The place where Lee Hyun, who wanted to look good, led to was the restaurant he had once visited in a pre-opening state.

This place with the sign Arcanus was still overwhelming to visit again. Yet the high-quality meat with its juices intact stimulated the appetite.

Yu Ra was busy eating the well-grilled steak, as if wondering when it had ever been awkward or unpleasant. Being in an enclosed space alone with him, without anyone insisting on formalities or manners, also played a part.

“Indeed, you’re the only one who looks pretty while eating.”

Yu Ra moved her mouth busily, enduring Lee Hyun’s burdensome gaze that had been watching only her without eating properly.

“You’ll get indigestion. What’s with the sudden flattery?”

“I told you I came to look good.”

“What does elder brother have to look good or not to me for?”

“I’m scared when you’re angry.”

Lee Hyun’s voice, spreading a bit low, made Yu Ra’s hand stop cutting the steak.

The words Yu Ra had poured out as if questioning were not because she was angry at Lee Hyun.

It was something so complex that it couldn’t be definitively attributed to anger towards anyone. Oh Se Jin’s inexplicable behavior, the suffocating father, Argon that she wanted to overcome… It was an emotion riddled with everything.

It just happened to be poured out on Lee Hyun, but it was never anger directed at him. In other words, he was the victim. The anger that had lost its way was poured onto him.

“I’m not angry at elder brother.”

Perhaps it was directed at Jin Yu Ra herself, not Lee Hyun. It could have been like self-blame for her inability to overcome things on her own.

“Whoever it’s because of, I don’t like seeing your angry face.”

The voice filled with affection and pity soothed Yu Ra’s wavering heart.

This kind of unexpected kindness from Lee Hyun, who was cold and aloof, was the type women would like.

Seeming indifferent yet sensitively understanding her and acting like a white knight in unfavorable situations, he was just the type to captivate women.

Why hadn’t she noticed this side of him before? Was it because a friend’s younger brother and a husband have different meanings from the start? Lee Hyun’s changed attitude compared to before made Yu Ra’s heart even more troubled.

“Why didn’t you date?”

“Suddenly?”

“No, I was just wondering why you didn’t have a woman when you’re so good at saying nice things.”

“Why bother with someone who’s not necessary?”

It was natural for a businessman to consider necessity. Yu Ra found it interesting that this applied to personal relationships as well.

No, most people might have such thoughts but don’t express them, so maybe it’s surprising that Lee Hyun expresses it so casually.

It must be possible because Lee Hyun has strong self-esteem and perfectly understands the power in his hands. Then why is he behaving like this towards her? Yu Ra posed the most fundamental question.

“Was I necessary?”

“Of course.”

“Well, I did prevent marriage pressure and unnecessary waste of time.”

Lee Hyun felt complicated as he watched Yu Ra firmly believing in the excuse he thought was somewhat valid. It wasn’t wrong, but it felt unsettling, like a meeting that stopped midway.

He decided to put aside the strangely irritating inner thoughts and focus on the present. For now, the urgent task was to soothe Jin Yu Ra’s anger, who was busy avoiding him out of anger.

Whether someone was angry or keeping their distance due to hurt feelings wasn’t particularly important to Lee Hyun. But Jin Yu Ra’s distancing was confusing his mind enough to affect work.

Having always lived alone since becoming an adult, he hadn’t realized that trouble with someone he lived with could be so concerning. It seemed that resolving this would help with work processing too.

“No practice observation today?”

“No.”

“Any schedule after this?”

“Nothing important except contacting A&J Management.”

Lee Hyun calmly listened to Yu Ra’s answer and recalled Song Min Woo and Joo Hye Rim at the mention of A&J Management. He wanted to quickly soothe the sulky Jin Yu Ra who looked like a pouting child and proceed with this headache-inducing matter.

“Then shall we go on a date after eating this?”

“A date?”

“There’s a good performance.”

“What kind of performance?”

The face that had been frowning at the word ‘date’ immediately lit up at the word ‘performance’. Lee Hyun couldn’t help but smile, wondering if she liked performances that much. I wonder if she’ll be even more surprised when she hears what this performance is.

“French National Orchestra.”

“Ah, the performance hosted by Argon?”

It was an orchestra whose domestic performances had been delayed for over a year due to the conductor’s health issues. And Yu Ra, who had been traveling abroad to see performances because she liked this conductor, had been disappointed for a while.

There was no way she wouldn’t know about the performance that had been heavily promoted for the past half year. Even though it was a performance held by a competitor, Yu Ra wouldn’t refuse. Lee Hyun knew this well and had personally obtained the concert tickets.

Wondering if she might hesitate because it was at Argon, Lee Hyun asked her thoughts.

“Do you dislike it because it’s Argon?”

“What are you talking about. They say if you know your enemy and know yourself, you’ll win every battle. Let’s go.”

Lee Hyun was still smiling as he watched Yu Ra immediately get up with enthusiasm.

After watching the two-hour performance, Yu Ra couldn’t come to her senses due to the lingering emotion. Her feet wouldn’t move towards the parking lot, as if the intense emotion that had washed over her was dissipating too quickly.

Apart from the emotion of the performance, Yu Ra’s professional instinct quickly activated. Even when entering, she carefully observed the actions, expressions, and tone of the staff. During the short break after the first part, she also paid attention to the atmosphere of the concert hall.

