Although Do Joon went to the restaurant where Tae Jin had an evening appointment, that was all there was to it.

Do Joon had planned to wait in the hall or another room to look for suspicious people.

So when Do Joon appeared in the room, Tae Yeon was very surprised.

At first, she thought he might have come into the room looking for a place to hide after spotting paparazzi following Tae Jin, but that didn’t seem to be the case either.

‘It doesn’t make sense that he came because he wanted to see me…’

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t find the real reason why Do Joon had entered that room.

Tae Yeon stared at the bouquet placed on her lap with an enigmatic expression as she rode in the car heading home.

Why did he suddenly buy a bouquet of flowers? And why did he personally cut and feed her the steak?

And everything Do Joon said was full of questions.

Even more concerning was whether Do Joon might have heard the harsh words Tae Jin had said to her.

As Tae Yeon stared intently at the bouquet, Do Joon, who was driving, casually asked a question.

“What are you thinking about, Jin Tae Yeon?”

Yes, it would be better to ask directly. No matter how much she worried alone for a hundred days, she couldn’t find an accurate answer.

“Why did you come there earlier?”

“I was looking for someone suspicious who might be paparazzi in the hall, but there wasn’t anyone.”

“And then?”

“I didn’t want to eat alone, so I went in.”

“Ah…”

“Was it uncomfortable for you that I intervened in the middle?”

“No! I wasn’t trying to question why you came.”

Tae Yeon denied it, waving her hands. Seeing this, Do Joon chuckled.

“You helped me too, Jin Tae Yeon.”

“I did?”

“When we had dinner at Baek Sang Jae before. You pretended to be an affectionate couple in front of my elder brother and took my side. You don’t remember?”

“Ah…”

“I was repaying that.”

Repaying. It was a dry statement, like calculating and settling a business transaction.

Now the question was solved. It seems he was very grateful for her actions when they were with his elder brother Hae Joon.

Although she didn’t know Do Joon well yet, he seemed to be the type who had to repay something if he received it.

So that’s why he helped her today when she was with Tae Jin.

The curiosity was resolved, but she felt somehow empty.

She already knew in her head that Do Joon wouldn’t have acted affectionately today in front of Tae Jin out of sincerity. But strangely, a bitter taste spread in her mouth.

What was I expecting?

When she thought that even the bouquet on her lap was just a prop, its specialness disappeared.

She didn’t want to admit it, but all the bouquets she had ever received from a man were from Do Joon.

The first was on her birthday, and today was the second time.

And both times, the fact that they were props for show remained unchanged.

Tae Yeon silently cast her gaze out the window.

Sensing the subtly changed atmosphere, Do Joon turned his head to look at Tae Yeon.

Until now, whenever the conversation stopped abruptly, Tae Yeon would always watch Do Joon’s reaction and try to say something. Today there was no sign of that.

As the traffic light changed, Do Joon slowly reduced his speed.

“Did I make a mistake?”

“No.”

The answer was short. Looking at Tae Yeon, who was giving off an unusually cold atmosphere unlike usual, Do Joon clenched and unclenched his fist once.

And he thought deeply.

Clearly, until they left the restaurant, Tae Yeon had been smiling brightly at him.

‘Maybe I should have just told the truth.’

That story about not wanting to eat alone so he entered her room was an excuse.

When he arrived at the restaurant, the room he was guided to wait in happened to be next to the one where Tae Jin and Tae Yeon were.

Unintentionally, he overheard Tae Jin making snide remarks about Tae Yeon.

It made him feel bad.

After all, since they were married, Tae Yeon was his woman.

He was very displeased with the situation where his person was answering each and every one of those ridiculous conversations.

He was just thinking that far when…

When he came to his senses, he was already sitting next to Tae Yeon.

Was she upset that he had silently joined in on the conversation between sisters?

If not that, then was it because he didn’t take her side more?

Do Joon had never been curious about other people’s feelings in his life until now. Nevertheless, today he was curious and wanted to know.

After pondering for a while, Do Joon opened his lips and spoke in a low voice.

“Is it because I held your hand and touched your face without Jin Tae Yeon’s permission?”

Tae Yeon, who had been fixated on looking out the window, slowly turned her head.

Do Joon’s gaze was on Tae Yeon’s face, as if genuinely curious.

“What?”

“It seems like Jin Tae Yeon’s mood is off because of me.”

Her instincts were uncannily sharp.

Tae Yeon tried to pretend otherwise, forcing a smile.

“No. I’m just tired, that’s all.”

Tae Yeon turned her face back to the window.

She couldn’t let him know that she had momentarily mistaken Do Joon’s kindness as sincere and had expectations.

Thinking about it made her face flush red again.

‘How foolish he must think I am.’

Thankfully, Do Joon chose silence rather than probing further.

It was a moment when the quietly settled silence was welcome.

When they arrived home, Tae Yeon hurried her steps.

“I’ll shower first. You should rest too, Do Joon.”

