18.2

Seonho extended his hand, and Chaeyoon took it as they left the hotel room. Today, it wasn’t Paul waiting by the limousine but a different chauffeur.

“Why a limousine?”

“I didn’t want to be disturbed.”

As the car started, Seonho pulled out an elegant ivory-colored box tied with a wine-colored ribbon from his pocket.

“This. I almost forgot because things were so hectic.”

“What is it?”

“It’s your birthday next week.”

“You prepared a birthday gift too?”

When she opened the box, a sleek glass bottle topped with a crystal peony lid appeared. Chaeyoon looked at it curiously.

“It’s perfume.”

Chaeyoon opened the cap, dabbed some on her wrist, and smelled it. The cool, luxurious scent of peonies filled the car.

“Peony?”

The scent was reminiscent of the peonies that wafted into the bedroom on the night they first spent together.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s as extravagant as you.”

Spraying this would naturally bring thoughts of Seonho. Specifically, of that night they spent together.

“Do you think it will automatically make you think of me?”

“Can you hear my thoughts? Like, can you hear what I’m thinking, something like that?”

Sometimes she was surprised. It was as if this guy could read minds.

“I made it so you would think of me. I couldn’t decide which was more intense, peony or camellia, so I went with peony. You know what that means, right?”

“I get the suggestive meaning.”

“Especially spray it before bed. If it makes you think of me, you can video call anytime, from anywhere. I can satisfy you.”

Seonho smiled slyly, his eyes twinkling as if they were studded with gems.

“Prepared to satisfy me even in my dreams?”

“There’s nothing I can’t do. I’m a capable man. Use it freely, and tell me when it runs out. I’ll get you more.”

“Where’s it from? The bottle is really pretty.”

Chaeyoon turned the shimmering bottle at different angles under the light. It looked more like a piece of art than a mere container.

“Private label.”

“A custom-made perfume?”

“I commissioned a perfumer. It took longer than expected to create the exact fragrance I wanted. It just so happened to be ready for your birthday. Maybe it’s fate.”

“Are you suddenly a believer in fate? How is this fate? It took months to make.”

“Fate is what you make of it.”

“You always do things on a big scale!”

To think that you captured the scent of that night in this bottle…

“You might dislike that I come from a wealthy family, but I don’t mind. I will use everything I have to give you things others can’t, to ensure you can never forget me.”

“Didn’t you learn in philosophy that material things aren’t everything?”

“That’s why I’ll also infuse my spirit into them, like this perfume.”

Seonho pressed his nose to Chaeyoon’s wrist, smelling the scent of the perfume mixed with her skin.

Chaeyoon asked Seonho if he was ready to give up everything for love like Joo-eun. Seonho had said yes, but it was a lie.

He had no intention of giving up his conglomerate rights. To continue providing everything money can buy without restraint, he needed to maintain his current position. That was Seonho’s resolve.

“It seems I’ve underestimated you too much.”

Chaeyoon gently stroked Seonho’s cheek with her palm.

“You’re right.”

Seonho caught her hand and kissed her palm. His eyes were deeply affectionate, stirring emotions within.

“Next time, I’ll prepare a gift for you too.”

“Okay.”

“You never refuse, do you?”

“I’ll accept anything you give me, even if it’s trash.”

“Alright, I’ll try to collect pretty trash then.”

Chaeyoon joked, but Seonho didn’t laugh because the car had already arrived in front of Chaeyoon’s house.

“We’re here.”

Chaeyoon looked out the window and said.

“Yeah.”

Seonho cupped Chaeyoon’s cheeks with both hands, kissing from her eyelids down to the bridge of her nose, her cheeks, and chin. Finally, he slowly pressed his lips to hers, exploring her mouth thoroughly as if trying to memorize everything.

Why did all his actions feel so achingly tender, so painfully heart-wrenching?

That day, Chaeyoon discovered for the first time that there could be a kiss so heartbreakingly painful that it brought tears.

She didn’t like this. This kind of pain in her heart.

As her parched heart moistened, feelings she had never felt before sprouted and began to grow. It was a kind of side effect brought on by the romance that followed the cold.

***

“What’s going on?”