As she crossed the parking lot, she muttered her final evaluation of the concert hall.

“The acoustics are definitely better than ours.”

“The grandeur filling the hall was overwhelming.”

The commentary that followed in tune from beside her was a monotonous answer anyone could make.

If she hadn’t known about his harsh criticism of Se Jin’s performance or his recognition of Song Min Woo, she would have just said, “I see,” and moved on. However, having already predicted to some extent his attitude towards art and the depth of his knowledge, she couldn’t just let it slide.

“But weren’t you not interested in the arts?”

“I’m not.”

“Then how do you know so well?”

“My wife works in this industry, so I should know the basics.”

Is it really just the basics to notice Oh Se Jin’s subtle mistakes and recognize the representative of an overseas management at a glance? She was newly surprised at how different Lee Hyun’s standards were from her own.

“That’s beyond the basics.”

“Is it? You can see it as a combination of information power and basics.”

She already knew from Yu Geon that his information power was at an amazing level. It was surprising that he could know this much even with good information power.

“Hey.”

“Hm?”

Lee Hyun, who was about to start the car, stopped his action and met her eyes. Yu Ra had been concerned about the expression she had missed the timing to say. Realizing she shouldn’t delay any longer, she conveyed in a plain voice.

“Thank you.”

“Did you like the performance that much?”

Lee Hyun, with one arm on the steering wheel and his body turned slightly, looked directly at Yu Ra. Feeling awkward about meeting his gaze, Yu Ra averted her eyes.

“No, for that day. For giving Oh Se Jin a piece of your mind.”

“Ah.”

At the slow exclamation as if he had forgotten, Yu Ra briefly summarized her unsettled feelings from the past few days.

“I wanted to say it all along, but the atmosphere…”

In an instant, Yu Ra’s head was tilted by a firm hand and Lee Hyun’s lips met hers.

The woody scent that seemed to clear her head whenever she smelled it filled her deeply. She found it strange that she had become so accustomed to this kiss that it was no longer burdensome.

No, maybe it was strange that she felt sweetness and a faint excitement spreading with every moment their lips met. Just as her hand clutching her bag twitched, trying to grab Lee Hyun’s collar, his lips pulled away.

Embarrassed by the action she hadn’t managed to carry out, Yu Ra pushed Lee Hyun’s chest with her palm and pouted.

“Haa, what’s this all of a sudden?”

“Your lips saying thank you looked too sweet.”

Lee Hyun, not budging an inch and facing her up close, moved his lips, intertwining his hot breath with Yu Ra’s. Was it because of that, or the aftermath of the kiss? She felt heat rising inside her body. She didn’t have the courage to meet his gaze that was stickily clinging to her, so she lowered her eyelids.

“Really, you have all sorts of excuses.”

A desperate hope that the numerous excuses Lee Hyun had made were true stirred in her heart. Even though she knew she shouldn’t, that she shouldn’t be swept away by him like this, she simply couldn’t control her feelings.

Even if she was seen as just an outlet for simple desires, she wanted to fall into Lee Hyun’s arms, and instinctive impulses confused her mind.

While feeling self-contempt as if she had fallen into depravity, her mouth tasted bitter from the foolishness of not being able to let go of a small hope.

“Jin Yu Ra.”

“What?”

“I want you.”

Yu Ra looked at Lee Hyun with surprised eyes, wondering if he had read her thoughts. And her eyes trembled as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have.

Lee Hyun’s gaze that met hers was clouded, filled with intense desire. The dangerous eyes of a predator about to devour her right away were steadily fixed on Yu Ra.

Lee Hyun’s low-spreading breath, mixed with intense pheromones, filled the narrow car. Yu Ra swallowed dry saliva at his scent that had thickened to the point of suffocation and his expression that seemed to have lost composure.

“Now…?”

At the carefully flowing question, Lee Hyun swept his surroundings with languid eyes and grabbed his tie with his hand.

“I want to do it now, but it would be difficult here, right?”

Yu Ra took a deep breath at the sight of him pulling his tie as if frustrated and clenching his jaw tightly. She felt like a pervert for finding even that small action sensual. She fanned herself, feeling her face flush.

“Of course.”

Lee Hyun slowly started the car and whispered a sentence filled with secrecy.

“Hotel Grand Garden is close.”

Hotel Grand Garden. One of the CH affiliates, it was a place favored by the Baek family and where Lee Hyun had stayed during their newlywed home construction period.

She recalled Lee Hyun saying at the time that he always kept one room vacant under his name.

Lee Hyun seemed to lack composure in this short time, having searched for the closest place between the concert hall and home or hotel. Yu Ra couldn’t easily make a decision due to her complexly entangled feelings.

The desire to fall into Lee Hyun’s arms and the fact that she was a means to satisfy his desires were in stark opposition.

“Um, well… that is…”

“If you don’t want to, just say so.”

His words, mindful of ‘consent’, subtly urged Yu Ra’s choice.

And the fact that without this, she couldn’t fall into his arms made her feel newly sad. Even as she felt self-loathing for how she had come to crave him so much, she couldn’t push him away.

“…Let’s go.”

At the small words that flowed out, Lee Hyun’s car sped off with a loud noise.