***

Her whole body ached as if she had just had s*x.

With unsteady steps, Soo-min made her way to the emergency exit and descended to the lower floor.

2 am.

The corridor was deathly quiet.

Perhaps because of the lateness of the hour, the sound of her footsteps on the carpet seemed louder than usual.

Her heart pounded like a child caught doing something wrong.

She was extra careful as she passed Eunhyuk’s room. Moving cautiously, she finally reached her own door and tapped her key card against the reader.

Swish.

The soft sound startled her.

Soo-min quickly slipped into her room and closed the door behind her.

Moments after she entered, another door creaked open. It was Eunhyuk.

With a curious tilt of his head, he closed the door and walked towards the security office. He had to check something.

Of course, it wasn’t unusual for someone to go to the roof to get some fresh air when they couldn’t sleep. But to deliberately use the emergency stairs instead of the lift? That was strange.

The security officer was visibly startled by Eunhyuk’s sudden appearance.

“C-Chairman, what brings you here at this hour?”

“Show me the CCTV footage from the 26th to the 27th floor.”

The officer’s expression stiffened with unease.

“This area is under separate security management as per your instructions, so all the CCTV cameras have been switched off.”

Damn. He had entrusted the security of this area to Beom Yuhyeon at his request. He paused for a moment, deep in thought.

“The footage of the emergency exit should still be available, right?”

“I’m sorry, but the emergency exit cameras have been disabled as well.”

“Hah… that’s ridiculous.”

Eunhyuk ran a frustrated hand through his hair, messing it up.

“If it’s urgent, there might still be footage from the emergency exit leading to the Sky Lounge. It’s not a direct angle, but we should be able to see a top-down view.”

The security officer quickly rewound the footage. Soon, a single person could be seen leaving the 27th floor.

At the time, Soo-min was the only person to have used the emergency exit. Even from above, the glimpse of her head was enough to confirm her identity.

Pfft – Eunhyuk clenched his teeth in frustration.

***

The next morning, she found Eunhyuk’s face looking tired and drawn.

“Are you feeling sick?”

“No.”

“You look a bit rough.”

“I think I might be coming down with something… but I should be fine.”

Unlike usual, Eunhyuk was quiet. He seemed a bit down.

‘Is he feeling unwell?’

Curious, she reached out and placed a hand on his forehead.

“You’ve been through a lot. Sometimes, when the tension finally eases, you start to feel sick.”

“Didn’t you get sick, Noona?”

“Me? I’m strong, you know.”

In reality, her whole body was aching, but she brushed it off with a smile.

Eunhyuk put the spoon down and looked at Soo-min.

“Noona, I was thinking… what if we got an apartment?”

“An apartment?”

“The urgent problems have been taken care of, so I think we’ll have some extra money. Thanks to Beom Yuhyeon, the hotel has been getting more guests. I think now would be a good time to find a place to live. Besides, it would make commuting more comfortable, don’t you think?”

“A house, huh…”

It wasn’t a bad idea. If they had their own place, she wouldn’t have to hesitate every time she passed Eunhyuk’s room.

‘Actually, it would make it easier to keep our secret contract. The longer the tail, the easier it is to step on.’

“The staff must have felt uncomfortable too.”

“Well, yes. Having the owner in the hotel 24/7… I hadn’t thought about that. Should we look for an apartment near the hotel then?”

“I’ll ask an estate agent. I saw a decent apartment once.”

“Oh… yes. Let’s do that.”

“Now it’ll be just the two of us living together. Like before…”

“Yeah.”

Only then did Eunhyuk pick up his spoon again. Watching him eat his rice in big bites, Soo-min felt a pang of guilt.

‘If Mum were here, he’d have home-cooked meals every morning…’

After she married and left him, he seemed even thinner than before.

‘I’m sorry, Mum. I should have taken better care of Eunhyuk… I was too neglectful.’

Still, she felt relieved that they finally had the means to live together in a proper home. She decided to take her mother’s place and cook for Eunhyuk and look after his health.

Unexpectedly, they received news of a vacancy in the apartment Eunhyuk had been considering. It was only a 20-minute walk from the hotel, making it a great choice – and a great way to get some exercise.

After receiving Eunhyuk’s call, Soo-min picked up her phone and stepped out of the room.

“I… I think I’ll be moving into the apartment soon.”

– “It doesn’t matter.”

“If I work overtime every night, it might attract attention, which could be a problem. What should I do?”

– “You don’t have to have s*x only at night.”

“Then…?”

– “S*x after dinner would be ideal. You have to have s*x with me at least three nights a week, so just make an excuse to your brother.”

“I’ll think of something.”

S*x after meal… That meant he wanted to use her meal break.

Once aroused, he didn’t let go for hours – so she wasn’t sure if an hour was really enough for him. But at least they would only meet three times a week.

“Manager, the props have arrived.”

“Oh, alright.”

Soo-min quickly followed her team members into the backyard.

“Oh my, look over there. Isn’t that Beom Yuhyeon?”

At her colleague’s words, she turned her head to see Yuhyeon walking along the hotel’s scenic path.

“You’re right.”

“He looks like a painting, doesn’t he? Just standing there, he could be in a photo shoot. Don’t you think?”

Just as she said that, the bright sunlight fell on him, making his hair glisten.

“I was completely frozen at the last company dinner. Seriously, how can someone attract you just by being there? It only really hit me this time.”

“Nana, he totally looked like a mafia boss.”

‘A mafia boss.’

Yes, that image might actually suit him better.

