Striking a deal with the devil

“You have my land, Shin Hye-ah,” he whispered at her ear, the sound low and liquid and altogether too distracting even as it sent tremors of anxiety spiraling through her, “and I want it back.”

She shouldn’t have left the house that evening. If she survived this, she would never leave the house again.

She shook her head, eyes closed as he wreaked havoc on her senses. “I can’t give it to you.”

He one hand down her arm in a long, lovely caress, taking her wrist in his firm, warm clasp. “Ani? But I will take it from you.”

She opened her eyes, met his, black in the darkness. “What does that mean?”

“It means, my darling”—the endearment was mocking—“that we are going to be married.”

Shock coursed through her as he lifted her arm, tossed her over his shoulder, and headed into the trees toward Gyeonggi Manor.

------------

Min Ho had imagined a half dozen scenarios that ended in his ferreting Shin Hye away from her Abeoji and her family and marrying her to reclaim his land. He’d planned for seduction, and for force, and even—in the extreme—for kidnapping.

But none of those scenarios had involved a snow-covered woman with a desire for danger and no common sense approaching him in the bitter cold in the dead of night. She’d saved him quite a bit of work, actually.

And so he’d taken her.

“YAH, you jerk!”

He winced as she pounded her fists against his shoulders, her legs flailing about, their awkward angle the only thing that kept him from losing critical parts of his private to a single well-placed kick.

“Put me down!”

He ignored her, instead capturing her legs with one arm, tilting her up until she squeaked and grasped the back of his coat for balance, then resettling her on his shoulder, taking no small amount of pleasure in her grunted “Oof!” as his shoulder found itself in the soft swell of her stomach.

“Is there a problem with your ability to hear?” she said archly.

He did not reply.

He did not have to. She was filling the silence quite well with her muttering. “Aish! I should never have left the house . . .  If only I’d known you would be here, I would have locked the doors and windows and sent for the police . . . Arg . . . To think.. I was actually happy to see you!”

She had been happy to see him, her laughter like sunshine and her excitement palpable. He stopped himself from thinking about the last time someone had been so happy to see him.

From questioning if anyone had ever been so happy to see him. Anyone but Shin Hye.

He’d stripped the happiness from her, coolly, efficiently, with skill, expecting her to be cowed by it, to be weakened.

And she’d spoken, soft and simple, the words echoing across the lake, punctuated by the falling snow, the rushing of blood in his ears, and the biting knowledge of the truth.

You’re on my land.

It’s not yours.

You lost it.

There was nothing weak about this woman. She was strong as steel.

With a handful of words, she’d reminded him that she was the last thing standing in the way of the one thing he’d wanted for his entire adult life. Of the only thing that gave him purpose.

Gyeonggi land.

The land for which he had come. The land he had lost and vowed to regain.

At any cost.

Even marriage.

“You cannot simply just carry me off like . . . like . . . a bag of rice!”

His stride broke for a split second. “A bag of rice?”

She paused, obviously rethinking the comparison. “De, you are! I will tell you once more! Put. Me. Down!” She squirmed again, nearly slithering out of his grasp, one foot coming dangerously close to connecting with a valuable part of his body.

He grunted and tightened his grasp. “Stop it.” He lifted one hand and spanked her once, firmly, on her bottom. She went board stiff at the action.

“Yo-you did not . . . YAHHHH YOU JERK!”

He flung open the rear door to the Gyeonggi kitchens and marched her inside. Placing his torch on a nearby table, he set her down at the centre of the dark room. “You’re wearing half a dozen layers of clothing and a thick coat. I’m surprised you felt it at all.”

Shin Hye’s eyes flashed with fury. “That doesn’t give you an excuse of hitting me th-there . . .”

He watched her flounder for the word, enjoying her discomfort, finally offering, “You mean spank your ? ”

Her eyes went wide at the word. “YAH!”

“I thought we’d already established that I am not a gentleman. That ship sailed long ago. And second, you’d be surprised what men do . . . and what woman enjoy.”

“Not this woman. You better apologise to me now.”

“I would not hold my breath waiting for it.” He heard her little gasp as he moved across the kitchen to the place where he’d left a bottle of scotch in the evening. “Would you like a drink?”

“No, thank you.”

“So polite.”

“One of us should be, don’t you think?”

He turned to face her, half-amused and half-surprised by her smart mouth.

She was not tall, barely the height of his shoulder, but at the moment she looked like an Amazon.

The hood of her coat had fallen away, and her hair was in disarray, tumbling around her shoulders, gleaming dark brown in the dim light. Her chin was forward in a universal sign of defiance, her shoulders were stiff and straight, and her chest rose and fell with harsh anger, swelling beneath her coat.

She looked as though she’d like to slap him to make a point.

“This is kidnapping.”

