Si Heon let out a low sigh after parking in front of So Yi’s house.

So Yi, who had been chattering that she couldn’t sleep well next to the president driving, dropped her head as soon as the car entered the highway.

Throughout the meal, So Yi was restless like a puppy that needed to go to the bathroom.

She would look at Si Heon as if she had something to say, then shake her head to herself.

After drinking alcohol continuously like that, she finally fell asleep on the way back.

He should wake her up and send her up, but for some reason he can’t take his eyes off her, feeling regretful.

The desire to touch her, kiss her, and hold her is all tangled up creating a big whirlwind, but Si Heon is still holding back until the end without showing it.

It was the same yesterday. His whole body burned up as if on fire from So Yi’s small lips that he held while kissing.

Now that he knows better than anyone that he won’t be able to end with just a kiss, even kissing becomes cautious.

Like firewood that has already finished all preparations and is just waiting for a fire to be lit, Si Heon was in a very dangerous state right now.

Looking at So Yi sleeping soundly, Si Heon let out an unconscious chuckle.

I must be completely crazy. How did I end up falling this deep.

I don’t even know since when.

At first I was just concerned, then my eyes were drawn to her. And at some point I was reaching out my hand.

Just as he was about to chuckle again, wondering what on earth had bewitched him to lose his mind over Jin So Yi like this, So Yi opened her eyes.

Even in the pitch-dark darkness, her round eyes shining clearly seek out Si Heon’s eyes.

Soon after their gazes met, she smiled brightly and rubbed her eyes.

“I tried not to fall asleep… but I did.”

Even her sleepy voice is sweet.

“You should have woken me…”

“You were sleeping so well.”

Si Heon, who had been looking at So Yi as if she was utterly lovable, got out of the car and escorted her to the front of the building.

“Go in safely and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yes, president, please go home safely too.”

Si Heon briefly kissed So Yi’s lips before turning away.

Just as she was about to enter the building, holding her pounding heart, So Yi’s eyes widened.

“Oh…? Jin So Yi, you’re finally here.”

As the sensor light in the villa entrance turned on, Young Hyun, who had been sitting on the stairs, raised his head. He muttered in a completely slurred voice and slowly got up from the stairs.

“Why are you here so late?”

His steps staggered as he approached, quite drunk.

“And why aren’t you answering your phone.”

His unfocused eyes looked pitiful.

“Why would I answer your calls, oppa.”

So Yi answered while slowly backing away. She had already blocked Young Hyun’s contact for both calls and messages.

“Are you still angry?”

“I told you I’m not angry.”

“Jin So Yi. Oppa was wrong. Stop being mad now.”

The stale smell of cigarettes and alcohol wafted over in a tangled mess.

So Yi hurriedly took a few more steps back, but Young Hyun’s cloudy eyes persistently followed her.

“Come back to oppa. I’ll really do better this time.”

As if he had already lost his reason, Young Hyun urgently reached out and grabbed So Yi’s hand.

“Let go! I’m going to call the police!”

“So Yi. Oppa is struggling. I only realized after letting you go…”

So Yi twisted her wrist with all her might. Just as she was using all her strength to shake off Young Hyun’s hand, someone roughly pushed his hand away.

“I thought I made it clear last time. The bus has already left.”

It was Si Heon.

“Was the woman you switched to not satisfactory? Or did you start regretting it after breaking up?”

“W-What business is it of yours! I’m trying to get my woman back!”

Whether emboldened by the alcohol or having lost his sense of reality, Young Hyun shouted angrily.

Si Heon’s eyes flashed dangerously. His sharp gaze, as if honed with a blade, drew closer to Young Hyun.

“Whose woman?”

Young Hyun took an unsteady step back with surprised eyes. Instinctively, his neck bent downwards. His cowed eyes began to tremble in fear.

“I’m asking. Whose woman?”

Si Heon spat out the words again, as if growling. His gaze alone seemed enough to cut off one’s breath in an instant.

Young Hyun started backing away one step at a time, overwhelmed by Si Heon’s aura. As if he finally realized who the man standing before him was, he kept swallowing dry saliva.

“J-Jin So Yi! You’re making a mistake right now! Do you think this man will marry you? You’ll end up being pathetically abandoned by him in the end!”

Unable to even properly look Si Heon in the eye, Young Hyun retreated more and more, and when he finally mustered up the courage to speak, it was just vitriol directed at So Yi.

“When that time comes, even if you try to come back to me, I absolutely won’t take you back, so remember that!”

Young Hyun screamed, squeezing out his voice as if in desperation. Then, as if scared of something, he turned his body abruptly and ran away without looking back.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

Only then did Si Heon approach So Yi. So Yi’s whole body was trembling like an aspen tree as she clutched her wrist. After looking So Yi up and down, Si Heon took her to his car that had been carelessly parked.

