Various seafood dishes and a wide array of sashimi and sushi filled the spacious table, leaving barely any room.

“Hmm? What’s with the liquor?”

Chairman Seo’s gaze turned towards the ice bucket containing Jeju soju.

“Soju goes well with sashimi. I prepared it to drink with Grandfather.”

Despite her audacious wit, Taeryeong appeared composed and proper.

“I can hold my liquor pretty well, you know. How are you planning to handle that?”

“I’m not worried. I have a dependable knight in shining armor.”

At the end of Taeryeong’s softly smiling gaze was Kangjoon. Before they even started, a broad smile spread across Chairman Seo’s face. However, there were only two glasses. Puzzled, Kangjoon looked at his wife, who slipped a mug filled with water into his hand. I’ll take care of it, so you just drink this. Her wit was audacious, and even her declaration of intent was adorable. Kangjoon chuckled. He suddenly became curious about his wife’s drinking habits and decided to watch. But the more he watched, the more surprised he became. He had thought she only ate heartily, but she even drank soju neatly and gracefully. Her tolerance, enough to handle Chairman Seo effortlessly, was astonishing. Her smooth and skillful way of dealing with an elder was even more surprising. Anyone who didn’t know them would have mistaken them for a grandfather and granddaughter, the atmosphere was so amicable. Watching the two of them made his vision feel warmly lit.

“Grandfather, drinking moderately is good for digestion, but any more than this is drinking for intoxication. There’s a saying that moderate drinking is beneficial, but excessive drinking is harmful. I’m worried it might harm your health.”

She phrased it pleasantly but it was Taeryeong’s subtle eviction order to Chairman Seo. He couldn’t have missed it, yet he laughed heartily.

“Then, shall we have just one more drink as my dear says and then get up?”

Chairman Seo emptied his last glass cleanly and stood up, swaying slightly. Kangjoon quickly supported him. Taeryeong approached with a worried expression, looking as composed and collected as if she hadn’t had a single drink.

“I’ll see Grandfather to his room.”

As soon as they reached the hotel lobby, Chairman Seo vigorously slapped Kangjoon’s back.

“You rascal! You should think about your size! You look like you could wrestle an elephant, yet you let that frail girl...!”

Kangjoon, who had been hit without knowing why, furrowed his brow in bewilderment.

“What did I do?”

“That girl’s neck was as red as if a beast had bitten it. That was your doing, wasn’t it?”

In an instant, his bewilderment vanished, and his throat tightened.

“Grandpa has told me several times...”

“I respectfully decline any advice from a grandfather who made my grandmother suffer her whole life.”

His son had died, and Hyesun had died. Holding onto his young grandson, Chairman Seo had relentlessly poured out nonsensical advice. Little did he know that it would actually make his grandson distance himself from women. Women, marriage, love—he had come to think that if he wasn’t confident he could do well, it was better not to do it at all.

“You rascal! The reason Hyesun and I drifted apart was because of my useless pride. It was even worse because we were the same age. If we had just resolved things through conversation and yielded just a little, we wouldn’t have wasted so much precious time.”

Perhaps thinking of his wife who had passed away, Chairman Seo’s eyes grew red just as the car arrived. Back at the *** Hotel, Taeryeong was clearing the table. Kangjoon approached and helped her, asking,

“Are you alright?”

“As you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”

“You didn’t have to drink, you know.”

Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Taeryeong gave Kangjoon a pretty glare at his words.

“If I didn’t drink, Grandfather wouldn’t have left. He’s very perceptive. He would have noticed you weren’t staying here even if he just went to the bathroom.”

They say a fox is better than a bear. It was a moment when Kangjoon truly felt that, thanks to Taeryeong’s quick-witted handling of the situation. Feeling his persistent gaze, Taeryeong suddenly looked up.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Because it feels like I married an onion.”

No matter how much I peel, there’s always more. And it’s an onion that drives me crazy. Taeryeong, perhaps feeling the effects of the alcohol belatedly, fanned her flushed face with her hand. The scarf around her neck shifted in the breeze, revealing the mark, which Kangjoon stared at intently.

“Grandfather had a bit of a misunderstanding.”

“...?”

“He thought I bit your neck and left that mark.”

He felt sorry that it must have hurt, and he cursed himself as a beast. Yet, at the same time, he hoped the mark would last a long time. It was as if he had branded her as his woman. It was a strange duality.

