From early evening until late night, Seo Jun was in the bedroom, indulging in the long aftermath of releasing his burning desire while holding So Yeon in his arms.

However, it was just like the relentless Tae Seo Jun. His graceful body was already moving again, plunging greedily and biting her slender neck.

That’s when it happened.

“Oh no, what should I do…I have a shoot tomorrow. Never mind my body, but what about the marks on my neck?”

It was So Yeon’s lovely voice that brought Seo Jun back to reality from being intoxicated by Eom So Yeon, who was sweeter than honey and more addictive than drugs.

So Yeon’s whining was not an unnecessary fuss. Since he kept pouncing on her tirelessly as if marking his territory, biting and sucking endlessly, her delicate skin was bound to be less than perfect.

However, the culprit who made So Yeon’s neck mottled showed a side that didn’t suit his image as a top predator and made an excuse.

“It’s probably not my fault.”

“Are you saying it’s my fault now?”

“Well, who told you to be so pretty? I’m the one going crazy because of you. Seductively pretty at night, innocently pretty in the morning. Do you not think about how you’ve relentlessly captivated me?”

Seo Jun spoke slowly as he pressed his lips firmly along her white skin from her shoulders to her neck.

So Yeon, who didn’t mind his generous praise, asked coyly with a lovely expression as if she had never worried about tomorrow’s schedule.

“What about during the day? Did I not commit any sins during the day?”

“Of course you did. You were dazzlingly pretty, of course. So much that I couldn’t bear not to hold you right away…”

“…!”

The conversation didn’t continue any further. No, it couldn’t. Because Seo Jun swiftly parted So Yeon’s lips as she was about to say something and entered.

With a deep kiss, their bodies also tightly intertwined, perfectly filling even the small remaining gaps.

As Seo Jun’s lips moved back near her collarbone, So Yeon, breathing heavily, warned him with a small voice.

“I told you I have a shoot tomorrow.”

“You can wear clothes that don’t expose it.”

“Will that work?”

“Wear something that comes up to your neck.”

His dark eyes blazed only with desire for Eom So Yeon. Fixing that heated gaze on So Yeon’s face, Seo Jun replied as he inserted his fingers between her long hair strands.

“If you don’t have any, I’ll buy it for you.”

“It’s tomorrow right away?”

So Yeon looked at him with sharp eyes, but Seo Jun just mumbled as if it didn’t matter, repeatedly kissing her plump lips and fair skin.

“Let’s go together in a bit. I can even buy the entire shop for you.”

“At this hour of the night?”

He was a man who could enter a department store even after business hours with just one phone call. But what sin did the department store employees commit? She didn’t want to inconvenience many people because of herself, and if it was clothes she needed, she could ask Do Soon to bring them from home.

However, So Yeon, who had already chosen a dress with some exposure, pouted at the thought of having to give it up.

“I want to go to the next room now.”

“That’s a bit of a problem.”

There’s nothing more frustrating and painful than leaving something unfinished. Especially once the body is heated up, it’s not easy to control. Moreover, he absolutely could not allow her to go to the next room.

Last night, So Yeon slept in the next room. Of course, she had secretly left while he was asleep, so Seo Jun only realized it when he opened his eyes, feeling somewhat empty. So, he had to put her back where she belonged that dawn before he could fall asleep again.

Therefore, her going to the next room was out of the question even if the sky were to split in two.

“I don’t care, good night!”

“Where are you going?”

“Eek!”

Seo Jun swiftly grabbed the arm of So Yeon, who was trying to get out of bed, and wrapped her body tightly with his long arms and legs.

“Even if you sleep, you have to sleep with me. Don’t do it again like yesterday. I’ll put handcuffs on you if I have to.”

Unlike his forceful words, his eyes were profound. Even his languid tone was extremely soft and sweet, as if it would melt her ears.

Her heart, once again captivated by him, suddenly pounded loudly.

At this moment, So Yeon had no choice but to admit it.

Even if she died and was born again, she could never escape from him, and she could only lose to Tae Seo Jun in everything.

[This is the timeline separator]

Thump thump thump thump…

The club was bustling with people surrendering their bodies to the intense beat late into the night.

Until late at night, Jung Hwa was in the club that only allowed celebrities, swallowing the bitter salt that resembled her dismal situation along with a sip of tequila.

Regardless of the process, her biological father had died. But then her biological mother, whom she never expected, showed up at the funeral, shed tears for a while, and left. What was the meaning of those tears? Why did she leave without a word?

Consumed by that question, she investigated and found out that her mother had remarried an ordinary man and was living a rather smooth life. That’s probably why she came and went quietly. The fact that she had such a mother was more of a loss than a gain. It was worse than not having one at all.

Why were the people who were her family so wretched? Jung Hwa, who only thought about quickly escaping from the hellish human relationships, had no choice but to become more obsessed with Tae Seo Jun.

To become the proud daughter-in-law of a chaebol family that no one could defy. To bid farewell to her dirty and miserable reality forever.

In order to be fully compensated for her twisted and beggar-like life that started from the top of the world where there was nowhere higher to climb, she absolutely needed Tae Seo Jun.

If they dated once, couldn’t they date a second time? If he hesitated to come back to her because of another woman, she would just cut off that obstacle as she had always done. If even that didn’t work, she had no choice but to destroy everything.

Just wait and see, Tae Seo Jun!

I’ll show you soon that no one but me can have you! Let’s see who laughs last!

Yoo Jung Hwa, gritting her teeth like this, had nothing to fear. It was just frustrating that the path to him wasn’t opening up easily in the current situation.

However, she wasn’t pessimistic about the future. Because in Yoo Jung Hwa’s eventful life, this kind of thing was no big deal. Because she could achieve her goals one by one, even making the impossible possible.

