Chapter 04
Before long, darkness had settled in, and faint lights were reflected in the windows outside.
Chaerin had been sitting by the window for hours.
The stiff texture of the business card hidden in her palm was beginning to irritate her. A dull ache kept stirring in her chest.
Trying to endure the emotions crashing over her like tidal waves, Chaerin repeatedly closed and opened her eyes.
Taeseok was soaring high in the sky, as though he had grown wings, while she was stuck in a wheelchair, unable even to walk properly.
As her tangled thoughts grew increasingly chaotic, Chaerin glanced sideways at her caregiver.
The woman was sitting on the sofa watching television, paying absolutely no attention to her.
“Bring me some sikhye.”
At her request, the caregiver reluctantly got up from the sofa.
She opened the refrigerator with an irritated expression, but naturally, there was no sikhye to be found.
“We don’t have any sikhye. I’ll get you some juice instead.”
When the caregiver took out a bottle of orange juice, Chaerin shot her a sharp glare.
“Did I say I wanted juice? Go out and buy some. Not the kind they sell at convenience stores. Get some that’s freshly made at a restaurant.”
Annoyance spread across the caregiver’s face.
“Where am I supposed to find that at this hour…?”
“If you don’t want to get it, then just leave. I’ll call someone else. I should ask them to replace my caregiver while I’m at it.”
Faced with Chaerin’s firm declaration, the caregiver turned away, muttering under her breath.
Aside from reporting the patient’s condition to Han Ohjun once a day, she barely had anything to do, yet she was being paid twice as much as an ordinary caregiver. Naturally, she had no desire to lose her job.
“Fine, I’ll go. I’ll be back.”
As soon as the caregiver disappeared outside, Chaerin called Taeseok.
After two or three rings, a low, emotionless voice came through the receiver.
“Speak.”
He didn’t even ask who was calling.
His tone was so dry and matter-of-fact that it was as though he had already known Chaerin would call him.
“If you get me out of here, I’ll do whatever you want.”
“What is it that I want?”
Taeseok asked as though he had no idea what she meant, even though he knew perfectly well.
“…Marriage.”
Even if he called her a horrible woman for it, at this point, taking his hand was the only option she had left.
If marrying him was how she could make amends for her mistakes, as he had said, then Chaerin had no reason to hesitate.
A satisfied chuckle came from the other end of the line.
“I’ll send a driver right away.”
The call ended with that brief response. Chaerin anxiously wheeled herself around the hospital room.
Under the pretense of treating her, Han Ohjun had practically confined her to the room.
Whenever she tried to leave, her lower body, which she could barely move, held her back.
Even if Taeseok sent a driver, she was still worried about whether she could get out without the caregiver noticing.
However, less than ten minutes after the call ended, the hospital room door quietly opened, and a man dressed in a suit appeared.
“Executive Director Kang Taeseok sent me. Let’s go.”
The man quietly pushed Chaerin’s wheelchair.
As they passed through the empty corridor, her heart began to pound faster and faster.
When they reached the parking lot, a driver who had been waiting approached and quickly helped Chaerin into the car.
Soon, the black sedan pulled out of the hospital parking lot.
The flashing neon signs lining the streets and the cars cutting through the night air caught her attention.
It had been six months since she’d last been outside the hospital.
For some reason, she felt as though she might burst into tears.
Chaerin bit down hard on her lip, forcing herself to hold back the tears.
After driving for quite some time, the car stopped in front of a mansion on the outskirts of the city.
As the enormous iron gates opened, an expansive, lush property unfolded before her, far grander than anything she could have imagined from outside the walls.
The car slowly continued farther into the grounds.
A short while later, it stopped in front of an elegant, old-fashioned building nestled deep within the estate.
“Please come inside.”
The man opened the door and pushed Chaerin’s wheelchair.
He led her down a long corridor before stopping in front of a door at the far end.
When he knocked, Taeseok’s voice came from inside.
“Let her in.”
Upon entering the room, Chaerin saw Taeseok sitting on a sofa in front of a large fireplace.