“That couldn’t be.”

His wife smiled awkwardly and lowered her gaze. Look at you, pretending you don’t know again.

“It was itchy, so I scratched it, but my skin is sensitive, so it left a mark...!”

When Kangjoon’s hand touched her neck, his wife flinched. He used his index finger to lower her scarf, then gently rubbed the red mark with his thumb. The skin beneath his fingertips felt as soft and cool as flour. The sensation was so pleasant that he wanted to keep caressing it.

“It must have hurt a lot.”

Kangjoon murmured. He had woken up this morning and thought about it for a long time. He remembered the events of last night clearly and had intended to apologize to Taeryeong. But the look in his wife’s eyes as she asked if he remembered last night was pleading. Please say you don’t remember. He thought he knew why. She didn’t want to get entangled in complicated emotions with him. She probably didn’t want to develop this relationship further. But what could he do? He now wanted to become more intricately involved with her.

“Kangjoon-ssi, shouldn’t you head back now?”

Surprised by her sudden words, Kangjoon looked at his wife. But her face was flushed as she avoided his gaze.

“Please stop touching my neck.”

Instead of taking his hand away, Kangjoon slightly furrowed his brow in protest. He wanted to touch her more. It wasn’t enough yet.

“Kangjoon-ssi?”

At her slightly more forceful call, he reluctantly removed his hand.

“Can’t I sleep here tonight?”

It felt like he had asked too directly. Just as he was thinking that, his wife chuckled with an expression of helplessness.

“Shall I make you a cup of tea that helps you sleep?”

So, was she telling him to stay or not? But his wife was already heading to the kitchen. Thinking that you could never truly understand a woman’s heart, Kangjoon followed her.

________________________________________

The night sea, viewed from the terrace, was beautiful, with the cool night air. Even the scent of the sea carried by the wind felt pleasant. Was this why people went to see the night sea? Suddenly curious about her husband, Taeryeong carefully turned her head. Unlike her, Kangjoon had his eyes closed on the sunbed. Sensing her gaze, Kangjoon slowly opened his eyes.

“This is quite effective.”

His slow, heavy murmur, his half-closed eyes beneath his eyelids. His struggle to fight off sleep made him seem like a large child, and Taeryeong asked softly,

“Are you very sleepy?”

“If you’re sleepy, you can sleep over.”

It was something I was realizing anew, but he was a man who was good at surprise attacks and exploiting openings. Earlier, I would have refused outright, but now, for some reason, I hesitated. Taeryeong fiddled with the innocent mug. Should I just tell him to sleep over? As she was contemplating, the phone in the living room rang.

“I’ll go answer that.”

________________________________________

Was the call going to be long? Quite some time had passed, but his wife hadn’t returned. When Kangjoon went into the living room, his wife, who had been sitting calmly on the sofa, looked at him. The moment Kangjoon saw his wife’s indifferent eyes, he sensed that something was wrong.

“If you’re done with your tea, would you leave now?”

Instead of saying, Weren’t we just fine a moment ago?, Kangjoon asked curtly,

“What’s the reason?”

Not because he couldn’t sleep in this room, but because he was genuinely curious about the reason. Why the sudden 180-degree change?

“I must have forgotten a prior engagement because I was preoccupied with Grandfather.”

Taeryeong lowered her long eyelashes as she spoke calmly. But Kangjoon had already seen it—the faint contempt in her composed eyes.

“Ms. Hansara is waiting in her room right now, so please go quickly.”

There was no prior engagement. Coming in a hurry because of Chairman Seo, he had contacted the concierge and given instructions to forward any calls or visitors for him to his wife’s room. What angered Kangjoon more than the terrible timing was something else.

“You’re not asking me anything.”

At those words, his wife’s eyes shone even more coldly.

“Do I even have the right to ask you such things?”

“......”

“You’re the one who took that right away from me.”

Kangjoon let out a bitter laugh. That’s right. This misunderstanding, this situation, this being treated like trash—it was all his own doing.

“Let’s see each other tomorrow.”

With those last words, Kangjoon turned to leave. He knew that resolving the immediate misunderstanding wouldn’t solve the problem. Their relationship had been too complicatedly twisted from the beginning. This was a first for him, so he had no idea where or how to even begin untangling it. Kangjoon walked out the door and turned back to look at his wife until the moment the door closed.

