Chapter 6

Stolen Marriage

It seemed he had wanted to see this very expression.

Jeong-hoo stared at Hae-won, whose brow was slightly furrowed in distress.

Seeing her so restless somehow made his fingertips tingle, causing him to tightly clench his fist.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Is your mouth glued shut?”

“Why are you forcing such nonsense?”

“Isn’t this a marriage where it doesn’t matter as long as the prerequisite condition is being Mrs. Lee Seong-yoon’s daughter? Even if it’s Yoon Hae-won instead of Yoon Chae-ryeong, there’s no flaw whatsoever. Whether you’re adopted or not, you should be on her family registry.”

At a loss for words, Hae-won bit her lips hard, her face turning pale. The spot bitten down by her white front teeth drained completely of blood.

Yet to Jeong-hoo, those lips were excessively provocative—enough to bring back every single memory of that night.

“You know it’s not that simple.”

“I don’t see why at all. Aren’t you Mrs. Lee Seong-yoon’s daughter anyway, Yoon Hae-won?”

“….”

As he indifferently shrugged his shoulders, her hazel pupils tightened with tension.

At the sharp glare she shot at him, a dull ache surged below his waist in an instant—like a madman.

Failing to control his instincts was a thoroughly dirty feeling.

Ever since that night spent with Yoon Hae-won, something had gone horribly wrong and twisted.

There was only one way to set it right: he had to bind Yoon Hae-won firmly by his side.

“I told you—take responsibility.”

“Stop lying. How could someone so experienced possibly be a virgin?”

“I suppose I should take that to mean it was mind-blowingly good, then.”

Her lips parted to let out a short, exasperated gasp, looking breathtakingly pretty—like a madman.

Regrettably, there was not a shred of lie in his claim about it being his first time.

In truth, he hadn’t intended to spend the night with Hae-won from the beginning. He hadn’t thought it would even be possible for him to have a relationship with a woman, intending merely to intimidate her.

But he had miscalculated.

Yoon Hae-won was peculiar. Jeong-hoo—who, due to severe obsession and pathological mysophobia, hated even showing his bare body to others—found her to be the only person he could accept.

Not only did power surge tightly into his core, but even kissing her and intermingling saliva—something he had always found utterly filthy—felt completely fine.

No, it felt immensely good.

It was the first time his sexual desire had been aroused, and it was equally unprecedented for his reason to fly out the window like that.

If he had known things would turn into such a disaster, he would have ignored the temptation of that day as usual.

It was already too late for regrets.

“I believe that alone provides more than enough justification for us to become husband and wife. Don’t you think?”

“Ha, what did you say?”

“It’s a proposal with no loss on your part either. You want to get out of that house, don’t you?”

“…I can’t give you an answer right here on the spot.”

Though she was the one who had seduced him first, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her trembling face, which looked as if she were feeling humiliation.

“Was it a coincidence? Seducing the man your sister likes and dragging him all the way to bed?”

“….”

“Stop acting hypocritical and let’s make a reasonable trade. I’ll rescue you, and you, Yoon Hae-won, become an obedient wife.”

After all, you and I are equally wicked.

Standing a short distance away from him, Hae-won’s face was deathly pale.

It seemed her nature was incapable of lying. That alone was enough. Because within that, Jeong-hoo saw a crack in Hae-won.

A sliver of possibility that could lead to marriage at any moment.

While it was completely understandable that Hae-won was flustered, it was better to push her firmly right now—for the sake of his plan.

“Since it’s an arranged marriage anyway, I don’t care whether it’s the older sister or the younger sister.”

“….”

“Isn’t a husband better than a brother-in-law?”

Her dark eyes trembled violently as she instinctively sensed danger in his languid smile.

Seeing her so terrified made him want to torment her even more.

Revealing his mean nature in full, Jeong-hoo let out a sly, cunning laugh.

“Is my opinion even necessary here? Why on earth are you going to such lengths?”

“You made me like this. Do I need to explain in detail that that night was insanely good?”

It was literally as he said. Yoon Hae-won had messed with the wrong man in Seo Jeong-hoo.

Momentarily rendered speechless, Hae-won stared silently at Jeong-hoo.

Her brows knitted at his explicit and raw words.

Narrowing his eyes, Jeong-hoo reached out his hand.

His thumb traced softly over her lips, which she had bitten down on so hard.

In an instant, a tension tight as a bowstring settled between the two.

At the soft, pillowy texture against his fingertips, a electrifying shock ran through his waist like a madman.

He wanted to devour those lips right this instant—lips that felt as if sweet peach juice were oozing from them.

He felt as though doing so might quench this thirst.

He wanted to suck on her lips, nibble gently on them, and finally churn through her delicate flesh—until thick, heat-laden moans spilled out.

He felt he wouldn’t be satisfied until he heard her panting breath beneath him once more.

“You’re truly out of your mind.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Tap.

Rejecting his touch, Hae-won’s cheeks flushed red. It called to mind her face from that night, which had formed a vivid contrast against the pure white sheets.

Unable to endure the seductive atmosphere any longer, she opened the door and walked out first.

Why did seeing her slender, tottering body bring him such satisfaction?

Suppressing an indescribable surge of exhilaration, Jeong-hoo followed right behind her.

Taking long, sweeping strides, his steps quickly caught up to Hae-won and walked alongside her.

Although she seemed so dazed that she didn’t even notice they were walking at the same pace.

“Did you come out today knowing about this gathering?”

“Finding someone isn’t much of a challenge for me. Especially if it’s a woman who ran away from my bed.”

Hae-won stopped in her tracks and looked up at Jeong-hoo.

