Even now, she had no idea how frightening her husband could be.

What would happen if she ever realized that he couldn’t bring himself to abandon her?

“…I like you…”

The moment he heard those words, it was as if fireworks had exploded inside his chest.

A sharp thrill raced through his entire body.

For a moment, the overwhelming rush of joy made him want to laugh.

Then, just as quickly, the heat in his head cooled.

It was too soon to let his guard down.

Feelings were fragile things — unseen, unpredictable, and capable of changing at any moment.

Hadn’t she betrayed him before?

More than once.

The moment he gave her his heart, she could deceive him again with her innocent facade.

No.

He couldn’t allow that to happen.

He had to be sure.

He had to hold on tightly and never let go.

“How long are you going to keep ignoring me?”

Fearful that he might instead be swallowed by the feelings binding him to her, Tae-moo’s voice came out rough and harsh.

“Do I need to force your mouth open?”

Standing before her dazed gaze, his large frame looming over her, Tae-moo let out a warm breath near her ear.

“…Where did you go?”

The uneven breathing.

The trembling lashes.

The unfocused eyes.

‘So she saw me with someone.’

Watching his wife’s reaction to Ryu Jin-hee, the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

Ji Yeon-ha was jealous.

For a moment, he considered telling her that she had nothing to worry about.

Then he changed his mind.

He wanted to see more.

There was something unexpectedly satisfying about watching her lose her composure because of him.

It eased the unrest that always stirred within him whenever she was around.

No matter how hard he tried, he could never be indifferent to her.

“I was in the study.”

As long as her heart belonged to him and her mother’s safety was in his hands, she would have no choice but to focus on him alone.

This thought filled him with a deep sense of satisfaction.

It felt as though he was slowly and inevitably making her his.

Though he hadn’t eaten a single bite, he felt strangely full.

Drunk on the thought that she would one day belong to him completely, Tae-moo smiled with quiet arrogance.

At the time, he didn’t know.

He didn’t know that one day he would look back on this very moment and regret it with every fiber of his being.

Instead of taking pleasure in the power he held over her, he should have apologized.

He should have begged for forgiveness.

For everything that would happen after the day she confessed her love for him.

***

“Were you alone?”

One of his brows lifted.

“Who else would I have been with?”

The lie rolled easily from his tongue.

Passing by her, he pulled back the blanket on his side of the bed.

“You were with another woman.”

Yeon-ha glared at his back.

Tae-moo turned his head.

The corner of his mouth lifted.

“What did you just say?”

“You heard me.”

Just remembering it made her chest ache.

The way he acted without shame only sharpened the hostility in her gaze.

“So you do know how to glare.”

Interesting.

His amused voice rang clearly in her ears.

To a man who treated her feelings as something insignificant, she was nothing more than a toy.

Something he could prod and play with however he pleased.

“Why are you lying?”

“Because there’s no need to tell you.”

As though intending to end the conversation there, he lay down and patted the empty space beside him twice.

A silent order to come to bed.

Her breathing grew rough.

Her head felt as though it were boiling.

‘What’s wrong with me?’

The anger refused to fade.

She was used to enduring things.

Used to swallowing her emotions and putting them away.

Normally, it wasn’t difficult.

But not tonight.

“Are you doubting me?”

“Tae-moo, you don’t trust me either.”

As always, she should have stayed silent.

Yet the words escaped before she could stop them.

And the moment she saw the smile vanish from his face, she regretted it.

“So that’s why you don’t trust me either?”

His gaze was as cold as his lowered voice.

Yeon-ha remained silent.

She was struggling just to control her own emotions. She had no room left to worry about his mood as well.

“I see.”

He stood up.

The chill in his tone made her instinctively part her lips, only to close them again.

She was afraid she might say something she didn’t mean.

Something like I’m sorry.

Turning her head away, she bit back the words.

“So that’s how you’re going to be.”

He walked toward her.

A shadow fell across her face, drawing her gaze upward.

But she stubbornly kept her mouth shut.

After a moment, he turned away from her.

Coldly.

“If neither of us trusts the other, there’s no reason for us to sleep together.”

Before she could stop him, the door closed.

Bang.

The sound echoed violently through the room.

To Yeon-ha, it felt like something inside her chest had ruptured.

Her legs gave way, and she sank to the floor.

***

The expression on Tae-moo’s face as he left the master bedroom was frighteningly cold.

Bang.

The force with which he slammed the study door carried all of his irritation.

The sound thundered through the corridor.

Hidden in the darkness, Jin-hee listened and let out a quiet laugh.

“So they fought.”

Now what should she do?

An opportunity had finally appeared.

A chance to wedge herself into a marriage that existed only in name.

She couldn’t afford to waste it.

‘That’s it.’

Her eyes lit up as if ignited by a spark.

There was nothing more for her to gain by staying here.

Without hesitating, she quickly sent a message to Madam Go.

[Mother, I think Tae-moo and Ji Yeon-ha had a fight. They’re sleeping in separate rooms, so it must have been serious. If you step in, I think things might go our way.]

A second message followed almost immediately.

[Please find a way to casually suggest to Ji Yeon-ha that Tae-moo wants a divorce. I’m counting on you.”

Then, before leaving the estate, she sent a message to Ah-jin as well.

