Once the heavy oak doors finally closed behind them, the sound of the twins’ laughter echoed down the marble hallway.
The grand meeting room, which stretched out before the families in a quiet and solemn vastness, grew silent.
Kwon Seung-ho let out a long, dark sigh as he removed the top button from his collar, dispelling the rigid formality he had worn for the family, and massaged his temples.
His wife, Han Min-jae, didn’t move an inch as the tease and flirt that had just brought the Vice Chairman of Kwon Enterprise to his knees evaporated with the lingering sound of the twins’ giggles.
he poured fresh hot tea into a cup and placed it in front of his husband before sitting down next to him.
They sat in silence for a moment.
“You saw it too, didn’t you?” Min-jae asked quietly, his sharp eyes fixed on the empty leather chair that Tae-hyuk had just occupied.
Seung-ho took a careful sip of the tea as he studied his wife’s expression.
“In twenty-eight years of watching my son, I have seen him throw down armed mercenaries, negotiate with heartless liquidators, and fight off hostile billion-won takeovers without his pulse quickening.
But today …” He exhaled sharply, his dark eyes narrowing as he stared into the distance.
“Today, his hands shook.” “He’s not shaking,” Min-jae said after a while, rolling him tea cup in her palms.
“He wasn’t even remotely perturbed by the twins’ childish antics, Seung-ho.
He was terrified.” He paused, meeting her husband’s gaze.
“His skin was damp, and his posture tensed when you two were talking.
That doesn’t happen because he’s embarrassed, angry, or even annoyed.
You can tell just by looking at him, he’s prepared to defend and not be defended.” Min-jae leaned back against the chair.
“He isn’t hiding those Omegas because he’s ashamed or wants to hide something from us,” she continued, his voice soft with an odd mix of astonishment and admiration.
“He is doing that because he needs to protect them – not us, the children, or even his family.” Seung-ho set his cup of tea down with a soft clink on its saucer.
“He never sat at an angle during the meeting.
He couldn’t because his back was stiff all the time.” Min-jae turned his gaze to meet his dark eyes.
“The smell was strong, Seung-ho.
Tae-hyuk was hugged, not held,” Min-jae murmured, his expression a mixture of astonishment and something akin to awe.
“Our stoic and aloof son, who shrugged off all match arrangements and Omega advances, was pinned by someone and allowed to do that because he had the strength to resist.” “He did not, however,” Seung-ho growled, his Alpha senses picking up the subtle signals his son had been sending out.
“The tightness in his shoulders betrayed him, as did the rest of his body language.
He did not seem to be in agony but rather …
pleased.” Another heavy hush fell over the room as the weight of his words sank in.
For the last three years, the Kwon family members have feared that Tae-hyuk would never be able to bond with another being and would spend his life as a single, emotionally detached Alpha.
They’ve watched him become a cold and ruthless businessman who rarely left his office and dismissed any feelings for his inner Omega as weakness.
But today, he returned to their home reeking of storm petrichor and camellia flowers, red-eyed and stumbling over his words in an attempt to conceal his lack of experience and understanding of the situation.
A small smile twitched at the corner of Seung-ho’s lips as he regarded his son’s mortified expression.
“The monk has finally found himself something to challenge him,” he muttered.
“He’s in over his head,” Min-jae said with a knowing chuckle, his eyes twinkling with affection for her son.
“He knows nothing about courting people, Seung-ho, only about exploiting them.
If he tries to use the same approach on one of those rare Omegas, that flower will rip his heart out and stomp on it.” “Let it,” Seung-ho said dryly, leaning back in his chair.
“It will do him a world of good.” Min-jae shook her head, a bright smile lighting up his face as he got up from the chair.
“I will not interfere …
for now.” he turned to look out the large bay window that faced the Kwon family’s estate garden.
“I’ll let our boy fumble around trying to win someone’s heart and learn a lesson or two about humility.
But tell Do-jin and your covert intelligence agency to keep a close eye on whatever that Omega is up to.” Seung-ho raised an eyebrow as he took another sip of tea.
“You suspect someone will hurt them?” “I think that if someone is worth it to make Kwon Tae-hyuk experience these things, then it will shake up this family uprooting everything,” Min-jae replied quietly, gazing out the window as the first few raindrops fell over the courtyard.
“And I won’t let other parasites pick my son’s pocket while he’s busy trying to find his peace.”