Chapter : 44
“An invited guest? Who else did you invite?”
Caught off guard by the sudden news, Juhye frowned sharply.
Despite Juhye’s obvious discomfort, Sukyung merely smiled and casually patted her on the shoulder.
“They said you’d get along well since you’re college alumni.”
“What?”
“Oh—there he is.”
At Sukyung’s gesture pointing into the distance, Juhye turned her head.
A man walking toward them smiled as if it were a coincidence.
Judging by the way he lightly waved his right hand, he seemed to know Sukyung as well, but he was a stranger to Juhye.
“Hello, Vice President. It’s been a while.”
“It has. Should I be calling you CEO Kang now?”
“I’m still in the middle of the succession process, so not quite yet.”
The tall, broad-featured man was named Kang Hyuncheol.
He was two years older than Juhye and the same age as Daehyun.
“This is your first time meeting her, right? Our youngest sister.”
Sukyung naturally introduced Juhye to him.
Though Suha had said he invited the guest, it seemed Sukyung had been planning this meeting all along.
“Nice to meet you, Ms. Jin Juhye. I’m Kang Hyuncheol. I run a small trading company.”
When Juhye hesitated quietly after their eyes met, the man spoke first.
“Yes, hello.”
“I’m actually an alumnus of yours. That makes me even more glad to meet you.”
He explained that he graduated from Korea University’s Department of Trade.
At the mention of “trade,” Juhye’s ears perked up without her realizing it.
That meant he was a classmate from the same department as Daehyun.
“My husband also majored in trade. If he were here, I would’ve introduced you. It’s a shame.”
Juhye deliberately brought up Daehyun, smiling gently.
From her brief exchange with Sukyung earlier, she could guess Suha’s intention in introducing this man.
It was practically the same as saying that if she got divorced, he would introduce a vetted man for her.
“Ah… I see.”
As expected, Hyuncheol looked slightly uncomfortable once Daehyun was mentioned.
That meant he, too, had come here knowing Suha’s intentions and had deliberately sought Juhye out to introduce himself.
To Juhye, it felt deeply unpleasant.
She even found herself thinking that Daehyun—who had bluntly asked whether she would benefit his life—was better by comparison.
“Why don’t you two talk for a bit? I’ll step outside first.”
Whether or not she sensed Juhye’s mood, Sukyung mischievously excused herself.
Startled, Juhye tried to grab her arm, but the man stepped forward, blocking her.
As she looked at him with an awkward expression, he suddenly brought up something unexpected.
“I remember him. Seo Daehyun—he was my classmate in the trade department.”
“I see.”
“He was pretty famous back then… because of money problems.”
Money problems?
Juhye looked at him in confusion.
“What do you mean?”
“You didn’t know? Oh… I must’ve misspoken.”
Though Hyuncheol denied it calmly, it was obvious he had brought it up on purpose.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have apologized so leisurely.
“It’s not something I should discuss when he’s not here. My apologies.”
“No—it’s fine. I’m his wife, so I might as well be the concerned party. Since you already brought it up by mistake, could you tell me the rest?”
Deciding to play along with his intentions, Juhye gently prompted him.
As if he’d been waiting for that, Hyuncheol began speaking quickly.
“I don’t know the details. But because of family issues… I heard his older brother even came to the university and approached people there.”
“By older brother, do you mean Seo Woohyun?”
“Yes, that sounds right. I heard he borrowed money, putting even his younger brother’s assets up as collateral, saying it was for business capital. There were several issues.”
Juhye had already dealt with Seo Woohyun herself, but the story still shocked her.
“That creditor came all the way to campus, so it was impossible not to know. Daehyun probably took a leave of absence and enlisted in the military the following semester for the same reason.”
“……”
“I always wondered whether he even graduated properly…”
Hyuncheol shrugged after finishing his long story.
“I was surprised when I later heard he married you, Ms. Juhye. I wondered if there was another reason.”
“Another reason?”
“He was desperate for money, after all.”