After clearing a backlog of work like a storm right after getting to the office, Seonho spoke to Junsu.

Junsu, who always seemed exasperatingly composed, had looked slightly tense since he had come to pick Seonho up at the airport.

“There was a call from the Vice Chairwoman last Saturday. Looks like she’s digging into things. Actually, she might have already finished.”

“Hmm, trying to deceive her three times was probably pushing it, huh?”

Seonho’s response was surprisingly calm.

“You must have some plan in mind, that’s why you dashed off to London so recklessly, right?”

“It was a bit risky, but since Chaeyoon said she would think about it, isn’t that good enough?”

“Is that really going to suffice?

“If Chaeyoon says no, it’s no. So, her saying she’ll think about it means there’s a 90% chance she’ll say yes.”

Seonho smiled as if he had won the world.

“Team Leader Yoon, I feel like our conversation has gotten a little off track. It seems we need some fine-tuning here. Chaeyoon’s thoughts don’t seem to matter much in this context.”

Junsu said with a straight face.

Somehow, Seonho returned in a worse state than when he had left. As much as love might be like a cluster of addictive hormones equivalent to drugs, reaching the ultimate level of smugness was beyond understanding, eliciting an incomprehensible sense of betrayal.

Seonho was known to be sharp even if not the most fortunate, but now his facial muscles seemed to melt into a silly smile, as if a screw in his brain had come loose.

Junsu thought Seonho would never change even when in love.

“No, that’s the most important thing.”

Seonho suddenly stopped grinning and spoke seriously.

Junsu was relieved that he didn’t seem to have completely lost his mind. He needed Seonho’s brains to navigate this ordeal.

“I remember what you said when Joo-eun stirred up trouble, calling it pathetic.”

“Yeah. Chaeyoon said that too. How could one know what would happen to them? If I had known I would end up like this, I would have been a little less dismissive.”

“You realize it, then? That you’re being pathetic?”

“No, I’m not pathetic at all. Love is something grand. Didn’t Joo-eun show us that?”

Seonho spread his hands out in an exaggerated gesture like a musical theater actor, and Junsu quietly muttered.

“I never thought I’d see you like this.”

Love is indeed grand. Seeing how it turned someone slightly mad into someone completely insane.

“I know you’re seriously hopeful in the aftermath of your love-hormone-induced mania, but you and Joo-eun are different.”

“What’s different? Chaeyoon is capable. And I have enough personal funds to support myself if I leave my family. Enough to stand by and support Chaeyoon as she succeeds. Ah, should I get her pregnant? That’s something I can’t do. Chaeyoon probably doesn’t want to get pregnant yet since there’s still so much to do.”

Seonho raised his hands as if it were a pity.

“You haven’t forgotten that the reason Joo-eun could be so easily let go was because you shielded her, right?”

“Of course.”

I didn’t do it willingly. I helped her because she was Chaeyoon’s friend, and it would break Chaeyoon’s heart if she was unhappy. And because I knew how to help them.

Do good deeds and you shall receive rewards, right? I received it. Chaeyoon thanked me for it, so it was all worth it.

“You know as well as I do that a chaebol family can become as ruthless as needed to achieve their aims.”

“That’s right.”

“Chaebol families do not touch their own children until the very end. They will definitely swing a sword at Chaeyoon. It’s a classic method that has proven true over time. That’s why Chaeyoon tried not to get involved with a chaebol’s child. She knows full well that even if she wins the fight, it’s only a victory full of wounds, and if she can’t heal them, the adults will ultimately win.”

“Yeah. Even knowing that, Chaeyoon said she’d consider it. So, I have to protect her. I can’t let anyone touch Chaeyoon.”

Seonho clenched his fist with a cool look in his eyes. His attitude was full of determination to protect Chaeyoon.

“By what means? Your personal funds? Your abilities? That’s nothing.”

Junsu spoke coldly.

“That’s right. It’s nothing. It’s just a drop in the bucket. That’s why I won’t do something like running away, like Joo-eun did.”

“It’s good to hear that. It’s not as good as you giving up on Chaeyoon, but still.”

Thankfully, Seonho knew that even within the world of conglomerates, different people required different approaches.