Chapter 23

He thought maybe, having achieved her goal, Hee-won wouldn’t come back, but she kept visiting his room.

The pattern was boringly similar. And he always gave in to it.

Whenever she came, he wanted her so much it made his head spin, but he spoke harshly and arrogantly. It was the last pride he could hold against someone using him to pay off debt.

Each time, Hee-won approached with the saddest face in the world, desperately clinging to him.

“You seemed to like it… I wanted to do it again with you, Senior Executive Director.”

Her voice was full of misery and self-loathing, so it was hard to believe her plea. But Ryu-il couldn’t ignore the lie. He pressed his hips into her thin body, trying to suppress his feelings for her.

At least while their bodies were entwined, neither of them thought about anything else. It was wickedly good. She had approached him like some legendary temptress, but in reality, she could do nothing, trembling beneath him as he left his mark on her body, unable to stop himself.

She, too, seemed to think of nothing while they were together. Her body clumsily received him, then tightened and reacted fiercely. With every twitch and movement, uncontrollable m*ans escaped her lips. Her limbs twisted helplessly, her insides easily grew wet and warmly enveloped him, and sometimes, lost in pleasure, she would call out, “Ryu-il-oppa…” in a voice he liked.

It felt as if they were in a paradise of their own. Like their childhood, when nothing around them mattered and they just wandered Ryu Gil-jae together, playing and having fun.

But when that paradise vanished, Hee-won cried. She never missed a single time—she always cried. With the most miserable and sorrowful face in the world.

Sometimes she sobbed alone, sometimes wailed in his arms. He had always watched her, but never realized she was someone who cried so much.

Whenever she cried, Ryu-il gave up trying to name the negative emotions filling his head. Every time he saw Hee-won cry, the thorns he’d set up against her felt like they turned back on himself. His paradise became a ruin in an instant. Even so, he couldn’t send her away; he comforted her, though he didn’t know why—perhaps because it was better for her to cry in front of him.

Was sleeping with him that miserable? Was it so wretched to cling to him for money?

He swallowed the questions rising in his throat. He could guess the answer.

Stripping away emotion, stripping away desire, looking only at the objective situation, everything was clear.

“It seems they instructed her to sleep with you as often as possible. For Chairman Hanju Distribution, a continuing relationship would carry greater impact.”

Sungjun knew Ryu-il never sent Hee-won away when she came. He did his job faithfully, without attaching any personal feelings.

“Recently, Jo Mi-sook contacted Ryu Ga-yeon directly, saying things are going well. She requested an additional 200 million won, claiming they’d have nowhere to live after leaving Ryu Gil-jae, aside from the loan shark debt.”

Ryu-il gave a short, dry laugh.

“That’s one expensive night.”

Sungjun didn’t respond at all. Usually, Ryu-il valued his silence, but impulsively, he asked,

“Aren’t you curious why I don’t turn Hee-won away, even though I know everything?”

“Ah, I….”

Sungjun answered calmly, not flustered at all.

“I assumed it was because you had no intention of marrying Lee Min-hee, so you wanted Hanju Distribution’s side to back out first. You’ve said yourself that focusing on construction is more than enough.”

Ryu-il’s eyes darkened at the unhesitating answer.

The truth was, it was a question he’d never been able to answer for himself. He couldn’t just say it was because he was physically attracted—he’d always looked down on men who let their lower half rule their brains. But he couldn’t find a rational reason.

Was it out of pity for Hee-won? If so, he could have just paid off her debt. Or was it because s*x with her was so good? It was wickedly fantastic, but honestly, after sleeping with her, he always felt like he’d been thrown into the mud. So much so that every time, he made the meaningless vow never to hold her again.

He knew sleeping together hurt her. He guessed she cried from disgust after pleasure. But he hurt just as much. The bitter pain he’d never felt before lingered for a long time.

Yet he couldn’t stop. He kept avoiding the reason he couldn’t quit, but Sungjun’s answer was so simple it was almost absurd.

“That’s right.”

Stripping away emotion, the answer was perfectly clear.

“Are you disappointed in me?”

Ryu-il asked again, and realized this time the question was for Hee-won, not himself. Sungjun’s reply was swift.

“Not at all. It’s a good thing for Miss Hee-won, too.”

It was clear and simple.

“Not everyone can do it, but that’s why I think it’s just like you, Senior Executive Director. It’s a wise decision because no one ends up losing.”

That was true.

From a third-party perspective, it was all so neat. He wrapped up the conversation and discussed some company matters with Sungjun.

