Chapter 56

“Are you complimenting yourself?” 

“It’s more like admiration. I think I finally get why dog owners always say, ‘My dog doesn’t bite.’” 

Yaein tilted her head, puzzled. She couldn’t quite understand what he meant. Taeheon just smiled. 

“Then at least let me watch while you piss those people off. If you’re the one doing it, I think I can handle it.” 

“You really act like a child sometimes.” 

“When I want to provoke people? Most people find it scary when I do that.” 

“That’s because they don’t know how mischievous you can be.” 

Taeheon started to reply but held his tongue. His agreeable nod seemed oddly suspicious. 

“What?” 

“Nothing. You’re right. People don’t know me well. I’m a good boy.” 

“I didn’t say you weren’t good. I said you were childish.” 

“Same thing. I’m a harmless little kid. I’ll let your family eat in peace.” 

“…You really can’t push anyone.” 

“Why not? If they hadn’t messed with you, I wouldn’t have done anything. Since you won’t do anything, it’s okay if I do it for you, right?” 

“I want to get back at them sometimes too, but no matter what I do, they never care.”

At Yaein’s reply, Taeheon ran his tongue along his lips. His face emptied of all expression, leaving behind only a flicker of malice. 

Feeling a sudden dryness, Yaein wet her lips too. 

He definitely seemed a little scary just now. 

“Want me to show you how to do it?” 

Taeheon offered, still wearing that fearsome expression. 

*** 

I don’t know. 

Yaein stared at herself in the mirror, seriously evaluating her reflection. 

She turned side to side, checking her back in the mirror behind her. 

No matter how long she looked, she couldn’t tell if it suited her. Her head tilted uncertainly. 

It felt strange to dress up after living in comfort for so long. She thought she’d learned how to dress after attending four years’ worth of gatherings and parties, but… 

Yaein knew how important appearances were to some people—like her stepmother and stepsister. 

Sojeong and Serin were always scrutinizing the outfits and accessories of others at social gatherings. They would gossip viciously, saying things like, “That bag isn’t even available in Korea yet,” or “Look at that tacky outfit.” 

But even after badmouthing someone, if that person was well-dressed or wealthy, they would hover nearby and try to make conversation. 

“You have to approach materialists in a materialistic way.” 

That’s why Yaein didn’t argue when Taeheon took her to a boutique to pick an outfit for the upcoming dinner. 

The better she looked, the more it would enrage her stepmother and stepsister. Their anger and insults were, in a way, just signs of envy. 

She needed an outfit they would want to tear apart with their teeth. That was the dress code for this dinner. 

Since this wasn’t just about her own taste, it wasn’t easy to choose. 

The dress she wore now was form-fitting and reached just above her knees. 

At the boutique clerk’s suggestion, she tried something that hugged her body. 

Yaein found her gently rounded belly rather lovely—but she wasn’t sure how others would see it. 

After much deliberation, she decided to ask for a second opinion. 

“How does this look?” 

“You look beautiful.” 

The answer came instantly. 

Did he even look properly? 

Taeheon had been giving the same answer as he watched her change into three different outfits. 

Yaein frowned at him. 

“Taeheon, you’ve said the same thing every time.” 

She’d changed three times now, and he just kept repeating himself. 

Taeheon shrugged. 

“Want me to be honest?” 

So it wasn’t good? Yaein swallowed and nodded. 

“I want to rip it off you and hike it up.” 

“…” 

“It’d be even better if you weren’t wearing any underwear. I’d play with you under the dinner table while your family watched, and then sneak off to the bathroom to f*ck you.”

“That’s enough. I don’t want to hear more.” 

“Why? I’m not done yet.” 

“The next one’s the last. Pay attention. I’m going to ask you which one looked best.” 

With her cheeks burning, Yaein walked into the fitting room. 

It was like a small private room. 

Once inside, she began to undo the buttons of her dress. 

Changing in and out of clothes repeatedly was exhausting. 

Did she really have to go to these lengths to get ready? She shook her head, pushing the thought away. 

Yes, part of her motivation was petty revenge—a desire to walk in looking too dignified to be ignored. 

But that wasn’t the only reason. 

This time, she absolutely couldn’t let herself be underestimated by those people.

Since this dinner was the first step in the plan, Yaein had to make sure she got the answer she wanted from her parents.

She slipped into a new dress. It had a zipper rsisterng down the back. Stretching her arms as far as they could go, she struggled to reach it — just barely managing to grab it before it was taken from her hands.

“This dress clearly wasn’t made to be worn alone,” Taeheon whispered.

As Taeheon whispered, he ran his fingertip up along the line of her spine. Her shoulder blades quivered in response. When he slid a finger beneath her bra hook, Yaein flinched.

“Don’t come into the fitting room.” 

“Why?” 

“…If someone else is using it, you’re not supposed to come in.”

Even as Yaein said this, Taeheon didn’t stop planting kisses around her shoulder blades.

“There’s only you here, and I’m the only man allowed to see your n*ked body. I’m allowed to come in.”

He uttered his shameless words with disarming smoothness. Wherever Taeheon touched, it felt as if lights were switching on beneath Yaein’s skin, sending heat rushing through her.

