Chapter 9

“Ah…”

Hajun grabbed Eunjae’s arm as she slightly stumbled.

It was only her arm being held, but his cool scent suddenly felt stronger, making her heart feel like it might burst.

She placed her hand lightly over his arm and held on.

Still, after kissing him, wouldn’t something like this be okay?

“Th-thank you.”

Hajun quietly looked down at Eunjae’s slender arm.

Attending the formal family meeting, and stopping by the hospital separately for the father of the woman who would become his wife.

Neither of those things had anything to do with the work or projects he was supposed to be focusing on.

Yet when he saw Lee Eunjae return with smeared makeup, swollen eyes, and obvious signs that she had been crying, what had come over him?

It was obvious that the young woman had decided to marry because of her terminally ill father.

Perhaps he had felt pity for her in that moment, which was why he willingly took on those troublesome tasks.

Even after Eunjae held onto his arm for a moment before letting go, Hajun felt a strange sensation lingering there and let out a quiet breath.

* * *

“Oh my goodness, what is that?”

After the formal family meeting ended, everyone went their separate ways, and only Hamin and Mikyung returned home.

However, on the road leading to the house’s garage, a woman was sitting there with her body slumped over.

In this wealthy neighborhood, who would act so undignified?

Mikyung frowned when she saw a woman sprawled out drunkenly for the first time.

At Mikyung’s reaction, Hamin, who had only been looking at her phone, raised her head.

Then she suddenly screamed in surprise.

“Oh my gosh! Choi Shinhye!”

It was none other than her friend Shinhye, who had supposedly returned after studying abroad.

Hamin opened the car door and immediately ran out.

“Choi Shinhye?”

Mikyung knew that name too.

She had always disliked her because all she seemed to do was drink and party.

But there was a bigger reason.

Despite coming from an unimpressive family and having poor manners, she liked Hajun.

Because of that, she had always bothered Mikyung and Hamin.

“Hamin!! Is it true that Hajun oppa is getting married?”

“Keep your voice down. Mom is in the car.”

Despite Hamin trying to stop her, Choi Shinhye stood up and staggered toward the car where Mikyung was sitting.

Having a daughter who did nothing but enjoy herself was already frustrating enough, but Choi Shinhye causing a scene in front of someone else’s house while drunk was even worse.

“Ma’am! No, auntie! No, Mother!”

“Oh my goodness.”

Shinhye drunkenly banged on the car window.

Her eyeliner had completely smudged around her eyes, making her look like a panda.

Mikyung had at least pretended to be kind to Eunjae, who would become her daughter-in-law, because Eunjae had good judgment when it came to her husband and son.

But now, there was no one she needed to impress.

“Why can’t it be me? I really like Hajun oppa.”

Seeing Shinhye shouting nonsense, Mikyung yelled.

“Hamin, get rid of her.”

“Our company will be listed soon. Can’t you just wait until then? Please?”

Choi Shinhye was the daughter of a small and medium-sized company owner.

Their cash reserves were solid, but they were still just a small business.

They couldn’t compare to the wealth Taeon’s youngest daughter would bring.

Wanting to end the situation quickly, Mikyung lowered the car window and pushed Shinhye away from the vehicle.

Shinhye fell to the ground with a thud and burst into tears.

“Mom! Even so, how can you push someone who’s drunk like that?”

“Hamin. I told you to choose your friends carefully. You’re going to get married soon too, and you only spend time with people like this. How can I not worry? Tsk.”

After scolding Hamin, Mikyung turned her anger back toward Shinhye.

“You already heard that Hajun is getting married, so there’s nothing more I can say. You should find someone else suitable for you.”

Mikyung closed the window and told the driver to go inside quickly.

Behind them, Choi Shinhye’s desperate voice echoed.

“You said you’d think about it after I came back from studying abroad! As Hajun oppa’s partner…”

Hamin, who sat beside Shinhye and comforted her, shook her head.

“Shinhye, wake up. You knew this too. You knew my mom was just trying to avoid saying no directly.”

“Hamin, Hajun oppa isn’t marrying that woman because he likes her, right? It’s a political marriage, right?”

“Even so, Oppa made the decision himself.”

“…That doesn’t make sense.”

If Hajun had ever shown interest in women before, she could have understood.

But the fact that Hajun, who had never shown any interest at all, agreed to marry someone was extremely shocking.

“What kind of woman is she? She’s the daughter of Taeon Hotel, right?”

“Well, she’s really young. Much younger than us.”

“…If our family’s wealth increases, would your mother change her mind? I really want Hajun oppa. Hamin, help me.”

“What power do I have?”

“I came back to Korea early for this.”

“That’s ridiculous. You ran away because that foreign model kept insisting on marrying you.”

“Hey! Keep quiet. Someone might hear.”

Shinhye covered Hamin’s mouth with her hand and looked around.

“Anyway, it won’t be easy to persuade my mom. Taeon Hotel’s representative is terminally ill, so she’s thinking about the fortune his daughter will inherit after he dies.”

“Taeon… I hope it goes bankrupt.”

Shinhye continued pouring out curses toward Lee Eunjae, and Hamin simply laughed beside her as if the situation was amusing.

* * *

Since Hajun was always busy with work, the wedding preparations became Eunjae and Mikyung’s responsibility.

Taeon had originally decided that Secretary Han would handle everything, but Mikyung acted disappointed and insisted on preparing things together with Eunjae.

Preparing for the wedding with a kind mother-in-law was something that made Eunjae happy, so whenever Mikyung called, she rushed over.

Since her own mother had passed away early, she had never experienced shopping or chatting together like a mother and daughter.

For her, this was a happy and precious experience.

“Sweetheart, which one do you like?”

Eunjae and Mikyung were looking at luxury beds in the only high-end furniture showroom in Korea, where they sold beds supplied to the Swedish royal family.

“Anything is fine with me.”

“Anything? The bed is the most important thing. You shouldn’t be so careless about it.”

Clicking her tongue, Mikyung pressed down on the mattress with her hand as if checking how comfortable it was.

“The bed has to be good so you can sleep well together, right? Isn’t that how it works?”

Understanding what Mikyung meant, Eunjae’s face turned bright red.

She was surprised because she hadn’t expected to hear such a direct comment from her mother-in-law.

Besides, ever since kissing Hajun, those thoughts came to her at random times, making her heart race so much that she couldn’t think straight.

And now that she was looking at beds too, her face felt even hotter.

“Does your Taeon Hotel in Seoul have beds from this brand?”

Mikyung asked as if she had just thought of something.

Since Eunjae had spent most of her time living in Germany, she didn’t know much about the hotel’s current situation, so she hesitated.

When Eunjae didn’t answer quickly, Mikyung’s brows quickly furrowed.

Fortunately, the store manager answered.

“Our products aren’t supplied to Taeon Seoul.”

“What? It’s a hotel, yet they saved money on beds? I heard things were difficult lately. I guess that’s really the case.”

Mikyung reacted with disbelief and lightly brushed her hand over the bed.

Eunjae stood beside her with a slightly discouraged expression.

“It’s the bed my son will use with his wife. Something like this should go into the newlywed home.”

Mikyung immediately ordered the bed for their newlywed house.

Eunjae had been nervous because of Mikyung’s slightly sharp reaction, but afterward, Mikyung truly walked around with her like they were mother and daughter, visiting other furniture stores and luxury shops.

“It’s so nice to go shopping like this. I’ve only ever used things chosen by my personal shopper before.”

“Whenever you want to go shopping in the future, call me. I’ll drop everything and come running.”

“Good. Let’s go around together and improve our taste too.”