Chapter 3

“As long as I can wrap up this annoying matchmaking and let my parents live quietly, I don’t care whether you’re the Haesong daughter or a beggar from the streets. The thought of airing your father’s dirty laundry myself and causing a fuss between our two families already gives me a headache.”

“…”

“My family originally wanted just one thing from you: the Haesong name. Your father wants you in this marriage, but I have no real interest in getting married. I just need a woman who can quietly fill the seat beside me—without being a nuisance.”

Every word he spoke was clear and pragmatic, as if he’d talk this way to anyone, anywhere. It seemed he didn’t even consider how wretched it might make the other person feel.

“Your parents, Mr. Kwon Taeheon—”

“They won’t know a thing. All you have to do is sit there and act prim and proper, like a well-bred daughter from a good family.”

“…So you’re saying we have to deceive them.”

Taeheon’s lips twitched as if he’d heard a joke. He let out a brief laugh, and Yaein’s cheeks burned.

“You say you’re not a wealthy heiress, yet you’re so naive.”

“So you’re okay with lying to your family for the rest of your life?”

“My family?”

“They’re your parents. And if we get married, I’ll become part of that family, too.”

Taeheon’s smile deepened. Feeling insulted, Yaein furrowed her brow.

Before coming to this matchmaking meeting, she simply disliked being forced into marriage. Now, she outright didn’t want to marry this man named Kwon Taeheon. Even though they’d only been sitting across from each other for less than an hour, that was long enough for her to realize just how arrogant and unfeeling he could be.

“You people… or rather, your father, seems to think we’re idiots he can look down on. But we’re not so clueless that we wouldn’t figure out the truth of Lee Yaein’s birth. Even if you had planned to deceive us, it wouldn’t have been easy. However, if I’m the one who does the lying, that’s another matter, isn’t it?”

Yaein agreed inwardly. No matter what, there were traces of her real life. Did her father really think he could pull off something as big as a wedding without the truth ever coming to light? Maybe all that mattered to him was grabbing the money in front of him. After all, Yaein would be the one facing all the fallout.

“In reality, you’re not the one who has to lie—it’s me. And I don’t care in the slightest. Whether my father gets tricked by your family’s lies is none of my concern.”

Yaein frowned. He claimed not to care, but for a split second, he looked amused. Whenever he mentioned his father, his tone grew more biting.

It also felt suspicious that he’d so casually decide to marry her just to avoid the hassle. To Yaein, at least, a spouse wasn’t something you could just toss in a shopping bag like a bag of snacks.

“So you’d let the grandmother who raised you suffer and die, all because you don’t want to deceive my parents?”

Watching her reaction closely, Taeheon taunted her.

Beneath the table, Yaein’s hands curled into fists. She didn’t have the luxury to question Taeheon’s relationship with his own family; the only family she had was currently withering away, alone in a hospital bed.

“Isn’t it a bit low to bring up my grandmother just to convince me?”

“I’m telling you to be realistic. Clearly, you’ll be needing more money for her hospital bills.”

“I’ll deal with it myself.”

Even though she knew Taeheon’s words were right, Yaein remained stubborn. She could already imagine how grueling it would be to juggle more and more debt just to stay by her grandmother’s sickbed.

But was it really any kind of future to hide her entire past and marry a stranger she had just met? Yaein didn’t trust him.

“I don’t want to become family with someone I don’t even like.”

“You’re more stubborn than you look.”

With that casual assessment, Taeheon’s smile faded. To him, it probably didn’t matter much how all this turned out—unlike Yaein, for whom everything was at stake.

A sudden sadness washed over her, and Yaein paused for breath. Why were their lives weighted so differently? Couldn’t hers be just a bit lighter, even if only a little more so than this?

“I think I’ve made my position clear.”

Yaein stood up. Taeheon merely lifted his gaze to follow her dispassionately. 

“I’m sorry, but I’d appreciate it if you would be the one to call off this marriage, Mr. Kwon Taeheon.”

She clasped her hands, bowed her head, and left the café without hearing so much as a word from him. Yet her steps quickened as though she were a deer in headlights, afraid of being chased. She could practically feel his eyes on her—like the sharp aim of a hunter’s rifle.

Only after she hurried to the exit did her anxiety subside. Why had she run off like that? Feeling embarrassed, she stepped outside, and the heavy, humid air hit her. It felt as though her skin was immediately dampened. A realization came too late, stopping her in her tracks.

“Ah… my umbrella.”

She flexed her empty hand, staring at the rain-soaked scenery. The drizzle had turned into a full-blown downpour. Even if she caught a taxi right now, there was no avoiding getting drenched.

Should she go back and get her umbrella? The thought of facing that man’s gaze again made her throat tighten.

Yaein stepped outside. Rain fell so heavily it hurt, striking her skin like tiny needles. She dashed toward the roadside to hail a taxi, rain soaking her clothes in seconds.

A dark-blue sedan passed in front of her. The moment she spotted Kwon Taeheon’s profile through the rear window, she bit her lip. She thought their eyes met—just for a second. At that moment, it felt like the raindrops slowed. Maybe it was just her imagination. The car sped by, spraying water. The rain still pounded down mercilessly.

