Chapter 6: No Way Back After This

Jiheum’s head whipped around to face the man.

The man shrugged as if it were nothing and smiled.

He looked immensely confident, as if women were lining up to throw themselves at that very smile.

“……Excuse me……”

The words died on Jiheum’s parting lips.

It was frustrating because his confidence didn’t seem like a lie, leaving her with no way to refute him.

Ignore him. Just ignore him.

Jiheum looked away, stroking the empty glass up and down.

She kept murmuring to herself like a prayer to ignore him, but something kept welling up inside her.

Whether it was Young-chae or the man before her, everything seemed so easy for everyone else.

It felt like she was the only one for whom living was a struggle. It made her feel unfairly treated.

Jiheum bit her lip before turning her head toward the man again.

“Excuse me, do I look easy to you?”

She glared at him with eyes that clearly displayed her displeasure.

In an instant, the man’s expression turned cold.

“Do I look like the kind of bastard who hits on just anyone?”

Jiheum was rendered speechless by his blunt refusal to hide his offense.

Just as he said, he didn’t seem like the type to show openings easily or speak to just anyone.

On the contrary, he seemed like the type who would have people swarming around him, desperate for a chance to talk to him.

Even in this lounge bar, she could feel people watching him, frantic to catch his eye.

Thinking about it differently, it could mean she was special.

But she had never wanted to be a special person in her life.

She thought she would have been happy just to have been born ordinary.

“You’ve been sighing and shaking your head for a while now.”

The man who had been stern and cold vanished, replaced once again by a playful smile.

It was a change as rapid as a mask-changing performance.

“I don’t know what it is you want to forget. But I can make you forget it.”

If only you want it.

“Forget what? What are you going to make me forget?”

“Anything. Whatever it is you want to forget.”

His sharply defined lips curved provocatively.

It was as if he were saying that no matter what she wanted to forget, he could make it happen.

A flicker of interest appeared in Jiheum’s eyes as she swallowed hard.

She didn’t care if it was just the alcohol tempting her.

Perhaps this was the only opportunity she would ever have to use alcohol as an excuse.

After all, she had come to this lounge bar to rebel.

She wanted to add a different color to Yoon Jiheum’s otherwise monochromatic life.

She had always dreamed of a deviation, but she had never even attempted it because she feared the aftermath.

The most she had managed to come up with was this high-end lounge bar.

She drank strong alcohol she wouldn’t normally touch, wore clothes she wouldn’t normally wear, and even borrowed killer heels and a wig from Seung-ji.

She wanted to spend time pretending not to be Yoon Jiheum.

To her, the man’s proposal was a dangerous temptation.

“There are some words I want to forget, but no matter how much I struggle, I can’t.”

She suddenly realized she could no longer hear the words “Do you have any money,” which had been playing on a loop in her ears like a recording.

Was it the alcohol spreading through her? Or was it because she was distracted by this man?

While she was exchanging glances and conversation with him, Young-chae’s voice, which had tormented her for days, was no longer audible.

“That’s perfect. Let’s put it to the test.”

“Pardon? A test?”

“To see if I can make you forget or not.”

Jiheum stared at the man.

Beyond his handsome features, she was inwardly curious about the soul full of confidence that lay beneath.

She wondered what kind of life one had to lead to be so bold and self-assured.

“Do you know something?”

She wondered what he was asking. For some reason, she was afraid to ask back.

“Alcohol isn’t the only thing you can get intoxicated by.”

The man leaned slightly toward Jiheum and whispered as if it were a secret.

His wavy eyes and vividly curved lips, and his gaze urging her to accept—all of it clouded Jiheum’s judgment.

“What is it then?”

Jiheum asked, her lips trembling with indecision.

“Are you feeling a bit curious?”

“And if I am?”

“Let’s go up. I’ll make sure you get intoxicated.”

She understood exactly what his temptation meant.

****

Joyoon chuckled at the absurdity of it as he looked at the room’s card key.

He wondered what on earth he was doing.

Many women had seduced him, but this was the first time he had ever seduced one first.

He had been irritated because of the blind date and had intended to go straight to Chairman Ki to complain, but he had changed his course to the lounge instead.

He thought he should at least suppress his emotions before facing the old man.

Yet here he was, hitting on a woman.

The more he thought about it, the more ridiculous it felt, but he found himself genuinely curious about the woman who had made him do something so out of character.

