‘He’s getting married soon…’

Soo-min felt a tightness in her chest. If it wasn’t for Byeon Yedo, that man, the hotel wouldn’t be in such a terrible situation. She resented him deeply.

Leaving Eunhyuk’s office, Soo-min walked down the corridor, her steps slow and heavy.

Suddenly, someone stepped in front of her, blocking her path. She jumped in surprise.

A man with dark circles under his eyes and a wrinkled shirt – her ex-husband, Byeon Yedo.

“Y-You… what are you doing here…?”

“We need to talk.”

“Talk? What is there to talk about?”

The sight of her ex-husband, the man she wanted to slap a dozen times without feeling satisfied, made her blood boil.

“Let’s go somewhere private.”

“Say what you have to say right here.”

“Are you sure? If I start talking, I might not be able to control myself – I might end up saying things without thinking.”

She looked around. As always, the hotel was packed with guests hoping to catch a glimpse of the high-profile VIP.

“Follow me.”

She led him towards the emergency stairs, knowing that if he met Eunhyuk, they would surely end up in a fight.

“The hotel seems to be doing well.”

“Is that why you came?”

“Well, that’s part of it. I also heard that he is here. Beom Yuhyeon.”

“Ha… Yes, he’s here.”

A sigh escaped her lips. As expected, he was no different from her eldest brother.

“Hmm…”

“Don’t tell me you’re interested in him too? Wake up. There’s no chance we’ll ever get an investment from him.”

“And why are you so sure? You haven’t even heard the business proposition.”

“It will be almost impossible for you to even get to know it.”

“That’s why I came here. Since this hotel is run by my former brother-in-law and ex-wife, there must be a way to get in touch, right?”

The word brother-in-law made her blood boil.

“Ha… I swear I’m going mad. Were you always so shameless?”

“What? Shameless?”

“Do you know the state our hotel is in right now? Because of the money you took, we can’t even pay our loans and we’re on the verge of bankruptcy!”

“You’re blaming me again? I’m a victim too! I was cheated!”

“Cheated? I know you lost hundreds of billions gambling overseas and now you’re trying to cover it up as fraud?”

Yedo ran a frustrated hand through his hair, clearly irritated.

“F*ck, this is driving me crazy. It’s not like I can rip open my chest and show you the truth. I’m telling you, I was really betrayed!”

Yedo pounded his palm with his fist as he spoke with growing frustration. Whatever his excuses, the fact remained that he had wasted hundreds of billions of won.

She no longer wanted to argue with him.

“Stop clinging and just go. I’ll stop myself from slapping you.”

“Go ahead, slap me. What’s a few more slaps if it means I get a chance to meet Beom Yuhyeon?”

He turned his cheek towards her as if to taunt her. Soo-min’s anger flared even more.

“He’s not someone you can just walk up to. Stop dreaming and go home.”

“I’m just asking for an introduction. Is it really that hard? Why are you defending Beom Yuhyeon so much? What’s going on between you two? Have you slept together?”

She was so stunned that she couldn’t even find the words to answer.

“Ha… They say that people only see what’s in their own nature. Do you think I’m like you?”

“How long has it been since our divorce and you’re already in bed with another man? Huh?”

He grabbed her wrist roughly. First it was alcohol, gambling and women – now he was resorting to violence. Pain shot through her wrist.

“Ah… let me go…!”

“Answer me. Did you sleep with that bastard? Huh?”

“It hurts… Let go…”

It was a classic case of a cheating husband who couldn’t stand the thought of his ex-wife doing the same.

His brute force made it feel like her wrist would snap. The fire escape was empty – no one would hear her even if she screamed. Fear crept up her spine.

Just then, someone suddenly rushed over and twisted Yedo’s arm behind his back.

“……!”

Soo-min’s eyes widened in shock. Yedo, his arm twisted behind his back, struggled to free himself, unable to see who was holding him. But the more he struggled, the tighter the grip became.

“Ugh… Who are you?!”

“Beom Yuhyeon.”

Yedo immediately froze. The man who had just threatened Soo-min suddenly became as meek as a lamb.

“Huh?! B-Beom Yuhyeon… S-Sir… Ah, this is a misunderstanding… She’s my ex-wife…”

“Is it customary in Korea to treat ex-wives like dogs?”

With a casual flick, Beom Yuhyeon let go of him as if throwing away garbage, leaving Yedo to scramble awkwardly, clearly confused.

“D-Dogs? No, that’s not it! T-This is just a misunderstanding… A-Actually… more importantly… may I have your business card…?”

When Yedo opened his wallet to take out a business card, Yuhyeon waved his hand dismissively.

“That won’t be necessary. I don’t even need to see it. Let’s go, Soo-min.”

“…….”

Yedo’s face twisted in frustration.

Yuhyeon gestured for Soo-min to come to his side.

“Excuse us.”

“W-Wait… Beom Yuhyeon, at least hear me out…!”

Just as Yedo tried to follow Yuhyeon, the secretary standing nearby suddenly pulled a gun out of his jacket.