Wiping the water from her cheeks, Yaein managed to stop a taxi. Her heart thumped as she leaned against the window streaked with rivulets of rain. Pressing her palm to the damp front of her blouse, she made a silent vow: she wouldn’t think about him anymore.

***

She still wasn’t used to the neat and spacious foyer. Built-in cabinets took up an entire wall, but there was no space for Yaein’s shoes. After lining up her wet shoes in a corner, she steadied her breath and stepped inside.

“I’m home.”

It was a greeting no one ever responded to, but she did it out of habit. She was about to head straight to the bathroom when she paused in the living room. Two people were waiting for her on the sofa—her stepmother, Baek Sojeong, and her half-sister, Lee Serin. At the sight of them, she already felt a tightness gather in her chest.

“You’re back?”

Serin jumped up, grabbing Yaein’s arm. Even though her clothes were obviously drenched, Serin didn’t let her go.

“Come sit and tell us about it.”

Despite the chill that made her lips tremble, Yaein let Serin lead her to the sofa. She felt her stepmother’s sharp gaze following her.

“How was it? Did he really look like a gangster?”

Planting Yaein in the middle, Serin asked excitedly.

“That’s just what Father said. I heard the son from that family even earned a master’s degree in the U.S.”

“Still, a gangster’s son is a gangster, right? Kinda scary. If you marry him, won’t he start beating his wife or something?”

Serin clapped a hand over her mouth in mock horror, then gave Yaein a sidelong glance. A mischievous spark lit her tilted eyes.

Yaein, too, had heard about Kwon Taeheon. According to her stepmother, his family originally started out in private moneylending —“a bunch of lowlife gangsters,” she called them, saying they’d scraped their way up by sheer luck but were still people unfit to associate with.

“Serin, you’re right on the mark. It’s not like their true nature changes. That’s why they’re so desperate to marry into our family—to buy themselves a respectable pedigree.”

As expected, her stepmother chimed in immediately. The more Yaein listened, the clearer she could see the three of them: her stepmother and Serin, who must have loathed the idea of this marriage meeting from the start, and her father, who had dragged Yaein back solely to get his hands on the money offered by the other side.

“But I heard he’s really handsome. Some of my friends saw him at a party and were amazed.”

“If you’re so taken by his looks, why don’t you marry him?”

“Oh, Mother, as if I’d want to live getting beaten by a gangster!”

Did he really strike them as someone who would raise a hand to his wife? Yaein quietly revisited her memory of him. He was indeed strikingly handsome—yet he had a peculiar aura, an almost frightening chill to his demeanor. When she remembered that deep gaze, as though he could strip her bare with his eyes alone, her stomach gave a tremor. He was unlike anyone she’d ever met before, and just recalling him brought on a strange feeling.

The cold hush around her pulled her back to reality. Two pairs of eyes were on her, waiting for her to speak—no doubt wanting her impressions of Kwon Taeheon. They likely hoped she’d confirm he was intimidating or something along those lines. Yaein knew exactly what they wanted to hear, but she couldn’t bring herself to speak. Merely telling a few critical anecdotes would have satisfied them, but she found she just couldn’t do it. She had no desire to lie.

“He seemed like a decent person. If you don’t mind, I’d like to shower and then head to the hospital.”

The moment she tried to escape, her stepmother grabbed her, forcing her to stop.

“Who said you could just walk away when none of your elders have dismissed you?”

It was obvious they had no intention of letting her leave so easily. Her lips pressed tightly together, Yaein sank back into her seat.

She had already rubbed them the wrong way. What a fool she was—just because she couldn’t bring herself to flatter them with a lie.

“Who asked whether he’s a decent guy? The real question is whether he likes you or not.”  

“I’m not sure… It didn’t seem—”  

“Didn’t seem?”  

Her stepmother cut her off before she could finish.  

“Do you have any idea how much money went into moving your grandmother to a different hospital?”  

At the mention of her grandmother, Yaein bowed her head.  

“I’m grateful for that, truly.”  

“Did I ask if you were grateful? And if you are, you should have handled this properly. Do you know how much is riding on this marriage?”  

“…”  

“Frankly, what does that old lady have to do with us now? Especially one who abandoned you and your mother.”  

“…That’s why I came back here.”  

She had barely finished speaking before her vision flared with light. Her head snapped to the side, and she blinked in shock.  

“How dare you talk back to me? Who do you think you are?”  

Her stepmother’s hand was still raised, and she stood there seething. The cheek she’d slapped was already burning hot. Yaein was used to it by now.  

It had been this way ever since she moved into this house at age seven and lived here for ten years. Her stepmother had always shown undisguised disgust toward her. A useless freeloader. Just seeing your face makes me so angry I could go mad.  

“Honestly, this marriage is perfect for someone like you, isn’t it? Gangsters or whatever they are, that family managed to build up some real estate business of their own. You should be grateful. Stop walking around acting like someone dragged you there against your will.”  

She was used to being pummeled with words, yet her heart still flared with shame each time. If only her heart had grown calloused by now.  

“I’m sorry.”  

She hung her head, not wanting them to see her expression. Suddenly, a memory of Taeheon’s face rose in her mind—so expressionless, cold as ice. Not like a melting ice cube in a coffee cup, but more like a massive glacier with deep roots—untouchable, unbreakable by anything.  

Right now, she wished she could wear the same expression he did.