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chapter 19
Her previously aloof expression suddenly shifted into surprise.
He continued speaking.
“Men are simple creatures. If they feel their abilities are doubted, they cling on until they’re acknowledged.”
His gaze was like that of a predator locking onto its prey.
The air in the kitchen grew hot, nerves stretched tight.
She had only spoken to avoid being swayed, but she had pressed the wrong button.
Anxiousness spread inside her head like a red warning light.
Yeon-ha hurriedly pushed back her chair and stood up.
Screeech—
The sharp sound of wood scraping against marble echoed.
“Thanks for the coffee. I’ll get going now.”
At her sudden movement, Do-hyun’s brow furrowed slightly.
“Already? You didn’t even take a sip.”
“Let’s just pretend I did.”
She gave an awkward smile and quickened her steps, but he blocked her path.
Even though she wasn’t small, the moment he stood in front of her, he felt like a wall.
“Move.”
“Look at me.”
She stubbornly refused to raise her head, so he tilted her chin up.
It didn’t hurt, but there was a force she couldn’t resist.
Reluctantly lifting her eyelids, her eyes met his, waiting as though he’d been anticipating it. His gaze traced her face.
“Are you… scared of me?”
“……No.”
It wasn’t him she was afraid of.
She feared losing control again, crossing a line.
Because even recalling that night made her lower stomach tighten with a cold shiver.
“Then, just stay thirty more minutes before leaving.”
His eyes glimmered, soft as though coaxing her.
As she was entranced by those dark pupils that seemed to swallow the night, his slender fingers brushed against her lower lip.
Her soft lips reddened beneath the pressure of his touch, and his Adam’s apple bobbed slowly.
As though a button had been pressed, she let out the breath she’d been holding. Through her slightly parted lips, his index finger slipped inside.
Her pupils widened at the sudden intrusion.
Without breaking eye contact, he tapped her tongue lightly with his fingertip. Startled, like prey spotting a predator, she flinched back.
But instead of chasing, he explored slowly.
He brushed past her neat white teeth like piano keys, stroked the tender inner flesh, skimmed the rounded roof, then pressed against the back of her tongue. Thick saliva began to pool and threatened to spill past her parted lips.
Flustered, Yeon-ha closed her mouth. The drool didn’t escape, but now it looked as though she was biting his finger.
His eyes darkened, and he wound around her tongue, gently coaxing it as though soothing a child, then pressed firmly against its sensitive underside.
From the tip to the back—intimate, indecent.
Her mind screamed to shove his hand away, but her body refused to obey, as if under a spell.
RRRRR. RRRRR. RRRRR.
The shrill ring of a phone shattered the silence, snapping her back to reality.
Startled, she pulled away, and his finger slipped out of her mouth, a thin thread of saliva breaking with a snap.
“Don’t go. Wait.”
He looked at her with regret as she wiped her lips with the back of her hand, then reluctantly moved toward the phone that wouldn’t stop ringing.
He cursed himself for forgetting to silence it.
Heading into the kitchen, he saw the name on the screen. After a long pause, he finally answered.
[“Jayden?”]
Before he could even say hello, a lively female voice burst out. It reminded him of a golden retriever begging for a walk.
“Talk, Kayla.”
[“Can you talk right now?”]
“Even if I said no, you’d still talk, wouldn’t you?”
He glanced at Yeon-ha’s reflection in the kitchen window as he replied.
[“Tch. You’re the only one acting busy.”]
Her pouty tone practically clung to his ear. He could easily imagine her lips jutting out.
Knowing her sulky moods lasted long, Do-hyun began soothing her gently.
“Sorry. I’ve been distracted, trying to adjust.”
[“Do you even think of me?”]
“Of course. Now that I’ve settled in, I’ll call more often.”
[“Really?”]
Her voice brightened immediately, as if she’d never been upset. Do-hyun let out a small laugh.
Just then—BANG! A door slammed.
He turned his head. She was gone. She’d slipped away without a word while he was on the phone.
He wanted to hang up and chase after her right then, but would she even open the door if he caught up?
If only it hadn’t been Kayla’s call.
Swallowing his frustration, he heard Kayla’s voice rise again.
[“Jayden! Jayden!”]
“Yeah. What is it?”
[“Can I come visit Korea during my break?”]
He knew she would come regardless of what he said, so he didn’t want to argue.
“How long?”
[“A month?”]
His breath caught.
“A week.”
[“What? It’s my first time in Korea—how can I see everything in just a week?”]
When her planned month was suddenly cut down to a third, Kayla snapped.
“A week’s plenty. The transportation system here is amazing.”
[“Are you serious right now?”]
“Don’t come if you don’t like it.”
[“W-Who said I’m not coming!”]
He worried she might actually be upset, but when she agreed so quickly, he smothered a laugh.
After finishing the call with a promise to set dates, he looked back at the now quiet living room and sighed softly.
A luxury car, out of place in the countryside, glided into the village entrance.
Mr. Park, who ran the corner store, peeked out the window.
The man parked in the village square, glanced at his phone, then strode into the alley.
“Who’s that? Don’t recognize him.”
Mr. Park tilted his head but soon turned back to the TV, where his favorite trot singer had just appeared.
He hummed along, absorbed in the music, until he noticed the same man reemerge from the alley.
The man paused, scanned his surroundings, then headed toward the store.
He was tall and broad-shouldered, handsome like a movie star, and dressed in stylish clothes—clearly not an ordinary villager.
After thirty years of running the same shop, Mr. Park knew everything about his neighbors, down to how many spoons each household owned. His eyes narrowed warily at the stranger.
Creeeeak—
The rusty old sliding door opened, and the man ducked inside. His height made the cramped space feel smaller.
Mr. Park momentarily forgot to greet him, staring in a daze.
Meanwhile, the man silently grabbed a drink from the fridge and placed it on the counter.
“How much?”
“Two thousand five hundred won.”
He handed over a ten-thousand-won bill and told him to keep the change. Mr. Park looked at him in puzzlement, and the man explained:
“I’d like to ask something. Do you know a woman named Kim Sun-ja who used to live around here?”
“Sun-ja?”
“Yes. She should be in her mid-fifties now, with a daughter who has a developmental disability.”
Mr. Park’s eyes still held suspicion.
“You don’t look like you’re from around here. Who are you to be asking about Sun-ja?”
“So you do know her?”
The way her name came so naturally from him made the man’s eyes brighten.
“I said, who are you to be looking for her?”
When Mr. Park’s wariness didn’t ease, the man pulled a business card from his jacket and handed it over.
“Nam Do-hyun / MD, LS Fashion Product Planning”
Mr. Park squinted at the card, and the man added:
“I’m Kim Sun-ja’s son.”
“Sun-ja’s… son?”
“Yes.”
Mr. Park blinked in astonishment, struck speechless.
