A few weeks had passed since Heiran was suspended from work and she had only just begun utilizing the new free time to do things for herself instead of moping around. 

The first few days she had spent joining Mark while he dropped off Lucy and laying in bed, depressed until it was time to pick her up from school. It wasn’t the healthiest pattern but this was a woman who went from working 50 to 60 hours a week, to 0 hours a week. It took a lot of adjusting. 

She sighed as she sunk further into the bubbles and steaming water laced with essential oils. The heat melted the tension in her muscles and she could feel the tightness in her body soften. She closed her eyes, enjoying the smell of rose oils and reached for the glass of wine she poured for herself. 

Slowly opening her eyes, she stared at the candle she lit to set the mood. It was the first time she had used it and the entire day would’ve been more relaxing if it didn’t smell so bad. It was too strong and fragrant, it was making her head hurt. She took a deep breath and considered if it was worth getting out of the world’s most comfortable bath just to blow it out.

“Duchess? Where are you?” Mark voice suddenly called out from downstairs.

Sitting up a little, she took a big gulp of her drink, “I’m up here.”

She could hear his footsteps come up the stairs before they walked into her bedroom. “Where?”

“In here.” She called lazily.

He followed the sound and she could see his shadow linger outside the bathroom door before he knocked. Heiran laughed, “Come in.”

Mark opened the door before freezing. His eyes widened when he took in the sight of Heiran glistening under the golden glow of the candles. Her hair was piled up in a bun with a few damp strands stuck to the back of her neck. 

“O-Oh.” His eyes flickered up to the ceiling, “Sorry, I thought you said I could come in. I’ll wait in the kitchen.”

She snickered, “I did say that. Come in.”

“You’re in the bath.” He said, surprised. 

“I know. I’m also covered with bubbles so you can’t really see much. What did you want?”

He held out a stack of envelopes, “Eun wanted me to pass these along. Also, she looked like she was on the brink of tears. I guess she misses you or something.”

“You can put them on the counter. I’ll look through them later.” She said, waving her hand.

He tensed at the sound of water sloshing, “That’s it, I just wanted to check-in. I’ll head out, call me if you need som—“

“Sit down.”

His brow twitched at her command, “You’re in the bath and I have no reason to be here.”

“Stay.” She said simply. 

He glanced at her wearily before walking to the counter, “God that candle smells awful.”

Heiran smiled looking pleased like she knew a secret. “Blow it out then.”

He leaned over and blew at the small flame before dropping down next to the tub, his back facing her. She grinned and rested her arms on the edge of the tub to peer at the side of his face, “You’re not going to look at me?”

“You’re .” He grumbled jaw tensed.

She leaned close and bumped her nose against his cheek playfully, “You can’t see anything with all the bubbles.”

“But you’re still .” He hissed. 

She laughed. “How was your day?”

His face was still set in a scowl, “Better now that you spend your days at home. Did you hear back from work yet?”

“No.” Her voice was quiet and when he finally forced himself to look over at her. Her eyes were downcast and vacant of the previous mirth. He wanted to push away the wet pieces of hair that clung to her but that would require having to touch her. 

“Suspension is a good look on you.”

Her eyes flickered to meet his and a small smile quirked up her lips when she saw amusement staring back at her, “You think? This is the first time I’ve actually allowed myself to enjoy not having to work.”

“It’s fun not being busy, right?” He said, looking away from her again.

She narrowed her eyes and leaned close to bump her nose up against him once more, “You would go insane if you couldn’t work. Newsflash, you’re just as much of a workaholic as I am.”

. 

. 

.

He was so ed.

She smelled so good now that the candle was out. Like roses and expensive fragrance. He could feel the steam floating off of the water which meant that her skin was probably warm and dewy too. 

He hated it so much. 

He hated that she looked so powerful just lounging in water. 

He hated that she was laughing at him with her eyes.

And what he hated most of all was that he could imagine this day. He could envision coming home, tired and exhausted, and finding her relaxing here. He could see himself not needing to hesitate by the door and just wandering in, letting her ask him about his day while he stripped off his clothes in front of her. 

And he would see him climbing in with her, groaning at the feeling of the warm water lapping at him before she slid over to him, resting against his chest. His eyes already felt heavy just fantasizing about how it would feel so have so much of her skin on him. Soft, warm, welcoming. Ah, .

“Mark. You’re freaking me out. Why do you keep spacing?”

He snapped out of his trance and quickly looked at her in acknowledgment, hoping his gaze didn’t linger too much on her, “I’m not a workaholic, it’s just that my job is more around-the-clock.”

“Trust me, as someone who used to use the same excuse, your job isn’t around-the-clock. You are around-the-clock, your job is just what you do with your time.” She quipped. 

He glossed over her comment and felt his brows furrow, he really didn’t want to ruin her good mood but, “Has Jaebum tried contacting you lately?”

“I was about to ask you the same thing.” She mumbled, “Your eyebrows scrunched up and it’s like my brain just jumped to him.”

He would’ve appreciated the sentiment if Jaebum’s presence didn’t bother him so much. “Well?”

