Secret Cohabitation Love - Chapter 26

“……”

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Eun Seo wiped away the condensation on the soju glass and forced herself to meet his eyes.

“I’m giving you a chance. A chance to run away.”

“You’re telling me to run away while holding my lifeline. How cruel.”

Tae Ha emptied his soju glass and licked his lips with his tongue.

“If you keep doing this, I’ll want to lean on you. My parents abandoned me and my grandmother didn’t like me either. And now she’s gone too. I’m all alone in this world, so if you keep doing this, I’ll start to want more.”

“That’s why I’m doing this, so you can lean on me.”

“You’ll regret it. ……It’s too late to pretend I didn’t hear that because I’m drunk, right?”

“It’s too late for anything. I’m already like this.”

His steadfast gaze and low voice pierced Eun Seo’s heart.

If their circumstances weren’t like this, if she could match even one thing the man possessed…

No, at least if grandmother hadn’t created this situation in this way.

She had always lacked confidence in things that weren’t upright.

They were people with different weights of life. For those weights to become equal, someone would have to share that burden, and it was likely to be Tae Ha.

Eventually, he would want to put it all down, crushed by that weight. Just like the parents who she said abandoned her.

Wounds never become familiar. New wounds always hurt as if they’re the first, after all.

He has a fiancée, and if he ever returns to that place, bearing it will be entirely her burden alone.

Giving up what she wanted, turning away from what she desired, these were now all too familiar to her.

Even when there was something she wanted to eat, she closed her mouth, and when there was something she wanted to see, she closed her eyes.

Let alone Kwon Tae Ha.

She tells herself that she must not waver even a little for this man, that this is the right answer for both him and herself.

“What should we do? I want Song Eun Seo.”

Tae Ha poured his fourth glass.

“I want to live comfortably. I don’t want to live a difficult life.”

“Is that all?”

“It’s important to me. The moment you choose me, people will gossip. Each time, Kwon Tae Ha, you’ll get angry or hurt. Then as you look back on the past, you’ll regret your choice. That’s what happened to me. I’m giving you the chance to live an easy life.”

“If that’s living easily, then I’ll just live difficultly.”

“If you keep doing this, I’ll……”

“Don’t answer. Don’t try to persuade me either.”

“Kwon Tae Ha.”

“Don’t leave the house for no reason. I’ll find you anyway. If you want to see my abilities, try leaving once.”

It’s a night when alcohol is terribly tempting. Tae Ha emptied another glass of soju before putting it down. Of all the alcohol he’d drunk in his life, today’s was the bitterest. Like poison.

But even that poison was sweet compared to the woman’s words.

“Let’s go.”

The coat tails fluttering off the chair brought a cold wind.

* * *

“Take this deodeok tea with you. Butler Jang drinks it every night.”

“Yes.”

After exchanging greetings with the employee, Ha Eun placed two teacups on a tray and entered Butler Jang’s room.

Since it was late at night, Ha Eun decided to stay overnight with Butler Jang in the annex instead of going home. Given the importance of the day, Butler Jang told her to sleep for a night and make sure to meet Chairman Kwon the next day to make a good impression.

Chairman Kwon readily agreed, and Ha Eun thanked him before leaving the main building. When Jung Woo went home, she deliberately went out to the garage to see him off.

And taking advantage of a moment when no one was looking, she managed to get his phone number.

Jung Woo, whom she thought would refuse, gave his contact information without much fuss. However, his expression wasn’t exactly friendly either.

She thought only Tae Ha was difficult, but all the men here were equally cold.

Butler Jang’s room was the largest on the second floor of the annex. When she opened the door and entered, a set of white bedding was laid out next to the large bed.

Anyone could see it wasn’t an affectionate mother-daughter relationship.

“Have some deodeok tea. I heard you drink it every night. I’m your daughter, but I didn’t even know that.”

Butler Jang, who was combing her hair in front of the dressing table, put down the hot teacup and examined Ha Eun standing beside her through the mirror.