An unconscious sneer colored Hyuncheol’s tone.
It was obvious he never saw Daehyun as an equal.
The implication—that Daehyun had married her for her wealth—was laced with condescension.
“No.”
Juhye denied it immediately.
“That’s not it.”
“…Pardon?”
“I was the one who wanted to get married. Not him. So your assumption is wrong.”
Her light brown eyes shimmered clearly as she gazed into the distance.
No matter how resentful she felt toward Daehyun, she was tired of baseless misunderstandings.
It wasn’t much different from what she’d heard at the arboretum anniversary party.
“The one who fell in love first wasn’t him, either—”
She opened her mouth to explain more clearly.
At that moment—just for a split second—Juhye spotted a familiar face in the crowd at the reception.
A man wandering through the spacious hall, looking tired but dressed neatly in his usual suit.
His steps were restless, but his eyes were sharp enough to kill.
“Ms. Juhye?”
Hyuncheol, who had been waiting for her next words, flinched and stepped back.
Without warning, Juhye ran past him toward the opposite direction.
Running in high heels was difficult, but she clenched her teeth and kept going.
‘Why is he here?’
It had only been an instant, but there was no way her eyes were mistaken.
That was undoubtedly her husband, Seo Daehyun.
Hyuncheol’s voice calling her name echoed behind her again and again.
Juhye desperately hoped Daehyun hadn’t heard it as she forced her legs forward.
“Ah!”
Was it a mistake to turn her head in fear?
Daehyun, who had turned at the commotion, locked eyes with her.
At once, his expression hardened coldly, his gaze flashing like sparks.
‘No!’
Realizing he’d seen her, Juhye didn’t stop.
She sped up, running nonstop until she reached the stairs.
Thankfully, there was no disturbance from above as she ran down.
The crowd must have slowed him down.
‘I have to get out now… but where? What should I do?’
All she had was her phone in her handbag—no cash.
Even walking out of the hotel would take time.
Should she grab a taxi and go to Junhwi’s place?
Panting, she finally reached the lobby.
‘The parking lot… yes, the parking lot. I’ll call Oppa Suha first.’
She hadn’t had time to look for them, but Suha and Sukyung would still be at the reception.
She hurried toward the passage leading to the parking lot, rummaging through her handbag.
Just as she flung open the parking lot door and pulled out her phone—
“……!”
A powerful grip snatched her around the waist from behind and lifted her up.
The force was so strong that her heels left the ground.
Frozen, unable even to scream, she heard a low whisper at her ear.
“…Got you.”
It was her husband’s voice, breathing roughly.
* * *
From the sharp scent clinging to Daehyun, Juhye realized he was already somewhat drunk.
Maybe that was why he was exerting such overwhelming strength.
No matter how much she struggled or kicked, he only held her tighter—and eventually got into the car with her.
“Go.”
Daehyun gave a short command, and the man in the driver’s seat nodded.
Since Juhye didn’t recognize him, he seemed to be someone Daehyun had secretly hired.
As the car drove off, Daehyun sat beside her, gripping her arm tightly.
It was as if he feared she’d jump out the window the moment he let go.
No matter how much she shouted for him to release her or let her out, there was no response.
She vaguely knew Daehyun wouldn’t hurt her, but her anxiety continued to swell.
“We’re here.”
When the car finally stopped, Daehyun muttered quietly and lifted her into his arms.
Still trapped in his hold, she stepped out of the car—only to realize they weren’t home.
“This is…?”
She heard the car drive away behind them.
When Juhye turned around, she saw a landscape surrounded entirely by forest.
Perhaps because of the woods, an eerie silence settled the moment the car disappeared.
From outside the forest, one might not even realize a mansion existed here.
“I bought this as a gift for you. I never thought I’d be using it like this.”
He muttered self-mockingly and walked toward the villa.
She screamed for him to put her down, but it was useless.
“Ah!”
Much later, the place where Daehyun finally set her down—
was atop a massive bed.
