Ga Eun regain her senses. Ga Eun quickly washed the dishes she had used and moved them back to their original places. As soon as she finished washing up, her phone rang again.

The factory manager’s name appeared on the phone screen.

The factory manager’s voice grew louder, as if worried about Ga Eun.

“Don’t worry. The clothes we worked hard on for months. This time I absolutely won’t let them be taken away.”

As soon as she hung up, Ga Eun hurried back to her room. She kept recalling Do Jun’s eyes that had wavered as he stared at her.

Ga Eun shook her head, trying hard to forget Do Jun’s face, and lay down on the bed. As she lay down, all the sleepiness she had been holding back rushed in at once.

Ga Eun barely opened her eyes to the loud alarm sound of her phone. She quickly finished showering and did more elaborate makeup than usual. Then she put on the dress that would be showcased at the fashion show.

Do Jun, who had gone out late in the evening, had not returned home even in the morning. After looking at Do Jun’s tightly closed study, Ga Eun quickly went out the front door. The driver Do Jun had assigned was waiting for Ga Eun in front of the apartment entrance.

Ga Eun wanted to keep her going to the fashion show a secret from Do Jun.

Inevitably, she slipped out through the back alley of the apartment to avoid the driver’s eyes and quickly caught a taxi. Then she left a short message for the driver and did not answer his calls.

When the taxi stopped at the main entrance of Jayoung Hotel, Ga Eun took a deep breath and got out of the car. The event hall where the fashion show was being held was full of reporters. Ga Eun quietly entered the fashion show venue, avoiding their eyes.

As soon as Ga Eun took her seat, the lights went out and the fashion show began.

As expected, all the clothing designs in Jayoung Fashion’s show were exactly the same as the clothes Ga Eun had designed. Ga Eun’s hands clenched as she watched this. Just then, someone approached from the side and wrapped their hands around her tightly clenched hands.

As the fashion show ended, the lights on the stage turned on. Ga Eun turned her head to see the face of the person holding her hand.

The person holding her hand was none other than Ji Do Jun.

“How did you……”

Ga Eun’s face turned pale white in shock as she saw Do Jun’s face.