“I hope you have a pleasant night.”

But the door slammed shut mercilessly. It felt like his wife’s feelings towards him, and Kangjoon couldn’t readily move his feet.

________________________________________

The week after returning from Jeju Island was peaceful. Work was going well, and Madam Jo was quiet. Yet, Taeryeong felt uneasy the whole time. She tried to ignore it, but the last night in Jeju kept flashing in her mind. Regarding the matter with Hansara, she believed her husband’s innocence. Yet, she had chased him out because she was angry—at herself for not conveying that message calmly, and at her husband for not arguing back when she said he had forfeited his rights. She disliked that version of herself and resented her husband. Feeling unwell, Taeryeong left work earlier than scheduled and murmured as she sat on the sofa.

“It feels so empty again today. And cold.”

There was a time when it wasn’t like this. When this spacious house felt full. When warmth lingered in the cool air that always felt cold. On days when her husband came home early. On days when the scent and traces of that man, who was quiet despite his large and imposing physique, filled the space. Since returning from Jeju Island, she and her husband had been in a cold war. They hadn’t even had a fight, and they weren’t even in that kind of relationship. The faint stirring she felt in the early morning. But when she opened her eyes, the space beside her was empty. Every time, Taeryeong tried to dismiss it. Our relationship was always meant to be like this. It’s better this way. Getting up from the sofa, she felt like her feet were sinking into emptiness. Entering the second-floor bathroom, Taeryeong couldn’t help but chuckle. The hot water wasn’t working.

“It’s like some kind of Murphy’s Law.”

Reluctantly, Taeryeong headed to the first-floor bedroom. She had only intended to take a shower, but the spacious bathtub caught her eye. And the dazzling night view beyond the window next to the tub.

“Maybe a half-bath will make me feel a bit better.”

Taeryeong started filling the tub with water. She couldn’t go to the hospital, there was no one to whine to about being sick, no one to take care of her. She felt so cold even now, and she thought she would feel even colder if she just lay in bed like this.

________________________________________

The first thing Taeryeong felt upon waking up was a chill. Getting out of the bathtub where the water had gone cold, her body shivered. At this rate, she would probably be bedridden tomorrow. After grabbing her phone and wrapping a large towel around herself, the bathroom door opened without a knock.

“......”

“......”

Taeryeong thought she was hallucinating because she wasn’t feeling well. But no matter how many times she blinked, the scene before her didn’t disappear; it was reality. Especially her husband standing there, bare-chested. Her husband quietly watched her trembling fingertips gripping the towel tightly. He stared intently with eyes that made her nervous, eyes that seemed to burn.

“I sent you a message that I’d be back at 9.”

Her husband’s gaze slowly moved to the phone in Taeryeong’s hand as he spoke slowly. If she said she fell asleep and didn’t check, would he believe her?

“But at this hour. In the bathroom I use. If Taeryeong-ssi is here like this.”

His thick gaze slowly rose and pierced Taeryeong’s face like a harpoon.

“I think there might be a misunderstanding.”

This situation, this timing, this appearance. She thought she knew what her husband was misunderstanding. The hot water wasn’t working in the second-floor bathroom, and the first-floor bathroom just happened to have a bathtub. She didn’t expect him to be back this early. There were many things she wanted to say, but her mouth wouldn’t open. Barely standing was all Taeryeong could manage right now.

“Yoo Taeryeong-ssi, say something.”

The last night in Jeju Island. Believing in her husband’s innocence, Taeryeong hadn’t asked anything and had coldly chased him away. But why was he trying to listen to her until the very end? Feeling a belated wave of guilt, Taeryeong lowered her gaze. Even as her vision blurred and then cleared again, his loosely relaxed pectoral muscles were dizzyingly arousing.

“Are you perhaps trying to seduce me?”

Taeryeong shook her head weakly. Even that small movement made her brain ring and her mind feel faint. It was then that her husband asked,

“Do you want to sleep with me?”

She had to answer this. But with her head spinning, Taeryeong leaned against her husband. She desperately wrapped her arms around his solid waist, pressed her hot forehead against his bare chest, and breathed heavily.

It was like answering with her body instead of words. It was like pouring oil on her husband’s blazing misunderstanding.

“I’m...”

Taeryeong’s lips, which had been moving with difficulty while her eyes were closed, were swallowed by his. It was her husband’s response to her causing the misunderstanding.