“No.” She admitted, “He hasn’t contacted me since he came to my house. It’s sort of worrying me. He seemed so adamant to make it up to me and fix everything. Like he was going to do something drastic, so him suddenly going silent is unnerving.”

She had a point, although Mark’s lips hitched at the memory of a very poignant text he received from DS after he had seen the state of his car. 

From: UNKNOWN

. Off.

“Maybe he just took the hint and is leaving you alone. He’s typically persistent but people are more insecure around their exes.”

She scoffed, “You overestimate how much he claims he still loves me.”

“Jaebum doesn’t beg.” Mark said quietly, “He doesn’t plead, he doesn’t chase after something that doesn’t want him, he doesn’t ask. But he does for you.”

Heiran just stared at Mark, her heart churning, “Why does it sound like you want me to give him a chance and take him back?"

“I don’t. I swear, I don’t. But you should just know that the Jaebum that showed up in front of you isn’t the same Jaebum that runs DS. So maybe he does really love you and acts differently because of it which means I can’t really predict what he’s going to do.” He explained. 

Heiran reached out and curled a sopping hand into the shoulder of his jacket and tugged on it, “What would you do? If it was you?”

“If Jaebum confessed his love to me? Hmm, not sure, never really thought about it.” He quipped dryly, finally forcing his gaze to properly lock into hers. 

She glared, flicking water at him so that he’d flinch away with a smile, “Very funny. No, I mean, what would you do if you were Jaebum?”

Oh, hell. 

Was she seriously asking him what he’d do if he was her ex who was madly in love with her and wanted to win her back? How was that a fair question? How could she allow him to imagine what he would be like as her boyfriend?

“I don’t know, duchess. I’ve never really been in love before. But if someone meant that much to me, I wouldn’t have lost them in the first place.”

Heiran gulped as she stared, eyes locked, at Mark, his gaze a slow kindling fire. He probably wouldn’t leave his girlfriend if the relationship was that serious and he certainly wouldn’t be in a serious relationship unless he knew the girl he was with was ride or die. He might’ve still hidden the truth at first but when push came to shove, she bet he’d come clean and deal with the consequences. 

He wouldn’t run away, not from her, not from Lucy. 

He’d come up with a plan to make sure his gang didn’t come after her, he’d apologize over and over again for the lies and no matter what she'd plead, he’d never leave her, not until she was safe. Mark was a lot of things, but he wouldn’t be a coward in the face of someone he loved. He’d probably show up to every fight they’d have, take every verbal spar and angry word if it meant fighting for—

What was she even talking about? 

There was no way she was sitting here daydreaming about Mark’s hypothetical emotional capacity in a relationship. 

“You good?” Mark mumbled, watching her eyes glaze over in a trance. 

She blinked quickly before clearing , “Yeah. My hands are getting pruny though. I think it’s time for me to get out.” 

His brow raised challengingly, “So? Get out.”

“Umm…can you leave?” She muttered.

He smirked, leaning close, “You’re the one who asked me to stay. What happened to all that boldness about being in the same room as me?”

“I’ll do it. I’ll stand up right now, you’re the one who wouldn’t be able to handle it.” She challenged back.

She was probably right. 

But he just smiled as he stood, “You smell good. Throw that candle out.”

-----

He should’ve known that everything was too calm.

When he wasn’t taking care of minor duties that had more to do with him intimidating people rather than killing them, he was spending time with Heiran. But it wasn’t like before. 

It wasn’t loitering around her office while she worked, only stopping by to check-in or relay a message. It was dropping Lucy off and letting Heiran convince him to go to lunch with her or stopping by and being dragged into a reality tv marathon with her legs tossed over his thighs. They spent time hanging out, he had no reason to be with her other than because she wanted his company and he was willing to offer it. 

It was dangerous. 

Because he was starting to feel like a friend to her. 

So perhaps today was the rude awakening that he had coming.

“Come by my office at noon.”

That’s the voicemail he got from his Boss when he was too busy trying to convince Heiran that she didn’t need to buy a third patio swing.

When he strolled into the headquarters the silence was the first red flag. No one was in sight, everyone must’ve been sent home which was uncommon for GOT7. There was always someone around doing something. Not even Jinyoung was in.

Mark pursed his lips, shooting Jinyoung a text, asking what happened, and got a reply shortly after. 

From: Jinyoung

Idk, Boss told us to work from home.

Mark grumbled, and moved to his Boss’s office, knocking sharply. 

Even his assistant was gone. 

“Come in.”

Mark shoved the door open and stepped in. He immediately recognized the back of Jaebum’s head. He was seat across from his Boss who had his fists resting against his desk. 

He gripped his gun, ready to whip it out, “What’s he doing here?”

“At ease. He requested we meet, I agreed. I’m sure introductions aren’t in order, so please, take a seat. We have much to discuss.” His Boss summoned. 

Mark’s jaw was still tense as he walked to the leather chair, sitting down and refusing to meet Jaebum’s gaze, even when he saw him turn to him in his peripheral. “What’s happening?”

“DS has come to me with a proposition.” His Boss explained. 

There was something about the softness in his voice that set Mark on edge, “I’m sure he’ll handle the rejection well.”