She drew a deep breath.
Had she made the wrong choice?
But she had no other options.
Myeongin Furniture, the company she cherished more than anything, was steadily declining. She needed to reclaim her position as its president as soon as possible, before Han Ohjun swallowed up everything.
Chaerin slowly wheeled herself toward Taeseok.
He held out a sheet of paper to her.
As she accepted it, her eyes trembled violently.
It was a marriage contract.
“What is this?”
“I’d be terribly heartbroken if Yoo Chaerin stabbed me in the back and ran away again.”
Taeseok gently curled the corners of his lips upward, revealing a possessiveness so intense it bordered on obsession.
Chaerin swallowed nervously.
1. Party A, Kang Taeseok, shall marry Party B, Yoo Chaerin, within one year.
2. Party B may not initiate a divorce. If she wishes to divorce during the marriage, she must transfer 12% of Myeongin Furniture’s shares to Party A.
3. Provided that Party B complies with the above provisions, Party A shall actively assist Yoo Chaerin in regaining her position as president of Myeongin Furniture.
The terms were blatantly unfair at first glance.
Moreover, 12% represented every single share of Myeongin Furniture that Chaerin owned.
“If there’s any clause you want to change, tell me.”
“What do you really want, Senior? What’s the real reason you approached me with a contract like this?”
Chaerin asked, looking him straight in the eye.
“Because I like Yoo Chaerin. That’s the truth.”
Taeseok replied lazily.
An indescribable sensation swept through her entire body.
But Chaerin had no choice.
She desperately needed Taeseok’s help to escape Han Ohjun’s grasp and reclaim control of Myeongin Furniture.
“Fine. I’ll sign it. But I’ll decide when we get married.”
“Suit yourself.”
Taeseok gave a slight nod and handed her an ink pad.
Chaerin pressed her thumb into the ink and left her fingerprint beside her name.
Once she had stamped the contract, Taeseok smiled with satisfaction before adding, “I really like the idea of a spring bride.”
Chaerin stared at him incredulously, prompting Taeseok to chuckle.
“I’m allowed to express a wish, aren’t I?”
He lifted his glass and took a sip of liquor.
His Adam’s apple bobbed prominently as he swallowed.
“As a man who’s about to become your fiancé, I think I’m entitled to ask for a kiss to celebrate our reunion.”
At those words, the temperature in the room seemed to rise in an instant.
Their gazes met, flickering as intensely as the flames in the fireplace.
Just looking into his eyes made her head feel hazy, as though her thoughts were slipping away.
He slowly bent toward her.
“If you don’t want to, I’ll hold back.”
His deep, low voice brushed against her eardrums. It was almost enough to leave her unable to breathe.
His fresh breath, carrying the faint scent of alcohol, touched the tip of her nose.
Chaerin’s emotions became hopelessly tangled.
Their lips were barely apart. Their breaths mingled first, and just as the distance between them was about to disappear—
“Then kiss me.”
Chaerin reached out with both hands and pulled him closer by the back of his head.
Taeseok covered her lips with his, and Chaerin slowly closed her eyes.
His hot breath flowed into her mouth like a crashing wave.
It was their first kiss in eight years.
And yet, strangely enough, her body still remembered him.
Her lips parted instinctively, and Chaerin took in as much of his breath as she could.
Taeseok gently traced the inside of her mouth, his tongue entwining with hers.
As their soft, pliant tongues rubbed and tangled together, a sensual sensation surged through her.
“Mm…”
A faint moan slipped through her parted lips.
A shiver of electricity ran up her spine.
His tongue slipped past her lips and persistently explored her mouth.
The sound of their saliva mingling was unbearably erotic.
His tongue repeatedly tugged at hers, making it ache before releasing it, as he moved freely within her mouth.
Even regulating her breathing to match his was overwhelming. Chaerin pushed against his chest as she struggled to catch her breath.
At that moment, a button on her loose patient gown came undone, revealing a small glimpse of her bare skin.
Taeseok’s Adam’s apple bobbed sharply as he saw it.
