WRL 13

Chapter: 13

 Persistently

It was Choi Hyunseo—the man she had longed for even in her dreams. Fully conscious and aware of who she was, he was kissing her. Even when he had suddenly approached her while she was choosing a wedding dress and sucked on her, he hadn’t kissed her.

Like a sleek beast, he had lunged, grabbed her chest, sucked on it, and left marks—publicly advertising to the dress shop staff that they were that kind of relationship. But even then, she had thought it was merely an act to stir up rumors.

But now, this situation didn’t fit any of that.

Taeyeon accepted his tongue and moved her own very timidly. Compared to his movements, however, her response was almost negligible.

He tilted his head and pushed his tongue in deeper. As their bodies collided, Hyunseo’s firm chest pressed against Taeyeon’s soft, supple one.

Instinctively retreating from the close contact, her back hit the wall. Trapped between the wall and Hyunseo’s tall body, Taeyeon hunched her shoulders at the hard pressure nudging her lower abdomen. He was persistently rubbing against her.

The scorching heat of his fully aroused body was conveyed to her without filter. The throbbing force of a man—there was no other way to describe this raw, male reaction.

Taeyeon sucked in a breath and tried to move back further, but there was nowhere to go. His hand seized her breast. With a soft gasp, her thighs parted.

His solid thigh pushed between her legs and precisely stimulated her most sensitive place. Like stone, his thigh rubbed her relentlessly, awakening places within her body she hadn’t even known. Her breathing grew ragged.

She could clearly feel the heat spreading inside her, the dampness gathering below. Hyunseo showed no sign of stopping. On the eve of the wedding, the clear boundary they had maintained for nearly three months collapsed.

Choi Hyunseo bit her earlobe and gripped the back of her neck. While his thigh stimulated her below, the hand at her neck felt as though it might tighten at any moment.

Her chin tilted up as she accepted his lips, and in that instant Taeyeon felt a dizzying peak. Her body, stimulated atop his thigh, trembled in sharp spasms.

“Assistant Manager Min Taeyeon. I think you need to clearly understand what your role is.”

“Director…”

“You shouldn’t be going around meeting other men right before your wedding. Be careful.”

Taeyeon lifted her eyes in shock. His gaze was dark and heavy.

Don’t tell me this is because of yesterday? Compensation for getting hurt? Is that even plausible?

Even so, he looked down at her with dominance and spoke again.

“Answer.”

The hand gripping Taeyeon’s throat moved gently as she panted. It felt completely different from when he had applied force earlier. His sensual fingers traced her thin skin, brushing around her collarbone.

It wasn’t exactly threatening, yet her breathing grew faster for a different reason. With her head still tilted back, Taeyeon replied,

“…Yes.”

“I like that.”

And then their lips overlapped again. His hand slipped fully inside her shirt and grabbed her breast. The sensation of bare skin against bare skin was completely different from when he had gripped her through the fabric.

When he pinched and twisted the tender flesh between his thumb and forefinger, a moan escaped Taeyeon’s lips.

Just how far is he planning to go?

The wedding was tomorrow—surely not today?

His gaze, unlike before, put her completely on edge. The way it touched every corner of her body stimulated both her body and her mind at once. A helpless moan slipped out. She was already thoroughly soaked below, beyond doing anything about it.

“Ah…”

And it seemed she wasn’t the only one. When he pressed his body against her more roughly, the hard desire against her lower abdomen throbbed even more fiercely. It had felt large from the moment it swelled, but now it was almost absurd.

She vividly remembered that night six months ago—how his burning body and desire had relentlessly driven into the deepest place between her thighs. But with time, the sensation had faded into something that drifted between vague memory and imagination.

Because of that, the heavy, pressing mass now nudging her lower abdomen felt overwhelmingly huge—enough to steal her breath.

This wasn’t memory or imagination.

Her heart felt like it would burst, and Taeyeon shook her head.

“Director! Stop!”

“Stop what? I haven’t even started. So—you’re planning to keep seeing him? Shin Noel.”

At the mention of Noel’s name, Taeyeon’s eyes flew wide open.

Shin Noel. He knew Noel’s name. How?

