Eun Chae swallowed with a throat gone dry in the meantime, and watched him.

He struggled with his wet jacket, before shrugging it off in one swift motion. His shirt was soaked and stuck to his body. His wellsculpted muscles were plainly visible. Eun Chae felt a sudden tingling sensation in her stomach.

Soon after, he began to unbutton his shirt and walked toward the dining room. His wet suit pants dragged on the floor, leaving a trail of moisture behind.

While Eun Chae was staring at the wet floor, Ki Joo opened the refrigerator door.

After scanning the lined up bottles of water and sparkling water, he took out a bottle of water, unscrewed the cap and was about to drink when he cast a fleeting glance at Eun Chae. Instead of asking if she wanted something to drink, he halfextended his arm. When she shook her head, he didn’t insist.

Eun Chae looked up more, watching him swallow water with his neck tilted back. Specifically, she was captivated by his adam’s apple bobbing up and down. It didn’t last long, due to the water quickly going down.

Despite knowing he was being watched, Ki Joo didn’t seem to mind. He crumpled the plastic bottle in one hand and threw it into the trash can as he moved. He completely disappeared from her sight, only to return shortly with a towel.

Then he stood in the middle of the living room, looking straight at her. As if beckoning her to come closer.

Eun Chae stood still, looking back at Ki Joo.

How much time had passed in this standoff?

Ki Joo slowly approached her. She did nothing but swallow, not backing away. Not that there was anywhere to back away to.

He was standing barefoot on the entrance floor, wiping Eun Chae’s hair and face with the towel. His touch was clumsy, awkward. Yet, careful.

With her head lowered for ease of being dried, she quietly opened her mouth.

“… Here.”

At the soft voice of Eun Chae, his movement stopped abruptly.

“Is this your house, Mr. Kwon Ki Joo?”

Ki Joo was silent for a moment after her question. Instead of rushing him, Eun Chae lifted her head. It seemed like his pupils were darkening.

“… Are you uncomfortable?”

Even while asking, Ki Joo moved his hand. His long, strong fingers dug into her hair and gently rubbed. As if saying it’s okay.

Someone might see. They might get caught.

Eun Chae felt her earlier tight emotions unwinding as she unconsciously considered these things.

What makes him so relaxed? There must be some basis for his composure, she thought, but then the thought that there was no countermeasure came first.

“Seung Yoon knows.”

Eun Chae did not bother to explain what Seung Yoon knows. Ki Joo twisted one side of his lips, as if he roughly understood.

“It’s suspicious for us to go into the house after being in the rain together.”

“…”

“And we weren’t followed.”

Close to her, his voice made her face feel strangely hot. She could hardly bear to look into the eyes of the man whose gaze was just as warm, so she fixated on his lips and chin as he spoke.

Eventually, he withdrew his hand. The sound of his footsteps moved away and then the sounds of living came through. Eun Chae craned her neck to look. He put a pot of water on the fire, rolled up his wet sleeves, and took out some chicken stock. His arm muscles bulged visibly.

For a moment, Eun Chae felt a heat behind her eyes and bit her lips hard.

Whether he knew it or not, Ki Joo put something into the boiling water. She stared at him without even blinking.

It was quite a while.

He gripped the island table with both hands and lowered his head. She thought she heard a faint sigh.

Soon, he placed a dish steaming hot on the island table.

“Come and eat.”

Eun Chae slowly approached the dining table. What he had made was chicken stew. Beyond the heat of her eyelids, it was far away. She couldn’t reach out at once, and her throat hurt from the overwhelming emptiness.

Perhaps interpreting her hesitation as refusal, Ki Joo spoke in a subdued voice.

“If you’re anxious, let’s go.”

After saying that, his body, which was about to leave his seat, froze stiffly. It was Eun Chae who had grabbed Ki Joo’s wet sleeve, who was trying to turn away.

She hated it.

Eun Chae slowly raised her head, catching her rough breath. Her heart was in turmoil with the reluctance to go anywhere where Chairman Song was.

She then felt him turning his head to look down at her. Briefly, she saw the corner of his eyes reddening.

The sudden thought made Eun Chae bite her lips.

The shirt gripped by her fingers felt warm.

Why. Why again Ki Joo?

In that moment, she didn’t think about anything.

The moment Ki Joo’s tense forearm met Eun Chae’s silent gaze and eyes, something hardened.

Her eyes were always tightly knit with resentment and mistrust. But for some reason, they hid and the exposed pupils were inexplicably clear.

When she blinked her eyes, she saw her hand desperately clinging to the sleeve. With a strength so insignificant, it turned pitifully pale.

Seeing that, Ki Joo’s head throbbed.

“What are you doing?”

As he muttered in a choked voice, one of Eun Chae’s shoulders curled inward. The arm holding the sleeve end was vibrating slightly.

Her empty eyes shimmered like a mirage, and soon she clutched Ki Joo’s sleeve tightly. At that moment, he felt blood surge explosively inside him.

“I…”

As he opened his mouth, Ki Joo took Eun Chae’s hand that was gripping his sleeve and abruptly removed it. His gaze was fixed on her eyes, which shook for a moment then quickly became calm.

“I gave you a chance.”

“……”

After muttering in a low voice, Eun Chae, who hadn’t heard him in time, furrowed her eyebrows. Then her pupils dilated. It was because Ki Joo had pulled her up onto the kitchen island with tremendous force.

The dishes rolled back. Eun Chae wavered, trying to balance herself. But in that instant, as if he couldn’t allow it, Ki Joo lifted her chin and pressed his lips against hers. His fiery lips harshly rubbed against Eun Chae’s frozen ones.

“Uh…!”

Eun Chae was engulfed in a thrill that made the ends of her hair stand on end. Like a drowning person flailing her arms, Ki Joo kindly grabbed her arm and guided it around his neck. She was forced to cling desperately to his strong neck.

The moment Eun Chae felt his body radiating a mysterious heat and trembling slightly, tears welled up in her eyes.

Ki Joo grabbed her legs with his hands. He pulled her thighs, which were squashed when grabbed, closer to his body.

Ah.

Ki Joo suddenly pulled away his lips and let out a sigh. He pressed his burning forehead against her neck and panted.

Eun Chae tightly closed her eyes as she entwined her fingers through his wet hair. The insane thought that she wanted time to stop like this flooded her. Right now, as his raspy breathing filled her ears, her mind was in turmoil.

Ki Joo, who barely held up his neck, looked at her with eyes fluttering with excitement.

Was it since he found out about the sudden collapse in Sunsan? Or was it when she said she wanted another man? Or was it when they met again?

As Ki Joo tried to figure out when the desire started, he eventually stopped.

It doesn’t matter anyway.

She was trembling oddly. The moment he witnessed that, he felt something he had been barely holding onto snap. At the same time, her body collapsed abruptly.

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