“Get in.”

“Ah… It’s okay. I’ll just go home…”

“What if he comes back again?”

At the words that he might come back again, So Yi’s large eyes trembled finely.

“Just come with me tonight. Tomorrow we’ll get the nearby CCTV footage and file a restraining order first.”

Si Heon was resolute. Without leaving room for hesitation, he put So Yi in the passenger seat and started the car.

“Sleep in that room over there. There’s a separate bathroom inside, so you can wash up there.”

Si Heon entered the hotel room, naturally taking off his jacket as he headed to the mini bar. He took out a bottle of water and handed it to So Yi.

“Are you really not hurt anywhere?”

“No, I’m fine. Thanks to you helping me, president.”

“You must have been very scared.”

She was very scared indeed. As if the tension still hadn’t fully dissipated, her hand kept slipping as she tried to open the water bottle cap.

“Let me. I’ll open it for you.”

Si Heon took the water bottle back from So Yi and twisted off the cap. As he was about to hand it back, his fingertips brushed against So Yi’s.

“Thank you.”

So Yi took the water bottle as if nothing had happened. The brief touch of body heat sent warmth flooding through her entire body.

“Then I’ll just…”

So Yi staggered as she was about to say she would go rest in the room. Si Heon quickly wrapped his arm around So Yi’s waist. It seemed the tension had finally left her body.

A hot sensation transmitted from Si Heon’s arm wrapped around So Yi’s waist. The gazes of the two people facing each other almost touching became entangled chaotically. So Yi unconsciously swallowed.

If she raised her head just a little more from this position, their lips would touch. In an instant, the memory of that passionate kiss in Venice that day took over her mind.

As if it had spread from Si Heon, a heat spread throughout So Yi’s entire body.

“Thank you… But there’s water on your clothes, president…”

So Yi quickly gathered her wits and stood up straight.

Thanks to Si Heon she didn’t fall, but her hand holding the water bottle slipped, causing water to splash onto both their clothes.

“I don’t think it’s time to worry about my clothes.”

The water that had spilled more than half had soaked So Yi’s blouse thoroughly. Underneath the wet blouse, her apricot-colored underwear was clearly visible.

So Yi’s ears turned bright red all the way down to her nape as she was startled.

“I’ll look for some clothes you can change into…”

“President…”

As Si Heon was about to turn away, So Yi called out to him in a trembling voice.

She had wanted to ask the whole time in Incheon. What exactly were they to each other?

If the contract just ended like this, would they become nothing to each other?

Kissing, holding hands. Looking at her with such warm eyes, didn’t it mean the president had at least some feelings for her too?

“Can I ask you just one thing?”

So Yi gathered her courage and spoke up.

“That day, at that uncle’s birthday party, that person named Yeon Ri Na… Are you going to meet her?”

Si Heon’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as if it was an unexpected question.

“What…?”

“That person, you still can’t forget her?”

A wry laugh escaped.

He recalled something So Yi had asked before.

If the reason for the fake dating was to win back an ex-girlfriend he had broken up with.

And that day, when she saw Yeon Ri Na, she had asked if she was the ex-girlfriend.

It had been a thoughtless comment, but So Yi had firmly believed those words.

Si Heon couldn’t hold back his laughter and answered with a chuckle.

“No. I’m not meeting her. I’ve never been unable to forget her.”

“…Pardon?”

So Yi blinked her eyelids slowly.

He won’t meet her. He’s never been unable to forget her.

As she was doubting her own ears, wondering if she had misheard, Si Heon continued speaking.

“Right now, the only person I want to have is you. I can’t think of anything else.”

Her heart started pounding loudly.

That it was okay to like him more like this. That the president liked her too.

The sincerity filling Si Heon’s deep eyes as they faced each other was saying that.

Before she knew it, So Yi’s reddened cheeks lifted into a clear smile.

The emotions that kept welling up made her whole body feel light, as if she was standing on soft clouds.

“You’re not going to kiss me today?”

So Yi asked with a smile spread across her face.

Si Heon paused for a moment before answering firmly.

“No.”

“Why not?”

So Yi’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected refusal.

“If I kiss you now, you won’t be able to sleep tonight.”

“…?”

“You understood but are pretending not to know.”

He threw out one sentence to So Yi who was staring blankly. Si Heon used his last bit of patience to continue speaking calmly.

“Go in quickly, wash up and sleep. You must be tired…”

At that moment, So Yi approached Si Heon and stood on her tiptoes. As if that wasn’t enough, she grabbed his collar and pulled his body down.