#35
“Eunsol, it was nice to see you today. Next time, let’s have a party to celebrate my divorce.”
“…Yes.”
Eunsol alternately looked at the shopping bag in his arms and then at Ryu Jeong-woo’s face as he waved his right hand with a bright smile.
He knew Jeong-woo was proactive, but he hadn’t expected him to practically empty the store of self-defense items to give as gifts to Eunsol.
Eunsol also learned for the first time that there were so many types of self-defense products in the world. Especially with so many omega-specific self-defense items, he thought that carrying just three or four of these would be enough to prevent dangerous situations.
“Hyung, I have plenty of time too.”
Eunsol caught Jeong-woo’s hand as he was about to move away and transferred his warmth. Instead of the cliché phrase to call anytime if things got difficult, he conveyed his heart that he would always be there for him whenever needed.
“…Okay.”
As if the feeling had been conveyed, Jeong-woo gently stroked Eunsol’s hair, then waved his hand as he moved away.
“I’ll take you home. Please give me the packages.”
Song Do-ye, standing beside Eunsol, took the shopping bags that nearly covered Eunsol’s upper body. Eunsol turned to walk only after Jeong-woo’s car had completely disappeared from view.
Even while riding in the car heading home, he wondered if there would ever be a day when he would use these items.
…Little did he know that day would come sooner than expected.
* * *
“A charity auction party?”
“Yes. It’s something the TH Group does every year. As a traditional event one week before the founding anniversary.”
Kang Ye-ryeong caressed her sharply manicured nails and handed the catalog she was holding to Eunsol.
“It also means this is the largest official event you’ll be attending since becoming part of our family. You need to put great care into your attire and accessories.”
It was also an occasion where all the children of the late Chairman Han Chihun would gather. Ye-ryeong twisted the corner of her mouth as she recalled the face of her dead husband’s annoying first wife.
“This time, I’m definitely going to put that woman in her place.”
Last year, she was outdone by the necklace the other woman wore. The size of the main diamond was similar, but she lost in terms of the number of side diamonds surrounding it.
Han Chihun, instead of following South Korean law that a man cannot have multiple wives, treated his first wife like a legal spouse even after divorcing her. This meant that even after Ye-ryeong became Han Chihun’s legal wife, she had to continue competing with her.
“But Mother… you’re beautiful just as you are.”
Eunsol courageously spoke up as Ye-ryeong’s mood seemed to sink. It was also sincere. In Eunsol’s eyes, Ye-ryeong was like a rose in full bloom, defying her age.
It wasn’t just Eunsol who saw her that way. Eunsol could clearly see the light of admiration flowing across the faces of the people bustling around this room whenever their gazes landed on Ye-ryeong.
“I may not be blessed with children, but I sure am blessed with a daughter-in-law. Where did such a pretty thing crawl in from?”
Ye-ryeong gently stroked the cheek of Eunsol sitting beside her. The already flushed cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red at her touch.
“What style would you like to wear? Today, let’s not use Hyun-oh’s card but mine for payment.”
Eunsol had been using Hyun-oh’s card as if completing a mission since their dinner together. It was the result of Hyun-oh instructing through Secretary Song for Eunsol to spend a certain amount each month.
Thanks to this, Eunsol would pay first whenever he met with Jeong-woo or Ye-ryeong. It was because he had absolutely no occasion to spend large amounts of money by himself.
Today, too, when Ye-ryeong suggested shopping together, he thought he could easily meet the target amount for this month. It seemed his words had pleased Ye-ryeong more than expected.
Knowing that refusing at times like this would upset Ye-ryeong, Eunsol held his tongue. Instead, he subtly asked Ye-ryeong about Hyun-oh’s preferences.
“What style did Mr. Hyun-oh wear last year?”
“Hyun-oh? Why? Do you want to wear couple outfits?”
Eunsol pressed the back of his hand against his burning cheeks to cool them down. On the day Jeong-woo returned from New York, Eunsol was so busy shopping for self-defense items led by his hand that he hadn’t asked what he really wanted to know.
When he met him again later, Eunsol asked Jeong-woo about how to hide emotions. The answer he received then was…
“…Is it that obvious on my face?”
“Don’t tell me you were trying to hide it?”
The intention behind asking what kind of clothes Hyun-oh wore was quite obvious. Moreover, whenever Eunsol talked about Hyun-oh, his face would always flush red.