Seeing the question in her eyes, he curled his lips in a mocking smile and finally pulled his body away.

“Why? Did you think I wouldn’t know? You didn’t take me for a fool. You didn’t think I’d save Yoonwoo’s mother without looking into things, did you? From the start, it was easy enough to notice—same house, same workplace. But it kept circling in a rather strange way. This goes no further.”

Hyunseo’s words were so absurd that Taeyeon’s eyes widened. Then displeasure swept through her whole body.

Entering this ridiculous situation had been her own choice—her own contract. But that didn’t mean she had handed over her basic human dignity or her thoughts along with it.

Whatever he was thinking, it was offensive. He was rude enough to make her want to laugh at the part of herself that had, just moments ago, hoped he might be jealous.

“That’s offensive. It’s not what you think, Director.”

“I know it isn’t. If it were, I wouldn’t be marrying you. Remember this well. Don’t forget the papers you signed.”

It was as if he were hammering in the fact that she had brought this upon herself.

Taeyeon bit her lower lip hard and glared at him. But as if her reaction were laughable, he shot her a cold sneer and left. Because her body was still heated, the chill he left behind felt even colder.

After he left, Taeyeon spent a long time catching her breath.

Her underwear was completely soaked. She tossed it aside and showered under hot water. In the mirror, marks remained on her neck.

By tomorrow, they would surely bruise dark blue—and the wedding was tomorrow…

The next day, the makeup designer leaned close and whispered in her ear.

“The groom must love you very much. You must be happy.”

As the makeup artist smiled and layered foundation over the kiss marks on her neck, Taeyeon couldn’t say a word.

He was a man she couldn’t control.

What on earth am I doing?
Fear she couldn’t handle, emptiness, and lingering regret all simmered inside her.

While she sat in the bride’s waiting room, countless people came and went, praising her beauty. Among them, Chohee approached.

“Good grief, girl. You’re seriously gorgeous. Who would ever guess you’re a mom?”

Even when Taeyeon gave her the wedding invitation, Chohee hadn’t believed it.

“You had a baby and now you’re getting married? And you expect me to believe that?”

Chohee had shouted back then—but she still came.

After seeing Yoonwoo’s photo and cooing over how pretty the child was, she even joked that premarital pregnancy was basically part of the wedding package these days, saying she was jealous Taeyeon was getting married with everything so well prepared.

Thanks to her straightforward congratulations, Taeyeon had been able to go through with the wedding feeling at ease.

Chohee didn’t mention Noel at all.

That was exactly the kind of trustworthy friend she was—someone who respected both her friend and her friend’s brother.

“Chohee. You came.”

“Of course. You didn’t even tell me and went and had a baby, but what can I do? We’ve known each other too long.”

Chohee smiled and shot her a playful look.

But Taeyeon couldn’t talk long with her.

Because her mother-in-law, Oh Jinhee, had entered.

Jinhee approached with cold eyes. The luxurious hanbok she wore naturally drew attention. The sheen of the silk made her look even more elegant.

“Welcome, Mother.”

“Would you step outside for a moment?”

Since she was speaking to Chohee, Chohee simply bowed and left the room.

Left alone together, the air in the bride’s waiting room turned icy.

Jinhee stepped closer and spoke.

“I honestly didn’t think you’d make it all the way to the wedding hall. Yoonwoo is one thing, but you—I truly find it hard to accept.”

Unable to say anything, Taeyeon kept her lips sealed as Jinhee continued.

“As you know, I was the second wife. There were plenty of people who whispered and called me a mistress. That’s why I wanted my son to properly marry the daughter of a respectable family.”

It was a familiar script—exactly what she had expected.

It had zero impact. The words were so clichéd they couldn’t even scratch her heart. Besides, this wasn’t a marriage she was desperately clinging to out of love, so it affected her even less.

Still, Taeyeon sat demurely and listened.

As if she were hurt.

As if she deeply loved Choi Hyunseo and was dutifully playing the role of the daughter-in-law who obediently endured her mother-in-law’s words.

“Does what I’m saying mean nothing to you?”

Seeing Taeyeon show little reaction, Oh Jinhee glared at her with clear displeasure.