Chapter 7

“She’s the woman I got an engagement proposal from, so I did some research.”

Her heart dropped.

“The client is Hanju Distribution’s daughter, Lee Min-hee. You know there’s talk about her getting engaged to Ryu-il, right?”

The ‘Minhee♡Albert’ ribbon flashed in her mind.

“Lee Min-hee’s in the UK right now, and she’s got a local boyfriend she likes. If the engagement goes through, she’ll probably see Ryu-il’s face for the first time at the engagement ceremony.”

Everything was just as Kyung-won had said. The woman rumored to be engaged to him, Lee Min-hee, had a boyfriend abroad.

It was one thing to hear rumors, another to see the passionate scenes with her own eyes. In shock, Hee-won muttered,

“S-so… while all this is happening… there’s talk of engagement?”

Ryu-il looked straight at her, unconcerned.

“The man’s a nobody, just a backstreet guitarist. For Lee Min-hee, playing around with guys like this means nothing. I think she even bought him a few sports cars…”

Kyung-won’s words echoed again.

“You don’t know anything. You’re always stuck at school. For people like them, this is really nothing.”

She quietly lowered her eyes. She knew she’d never understand these people. They’d lived differently all their lives and always would.

She didn’t need to keep talking. She’d only say foolish things by his standards.

Come to think of it, since getting those notebooks, she’d never had such a long conversation with him. Especially not about his private life—he could easily be annoyed.

But thinking the other way, the fact that they were talking like this meant he didn’t mind her at all. She gathered her courage to ask for forgiveness again.

“But…”

Ryu-il asked playfully,

“So what is this, exactly?”

“Huh?”

Startled, she looked up at him. He’d come over to put away the photos, so they were quite close.

“What is this, exactly?”

Ryu-il leaned forward on the desk, smirking mischievously. The stack of notebooks was dangerously close to falling, and the distance between them was too small. She could almost hear her own breathing, and the look on his face was strangely predatory.

“Answer me.”

His voice was playful, like a cat toying with a mouse. She couldn’t guess what he was thinking.

“Don’t be vague. Be clear.”

He was so relaxed and gentle that it made her even more tense. She wondered if it was normal to feel so pressured by something like this, but since he asked for a clear answer, she spoke, trembling.

“…A temporary s*xual activity based on legitimate transaction, impulse, and desire.”

Ryu-il looked momentarily blank, then laughed, genuinely amused. He raised his eyebrows and asked,

“Legitimate transaction?”

“The woman enjoys it, the man gets paid… Even if it’s not exactly that, judging by what you said, it seems like that.”

“Impulse and desire—what kind of words are those?”

“If there’s proposal between the two of you, it’s temporary, right? And enjoying the present, knowing there’s no future, that’s what impulse and desire mean to me.”

After answering, she wondered if she’d been too blunt. She’d always trembled in front of him, but when it wasn’t about herself, her real personality came out. After blurting it out, she glanced at him. She worried it was too harsh to say to someone whose fiancée she was talking about, but he didn’t look offended at all.

“Impulse and desire…”

He looked at her languidly.

“You’re saying things like that now. You’ve grown up.”

His voice was somehow husky, echoing in her ears. Just his voice made her tense up. Her heart pounded and her blood raced.

In Ryu-il’s room, there was no one but them, and his body leaned closer, the stack of notebooks about to topple. He hadn’t touched her, but his gaze was so close she wanted to collapse.

Yes, this was an impulse.

She should be on her knees, begging him not to fire her mother, but… Though she knew her place, she didn’t want to end this tense moment standing face-to-face. She was afraid of not knowing his intentions, but also wanted to keep facing him.

Did even someone as icy as him feel impulse? As she wondered, he asked slowly,

“So you mean you can understand these people?”

She swallowed dryly. At the same time, Kyung-won’s voice echoed.

“Sleep with Ryu-il a few times. Then your mother’s and your debt is gone.”

She’d thought it was nonsense. But seeing his face in the sunlight, words that didn’t feel like hers slipped out.

“…Yes.”

It was dangerous.

From a distance, she could keep her feelings at arm’s length. But after a few words and standing this close, her heart was shaking in a bad way. The little feeling she’d cherished and promised never to taint now felt impossible to protect.

“Hee-won, you are saying dangerous things.”

Ryu-il smiled, but only slightly. When she held his gaze without backing away, his eyes grew clouded.

She only realized what happened next a moment later.

Suddenly, his face filled her vision. Without even moving his hands, his lips pressed against hers, almost devouring her. She opened her eyes wide in shock, but couldn’t avoid him, holding her breath.

Only then did she realize why she’d been so tense—she’d instinctively wanted this. Just his lips on hers made her whole body tremble as if struck by lightning, her toes curling.

Her previous rejection in front of Kyung-won faded into a haze. She couldn’t tell if it was an impulse to pay off her debt, or just an excuse to touch Ryu-il.

His body leaned closer, and the notebooks crashed loudly toward her. Some fell to the floor, landing on her foot. She barely noticed the pain, trembling as his lips left hers.

His eyes, dark and wild with desire, stared at her from close range. His voice, thick with heat, interrogated her.

“You say… you understand this?”

She was scared.

Not of him, but of her own impulse. Like staring at a blazing fire, knowing it was dangerous but still reaching out. She wanted to throw herself in, even knowing she’d get burned.

Just then, there was a knock.

“This is Secretary Yoon. Senior Executive Director, may I come in for a moment?”

It was like cold water had been poured over her. She quickly stepped back and started picking up the fallen notebooks. Ryu-il leaned back dramatically and said,

“Come in.”

She was startled again. She’d expected him to give her time to recover before letting someone else in. Afraid he’d see her flushed face, she kept her head down, gathering the notebooks as Secretary Yoon entered in his suit.

Secretary Yoon didn’t even glance at her, just spoke briefly with Ryu-il and handed him some documents. It seemed to be urgent company business. She hurriedly finished gathering the notebooks and bowed to Ryu-il, who was signing the documents.

Ryu-il gestured for her to leave, his face as cold as ever, with no trace of the heat or impulse from before. It was as if she’d dreamed the whole thing. She ran from the room, not even trying to calm her pounding heart.

Only after she reached the rear garden did she realize she hadn’t heard whether her mother was fired, forgiven, or anything. She’d fled home, and only the lingering sensation of his lips kept replaying in her mind.