“I-I’ll go organize the inventory.”
“Huh? Oh, sure. Go ahead.”
Since he was blocking the entrance, there was no way for him to leave, so going into the storeroom seemed like the best option. He wouldn’t deliberately come all the way into the storeroom after him. Part of him wondered why he should be the one running away, but right now, it was time to retreat. It was the best choice for later, too.
The second door opened with a little jingle. Secretary Oh must have opened it for him. He instinctively turned his head toward the sound, only to meet Secretary Oh’s eyes instead of Han Tae-seok’s.
Secretary Oh stared at Jae-kyung with an expressionless face.
Jae-kyung shook his head.
It was an unmistakable refusal, and there was no way Secretary Oh could have misunderstood what he meant.
He wouldn’t say anything.
Jae-kyung hurried into the storeroom, locked the door behind him, and opened the employee cabinet in the corner. He took an inhibitor out of his bag and swallowed it first, then pulled out the blanket he had prepared in case it got cold late at night. He covered himself from head to toe with it and sank down in the corner.
He desperately hoped Han Tae-seok wouldn’t be able to smell his pheromones.
He had to.
Muffled voices and cheerful greetings drifted in from outside.
Amid them, he could distinctly feel Han Tae-seok’s powerful pheromones.
It was as though the pheromones had followed his imprinted mate straight into the room, as if they already knew that Jae-kyung was here.
The strength gradually drained from his body.
Simply having his imprinted mate nearby was enough for his body to feel a sense of security and calm.
It was an omega’s instinct.
Meanwhile, Jae-kyung’s mind was breaking apart bit by bit.
It hurts. My head hurts so badly…
I should have taken some headache medicine.
Clutching his head, Jae-kyung prayed that Han Tae-seok would leave as soon as possible.
Go… Please go…
****
Jae-kyung forced his heavy body upright and went into the kitchen to get some water. When he emerged into the living room, which was shrouded in darkness, the lights in the kitchen automatically came on.
The digital clock in the living room read 3 a.m. Naturally, the housekeeper had already gone home by then. As for him… Jae-kyung didn’t know whether he had come home from work yet, but even if he had, he was probably in the study on the second floor.
He filled a glass with cold water from the purifier and drank it down, then wiped his damp lips and caught his breath.
His body felt heavy.
And something didn’t feel right.
For a cold or the flu, the heat he felt deep inside his body was far too intense. Jae-kyung quickly tried to remember the date of his last heat cycle.
It had been four months since he got married, so it was about time for it to come around again.
The realization made all the strength drain from his body, and he collapsed onto the living-room sofa.
He hoped it wouldn’t come.
But he couldn’t take an inhibitor.
It wasn’t too late to take one now, of course. But heat cycles were especially precious to recessive omegas, and once the symptoms had already begun, taking an inhibitor would completely throw off his cycle and inevitably leave him suffering terribly afterward.
And then he had no idea how Director Ji would react.
The thought left him deeply troubled.
Come to think of it, Han Tae-seok and…
They had never discussed his heat cycle.
What was he supposed to say? And how would he react?
If he reacted the way he always had… Jae-kyung no longer had any expectations to be hurt by, but would his self-esteem as an omega still crumble a little? He was somewhat worried about that.
Still, he would have to tell him.
With a deep sigh, Jae-kyung went back into his room and lay down.
Come to think of it, he had heard that the man had personally chosen and furnished all the furniture in this house. If they were going to live like this, he couldn’t understand why he had chosen such a huge bed. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
It was big enough for at least five fully grown men to lie down on. Big enough that the two of them could hold each other and circle around the bed once clockwise…
The thought somehow made him laugh. He chuckled to himself before pulling the blanket all the way over his head and falling asleep.
Jae-kyung opened his eyes again at six in the morning.
Normally, he could have stayed in bed and lazed around a little longer, but according to the housekeeper, that was around the time Han Tae-seok usually left for work.
Jae-kyung jumped up and hurried outside, but before opening the door, he paused to straighten his hair and clothes for no particular reason.
When he opened the door, the delicious smell of food greeted him, along with the sound of the housekeeper bustling about.
At the same time, the faint scent of Han Tae-seok’s pheromones lingered in the air…
He normally never smelled his pheromones in the house. Could this mean his heat cycle was really starting?
He was unusually sensitive to an alpha’s pheromones.
“Oh my, you’re up?”
The housekeeper noticed Jae-kyung first and greeted him.
Han Tae-seok was sitting at the dining table, eating the breakfast she had prepared for him.
So he eats breakfast in the morning…
He lowered his chopsticks and looked at Jae-kyung.
Their eyes met.
It had been four months since they got married, and Jae-kyung could count on one hand the number of times they had actually looked at each other like this.
“Good morning.”
Jae-kyung greeted the housekeeper first, then looked at Han Tae-seok.
“Did you sleep well?”
He gave a slight nod, then turned his gaze away and resumed eating the breakfast the housekeeper had prepared.
“Oh, Jae-kyung, would you like some breakfast, too?”