“Am I wrong? Want me to leave?”

He paused, pulling away a bit. The lingering warmth on Yaein’s back burned as if longing for him to return.

“Well, since you’re here, at least finish zipping me up.”

At Yaein’s request, Taeheon drew closer than before, as though he’d been waiting for her permission.

The zipper rose very slowly. Taeheon’s hand reached the bare skin of her back first.

“If we have s*x here, you think people outside would hear?”

Even his low, damp voice felt like a caress.

An improper thought crept into her mind. Taeheon could strip off the dress she was wearing, open just one door so the employees outside could see her n*ked, then slip his hand between her legs…

Fingers sliding in, widening that gap, the moment that mercilessly large *rousal pushed its way in—she could vividly imagine the sense of fullness. She trembled slightly in her thighs, even though nothing had touched them yet.

“If we keep quiet and go slowly, maybe no one would notice?”

Taeheon gently covered Yaein’s lips with his palm. When she inhaled, she caught his scent.

She briefly thought she might get intoxicated, but just then, Taeheon pulled his hand away. His fingers brushed over her lips and moved down to catch the parted edge of the dress.

“They’re not going to kick us out. We’ve spent quite a bit here. Even if they realize what’s happening, they’ll pretend not to see.”

His breath grazed the back of her neck. It almost felt as though he was sliding his hand under her dress to stroke her waist, yet in reality, he was only closing the zipper. Yaein steadied her breathing, trying not to reveal how heated she’d become on her own.

“But I don’t want anyone else hearing even the slightest sound you make.”

That remark—that he wouldn’t actually do it—stung a bit. Right now, she wanted to grab him and pull him closer.

But this was clearly a store in operation, with other people around. Yaein pressed her thighs together.

“I’ll hold back,” she said.

As if he already knew exactly how she felt, Taeheon added that.

The zipper reached the top with a decisive click, the black dress clinging to her skin. A tingling sensation pulsed between her legs.

“All you need now is a pearl necklace.”

Taeheon lightly trailed his fingertip near her collarbone.

She understood what he meant. The dress was reminiscent of those worn by old Hollywood film actresses: thick triple strands of pearls, long gloves, and elegantly pinned-up hair.

Yaein herself thought it looked nice.

“How is it?”

She turned to face him, letting him see her fully. His gaze slid from her head to her toes like a slow, deliberate lick.

“I want to get on my knees and lick you like a dog.”

A scandalous sort of praise came back. If gazes alone could ravage someone, Yaein would already have been rendered nearly incapable of walking.

Heat welled up steadily beneath her underwear. Luckily, she hadn’t worn pants; otherwise, she’d be scrambling to hide any incriminating stains.

They truly hadn’t done anything, yet Yaein couldn’t lift her head while paying. Even taking a step made the inside of her thighs twinge ever so slightly.

“How long are you going to keep making that suggestive face?”

The moment they stepped outside, Taeheon murmured in a low voice.

“Am I really doing that?”

Yaein asked, flustered. While they waited for the valet to bring the car, Taeheon pulled her under his coat.

“Yeah. It’s the kind of face you should only be showing your spouse.”

His long fingers, which had just been adjusting her underwear strap, gently tilted her chin upward.

“You’re great at looking sultry—why can’t you manage anything else?”

Taeheon gazed down at Yaein and spoke.

“Remember what I told you to do?”

“Head up, keep that arrogant look on my face all the time.”

Since offering to teach her, Taeheon had thoroughly explained—several times, in meticulous detail—how Yaein could best infuriate her family.

Although Yaein had always been praised as a model student, she simply couldn’t pass Taeheon’s lessons. She especially struggled when it came to what he called “the high-handed attitude.”

“You don’t look that arrogant right now.” 

“How about this?” 

Yaein raised her eyebrows and looked at Taeheon. 

“You seem nice.” 

“What about this?” 

She lifted her chin as high as she could and pressed her lips together firmly. 

Taeheon’s mouth twitched slightly, clearly trying to hold back a laugh. 

“You look sulky.” 

“Don’t I look arrogant?” 

“Seems like you’d forgive me right away if I apologized.” 

He was teasing her. Yaein narrowed her eyes even more, but Taeheon just grinned. 

“Try making a face scary enough to intimidate your family.” 

“How am I supposed to do that?” 

“Is it really so hard?” 

Taeheon mimicked the expression Yaein had just made, furrowing his brow. Even a faint scowl gave him a commanding aura, possibly because his features were already naturally cold. 

In the past, Yaein might have flinched, wondering if he was angry. Taeheon had a knack for intimidating people without trying. 

“But I’m not you.” 

Even if Yaein walked around scowling all day, no one would find her scary. 

She made a point of knitting her brows to demonstrate, and Taeheon bit his lip. 

“True. I’ll be the one scaring people. You just have to annoy them. That’s easier.” 

“How do I do that?” 

“Never give them what they want,” Taeheon declared. 

“They’ll expect you to bow and act all polite—so do the opposite.” 

It sounded so simple when he said it, but for Yaein, it felt anything but easy.