The reason she wore such a dismayed expression over today’s events was largely because she had come out without any prior information.

She had been bold when seducing him, yet she hadn’t thought through the aftermath in the slightest.

She had clearly intended to brush it off as a mere one-night stand. It had been a naive calculation that he would pretend not to know.

Regrettably, Yoon Hae-won had chosen the wrong opponent.

Because Jeong-hoo possessed a relentless nature that never let go of ‘what was his’ once it entered his hands.

Just then, behind her back, a server carrying a precarious stack of dishes approached dangerously close.

The moment before Hae-won could collide, Jeong-hoo pulled her slender wrist toward himself.

The woman’s body, held tightly against his broad chest, felt excessively delicate and small.

“…!”

“Ah! I’m so sorry!”

Startled, Hae-won blinked her eyes while wrapped in his embrace.

Just by being close, a sweet fragrance brushed against the tip of his nose.

It was the very scent that had driven him crazy that night.

The scent of Yoon Hae-won’s flesh—a scent that made him want to lick up every last drop like a dog.

Click.

Right at that moment, an extremely faint camera shutter sound echoed in their ears, barely audible to either of them.

Hae-won barely managed to get into a taxi.

She endured by putting all her strength into her legs, which had gone limp from the bizarre tension.

Instinctively, she realized she must never show weakness in front of Seo Jeong-hoo.

She couldn’t allow even the smallest opening. The moment he saw even a hairline fracture, the man would completely shatter her.

“Phew…”

Isn’t a husband better than a brother-in-law?

The face of the man making such a crazy proposal was far too nonchalant. The way the corners of his smooth lips curled up even looked sly and cunning—enough to send a sharp chill down her spine.

“Will I be able to handle this?”

It was a clear mistake.

This man was insane. He was not someone within her capacity to handle.

She recalled his bold action of secretly touching her leg in front of the elders without so much as batting an eye.

A tingling shudder pierced her body at the thought of what would have happened if they had been caught.

Seo Jeong-hoo was the pinnacle of boldness and shamelessness.

She lacked confidence in marrying such a formidable man. Yet, the word “rescue” that he had spat out kept echoing in her ears.

She had realized acutely on the bed that Seo Jeong-hoo was no well-mannered gentleman.

Thinking that his influence had ended the moment she left the hotel room was nothing more than an illusion.

It felt as though she had no choice but to be dragged along according to his plan.

“Phew…”

Barely reaching home, Hae-won let out a long sigh.

Today of all days, the house she had grown up in all her life felt like a monster ready to swallow her whole.

Hae-won was equally flustered by the situation unfolding differently than expected.

‘I slept with that man.’

After dropping such a bombshell, it was no surprise that Chae-ryeong was throwing a wild fit.

Even though she knew she should avoid Chae-ryeong at least for today, she didn’t want to hide cowardice.

She was merely taking back one thing.

His dry voice asking if she was Mrs. Lee Seong-yoon’s daughter left a deep lingering impression.

If the prerequisite condition for this marriage was being “mother’s daughter,” then from the start, the position of Seo Jeong-hoo’s wife belonged to her, not Chae-ryeong.

Even though it was a fact she already knew well, it felt like it pierced her with exceptional sharpness today.

No, perhaps it was more accurate to say she was finally feeling it properly now.

Having spent her whole life giving up and resigning herself, she had never held lingering regrets over what was “hers.” Because that was the only way she could endure.

“Hey!”

The moment she opened the front door, a voice close to a scream rang out. Chae-ryeong was throwing a frenzy like a madwoman.

How could she fail to deviate even an inch from expectations?

“You crazy bitch! Have you lost your mind?! Did you eat something wrong?!”

Now, Chae-ryeong would have no choice but to accept it—the fact that Hae-won had spent a night with Seo Jeong-hoo.

Because Seo Jeong-hoo himself had personally demonstrated it.

With his bombshell declaration that he would marry Yoon Hae-won, not Yoon Chae-ryeong.

With bloodshot eyes, Chae-ryeong grabbed Hae-won’s hair and began shaking her violently. Swaying back and forth, her head spun with dizziness.

However, she didn’t want to back down here.

Clenching her teeth tight, Hae-won kicked Chae-ryeong hard in the shin. Then, taking advantage of the moment Chae-ryeong’s body wobbled, Hae-won grabbed a fistful of her hair.

“I did the exact same thing you did to me. What’s so bad about it?”

“Are Seo Jeong-hoo and Kim Ho-jun the same?!”

“You’re far worse. Seo Jeong-hoo was just an unrequited crush, but Kim Ho-jun was your sister’s fiancé!”

At this point, there seemed to be no reason not to hold that man Seo Jeong-hoo’s hand—

Especially after seeing Chae-ryeong thrashing about after losing her mind.

“Are you and I the same?!”

This was Chae-ryeong’s true feelings.

It was necessary to show her just how miserable the end result of extreme selfishness—where “it’s fine for me, but never for you”—could be.

“You wretched girl! Where do you think you’re placing your hands on my precious daughter’s body?!”

At that moment, Jin-sook struck Hae-won violently across the back.

From the harsh blow, a dull, throbbing pain continued to spread out.

Enduring any longer in this house would lead to nothing but hell.

If things had already reached a point of no return anyway, wouldn’t holding hands with that crazy man be the right choice?

Hae-won closed her eyes tightly, then opened them.

The sight of the mother and daughter throwing a frantic fit was simply exhausting. Her bystander of a father was nowhere to be seen.

“I’m going to marry him—that man, Seo Jeong-hoo.”

I’m sick and tired of this.

Let’s end this now.