Before Do Joon could answer, Tae Yeon rushed into the bathroom.

Seeing her retreating figure, Do Joon was certain.

“It doesn’t seem like she’s just acting that way because she’s tired.”

Do Joon quickly finished his shower and waited for Tae Yeon. He planned to try to resolve things through conversation.

After finishing her shower, Tae Yeon entered the master bedroom wearing couple pajamas.

“Ah…”

Seeing Do Joon sitting on the edge of the bed, Tae Yeon hastily closed the door and quickly walked out to the living room.

Do Joon silently followed behind her.

Seeing Tae Yeon sit down in the living room and turn on the TV, Do Joon sat down next to her.

“I’m a bit thirsty.”

Tae Yeon suddenly stood up and disappeared into the kitchen like an arrow.

Heh-

Though he didn’t know why, one thing was certain – Tae Yeon was avoiding him in order to not have a conversation.

Entering the kitchen, Tae Yeon glanced behind her and quickly drank some water.

Do Joon approached from the side and spoke in a low voice.

“I won’t eat you.”

“What?”

Tae Yeon stopped drinking water and looked at Do Joon with wide eyes.

“You’ve been running away from me like a rabbit since earlier, so I’m saying.”

“…”

“I wanted to tell you that you don’t have to avoid me like that because I won’t eat you.”

“When did I avoid you?”

After denying it and waving her hands, Tae Yeon again scurried away from Do Joon into the master bedroom.

That sight was so cute that he almost burst out laughing. Do Joon barely held back his laughter by biting his lip hard.

“I’ll have to clear up the misunderstanding tomorrow.”

Even before the alarm went off, Do Joon woke up earlier than usual.

The sweet scent he often smelled seemed stronger than usual.

As Do Joon turned his head, he discovered something and froze in place.

No wonder it felt hotter than usual.

Tae Yeon was sleeping in his arms with her brows furrowed.

It was the moment he realized why the sweet strawberry scent that wafted when he was near Tae Yeon was coming from so close.

Tae Yeon was not only making groaning sounds as if having a nightmare, but she was also tightly gripping Do Joon’s pajamas with her small hand.

What was surprising was that Do Joon also had his hand on Tae Yeon’s waist, embracing her.

It seemed they had never had such close skinship in all the times they had slept together before.

Do Joon gently lifted his arm to remove his hand from Tae Yeon’s waist.

As if instinctively realizing he was trying to leave the bed, Tae Yeon drew even closer and hugged Do Joon tightly.

“Hmm.”

Do Joon extremely disliked anyone touching his body. But strangely, Tae Yeon was an exception.

When she touched his face while drunk. When she randomly stroked his arm on the rooftop.

And even now.

Worried that she might be having a nightmare, he considered waking her but eventually stopped.

Fortunately, Tae Yeon’s face looked more peaceful than before.

“Jin Tae Yeon?”

Do Joon called Tae Yeon in a small voice. What came back was not her answer, but a mumbling sound.

“Just a little more…”

“What did you say?”

Even when he asked again, there was no answer, only the sound of soft breathing.

Do Joon lifted his head to observe Tae Yeon’s clear face.

Had he ever fallen asleep tightly embracing someone? It was definitely the first time.

Her soft brown hair flowed down past her slender shoulders.

Though she was wearing pajamas that covered her whole body under the blanket, Tae Yeon’s body lying on her side clearly revealed an S-line.

It was also the first time he had observed Tae Yeon for so long from such a close distance.

There was one thing he had very proudly thought when returning to Korea.

It was the confidence that he would never be emotionally moved no matter what Tae Yeon did.

He could not even blink an eye even if she openly tried to seduce him.

However, as he spent time with Tae Yeon, and now that the misunderstandings about her had been cleared up, the situation had changed a bit.

He thought that it might be quite dangerous.

“It’s unusually hot today.”

He tried to think it was because they were nearing the end of June.

Do Joon reached out to find the air conditioner remote. Then he pressed the buttons to lower the temperature even more.

As a strong wind blew, the temperature in the room dropped, but strangely, his body temperature felt like it was rising even more.

Perhaps feeling cold from the air conditioning, Tae Yeon burrowed even more strongly into Do Joon’s embrace, seeking warmth.

“…Jin Tae Yeon?”

Eventually, as if her hands had gotten cold, Tae Yeon moved around and slipped her hand into Do Joon’s clothes.

Do Joon held his breath.

In his life, he had been nervous only a handful of times. But today was truly an emergency.

“Are you really asleep?”

He wondered if she was deliberately trying to make things difficult for him.

It was a reasonable suspicion.

As her hand caressed his well-defined abs in her sleep, Do Joon finally squeezed his eyes shut.

Just as a precarious sensation was about to spread throughout his body.

Do Joon abruptly sat up. No matter how he looked at it, it didn’t seem like she was doing this secretly in her sleep.

“You’re a woman with dangerous sleeping habits.”

Do Joon’s low voice poured down over Tae Yeon’s face.