“That will be all.”
“Leave.”
Lyle gave the order without even looking at the secretary who had just finished reporting. Used to that manner, the man quietly exited the office.
For a long while, only the soft rustling of paper filled the room. Lyle’s clear blue eyes never left the documents. The Vermouth family had already operated one of the nation’s leading conglomerates, but after Lyle took the chairman’s seat, it had expanded even further.
He lifted his head briefly and rubbed between his brows in irritation. Only after his perfectly slicked-back blond hair had come slightly undone did he lower his hand. If not for this damned pheromone congestion that plagued him, his work efficiency would be higher—he thought bitterly.
Tapping the surface of the vast, polished black desk as he endured the discomfort, he suddenly recalled Haejin’s black hair.
It was accidental. He had used this desk for quite some time; the fact that the thought surfaced only now revealed how unusual this shift in his thinking was.
The black hair contrasted sharply with pale skin—then, unbidden, the image warped into that pitiful, crumpled figure from yesterday.
“……”
He might wield the contract as he pleased, but he had never intended to inflict humiliation beyond what was necessary. Of course, an ordinary person might think differently while binding someone’s wrists simply because it was bothersome to be grabbed—but Lyle was not an ordinary man.
From birth, he had been the sole heir of the Vermouth family. After his parents were swept up in an incident and died young, he had defended his position against fierce attacks from collateral relatives. Even those who had initially sought to seize his place had eventually been forced to bow their heads before his competence.
Some joked that Lyle must have ordered bathwater prepared the moment he was born. People claimed he embodied what a dominant Alpha should be. Lyle didn’t see it that way. Omega or Beta, he would have secured this position regardless.
His fingers resumed tapping the black desk.
He remembered then that Haejin’s eyes were black as well—black like his hair. And that it had been a long time since he had seen Haejin’s bare face.
Until now, once his business was finished, he hadn’t cared what happened afterward. If not for the way Haejin had been so miserably crumpled yesterday—if not for how thin he had become, to the point that Lyle could feel his hip bones with every thrust—his indifference would have continued unchanged.
Come to think of it, had the butler always been the one cleaning up afterward?
The thought made him pause. His tapping finger stilled midair. Something incomprehensible drifted through his chest like smoke.
His legs had seemed too weak to even move. That naked state… someone must have seen it.
No. The butler would have handled it properly. Ensured no pointless complaints about shame surfaced.
His thoughts resumed. So did the tapping. Unaware he had paused at all, Lyle continued thinking, a deep crease forming between his brows.
Why is he so thin?
At minimum, they had sex once every two days. No matter how much he disliked Omegas, Lyle knew Haejin’s body well. Even if their interactions were nothing more than turning him over and using him without meeting his eyes.
The image of that narrow waist—almost half concealed by one of Lyle’s hands—cut through his thoughts. The bony hips that felt harsh beneath his grip.
Among the Omegas he had contracted before, Haejin was peculiar. For one thing, he had lasted five years in this estate. Most Omegas, proud as they were, could not endure Lyle’s treatment, no matter how badly they needed money.
In contrast, Haejin had been an exceptionally useful partner. Especially because, unless necessary, Lyle rarely saw his face. Some Omegas who accepted such humiliating contracts did so hoping for a different kind of attention from him. In that sense, Haejin’s near invisibility increased his value.
Yet to grow so thin while living under his roof…
A vague displeasure spread more thickly in Lyle’s chest. He had no desire for rumors that the Vermouth family was mistreating a guest they effectively kept confined. Truth aside, such gossip would not help their reputation.
Lifting his pen again, Lyle lightly resolved to reiterate the contract clause regarding physical maintenance. Whatever Haejin was thinking in neglecting that part of the agreement was not his concern. What mattered was that he preferred a relationship that did not require facing each other like this.
The interest in Haejin that had briefly flared like smoke dissipated just as suddenly. When Lyle resumed reviewing his documents, there was no trace of the fleeting question or irritation on his face.
***
“I have to go today.”
“I told you, that’s not my problem. You should’ve said something earlier.”
“I told you three days ago!”
“I didn’t hear it. And what the fuck are you yelling for, huh?”
The large driver stepped forward threateningly, closing the distance between them. In moments like this, Haejin keenly felt the disadvantage of his smaller East Asian frame. Still, he stood his ground, trembling.
Today was the hospital bill payment day. He had to go. The money was provided in full by the Vermouth family; Haejin’s signature was merely a formality.
But even that formality mattered desperately to him. From the beginning, the hospital had not been particularly enthusiastic about treating his adoptive parents, even when he brought money. Things had improved after transferring them to a hospital affiliated with the Vermouth family, but the doctors’ looks—suggesting money was being poured into a void—always shrank him.
“I have to go. It’s in the contract—”
“How would I know about some contract with the big man? Anyway, I didn’t get any order to take the car out today.”
Bitterness rose in his throat, but Haejin pressed his lips together. The one condition he had set when dedicating his entire time to this degrading contract was simple: that he be allowed periodic visits to his parents.
It had been Lyle who agreed to provide transportation. Perhaps it was meant to monitor him and prevent unnecessary wandering. Whatever the reason, how could even this clause be treated so carelessly?
The driver lit a cigarette and sneered at him. At first, he’d thought being ordered to drive an Omega to the hospital meant the master had taken a favorite lover—despite the rumors, perhaps the Vermouth heir was still an Alpha after all.
But after getting the job through the butler’s connections, the driver had picked up whispers around the estate. It turned out this Omega was nothing more than a tool for the Alpha to fuck.
The servants already treated the small East Asian Omega as they pleased. Even after five years, the master had never once shown concern for him. Naturally, the driver’s attitude followed suit. Driving that long distance every two weeks and waiting had become an annoyance.
He’d even been drinking until dawn the night before and was hungover. Whatever hope this Omega clung to in going to the hospital so faithfully was obvious. Probably checking if he’d gotten knocked up. The thought made the driver even more irritated by Haejin invoking the contract.
The butler had indeed told him to take the Omega to the hospital every two weeks. He ignored that part. It wasn’t as if this Omega had the standing to complain anywhere.
“Fuck.”
Haejin’s face remained stiff as he listened calmly to the stream of profanity. The driver, replaced a year ago, openly resented the biweekly outing. The cold treatment had long since become blatant, but Haejin endured. All he needed was transportation.
“Anyway, I don’t know anything about it.”
“…I understand.”
Swallowing the bitterness, Haejin turned away. If the issue was an order, then he needed to find the butler and explain. He could only hope the man had simply forgotten due to being busy.
“Fucking brat who sells his body acting all stiff.”
“……”
Even as the insult struck coldly at his back, Haejin didn’t turn around. Arguing would gain him nothing. And that phrase likely reflected exactly how the servants saw him.
A dry cough escaped him. He had been standing in the cold too long. His body, already shaky, felt like it might finally give out, and anxiety sharpened. Lyle was sensitive about his physical condition; he had intended to get checked at the hospital as well.
He hurried inside to find the butler, but the man was nowhere to be found. When he asked, the servants gave evasive answers.
Haejin rushed through the estate, asking each servant despite their cold responses. He gained nothing. It would have helped to know even where the butler had gone.
After searching for some time, Haejin checked the clock and felt despair sink in.
Even if he left now, he wouldn’t make it before visiting hours ended.
That day, he failed to see his hospitalized parents.