Joyoon turned his head to look at the woman standing at a distance that was neither too far nor too close.

Short hair and fair skin. Downcast eyes with eyelashes like crescent moons. Lips he wanted to taste. A slender, curvy body. She was beautiful. Her beauty had caught his eye.

But calling it just beauty didn’t fully explain it even to himself. It wasn’t as if he lacked experience with women.

Speaking to her had been entirely impulsive.

There was something amusing about the way she drank, looking for all the world as if she were reluctantly downing a drink handed to her by a boss she hated.

She was clearly alone, and she had ordered the drink herself, yet her behavior—acting as if someone were forcing her—piqued his curiosity.

What was making that woman force herself to drink?

His curiosity quickly turned into an investigation. He wanted to shake those brown eyes of hers—those stagnant brown eyes filled with emptiness.

Whirrrr. A vibration broke the silence.

He pulled his phone from his pocket and saw a short message from Chief Seo.

[Master. Where are you going?]

Had he been watching? A small, airy laugh escaped him.

It seemed the Chief had seen him getting the room key.

He appreciated the tact of sending a text instead of calling since a strange woman was beside him, but that was as far as it went.

[Since you saw, you should know. Do not disturb.]

After replying quickly, Joyoon set his phone to silent and stepped out of the elevator.

The woman followed him without a word.

Her trembling gaze, looking as if she might run away at any second, was pitiful. Is this where her courage ends?

“Do you want to go back?”

Joyoon asked as he opened the suite door.

The woman’s eyes widened slightly, as if she thought she no longer had a choice.

Why is she so surprised by everything? He wondered how much wider her eyes would get when he kissed her. Would she faint if he started tasting her?

“I’m giving you a chance to choose.”

“……”

“But once we go in, there’s no running away.”

Joyoon gripped the doorknob and counted in his mind.

One, two, three…

The moment he decided he would close the door once he reached ten, the woman stepped inside.

****

She didn’t know if her toes were trembling because her heels were uncomfortable or because she was nervous.

Jiheum looked at the man as he inserted the card key, then quickly lowered her gaze.

As the alcohol took effect, her entire body felt ticklish and on edge.

She cast a glance back at the door she had just entered through when the man approached and spoke.

“Don’t you know about fair play? I clearly said there’s no running away.”

The corners of Joyoon’s eyes crinkled softly.

He pressured Jiheum, slowly surrounding her like a predator closing in on its prey.

Jiheum backed away slowly, but her back soon hit the wall. There was nowhere left to run.

“Or is this a concept? ‘Catch me if you can’? Something like that?”

She glared at him, annoyed by his relaxed, laughing attitude.

Jiheum was the only one who didn’t realize she wasn’t a threat at all. In fact, her look only made Joyoon’s blood boil with desire.

Their coats brushed against each other as the gap between them narrowed.

Jiheum swallowed hard at Joyoon’s presence, which loomed over her like a massive, solid wall.

For several seconds, they just stared at each other in silence.

Joyoon, standing inches away, slowly lowered his head.

As Jiheum’s pupils dilated, they were filled with the image of Joyoon approaching.

Joyoon’s lips curved up slightly before instantly meeting Jiheum’s.

His tongue licked her lips, finding them far softer and more yielding than they had looked.

As he felt Jiheum flinch and tremble, his desire surged.

He caressed her lips slowly and teasingly.

The moment her shaking eyes closed, Joyoon’s tongue invaded her territory.

Jiheum pressed herself further against the wall as he slid inside.

Joyoon’s coat brushed against hers as he cupped her cheeks.

His firm thigh pushed between her legs, pressing against her beneath her short skirt.

Her entire body tingled as the strength left her.

The kiss, which had been like the calm before a storm, instantly brought a wave of excitement.

Thud. Jiheum’s handbag fell to the floor, and their lips became even more frantic.

Their bodies became entangled, and his thigh pressing against her grew firm.

They were still only at the entrance, yet words had vanished, leaving only their actions.

Clothes were discarded haphazardly in the hallway leading to the room.

The man lunged at her as if he couldn’t stand being apart even for a second.

Between his mind-numbing caresses and the intoxicating alcohol, she was completely on edge.

His promise to make her forget had been the truth.

Drowned in the waves of pleasure that kept crashing over her, the voice of Young-chae that had tormented her was long gone.

His promise to make her intoxicated had also been perfectly kept.

That night, she had been blissfully intoxicated by his touch.