Soo-min jumped in shock.

Yuhyeon’s eyes flashed coldly.

“This is as far as you can go. One more step and you’ll have a hole in your head.”

A chilling warning was spoken, sending a fear so intense it felt like blood turning to ice. It didn’t seem to end with a warning.

Yedo began to back away slowly before suddenly running up the stairs.

“Thank you.”

“…….”

“You’re not angry, are you? Or just depressed?”

“I heard everything. The conversation between you two.”

“…….”

Soo-min closed her eyes.

Following Yuhyeon’s lead, she found herself in the suite. Yuhyeon, feeling stifled, loosened his tie slightly.

“Let’s put aside the fact that you pretended to be married when you were divorced.”

“……Then I’ll go now….”

“You need money, don’t you?”

“…….”

“I hear you’re having a hard time running this hotel.”

“Please don’t worry about it. It’s our business.”

Soo-min shook his head.

“I’ve already paid for a long-term stay at this hotel, so it’s not entirely unrelated. How much do you need?”

“…… A hundred… a hundred billion… No. Forget it.”

Soo-min wanted to sew her mouth shut.

Yuhyeon stared at her intently.

“A hundred billion, huh? That’s not a huge amount. I could give it to you right now.”

“…….”

“Why? Don’t you need my money?”

“Because it wouldn’t be money without strings attached.”

Soo-min spoke honestly.

“You’re stating the obvious. No matter how much money someone has, no sane businessman would make a deal for nothing.”

“…….”

“What I have is money and what you have is your body. I’ll take care of the money, so give me your body.

Does he need a regular bed partner?

Well, since he wants to do business in Korea, maintaining his image is important. He can’t keep hiring hostesses… but to be his s*x partner?

To be the s*x partner of a man who looks like Junhwan?

It was confusing.

‘Soo-min, this is your chance to see his body. What if… even a one in a million chance… what if Junhwan is still alive? Accept it! It’s the only way to save the hotel and find out the truth…’

‘No. Junhwan is already dead. This man is just someone who looks like him. Don’t sell your body for money. Mum will be heartbroken.’

Two versions of herself were fighting inside her.

“Thank you for your offer, but I refuse. I can’t sell my body to another man right after my divorce.”

“It seems your body is more important to you than this hotel.”

“I’m not that kind of woman.”

“You’re trying to show that you’re not a woman who gives herself away so easily, but you’re not going to live alone forever. Sooner or later you’ll get involved with other men, won’t you?”

Yuhyeon looked extremely angry. He tried to control himself, but the air around him felt heavy, as if he could explode at any moment.

“Ha… That’s really too much.”

“Isn’t that the truth? In this day and age, no woman is going to vow to live alone forever, so you’ll end up dating as much as you want. Eventually you’ll need someone to satisfy your physical desires.”

“Not right now.”

Soo-min made it clear again that she refused. The silence that followed lasted only a few minutes, but it felt like hours.

“Since you said no, I won’t make the offer again. But if you ever change your mind, come and see me.”

“Please keep what happened today a secret from the CEO.”

“Of course.”

After nodding politely to Yuhyeon, Soo-min left the suite.

***

Yuhyeon sat in the same place for hours without moving. As the guards cleared away his now cold meal, his secretary hesitated, watching his mood carefully.

“Sir.”

“I need to scare them a little.”

“……I’ll make the arrangements.”

“And also, Byeon Yedo.”

Yuhyeon’s voice echoed heavily.

“Yes, sir. What do you want me to do?”

“Make sure that bastard doesn’t get anywhere near her. Knock him down – just enough so he doesn’t die.”

A grinding sound came from Yuhyeon’s clenched teeth. His secretary quickly left the hotel to carry out his next orders.

***

The next morning, a final warning call came from the bank.

“H-How did this happen? The… the administrative execution… there’s only one day left.”

“……It’s over.”

Eunhyuk collapsed onto the sofa, burying his face in his hands in despair.

“It’s only a matter of time before the confiscation notice is posted.”

“Ah….”

A warning sounded in her head.

She felt a wave of nausea as she imagined the hotel being repossessed, just like her in-laws’ house a few months ago.

Eunhyuk stood up quickly and grabbed his car keys and wallet.

“No, no, that’s not enough. I have to beg and plead with the chairman…”

Soo-min grabbed Eunhyuk’s hand.

“I’ll take care of it.”

“How will you do it, Noona?”

“Let me meet Jinseong first.”

“Do you think he’ll lend you money? Not a chance.”

“Just wait a little.”

Soo-min grabbed Eunhyuk’s feet and left the CEO’s office. Contrary to what she had said about meeting Jinseong, she took the lift straight up to the suite.

Pride, body… it didn’t matter if she threw them away. When the crisis came, she would throw everything away. What’s the point of holding on to a body that will rot and decay once it’s dead…

Without knocking, she swiped the key card and opened the door to the suite. In the living room, Yuhyeon sat arrogantly as if he had been waiting for her.