He took a long pull on the bottle, enjoying her look of shock at his behaviour as he wiped the back of his hand across his lips and met her gaze. He remained quiet, enjoying the way his silence set her on edge.

After a long moment, she announced, “You cannot kidnap me!”

“As I said outside, I have no intention of kidnapping you.” He leaned forward until his face was on a level with hers. “I intend to marry you, darling.”

She stared at him for a long moment. “I am leaving.”

“Aniyo, you are not.”

“I’m not restrained. I could leave if I tried.”

“Restraints are for amateurs.” He leaned back against the sideboard. “Why don't you try leaving then?>”

She cast an uncertain look at him before shrugging one shoulder and heading for the door. He blocked her exit. She stopped. “I realize you’ve been brainwashed while living in with those gaming hell but you CANNOT kidnap people, specially me.”

“As I said, this is not kidnapping.”

“Well, whatever it is,” she said peevishly, “you cannot do it.”

“I should think you would have noticed by now that I care very little for what is done.”

She considered the words for a moment. “You should.”

There was a hazy familiarity in the way she stood, stick straight, instructing him in proper behaviour. “There she is.”

“Who?”

“The Shin Hye from my childhood. So concerned with good manners. You haven’t changed at all.”

She lifted her chin. “That’s not true.”

“Ani?”

“Aniyo. I’m quite changed. Entirely different.”

“How?”

“I—” she started, then stopped, and he wondered what she was about to say. “I just am. Now let me go.” She moved to push past him. When he did not move, she stopped, unwilling to touch him.

A pity. The memory of the warmth of her gloved hand on his cold cheek flashed. Apparently her behaviour outside had been the product of surprise. And pleasure.

He wondered what else she might do instinctively in response to pleasure. An image flashed—dark hair spread wide across dark, silken sheets, brown eyes alight with surprise as he gave prim, proper Shin Hye a glimpse of dark and heady pleasure.

He’d nearly kissed her in the darkness. It had started out as a way to intimidate her. But he couldn’t deny that as they stood in his barren kitchen, he wondered what she would taste like. How her breath would sound fluttering across his skin. How she would feel against him. Around him.

“This is foolish.”

The words snapped him back to the present. “Are you sure you don’t want a drink?”

Her eyes went wide. “I—ANI!”

She was so easy to frustrate. She always had been. “Wae? Isn’t it polite to offer someone a refreshment?”

“Not acohol, specially not in this situation!”

“Ah kure? Then what should I offer you in this situation?”

opened, then closed. “I don’t know, considering I’m not in the habit of being kidnapped in the middle of the night.” Her lips pressed into an irritated straight line. “I should like to return home. To bed.”

“You can get into a bed without returning home you know”

She made a little noise of frustration. “Min ho oppa . . .”

He hated the endearment on her lips. Ani, he didn’t really. He just didn't want to acknowledge the closeness.

“Min ho-ssi", he provided.

She met his eyes. “Min ho-ssi . . . you’ve proven your point.” He stayed quiet, curious, and she pressed on. “I understand that it was stupid of me to wander out into the woods in the middle of the night. I can understand the dangerous of it. I admit that you have taught me a well-needed lesson.”

“As long as you know.”

She pressed on, as though he had not spoken, edging around him. He moved to block her exit. She stopped and met his gaze, her brown eyes flashing with what he imagined was frustration. “I will ignore the fact that you are TRYING to kidnap me and removed me—bodily—from a public location to an entirely inappropriate . . . place.”

“And don’t forget spanking you.”

“DE! That too.”

“Well following the rules hasn’t got what you want in life has it?”

She stilled, and he knew immediately that he had struck a nerve. Something unpleasant flared deep within him. He resisted it. He might be planning to marry her, but he was not planning to care for her.

“Well I have plans for you and you’re not going anywhere tonight.” He extended the bottle of whiskey toward her and spoke, all seriousness. “Have a drink. It will take the edge off until tomorrow.”

“What happens tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow, we marry.”

…………………………….............

Shin Hye reached out and took hold of the whiskey, snatching it from his hand and considering, for a fleeting moment, drinking deep, for surely there was no better time than this to begin a life of drink.

“I will not marry you!”

“Sorry darling, you are.”

She flared. “Andwe, I won’t marry you”. She clutched the bottle to her chest and began to push past him toward the door. When he did not move, she stopped, a hairs breadth away, her coat brushing against him. She stared directly into his serious gaze, refusing to bend to his ridiculous will. “Step aside, Min ho-ssi. I am returning home. You are crazy.”

One irritating dark brow rose. “Such tone,” he mocked. “Actually, I’m not in a mood to move. You have to find another way.”

“Do not make me do something I will regret.”

“Why regret it?” He lifted one hand, a single, warm finger tilting her chi