Suddenly, their eyes met in the air.

A faint smile flickered across his lips before disappearing so quickly it almost felt like an illusion.

‘My heart… is racing…’

That afternoon, as she was getting ready to leave work, Jinseong arrived at the hotel.

“Hello, little sister.”

Sigh…

Soo-min tried to walk past Jinseong without acknowledging him, but he followed closely behind her.

She could already see his intentions clearly, so she had no desire to engage in conversation.

“Let’s try to get closer.”

“I don’t remember ever being your little sister.”

“You were one from the beginning, weren’t you?”

Jinseong grinned and she had the urge to punch him in the mouth.

It was disgusting how familiar he suddenly sounded, when he had never called his own mother ‘Mum’, only ‘Auntie’ all his life.

“Do you really need me? You seem to be quite close to Beom Yuhyeon already.”

“That’s separate.”

“I don’t want to talk to you. If Eunhyuk sees us, he’ll have something to say again, so just go.”

“I actually just saw Eunhyuk a little while ago.”

“W-Where?”

“He came to my company looking for me.”

As Jinseong slowly smiled, her stomach twisted.

‘Could it be… that he’s starting to question the source of the 10 billion?’

For weeks he had shown no suspicion, but now…

“Did you answer well?”

“Of course. I said exactly what you told me to say. Just in case, I even prepared forged documents and showed them to him. He seemed to believe it.”

“Phew… All right. Thanks anyway.”

She let out a sigh of relief.

“Why did you keep it a secret from Eunhyuk that you borrowed money from Beom Yuhyeon?”

“I just didn’t want to worry him for no reason.”

“What kind of worry? Oh, is it the protective little brother afraid that the big bad wolf will take his sister away?”

Soo-min gave Jinseong a sharp look.

“Does your brain always work like that?”

“What other reason could there be? He lent you 100 billion won.”

“Do you really think my body is worth exchanging for 100 billion?”

“No.”

“Exactly. No matter how rich a man is, no one would give 100 billion just to exchange someone’s body. It’s just an investment. If I can’t pay it back, I’ll have nothing left.”

Jinseong was stubborn, like a vulture patient, unwilling to let go. He was an opportunist, always sniffing out a chance to profit from any situation.

For Jinseong, Yuhyeon was undoubtedly a huge figure, one of the biggest players.

Although sharing a secret with someone like Jinseong made her feel insecure, Soo-min kept a calm facade and acted indifferent.

“With a personality like his, I doubt he would lend money for nothing. I’ve also heard that he’s incredibly good in bed.”

“I pay him interest on the money I borrowed.”

“With money?”

“Yes, money! Seriously, stop it. I appreciate your help, but interrogating me like this is really unpleasant.”

Jinseong gently massaged Soo-min’s shoulder.

“Relax. Oh look, Eunhyuk is coming.”

Soo-min tensed and whispered sharply to Jinseong.

“Don’t say anything.”

“I came here for another reason, so don’t worry about my mouth.”

Just as he had greeted Soo-min, Jinseong greeted Eunhyuk warmly.

“Why are you here again?”

“We’re going to the field the day after tomorrow. You, me and Soo-min – we’ve been invited.”

“So you just went ahead and made plans without asking us first?”

“I knew you’d go anyway, so I answered on your behalf. The people attending this field event are all high-ranking officials and third-generation chaebols.”

Soo-min was startled by Jinseong’s words. That meant it was an elite golf club, belonging to the top 1%. It was a real surprise for the two siblings, who had only ever seen each other from afar at family gatherings.

Eunhyuk was the first to speak.

“…I have a rough idea who invited us.”

“That’s right. Beom Yuhyeon. He’s the one who invited you. But I was the one who asked him to include you two, so give me some credit. Anyway, I delivered the message, so I’ll go now.”

When Jinseong left, Soo-min looked at Eunhyuk. His stiff posture made her feel uncomfortable.

“You can refuse. I’m not going either. I don’t even know how to play golf properly.”

An unexpected reply came from Eunhyuk.

“No, we should go. It’s a good opportunity. A chance for others to naturally recognise that we are part of the Jaewon Group bloodline”.

“Well, that’s true.”

“Beom Yuhyeon really has a lot of influence in the group. Even we illegitimate children were accepted. Those people wouldn’t even make eye contact with us at parties before…”

Just because they shared the same bloodline, they were occasionally forced to attend family gatherings, but each time they returned with nothing but wounds. Their mother also carried deep resentment in her heart because people saw her as a concubine’s daughter.

“It seems we’re attracting attention because they’re staying at our hotel.”

“I should be more ambitious. It would be even better if I could secure our mother’s share while I’m at it.”

“That would be the best result… To have our mother recognised in high society.

I’ll make sure I get what’s rightfully ours. No matter what anyone says, we are part of the Jaewon Group.”

“We’re both grandchildren, so don’t be afraid.”

Born the daughter of a concubine, her mother was a strong woman. She never wanted to be born, but longed to be acknowledged as her father’s child. Her maternal family saw her as a burden, but Eunhyuk wanted to achieve the things his mother could not.

“I will take the place my mother lost.” 

Soo-min looked at Eunhyuk. Despite his lack of experience, his determination to move forward was comforting.

“When did you grow up so much? You’re so reliable. 

“I will protect my mother and sister. I’m like the head of the family, instead of dad.”

“Hmm… Yeah…” 

Soo-min avoided Eunhyuk’s gaze and ended the conversation with a forced smile. It felt like a heavy stone had been placed on her chest.