[It’s not necessary, I’m not going to do it anyway.] [This time, the chairman doesn’t seem likely to back down. He says he wants to marry you off somehow.] [Whether I get married or not has nothing to do with me. I’m a discarded child anyway, so what’s the point? You said you have to go.] [Ah, it’s already this late. I’ll come pick you up tomorrow morning.] [Use either casual or formal speech, not both.] [Alright, alright. I’ll see you tomorrow, Director.]

Even after Director Kang left, Kang Woo continued to drink.

He couldn’t shake off the stifling feeling without drinking. Only after drinking for a while did he feel like getting up. Just as he was about to stand up:

[Hello?]

A faint floral scent lingered at the tip of his nose, and a calm, soft voice was heard.

[Are you here alone?]

Kang Woo turned his head. Before his eyes was a woman with black wavy hair reaching her shoulders, flawless white skin, well-defined features, and moist lips.

Kang Woo found this situation very unpleasant.

There were two types of women who approached him. Those who knew his background as part of the LS Group, and those who approached based on his appearance alone, like now.

With a face more handsome than most movie stars, tall stature, broad shoulders, and a sturdy physique built through consistent exercise, he was so attractive that he drew attention wherever he went, and women flocked to him.

Kang Woo didn’t look favorably upon women who approached him in either case. He often looked at women with nearly hateful eyes, as many would approach wearing strong perfume and heavy makeup, pressing their bodies against him.

He thought this woman would be the same.

[Can you hear me?]

But the moment he saw her clear face, he couldn’t say anything. He was so nervous that he could barely squeeze out his voice, despite never being one to lose composure in any situation.

[What is it?] [Are you here alone?] [What’s it to you? I don’t drink with strangers. Let’s go.]

So he answered gruffly, hoping the woman would leave on her own.

But no matter how he acted, she maintained her smile without showing any sign of being offended as she spoke.

[My name is Seong Hee Won. Now I’m not a stranger, right?]

Seong Hee Won?

Realizing that the woman before him was the daughter of Jinsung Foods that Director Kang had mentioned, Kang Woo inwardly clicked his tongue.

How could things get tangled up like this? He let out a hollow laugh at the absurdity.

Though he had no intention of marrying Hee Won anyway, he didn’t want to be entangled like this.

Moreover, the unfamiliar emotion that struck his heart was very unpleasant to him.

[I don’t know what you’re trying to do with a drunk person. If you don’t want to leave, I’ll go.]

The look in Hee Won’s eyes as he stood up bothered him, but Kang Woo turned away, ignoring her.

[Wait, just a moment!]

He saw Hee Won stumble forward, caught on the chair. Without thinking, he reached out and caught her body.

Ha. I must be crazy.

The faint freesia scent that had been at the tip of his nose now swirled intensely, and his heart began to race.

He should have left even then.

Then he wouldn’t have been swayed by his emotions like this.

From that point on, he was helplessly swept away by Hee Won.

[Do you want to sleep with me?] [Are you crazy?] [You might think I’m crazy, but I’m not. I may seem out of my mind, but I’m not the type of woman who always says things like this.]

His heart was like a naked castle that had collapsed its final defenses under Hee Won’s piercing gaze.

Kang Woo found his own reflection in Hee Won’s pitch-black, clear eyes unfamiliar.

Do you know?

That the man you’re asking to sleep with is your arranged marriage partner.

At the same time, he began to feel inexplicably angry.

[Do you know who I am?] [No. I don’t. What does it matter? You can think whatever you want. But this is my first and last act of rebellion.]

First and last act of rebellion

A sneer tugged at Kang Woo’s lips.

He wondered what expression she would make later when the man she had rolled in bed with as an “act of rebellion” appeared at the altar.

An inexplicable sense of competition arose in his heart. He gave Hee Won one last choice.

[If you want to run away, now is the time. So, it would be better to say you’re sorry.]

Kang Woo knew his own personality well.

Once he grabbed hold of something, he never let go.

[If you’re doing this out of stubbornness, you’d better stop. In the end, you’ll be the one to regret it.]

So once Seong Hee Won fell into his hands, he wouldn’t let her go either.

Whether she knew this fact and felt ashamed, or whatever emotions she might feel.

[I won’t regret it. Living like a doll as I have been is more frustrating. But it seems like I won’t be able to do anything I want in the future. It’s my life, and I just wanted to do what I wanted at least once.]