But when all the reports were finished and Sungjun was about to leave, Ryu-il called him back as if by reflex.

“Earlier.”

Sungjun turned with a loyal expression, ready for any question.

“…Why did you say what I’m doing with Hee-won isn’t something just anyone can do?”

“Ah…”

For once, confusion flashed across Sungjun’s usually unflappable face. He quickly composed himself and answered,

“Maintaining a continuous relationship with one person while both keep boundaries isn’t something just anyone can do. Sorry if I overstepped.”

Boundaries.

Lines to be kept.

Was this line the same as the one Hee-won had always spoken of with her eyes since she was eight? Even though they slept together and hungrily sought each other night after night, were they still keeping a line?

Ryu-il didn’t ask further.

***

When he bit her chest and teased her cl*toris, Hee-won twisted her body. Her awkwardness melted away as her body responded honestly to his touch, and a sharp sense of victory rushed over him. He spread her trembling thighs wider, almost as punishment. As he gently traced circles deeper inside with his fingers, Hee-won began to arch her back.

“Ah… ah… s-stop…”

Her tear-filled eyes lost focus. Her face, overtaken by pleasure, was flushed red. Ryu-il pressed his body close and bit her ear.

“Why stop? You came asking for it.”

Hee-won squeezed her eyes shut.

“You came here begging for it.”

Red marks appeared on Hee-won’s pale, soft skin. When she shook her head saying it hurt, he felt an even greater thrill. He stopped caressing her and lifted her limp wrists above her head, pinning them as he commanded,

“Say it.”

“W-what… haah…”

“What you said earlier.”

At his cold voice, Hee-won slowly opened her eyes, filled with shame. Their eyes locked, holding back many words. As their gazes tangled, Ryu-il thought about the line. Their tiresome, invisible line. She was the closest person in the world, yet looked the farthest away, and he pressed her coldly.

“Should I stop?”

His arrogant words made her face contort. She’d come to seduce him with a purpose, but couldn’t hide her true expression. In the end, on the verge of tears, she said,

“…Please…”

She said the words he wanted right then.

“It feels so good with you, Senior Executive Director… hng, that’s why I had to come back…”

Her trembling voice was tinged with humiliation. Ryu-il quietly looked down at her unhappy face.

“Keep going… keep going, okay?”

Tears welled in her eyes. Desperately holding back her sobs, she lifted her head and kissed him. Clumsy but urgent, her kiss was followed by a wet whisper.

“Senior Executive Director… I want you… so much…”

The words he wanted. The words he’d made her say. Even as he made her repeat them like a parrot, Ryu-il didn’t feel good. Yet hearing her rehearsed seduction also gave him a strange sense of relief.

Everything was neat, but everything was a mess. From start to finish, it was clear, yet from start to finish, it was confusing.

“Please… please put it in…”

Even her rehearsed seduction was a complete mess. But hearing her desperate plea, his reason snapped.

He began a night he’d held back for so long—a night he couldn’t have stopped even if she hadn’t said those words. He rose and positioned himself between her legs. Seeing her bare, flushed body, he reached his limit.

He pressed himself into her soft body, pushing in his thoughts and disgust. Wet sounds came from her insides as she clung to him like she wanted to forget everything.

“More… more…”

She groaned, clutching the sheets. He was aroused again by the sight of the sheets soaked with their fl*ids. Her overflowing wetness urged his movements. He pressed hard, as if to erase any line between them. In the rush of ecstasy, he climbed on top of desire.

“Ha… ah… ah…”

Hee-won’s young face was streaked with damp hair. When he lifted her legs onto his shoulders, her insides squeezed him tighter. He grabbed her ankle, licked it, and drove in to the very end.

“Ahh, it hurts… it hurts so much…”

“Then should I stop?”

Without hesitation, Ryu-il pulled out. She was nearing cl*max, but gasped and grabbed him, begging in a voice drunk on instinct,

“…N-no… more… more…”

“Turn over.”

At his command, she flipped over. She whimpered as she raised her hips. He grabbed her waist and entered again, dizzy at the sight of her br*asts bouncing below her waist. Her body shook helplessly with his rough thr*sts.

“Ah… ah…”

She buried her face in the pillow, screaming and moaning. Unable to hold back any longer, Ryu-il poured out all his desire. Heavy breathing and lingering m*ans filled the big room. He held her tightly as she collapsed, quietly enduring her tears.

Her sobs, full of misery, instantly threw him back into the mud. While Hee-won cried, Ryu-il felt she was absurd, infuriating, annoying, pitiful, and even hateful. But honestly, he felt exactly the same way about himself.