But Jung Hwa, who had to deal with trashy people again and had to appear on variety shows that she had considered taboo until now to make urgently needed money, downed a shot of tequila in one gulp as if to soothe her complicated feelings.

Not long after that.

As if appearing out of nowhere, a tall man was standing in front of Jung Hwa, looking at her.

“Oh?”

In Ha promptly took the seat next to Jung Hwa.

“Jo In Ha!”

“I’ve been watching you for a while and you seemed lonely by yourself. Let’s drink together.”

As the waiter inside the bar quickly placed a glass in front of In Ha, he unhesitatingly took Jung Hwa’s bottle and poured it into his own glass. Jung Hwa, who had been blankly watching him, lowered her voice and asked.

“Were the strange rumors true? During the time when there were all sorts of stories like you retired from the entertainment industry, immigrated overseas, were battling a serious illness, where and how have you been?”

It made sense for such rumors to spread after he suspended his entertainment activities for three months and went into seclusion. However, the fact that the rumors were unfounded was proven just by Jo In Ha appearing with an even more stylish appearance than before.

While his broken nose bridge healed and his wounds recovered, how could he not feel wronged and angry? It was a bitter breakup as much as he had only looked at one woman.

But what he deeply realized during that period was that he himself, who had been abnormally obsessed with Eom So Yeon, was truly reckless and a terrible man.

Perhaps it was a time of rest to reflect on his past self. In Ha smiled and opened his mouth.

“Well, the rumors weren’t entirely wrong. I only realized now that the terrible disease of one-sided love had made me bizarre for a long time. I also learned that the feelings I had loved to death were poison disguised as purity.”

What happened to In Ha during that time that he even said such things? However, having shared personal stories with each other in Spain, Jung Hwa could immediately guess his state of mind.

“Then… are you saying you cleanly sorted out your feelings for Eom So Yeon?”

“Even if a knife were put to my throat, I can’t say no.”

“Oh dear, I feel bad for you.”

“I don’t think you’re much different from me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m talking about Tae Seo Jun.”

“Why are you suddenly bringing him up?”

“It doesn’t seem like he’s just casually seeing Eom So Yeon. At first, I thought she was just an amusement for a great man, but that wasn’t the case.”

It might sound absurd, but Jung Hwa’s ears had no choice but to perk up.

“…Are you saying this knowing something?”

“Do you know what CN Entertainment celebrities are whispering about these days? There are rumors that he only follows Eom So Yeon around, and anyway, Tae Seo Jun is openly clinging to her. They’re expecting a big scandal to break out soon, but he doesn’t care about that at all. There are even talks starting to circulate that he might be thinking of marriage. My thoughts, having experienced the two of them, are no different.”

“…!”

That, that can’t be!

She had never heard of it, and does it make sense for Tae Seo Jun to go all-in on one woman? Jung Hwa’s eyelids twitched, priding herself on knowing better than anyone that he wasn’t that kind of man.

However, she couldn’t easily believe In Ha’s words since she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes. Even if that were the case, so what?

“I don’t know. Even if what you’re saying is true, do you think those two will end up well?”

Cha Yeo Jin, a woman of strong character.

And Tae Seok Ho, known as the tiger of the business world.

Would those two formidable people really be able to accept that girl as their son’s marriage partner? No, no matter how talented Eom So Yeon was, there was no way they would allow a woman who openly gave birth to and raised someone else’s child.

Moreover, if she was the owner of Elstella Hotel, she was definitely someone they could never acknowledge as a daughter-in-law.

“Huh, I don’t think so.”

Yoo Jung Hwa, clearly foreseeing their future, put on a leisurely smile over her cold expression.

[This is the timeline separator]

So Yeon received a pickup from Do Soon in Nonhyeon-dong and set off for Yangpyeong.

As it was a variety program filming outdoors for two days, the black van was filled with all sorts of props.

[Contact me anytime if you’re uncomfortable or having a hard time. I’ll come running whether it’s night or dawn if you call.]

It was around the time they passed the tollgate and entered the big highway. Having checked the text message that just came from Seo Jun, So Yeon bit her lips that curled into a smile and glanced at Do Soon.

The usually talkative Yeo Do Soon was quiet today and even looked listless, so she felt conscious about laughing happily by herself.

So Yeon leaned forward from the back seat and poked her face out slightly towards the driver’s seat.

“Do Soon-ah.”

“…”

When there was no answer even after calling, So Yeon raised her voice and called her friend’s name again.

“Yeo Do Soon!”

“Huh? What?”

Do Soon’s eyes, which met through the rearview mirror, were excessively hollow.

“Are you sick somewhere?”

“No.”

“Is it because you don’t want to talk to me because of Director Tae?”

“It seems like you feel guilty about what you did, but I don’t like Tae Seo Jun anymore. It’s fine, so you can have him all.”

So Yeon was relieved to confirm that it wasn’t because of her.

“If you’re sleepy, I’ll drive.”

“No! I’m not sleepy! Don’t even think about it! I’m already feeling nauseous, I’ll throw up if you drive!”

Was Eom So Yeon’s driving a bit eccentric? Do Soon, whose eyes sparked back to life, gripped the steering wheel tightly as if burning with the will to never let it be taken away.

“You seem a bit strange today.”

“I know. I’m not normal.”

So Yeon reached out and massaged Do Soon’s neck area, thinking she might be in a bad mood because she was tired.

“So why is that?”

“I slept with him.”

“Sleeping is nothing new these days…!”

So Yeon’s eyes grew as big as marbles, realizing a bit late that sleeping didn’t mean just sleeping.