Ye-ryeong held her stomach in laughter at the clear face asking if it showed.
‘Eunsol, you… probably won’t be able to hide it. Not unless you’re reborn.’
The corners of Eunsol’s mouth drooped gloomily. Jeong-woo had shown a similar reaction to what Ye-ryeong was showing now. The expression of embarrassment, as if Eunsol had asked an unsolvable question, was still vivid in his mind.
“Don’t try to do something that doesn’t suit you. I like that you’re honest.”
Ye-ryeong ruffled Eunsol’s hair into a mess as if finding him cute. Even though his carefully styled hair was being ruined, Eunsol obediently nodded.
“Usually, I choose the clothes Hyun-oh wears. That boy has no interest in fashion whatsoever. If I choose them and send them through Manager Kim without mentioning it was me, he just wears them.”
At Ye-ryeong’s gesture, the staff promptly brought forth a rack full of suits.
“From now on, this is your job, Eunsol. I’ve only been doing it until the lady of the house arrived.”
It also meant that starting this year, Eunsol should choose the clothes for himself and Hyun-oh. Eunsol stood up and carefully examined each outfit hanging on the rack.
“Black suits Mr. Hyun-oh well.”
Though Hyun-oh might not be interested in Eunsol, Eunsol would see him off every morning when he woke up early. By observing the clothes Hyun-oh wore, he naturally came to know not only his preferences but also what suited him.
“Would it be too cliché to have the same design in different colors? My little bird looks better in brighter colors than black.”
Ye-ryeong also stood beside Eunsol and helped select suits that would suit both of them.
“Custom-made would be best, but you know, right? Your husband is a workaholic. I wonder if he’s possessed by the ghost of someone who died from not working enough in a past life.”
Hyun-oh valued time efficiency. Even for important parties, visiting a shop to find or custom-tailor clothes that suited him was equivalent to wasting time for him.
“That ring on your finger, it’s your wedding ring, right?”
“…Yes, it is.”
Eunsol preciously caressed the ring that caught Ye-ryeong’s gaze. It was one of the five wedding rings that had been custom-made when he went to the store with Hyun-oh. The rings, which had been delivered to Eunsol through Secretary Song’s hands one day, were neatly placed in a jewelry box in the dressing room.
Since the day the rings arrived, Eunsol had been wearing them one by one, alternating whenever he went out.
Though they were incredibly luxurious, because they were meaningful gifts from Hyun-oh, he thought it would be better to wear them than to keep them stored away. …It was also an action with the hidden hope that Hyun-oh would notice the rings.
He hoped that by seeing the rings, Hyun-oh would confirm once more that Eunsol was his husband.
“By the way, does our son have no thoughts of having a wedding ceremony? Even if the marriage registration was done secretly, it should be announced publicly.”
Everyone more or less knew about Eunsol’s situation. It was even more so because Eunsol’s family hadn’t hidden the marriage to Chairman Han Chihun in the beginning.
Hyun-oh didn’t want to have a wedding ceremony that would unnecessarily draw people’s attention. After all, Eunsol had been chosen as his spouse because he was someone who would listen well to what Hyun-oh said.
At first, Ye-ryeong respected Hyun-oh’s opinion and, not having any fantasies about a daughter-in-law, didn’t express her own opinion.
But the more she saw Eunsol, the more she liked him, and she also developed a desire to announce to the world that this child was her daughter-in-law.
To prevent any wrong men from approaching.
“…I’m fine with it. Just the rings are more than enough for me.”
He had received five wedding rings that an ordinary person would find hard to own even one of in their lifetime. Though Eunsol wasn’t without romantic notions about a wedding ceremony, he knew well enough that it was more than his position deserved.
From the outset, even when he was to marry Chairman Han Chihun, there was no plan for a wedding ceremony.
The change of husband was the greatest fortune in Eunsol’s life, so if he wished for more, the hard-earned luck might run away.
“You could afford to be a little greedy. It’s good that you’re kind, but sometimes I worry you might live at a disadvantage.”
Ye-ryeong lightly clicked her tongue. Disappointment dripped from Eunsol’s face. Even in his own view, Hyun-oh wasn’t an affectionate husband material. It was evident that Hyun-oh was gradually opening his heart to Eunsol, but his actions remained so cold that Eunsol couldn’t even perceive it.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