[Ah-jin, I left at dawn. Can you find out what the atmosphere is like between Tae-moo and that woman? They seemed to have argued. Also, could you ask Tae-moo if he can come to my birthday party next week? Can you do that for me?]

***

As expected, sleep never came.

Leaving the bedroom in a bad mood, Yeon-ha bumped into Tae-moo, who had just come out of the study.

He was already dressed in a suit.

It looked as though he was heading to work.

Seeing him leave so early made her feel even worse.

“…You’re still here?”

No.

That wasn’t what she had meant to say.

Caught off guard by the unexpected encounter, before she had figured out how to face him, she blurted out some awkward words.

Without sparing her a glance, he continued down the stairs.

It felt as though he were erasing her existence entirely.

A sharp ache tightened in her chest.

Yeon-ha clenched the hem of her skirt, her fingers trembling uncontrollably.

‘Why did I do that?’

She shouldn’t have said that.

She hated herself for being unable to control her emotions.

When she followed him downstairs, she found him sitting at the dining table.

His presence had caused a flurry of activity in the kitchen, as he rarely ate breakfast.

“I’ll prepare my husband’s meal.”

She spoke quietly to her aunt, who was frying eggs.

Apparently, he heard her.

“Sit.”

His low command cut through the room.

Her aunt gently nudged her forward.

“Go on.”

With the housekeeper he employed assisting in the kitchen, Yeon-ha ended up taking a seat beside her husband.

She stole glances at him as he sipped freshly brewed coffee and reviewed something on his tablet.

Just as she hesitantly parted her lips to speak—

“Since when do you eat breakfast before leaving for work?”

Madam Go appeared, a robe draped loosely over her shoulders.

“Is there a problem?”

His response was immediate.

Tae-moo set the tablet he had been reading onto the table and looked up at Madam Go.

“Is there a problem?”

“Problem? Of course not. I’m just surprised.”

Madam Go curled her lips as she pulled out her usual chair and sat down.

“So even days like this exist.”

“Excuse me.”

Her gaze shifted to the housekeeper, who had just placed a bowl of salad on the table.

“M-Me, ma’am?”

“Yes, you.”

Madam Go nodded.

“Go wake Ah-jin. If she starts complaining that she can’t get up, tell her I’ll come upstairs myself.”

“Y-Yes, ma’am.”

The housekeeper answered in a flustered voice before hurrying away.

For some reason, Madam Go had summoned Seong Ah-jin as well.

Tearing off a piece of toast with her knife, she lifted it to her lips and looked at Yeon-ha.

“What are you staring at?”

“Nothing.”

Worried that she might lose her appetite altogether, Yeon-ha took a sip of the freshly squeezed orange juice in front of her, hoping it would settle her stomach.

She wanted to talk to him and clear up the misunderstanding as soon as possible.

But judging by the tension in the air, that seemed impossible right now.

When he left, she would follow him and apologize for what had happened that morning.

She should have simply lain down beside him when he told her to.

If she had, things would never have become so awkward between them.

The bitter thought that she was the one who had damaged their relationship lingered in her mind, leaving an unpleasant taste that she couldn’t shake off.

“I’m not eating.”

Seong Ah-jin stumbled into the dining room.

“At least drink some milk.”

Upon hearing what Madam Go had said, Ah-jin puffed out her cheeks in protest before slumping into a chair.

Her aunt carefully poured her a glass of milk from the fridge and placed it in front of her.

Still barely awake, Ah-jin lifted the glass and took a sip.

“Pff!”

A second later, her eyes flew open.

As though she had seen something impossible, she sprayed milk everywhere.

“Seong Ah-jin! What disgusting behavior is that?”

“No, it’s just… I only realized brother was here now…”

Ah-jin wiped the milk from around her mouth with the tissue that Madam Go had given her, and glanced cautiously in Tae-moo’s direction.

He didn’t even look at her. He merely frowned.

It seemed that sparing her even a glance was more effort than he was willing to expend.

His unexpected presence at the family breakfast table made Ah-jin uneasy.

She fidgeted nervously with her phone for a moment before finally gathering the courage to speak.

“…Brother.”

“What.”

The irritation in his voice made Yeon-ha shrink instinctively.

Carefully setting down her glass, she glanced at Tae-moo from the corner of her eye.

“Uh… Jin-hee’s birthday is next week. Are you going to her party?”

The two slices of toast on his plate were already gone.

Apparently finished with his meal, he rose from his seat.

“I’ll go.”

His answer was flat.

Then his gaze swept past Yeon-ha without stopping.

“Stay seated.”

Just as she was about to follow him, a voice tinged with amusement stopped her.

“You and I need to talk.”

Tae-moo left the kitchen and disappeared from sight.

Even if she chased after him now, it didn’t seem likely that he would listen.

Yeon-ha lowered her eyes from the direction he had gone and sat back down.

“Seong Tae-moo looks like he’s in a terrible mood this morning. What’s gotten into him?”

Despite commenting on her son’s foul mood, Madam Go appeared perfectly relaxed.

“Did you two fight?”

“…Yes.”

“What about?”

“It’s not something I can easily explain.”

“Are you saying you can’t tell me?”

In response, Yeon-ha lowered her head.

“I know Seong Tae-moo.”

Madam Go’s tone remained calm.

“He’s a man who works. If you’re the one at fault, then be the first to ask for forgiveness.”

“Yes.”

Yeon-ha answered obediently.

That had been her intention from the beginning.