Bedroom…
The clock has already strikes 12am when Min Ho came back from the office. If not because his head was throbbing badly in pain, the meeting might need to drag longer. The conversation he had with Shin Hye this afternoon was still clouding his mind and he couldn’t even focus on his work. It makes the pain in his head worsened.
When he opened the door and stepped into the bedroom, he was surprised to see Shin Hye sitting on the bed, reading a book with her back leaning against the headboard. For the passed one week, after the incident that happened in the charity ball, she will make sure to sleep before he comes home. But tonight, she was awake. Does it mean… she is no longer angry with him?
Shin Hye turned to him when she heard the door closed. Gently placing the book on the bedside table, she stood up of the bed and walked towards him. “Give me a minute. The water is almost done.”
But before she could walk away, Min Ho held her hand and stopped her. “It’s okay. I’ll just take a quick shower. It’s late now. You should go to sleep.”
“Take a hot bath will help to ease your headache.” She said. When she saw the confusion in his eyes, she continued. “Hyun Jun told me about your headache and I asked ahjussi to call me before you come home so that I could prepare the hot water before you reached. I just need to add some peppermint essential oil into the water. Peppermint oil is good for muscle pain, nerve pain and headache. It’s good for pain relief and relaxation.”
Min Ho looked at her for a short moment before nodded with a light smile. “Thank you.”
After Min Ho came out from the bathroom, the lights was already dimmed and the only light in the room was from the flickering of several lit candles which were filling the room with the gentle and sweet scent of lavender. His body was so much more relaxed after the comfortable hot bath and breathing in the soothing scent now, he suddenly felt the headache is slowly easing away. He took a seat on the bed and stared at the purple colour candles with a smile. As what he remembers, this was the first time he felt so relaxing after a long stressing day of work. Nobody has ever prepare all these for him before.
He was slightly startled when he heard the sound of the door open and close. He turned to the door and saw Shin Hye walking in with a cup in her hand. She stopped in front of him and handed him the cup.
“What is this?” Min Ho asked as he looked at the drink in the cup.
“Warm water mixed with lemon juice. It can help to reduce the intensity of a headache.” Shin Hye replied.
“Lemon?” He asked again.
Shin Hye nodded. “Lemon is a very effective to treat headache because it is refreshing and relaxing. Plus, it helps to maintain the acid-alkaline balance in the body.
Min Ho smiled. “If I didn’t see you in the school with my own eyes, I will think that you are a nutritionist.” He joked as he took a big sip of the drink. Despite the sourness of the lemon, he felt a lot of sweetness surging into him.
The smile on his face widened when Shin Hye took the towel that was hanging around his neck and gently helping him to wipe his wet hair. “You shouldn’t leave your hair wet and sleep right after you taken a shower.”
Min Ho nodded obediently and enjoyed the soothing massage from her soft fingers. Her magic touch makes his stiff and tired body felt relax and comfortable.
“Is the… Chinese project facing a lot of problems?” Shin Hye asked casually.
A deep sigh escaped Min Ho’s lips when she mentioned about the project that was giving him a lot of headaches. “Having a war with OK Corporation every day to fight for the project.”
Shin Hye’s hands stopped moving for an instant as she looked at Min Ho. A worried expression was evident on her face.
“Are you worried about me or… you are worried about your ex-boyfriend?” Min Ho asked in his usual deep and dangerous voice.
Shin Hye heaved a deep sigh. She is worried of both. “I don’t want to see Taec Yeon oppa to fight with you just because he want to avenge me.” She paused and bit her lip. “And most importantly… I don’t want you to work so hard and tired yourself just because you want to win.”
Which mean… she is worried about him more compared to Ok Taec Yeon?
Taking the last sip of lemon drink, Min Ho put the cup on the bedside table and held her hand. He gently pulled her down to sit beside him. He felt her body instantly went stiff as her grip on the towel tightened.
“You are not angry at me anymore?” He asked, looking deeply into her eyes.
Shin Hye inhaled a deep breath. “If angry couldn’t change anything, I think I should be realistic and accept the reality.” She said and continued to wipe his hair.
Min Ho took the towel away from her hand and threw it to the floor. He grasped her hands tightly in place, forcing her to look at him. He needs all her focus on him, not his hair. “Accept what reality? The reality of being my wife?”
Holding his gaze, she spoke again. “Accept the reality that my husband will not fall in love with me for the rest of my life.”
Min Ho took a sharp intake of breath. “Is it really that important? Love you or not, we have already married. I know this relationship was started with a deal but as long as you listen to me and don’t do something that will make us unhappy, I will still treat you as my wife. We can still live together happily. Everything was still fine before the charity ball.”
Shin Hye chuckled softly as she looked away. How can she blame him for not loving her? He was right. This relationship was started with a deal. How can she expect him to love a wife that he bought with five billion won? Since he has already said it loud and clear that his love is only for Se Yeon, she should stop dreaming and stop torturing each other.
“It’s late now. We should sleep.” She said before she stood up and climbed up the bed from the other side. Turning off the table lamp, she lie down and closed her eyes.
But she doesn’t stay like that for long because when she opened her eyes again, she was turned around and pulled into a strong embrace. She tried to push him away but it only make his arms tightened around her.
“Don’t move.” Min Ho said as he buried his nose in her hair and inhaled into her sweet scent. “My head is still spinning like a tornado. I feel better like this.” He lied. After the hot bath, the soothing scent from the candles and the drink she made for him, his head has already stopped spinning.
Shin Hye stopped struggling and let the silence to fill the room. She closed her eyes and leaned into the crook of his neck. The feeling of his skin has somehow warmed up her frozen heart.
“I know you are still angry because of the incident that night.” Min Ho’s voice broke the silence after a long moment. “You are not happy with what I said this afternoon and just now. But I just want to be honest with you.”
“Sleep.” Shin Hye uttered softly as she leaned closer to him. She doesn’t want to talk about it because she doesn’t want to give him another chance to hurt her.
Min Ho moved his hand up with his fingers stroking her neck through her hair, holding her tightly to him. “Even if I fall asleep, I won’t let you run away.”
Shin Hye sighed softly. “Do you think… I can still run away from you?”
“No.” Min Ho said in a certain voice. “Even if you dare, I’ll sure hunt you down and bring you back to me.”
Shin Hye opened her eyes slowly and bit her lip. “You are very… domineering.”
He smirked with his eyes closed. “To control a stubborn and difficult woman like you, I have to be extra careful.” He tightened his arms around her and buried his nose into her sweet scented soft hair again. He already told her that he wants her and he means it. The possessiveness inside of him is welling by every passing second.
“Except my heart… I can give you anything.”
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