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chapter 20
Sena scanned him from head to toe, as if appreciating him.
“It’s been a while since I last heard from Yeonseo. Here’s my business card! Since fate brought us together after such a long time, why don’t we all have a meal together sometime?”
Opening her bag again and rummaging inside, she pulled out a card and handed it to Doheon.
He glanced down at the card with a blank expression.
“Well.”
Then, lowering his eyelids, he muttered.
Sena’s throat clicked audibly as she swallowed.
“I might be the friend who knows Yeonseo best. Right? Please give me one of your business cards too.”
How could she be so shameless? What on earth was going through her head? Yeonseo watched Sena’s behavior with a hollow smile.
Doheon pulled out a card from the inside pocket of his jacket and held it out. Sena’s mouth dropped wide open.
“Ex… Executive Director Seo Doheon….”
No pictures on portal sites, only endless rumors—and now, here of all places, she was meeting Seo Doheon in person. It seemed she had never imagined such a thing.
“Then that woman who married Executive Director Seo Doheon… Yeonseo, that’s you…?”
Yeonseo stared back at her with a face emptied of emotion.
Suddenly, Sena bowed deeply toward Doheon.
“Executive Director, it’s an honor to meet you. I’m Park Sena, a new hire at Seoguk Bio R&D.”
Typical of her to switch attitudes the moment she figured out who she was facing. Even back in high school, she was good at flattering anyone who looked like they had higher status.
Forcing her stiff muscles to comply, Sena twisted her face into a hideous smile.
“Ah.”
In contrast, there was not a flicker of change in Doheon’s demeanor.
Looking down at her with dry eyes, he finally spoke.
“Are you really close with my wife?”
At the unexpected question, Sena pressed herself right up against Yeonseo. Before Yeonseo could react, her arm was hooked.
“Of course! We used to visit each other’s houses back in the day, so you could say we were close.”
“But my Yeonseo looks as though she’s remembering something unpleasant with you.”
Doheon’s gaze lingered on Yeonseo’s startled, frozen expression. Perhaps he had seen enough people like Sena in his life—he seemed to grasp the truth in an instant.
“N-no! Yeonseo just doesn’t express herself well. Right, Yeonseo? You know how much I liked you….”
Either oblivious or pretending to be, Sena waved her free hand dramatically, tightening her grip on Yeonseo’s arm until it hurt. She was relentless.
“…Let go.”
Yeonseo yanked Sena’s hand off her arm.
Where exactly was her bottom line? She had no shame—treating Yeonseo like dirt at one moment, then switching attitudes when she sensed a chance to use her.
A chuckle escaped from beside her.
“I don’t think there will ever be an occasion for me to dine privately with Ms. Park Sena.”
Doheon returned the card she had given him.
“Take it back. I don’t think we’ll ever meet again. And I don’t accept business cards just from anyone.”
A shadow of defeat crossed Sena’s face as she took the card back. She looked restless, as though searching for something else to say to repair her image.
“No, I just—”
“Do I need to keep listening to you?”
At his cold gaze, tears welled in Sena’s eyes. Yeonseo knew that look well—the face she made whenever she was cornered and wanted to wriggle out.
‘Isn’t it pretty? It’s from Marcie, I paid six million won.’
She remembered Sena boasting, flaunting the luxury bracelet her father had given her.
‘My dad gives me anything I want when I cry. If I want something, I just cry. Men are really weak to tears, you know.’
But Doheon was unmoved. Even if she was an employee of his company, he clearly didn’t see her as having any value.
Turning back to Yeonseo, Doheon saw only empty eyes.
“Let’s go home.”
Home? Her home was here, but he must have meant Myeongseonjae. Still, the word made her feel strangely protected.
Without a second thought, he turned and walked away. All eyes followed them. With his arm gently resting on her shoulder, Doheon led Yeonseo out of the tense café.
In the car leaving Yangpyeong, silence filled the space between them, heavy enough that even the rustling of fabric felt loud.
Yeonseo fidgeted with her fingers, searching for words.
“Thank you… for today.”
She meant it. Ever since her grandmother’s passing, no one had ever stood by her like that.
Doheon said nothing. His sharp profile was highlighted against the taillights ahead.
His gaze, darkened and sunken, felt almost angry.
She couldn’t understand why he seemed so upset when he didn’t even know the full story of what had happened with her.
“Why didn’t you say anything back there? When I first met you, you were bold enough. Do you have some kind of ‘good girl complex’?”
Yeonseo thought back to her stiff, frozen self. Sena’s eyes and actions had dragged her straight back into old memories, as though she had been transported to that time.
Especially when Doheon appeared.
“…For some reason, my body just froze, and I couldn’t say anything.”
He stayed silent for a while. Veins stood out on the hands gripping the steering wheel.
“What exactly happened…?”
“……”
“If it’s hard to talk about, you don’t have to.”
But for some reason, in front of Doheon, she felt like she could speak the words she had always tried to bury deep.
“I used to think of her as a friend. Once, at least.”
“……”
“My mother left when I was little, so I was raised entirely by my grandmother. Sena was the only friend I ever confided in.”
“……”
“There was a rumor that my mom ran away with a married man. The rumor grew, people didn’t want to be around me, and in the end it turned into bullying….”
Maybe her grandmother had known. After all, the gym uniform in the washing machine must have smelled strange. Around that time, her grandmother’s eyes had often looked sad.
When she finished her story, Yeonseo felt oddly relieved. So this is why people share their pain—it felt a little lighter. She wanted to say more.
“Next time, at least curse. Don’t keep swallowing your words like that. And if you can’t, then call me….”
Yeonseo had never once cursed, even as a joke. She doubted she could, even if it happened again. Still, his words felt like comfort.
“I’ll talk to HR, find a reason to let her go. Seoguk values character too.”
“No. Please don’t go that far.”
Her voice rose.
That much revenge was enough. Forcing a new hire to resign over personal issues could cause controversy and damage Doheon’s reputation more than anything.
“You’re really just going to let it go?”
But he seemed to understand her wish and didn’t press further.
“You’re like a flower in the field.”
“A wildflower? How so…?”
“Even without protection, trampled by everyone, growing in a harsh place….”
What was he saying? He offered no explanation, just continued.
“You’re unbelievably beautiful.”
“……”
“Beautiful enough to want to pluck and keep all to myself.”
Her cheeks flamed at his unhesitating confession.
What did he really feel? He treated her like nothing more than a contractual partner, yet sometimes glimpses of raw emotion slipped through.
Was it just male desire? Or maybe courtesy toward someone he had shared a bed with? Yeonseo dismissed it as a meaningless hope and tried to scatter her thoughts.
But she couldn’t deny the rush of emotions or the quickening of her breath.
Feelings she had never experienced with anyone before.
By then, the car had entered Seoul.
She realized this was the first time she’d ever had such a long, personal conversation with him.
“Are you staying at Myeongseonjae tonight?”
Because of his busy schedule, she often spent nights there alone. Somewhere along the way, she realized she had started waiting for the days he came.
“If you want me to.”
A small smile slipped from his lips.
She felt dizzy, as though he had seen right through her thoughts. Blinking rapidly, she stammered a clumsy excuse.
“N-not exactly… I just meant that if we’re seen together more often, your family will be less suspicious.”
“That makes sense.”
His calm agreement eased her nerves.
Then, in the stopped car, he turned, pulled her chin toward him—
And her soft skin disappeared into his mouth.