Recalling Tae Ha’s words, Butler Jang put down her comb and turned around to face Ha Eun.

“Honestly, I didn’t want to meddle in your relationship, but I think I need to interfere a bit.”

“About what?”

“Young Master Tae Ha.”

“What about him now?”

“I was too complacent. It’s my fault for trusting only you. I think I need to step in.”

“Please leave it to me a bit longer. I can do well. Didn’t you say he’s not interested in women originally? The comment about not getting married earlier probably wasn’t because he dislikes me.”

“The young master has eyes and ears too, so you probably don’t meet his standards.”

“Do you think that’s the reason?”

Ha Eun thought that Butler Jang might be more obtuse than she expected.

How could she not have noticed who Tae Ha’s gaze was following? Was she too excited because it was the long-awaited day she had been hoping for?

On the other hand, seeing that Butler Jang didn’t know, she wondered if she might have seen it wrong herself.

If it was a misunderstanding, that would be even better.

“What other reason could there be? Everyone in this field said he only thinks about the company and will carefully consider the conditions when he marries. Why, do you know of some other reason?”

“No. I didn’t know it was for that reason. Come to think of it, my conditions aren’t that great for Kwon Tae Ha.”

Ha Eun glossed over her words. It wouldn’t do any good for Butler Jang to know about Eun Seo.

Excessive interference is always tiring, after all.

“That’s why I told you to at least take good care of your appearance. Your conditions are more than just a little below the young master’s.”

“I’m working on it.”

“By the way. That girl who came from Dongtaek earlier, the one who spilled water on Young Master Tae Ha……”

Ha Eun’s eyes twitched as if electrified.

“Never mind.”

“Why?”

“It’s nothing. I just felt like I’ve seen her somewhere before.”

Ha Eun’s hair stood on end. It seemed like proof that her suspicion that the woman might really be ‘Song Eun Seo’ from Dohwa Village was correct.

“Do you remember? When you lived in Dohwa Village before.”

“I don’t want to think about it.”

Butler Jang turned her body again at the cold response. Then she squeezed a few drops of skincare product and carefully applied it to her face. However, not long after, her fingers stroking her cheeks stopped.

“Do you remember anything from before you were adopted? Even one thing?”

“No. I don’t remember.”

“You don’t even remember where you were?”

“It was too long ago.”

“Is that so?”

“But why are you asking about that?”

Very occasionally, Butler Jang would ask Ha Eun about her childhood, and she thought it was just curiosity about her life before adoption, but today she was overwhelmed by the thought that it wasn’t for that reason.

“Because… the young master doesn’t remember either.”

“What does Tae Ha not remembering have to do with me not remembering?”

“It’s related. Because not only the young master, but you also don’t remember, about that day.”

Butler Jang just made a series of puzzling statements and calmly closed the lid of the skincare bottle.

“The young master has dissociative amnesia.”

* * *

The black sedan stopped in front of Dongtaek. By then, the thin snowfall heralding winter had already begun.

“Have a good night.”

“Thank you, please use our service again, sir.”

As the designated driver went down the alley, Tae Ha stood next to Eun Seo, who had gotten out first and was waiting in front of the gate.

“Your cheeks are red.”

“That happens when I drink.”

Eun Seo covered her cheeks with her hands shyly, as if a secret had been revealed.

“I guess I can’t lie about not drinking anywhere. It’s all so obvious.”

Suppressing the urge to gently caress her cheek, Tae Ha smiled softly. Then,

“Ah.”

As if remembering something, he bent one knee in front of Eun Seo with a short exclamation. Then, furrowing his brows, he closely examined the area around her knees.

“May I take a look?”

“At what?”

Eun Seo briefly questioned, bewildered by the man’s suddenly lowered, strange posture.

“I think you bumped into something earlier.”

It seemed he had noticed her body tilting and hitting a chair when she caught on something in the banquet hall.

“I’m fine, really.”

“‘I’m fine,’ ‘I’m sorry,’ ‘Thank you,’ don’t you have any other words besides those?”