He had only just gotten up, so he had no appetite. His stomach felt unsettled, too, and he didn’t think he could bring himself to eat. Still, he probably should.
Otherwise, how was he supposed to have this conversation?
Jae-kyung said he would eat and sat down across from him.
It was the first time they had ever sat facing each other over a meal.
The housekeeper finished setting the table, and just as Jae-kyung picked up his spoon to eat, Han Tae-seok set down his chopsticks and stood up.
“Ah…”
After even pushing his chair back into place, he headed upstairs.
Watching him go, Jae-kyung wondered what he should do.
What was he supposed to say to someone who so clearly didn’t even want to eat in the same room with him, let alone sit down and talk face-to-face?
For a moment, he considered giving up.
But he had to tell him.
That way, at least he’d have something to fall back on later—some explanation he could give if things went wrong.
“Ma’am, just a moment.”
Leaving the concerned housekeeper behind, Jae-kyung headed upstairs.
It took a great deal of courage just to get out of bed and climb the stairs. More courage than he had needed for anything else in his life so far…
Standing in front of the study, Jae-kyung knocked softly.
“Um… may I come in? There’s something I need to talk to you about.”
He waited for a response as soon as he finished speaking, but the door suddenly opened, startling him.
Han Tae-seok had apparently already changed into a shirt. The scent of his pheromones was much stronger coming from his body, and Jae-kyung quickly lowered his head.
“I have to leave by 6:20.”
Was he telling Jae-kyung to hurry up and say whatever he needed to say before then?
Judging by the clock in the study visible behind him, there were only about five minutes left.
“I… I think I’m about to go into heat. We’ve never discussed this before, so…”
He was afraid of what answer he would get.
But no matter how long he waited, no answer came.
Was Han Tae-seok at a loss for what to say? Or was he rejecting him?
Well, if he didn’t answer right away, that meant rejection, didn’t it?
He knew it would be like this.
“Ah, if that would be a problem for you, it’s okay. I can just take an inhibitor.”
Rather than wait to be rejected, Jae-kyung decided it would be better to put up a defensive wall first and quickly backed down.
“Then do that.”
The immediate answer came as though Han Tae-seok had been waiting for him to reach that conclusion.
Even though Jae-kyung had already put up his defenses, something seemed to jab sharply into his chest, leaving it aching. So he forced an even wider smile.
“Thank you. It’s already twenty past six. Have a good day at work.”
Jae-kyung hurriedly said goodbye and went back downstairs.
He sat in front of the delicious breakfast the housekeeper had prepared and mechanically forced himself to eat.
In the meantime, Han Tae-seok came downstairs dressed impeccably and left for work.
Jae-kyung heard the sound of the iron gate closing, and by then, he had finished his meal.
He thanked the housekeeper for the food and returned to his room.
He rushed into the bathroom attached to his bedroom, leaned over the toilet, and threw up everything he had eaten.
Only after he had vomited until nothing but stomach acid came up was he able to collect himself.
He staggered out of the bathroom and took an inhibitor from the drawer.
The inhibitor taken before a heat cycle begins has different ingredients from the one taken after it has already started.
It was extremely potent…
The medication was extremely strong and made things difficult for him, but there was nothing he could do. What was so strange about an omega without an alpha taking an inhibitor? He had been doing it this way all along.
He shook two pills into his mouth, swallowed them with water, then crawled back into bed and curled up beneath the covers. Maybe it was because he had gotten up so early, but he quickly drifted off to sleep.
Thank goodness.
And that was how he spent his first heat cycle after marrying him—completely and utterly wasted.
Naturally, his cycle became a complete mess. Even after ten months of marriage, he still hadn’t had another heat cycle. The people in the NI family, of course, gradually began dropping hints, and even Jaewang started to grow concerned.
*
After finishing his explanation of the paintings for the wife of H Bank’s chairman, who had come to the gallery, the woman looked at Jae-kyung in admiration.
“Was that explanation sufficient?”
“Oh my goodness, how wonderful… It really sank in.”
Thank goodness.
Jae-kyung had selected only the paintings currently in the gallery that were worth more than one billion won and explained them to her, but there were still more than twenty pieces. His mouth had gone dry and even his throat was sore.
Still, she was one of the gallery’s VIP clients who received special attention, so he had been nervous and done his very best.
It seemed she had been pleased with his explanation.
“Oh my, you’re back.”
Director Ji, who had just returned from an outing, spotted the wife of H Bank’s chairman and approached her with a warm greeting.
“Director Ji. Where have you been? I came here to see you.”
“I’m sorry. It was an appointment that had been scheduled for months… Still, I quickly excused myself and hurried back.”
“Oh, really? Well, I wasn’t bored at all. Jae-kyung explained everything so wonderfully. You must be pleased to have such a good successor, Director Ji.”
The madam began praising Jae-kyung right in front of Director Ji.
He had answered all her questions about the paintings, and she had even taken a particular liking to one painting she had originally had no interest in and said she wanted to buy it. The smile never left Director Ji’s face.
In the end, the madam reserved two paintings.
Director Ji bowed deeply as she thanked her and saw her off, then called Jae-kyung into her office.