Chapter : 09
Other guests who had used different rooms got on the elevator to go to the parking lot. The couple, a man and a woman, seemed slightly surprised by the unexpected encounter.
Especially, the man’s eyes landed on Eunwoo. The man glanced at her briefly, as if noting the two who had come down from the higher-floor rooms.
“Hey, should we stop by the restaurant first?”
The woman asked the man, suggesting they visit the restaurant. But the man answered halfheartedly, his gaze still on Eunwoo.
It seemed her appearance was unusual to him. From the perspective of an outsider, it was easy to see why he might think so.
The man saw the couple awkwardly entering the elevator, the woman covering her lower body with the man’s jacket. It wasn’t strange for him to imagine something inappropriate.
Still, was it necessary to stare so openly? Eunwoo gave him a displeased glance, but the man didn’t look away. Instead, he scanned her up and down with a strange expression. It was irritating. But Eunwoo wasn’t the only one uncomfortable with his gaze.
At that moment, Jo Taeseo, who was a little apart from Eunwoo, suddenly moved and stood in front of her. The space was wide enough, so there was no real need to block her, but when he stood there, Eunwoo was hidden from the man’s view.
Jo Taeseo, shielding Eunwoo with his body, shot a sharp look at the man. The man had no choice but to look away, sensing the glare that seemed to say, “Why are you staring at someone else’s woman?”
“He’s huge.”
Eunwoo thought, looking at Jo Taeseo’s back. She already knew he was tall and broad. When he had pressed over her in the hotel room, the weight and pressure had made it hard to breathe. Now, standing right in front of her, he seemed even bigger—like a massive wall blocking her way.
If he hadn’t stopped in the room, she might have felt completely overwhelmed.
By the time she lost herself in her thoughts, the elevator finally arrived at the underground parking lot.
When the doors opened, Jo Taeseo didn’t move immediately. Eunwoo looked up, wondering why. Only after the couple stepped out did he take a step forward.
Eunwoo, thinking nothing of it, followed him. She noticed the man from the couple glancing back, while the woman nudged him toward their parked car.
Jo Taeseo’s pace was slower than expected. He was tall with long limbs, so she thought he would walk fast, like she had seen in the restaurant. Soon, he stopped at his parked car.
It was a VIP parking space right by the elevator. He opened the door and guided Eunwoo to the passenger seat. His gaze, however, was still on the man glancing sideways.
“Hey, why don’t you open the door?”
“Huh? Oh… oh.”
The man’s persistent stare was finally broken. Only then did Jo Taeseo look at Eunwoo as she got into the car.
Once Eunwoo was seated, Jo Taeseo got into the driver’s seat. He muttered something softly, but she couldn’t hear it. Looking at him, she saw his brow furrowed, staring straight ahead.
“What did you say? I didn’t hear.”
She asked, but he didn’t answer. It seemed he wasn’t speaking to her, so she fastened her seatbelt. Then she noticed his eyes on her thigh.
Only then did she see the jacket still tied around her waist. She tried to untie it, but it was tied too tightly.
As she struggled, a large hand suddenly reached for her waist. She instinctively leaned back, pressing her back against the seat.
The space in the car was tight; there was barely any room between them. Outside noise couldn’t be heard, and even their breathing seemed close.
Jo Taeseo quietly untied the jacket. Focused on the task, his long eyelashes came into her view.
Without blinking, his hands worked on the knot. Eunwoo felt the movement even without seeing it—her senses were heightened.
The memory of the hotel room flashed: her legs forced apart, her underwear pulled helplessly by his hands. It felt like she was being dragged back to the hotel room again. She realized she wasn’t wearing any underwear.
“I’ll do it.”
She hurriedly tried to push his hand away, but he didn’t budge. She reached out to do it herself, but it only caused him to hold her hand tighter.
“I’m sorry.”
She apologized quickly, but Jo Taeseo didn’t respond. He stayed focused on untying the knot. Then, suddenly, a low voice spoke, but she didn’t hear it clearly and repeated, “What?”
“Lift your hips.”
He spoke louder so Eunwoo could understand. She complied, moving her body slightly, and the jacket around her waist slowly came undone.
The knot was hard to undo because he had tied it tightly, but her body distracted him—his hands kept slipping. His eyes were drawn to her body under the jacket, stopping him from focusing entirely on the knot.
His unconscious impulse had stopped her from leaving without underwear, and now she followed his instruction, lifting her hips. The jacket slowly loosened, revealing her thin thighs pressed against the fabric.
“Thank you.”
When he finally stopped focusing on her thigh, Eunwoo quietly thanked him. The jacket had kept her lower body warm, and now without it, the cool air made her waist feel chilly.
Jo Taeseo removed the jacket from her waist and draped it over her thigh instead of putting it in the back seat. Eunwoo didn’t protest.
Soon, he started the car. With skilled hands, he drove smoothly, and strangely, the car across from them also moved.
Keeping watch in all directions, Jo Taeseo reached to adjust the jacket over her legs, covering them more fully. Eunwoo said nothing. From the elevator onward, his behavior had been slightly strange, but nothing serious.
There was no conversation as they drove. Even without telling him, he knew Eunwoo’s house. She hadn’t been there before, so someone must have given him the information.
They didn’t speak until they arrived.
“Please stop over there.”
Eunwoo asked him to stop in a small alley near her house. She wasn’t staying at the house of Chairman Jung, but in a hotel, avoiding awkward encounters with him and his family.
Still, Jo Taeseo parked in front of the main gate.
“Go straight in.”
He instructed her to enter directly. Walking in the dark without underwear was impossible.
“Thank you for bringing me home.”
Eunwoo thanked him, unable to explain everything.
“And think it over, then contact me. I’ll be waiting.”
She reminded him of her proposal one last time as she got out.
Jo Taeseo stayed silent and drove off immediately.
“He’s really harsh.”
Once his car disappeared, Eunwoo pulled out her phone and called a taxi.
Because it was evening, no taxis were immediately available in the quiet alley. She had to walk out to the main road to catch one.
Wearing high heels to impress him hurt her feet, but she managed to walk carefully. She planned to remove her heels once she reached the main street.
As she bent to remove them, she sensed something strange and quickly looked up. A black shadow suddenly engulfed her entire body.
To be continued ▶