Kang Woo couldn’t say anything. Hee Won’s words kept echoing in his ears.

His heart ached as he watched her refer to herself as a doll.

Those were words he had wanted to say all along but had never been able to utter even once.

Realizing that she carried the same wounds as him, Kang Woo was overwhelmed by indescribable emotions.

He had been tormented by the inability to do anything with his own life, but he couldn’t tell anyone.

He couldn’t even expect understanding from close friends because he was the eldest son of LS Group, ranked first in Korea’s business world, and tacitly considered the next successor. Because on the surface, he seemed to have everything without a single worry.

So Kang Woo had always hidden his emotions. He had never been the first to open up about his feelings.

And he had never expected it. He thought that in his lifetime, no one would ever fully empathize with his heart.

The appearance of someone who said what he had wanted to say, in front of him who had always suppressed his emotions with the same wounds, was an indescribable feeling.

There was so much he wanted to say, but the words wouldn’t easily come out. So he just moved his lips for a long time.

And after a while.

[I understand.]

He uttered the shortest and simplest of the words he had carefully chosen. And when he spoke, Hee Won’s eyes widened as if completely unexpected.

Among the tumultuous emotions, what emerged was that Hee Won’s expression looked cute.

That was when it started.

When his heart helplessly tilted towards Hee Won.

Of course, even then, he wasn’t certain about marrying her or anything like that.

He thought it was just a feeling that he couldn’t pass her by.

However, once his heart started to tilt, it grew at a speed he hadn’t anticipated.

He was flustered by how much his heart was drawn to a woman he had just met, but before he knew it, he found himself placing his hand on her cheek, and the warmth and soft skin transmitted to his palm made his busy mind suddenly go blank with the fluttering in his heart.

And at some point, he felt something snap in his mind, and after that, all that remained was pure instinct.

Though he thought he had a lot of patience, it didn’t take long to undress her. And the emotion he felt when he became one with her was something he had never experienced before.

He thought. He never wanted to let go of this overwhelming feeling.

So he fell asleep holding her in his arms. But when he opened his eyes, Hee Won was already gone.

It must have been quite a while since she left, as the spot next to him was cold.

It was the first time he had slept through the night without waking up once, having suffered from insomnia, and it was an unfamiliar feeling that his body felt light even though he had only slept for 3 hours.

He thought finding her wouldn’t be a problem since he already knew about Hee Won.

But seeing the note and money placed on the narrow table next to the bed made his mood plummet.

−Take care. We probably won’t see each other again… Thank you.

The neat and tidy handwriting, reminiscent of Hee Won, made him feel even worse.

It wasn’t because she had left money as if paying for services.

It was because she had left without any lingering attachment after spending the night with him.

A strange sense of competition burned in his heart.

He wasn’t even angry at the thought that he shouldn’t let her go. Of course, some might get angry thinking how dare she leave money, but Kang Woo didn’t think that way.

A personality that doesn’t unnecessarily linger, pulling when it’s time to pull and letting go decisively when it’s time to let go, Hee Won was the woman he had been looking for, which made him even more attracted to her.

“Never seeing each other again, she says.”

There had never been a single instance in Cha Kang Woo’s dictionary where he willingly let go of something he had grasped in his hand.

He looked forward to the day he would reunite with Hee Won.

He immediately reached for his phone.

[Director Kang, it’s me.] [Where are you? You weren’t at home.] [I’m getting married.] […Huh? What? What did you just say?]

Director Kang, who never used informal speech during work hours despite being closer than anyone privately, stumbled over his words in surprise, mixing in casual speech.

[I’m going to marry Seong Hee Won, so adjust the schedule.]

For exactly three years, he proposed to Hee Won to act as a fake married couple.

It was because he thought it might be possible with Hee Won, but being together turned out to be more enjoyable and pleasant than expected.

He, who never had stray thoughts during work hours, found himself thinking about Hee Won for longer periods without even realizing it.

Snapping out of his reminiscence, Kang Woo called out to Hee Won.

“Seong Hee Won.”

It was because she hadn’t taken the hand he had extended.

“I’m sorry for grabbing without permission. As your husband, I think I should be able to hold your hand like this without asking permission from now on.”

So he took her hand first.

His gaze kept wandering.

He couldn’t take his eyes off Hee Won, whose cheeks were tinged red.