“Actually, I’m considering it.” 

Mark stared at his Boss in shock, “You’re not serious. He’s the enemy.”

“Trust me, that fact isn’t lost on me. But I think, with the cops circling us and DS’s allies running rouge, joining forces might help keep all of us alive and not behind bars.” He reasoned. 

Mark felt his fingers dig into the leather of the armrests. Nothing Jaebum offered would be anything but to benefit himself. He already knew he was going to hate whatever ‘proposition’ Jaebum had.

“I’m going to marry Heiran.”

Ha.

It almost sounded like Jaebum just said that he was going to marr—

“I’ll kill you.”

The threat left Mark’s mouth so easily and so quickly that he almost sounded like he commenting on the weather if not for the animalistic growl it came out as. He felt rage so strong that instead of yelling, throwing things, and pulling out his gun, Mark was deathly still, his face blank, not for lack of caring but because he couldn’t even decide how he felt. 

Incredulous. Angry. Furious. Regret. Betrayal. Defensive. Jealous. Disbelief. 

“Mark.” His Boss scolded. “This isn’t your decision to make.”

He had to hold back. He promised Heiran not to tell her father that Jaebum was an ex, but he so badly wanted to throw it back in his face. He was glad his Boss was there or else there would be no one to stop him from flaying Jaebum’s skin. “He’s tried to kill her, sir. Kidnapped her and made threats against her kid.”

“You’re the one who said that those weren’t real threats. That you didn’t think Jaebum was after revenge.” Boss pointed out.

Jaebum tilted his head, calmly watching the way Mark’s face twisted at his own words being thrown at him. Why it almost sounded like Mark had tried defending him.

“Well this is it! This is what he was after. Marrying your daughter. He wants leverage and he’s going to use her.” Mark barked. 

His Boss sighed, “Look, it’s clearly not ideal, but it would help in a major way. This marriage forces DS to align with us. It’ll force his allies to stand down because they can’t go after their leader’s wife. And together we can evade the cops.”

“This was his idea. He’s clearly planning something. He’ll try to turn her against you or use her to get to you and GOT7.” Mark didn’t even hear his voice wavering. “You can’t do this to her.”

“Obviously, I’m not going to force her.” Jaebum said. 

Mark clenched his jaw, “Shut up.”

“I’ll lay out my proposition and if she agrees. We’ll get married.” Jaebum stated. 

Mark blinked at him before a relieved laugh escaped him, “Oh. That’s your plan? In that case, go for it. Heiran ing hates you. You think she’d even hesitate for a second before saying no to your plan?”

“Lucy.” His Boss finally spoke. “He told me how she was willing to die for her daughter when she was kidnapped. If DS can promise Lucy’s safety, I think she’ll say yes.”

Mark’s throat dried, “You can’t use her kid just to get her to marry you. You want her to be your wife? Go ask her out, try to have a relationship, try not to it up by being the world’s most colossal idiot, and then ask her to marry you. But don't ing do it like this. She doesn’t deserve this.”

“Easy.” Jaebum threatened, his calmness washing over into a growing rage, “You don’t know what’s best for her.”

Mark shook his head, “No. You’re forcing her to give up her whole life because you’ll never let her divorce you because the minute she does, you’ll send the cops and your allies after her. I’d rather keep protecting her.”

“That’s what you’re calling it? Letting her get taken? That was you protecting her?” Jaebum sneered. 

Mark launched out of his chair, grabbing Jaebum by the collar to lift him out of his seat, “Keep going, I’ve been itching for a reason to carve your face up like I did to your car.”

“That’s enough!” His Boss boomed. 

Mark considered getting at least one swing in, but instead pulled Jaebum close and whispered so his Boss couldn’t hear, “You’ll break her heart again. I’m going to kill you before I let that happen.”  

He let go of him, ignoring the look Jaebum was giving him. His Boss sighed, “I hate this just as much as you do. This is the last thing I ever wanted, but things are getting out of hand and the only way any of us are going to survive is to have a temporary alliance. If Heiran agrees, we’ll set a divorce date in advance. And then she’ll leave him with no consequences.”

“She’ll never say yes.” Mark hissed. 

His Boss rubbed his head, “We’ll have to see for ourselves.”

“What do you mean?”

A little ding echoed in the room and he sighed, “I sent word to her, asked her to come by. She’s here now, we’ll see what she says.”

Mark panicked. He thought he’d have enough time to talk to her himself and convince her that she didn’t need to do this in order to be safe. That he’d do everything and anything to make sure that she stayed out of her jail and she and her kid stayed alive. 

“I’ll her in.” Mark said quickly before rushing out of the room. 

Jaebum frowned, watching him disappear before turning to his enemy while pointing to where Mark vanished to, “You know that isn’t normal.”

“Shut up.” He muttered. 

Jaebum shook his head, “He threatened to kill me over a marriage.”

The Boss snarled, “You don’t get to talk about him.”

“You’re not the least bit concerned about the two of them?” Jaebum mused.

For the first time since he’s known the man, the leader of GOT7 looked confused like the thought had never crossed his mind, “Why would I have any reason to be concerned about them?”

Jae