“It doesn’t hurt.”

Finding her choice of words even more ridiculous, Tae Ha laughed briefly and said quietly,

“Lift your skirt.”

“……”

Seeing that he wouldn’t give up until she lifted her skirt, Eun Seo awkwardly raised her black skirt enough to reveal her knees. The skirt held tightly under her hands swayed, creating deep creases.

“Are you really sure nothing hurts or feels uncomfortable?”

The cold wind rushed under her skirt, but somehow her legs felt hot as she met his delicate gaze. In a black and white world, only the man’s black hair bowing below her shone in vivid color.

Because he was consistently the first person to ask about her wounds and tenderly care for her.

“No, nothing.”

Tae Ha’s gaze lifted. Startled by the sudden eye contact, Eun Seo, who had been staring at his thick hair as if enchanted, froze.

Tae Ha lowered his eyes again without saying anything.

Fortunately, her knees seemed uninjured. He wanted to check her shins too, but he couldn’t tear her peach-colored stockings to look.

“Your feet?”

“My feet are fine too.”

The warm breath from his short sigh moistened her knee.

Tae Ha signaled the end by lightly tugging on the hem of her skirt.

Clunk.

As Tae Ha stood up, the heavy gate opened. It was Jung Woo, holding a dark blue umbrella.

His hardened gaze alternating between Tae Ha and Eun Seo was enigmatic.

“How did you two come together?”

“Because we were together. What about you? Where are you going? It’s late.”

Instead of answering, Jung Woo held the umbrella over Eun Seo.

“Use this. You’ll catch a cold.”

Eun Seo felt guilty about the umbrella only covering her head and tried to move out from under it, but Jung Woo’s hand gripped her arm firmly.

A fierce wind stirred in Tae Ha’s eyes, which had shown little emotion until now, at the hand that snatched her arm. His fingers gripping the coat draped over his shoulders tensed subtly.

“I came out because it’s snowing. I was worried since you left Seotaek like that and hadn’t come back yet. It looked like you bumped pretty hard earlier, where are you hurt?”

Jung Woo’s lowered gaze fell on Eun Seo’s ankle.

“Is it here?”

Then he sat down, flexing his thigh muscles, and carefully examined her thin ankle peeking out above her shoe.

“What are you doing now?”

“Can’t you tell by looking? I’m worried.”

Worried, he says. A blue blade stood at the end of Tae Ha’s gaze as it landed on Jung Woo’s back.

“It feels like *.”

Cold Male Lead Became My Clingy Husband (Female-Dominant)

Feng Bai Su transmigrated into a matriarchal novel, becoming the sister of the female protagonist and the Seventh Princess of the Feng Ling Kingdom.

After working herself to death in her previous life, finally reincarnating as a princess, she only wanted to be a lazy fish who could eat, sleep, and play.

Until she met the male protagonist from the book, Wei Jing Mo, and he took a liking to her!

Wei Jing Mo is the top young man in Feng Ling City, talented in both appearance and ability, from a prestigious family, with a cold and otherworldly appearance, a figure like the bright moon in the hearts of noble ladies. It was thought that only the most powerful and talented noble lady in Feng Ling City would be worthy of such a brilliant young man. Who knew that this young gentleman would secretly admire the infamous Seventh Princess?

Short scene 1:

Feng Bai Su looked at the young man crying like a pear blossom in the rain before her, and couldn’t help but doubt her life.

Wasn’t the male lead described as a cold and otherworldly figure in the book?

Then who was this poor little thing crying with swollen red eyes and tear-stained face?

Short scene 2:

Wei Jing Mo stared intently at Feng Bai Su who was about to go out, wanting to say, “Be careful on the road.”

Before he could speak, Feng Bai Su suddenly bent down and bit his cheek.

Her peach blossom eyes were full of disdain: “Tsk! You’re so clingy!”

Wei Jing Mo: “…”

A talented fox spirit female lead with a flirtatious appearance but actually abstinent VS A cold-looking but actually naive and clingy little jealous male lead

Link to read