Chapter 40 - All Front Attack

Mistress of My Heart

            For the next few days, Jinli worked like a hurricane and ate practically nothing. When she could find the time, she went to the gym and by the end of the week, she dropped enough weight to finally feel more confident about herself and her plan.

            “Someone is looking good.”

            Jinli’s head shot up to see Taewoon leaning against the door, smiling at her. Immediately, she tugged self-consciously at her blouse and blushed. “Is it noticeable?”

            “Of course. But I hope you’re not overworking yourself. That wouldn’t be good either.”

            She smiled. “I’m okay. I promise. So did you finish the assignment I gave you?”

            Her intern rolled his eyes in a friendly manner. “Yes, Ma’am,” he bowed to her. “Please review my drawings. I hope you will like the placement of the furniture.”

            She took the papers from him and couldn’t help but notice that he stood a little closer to her than necessary. Jinli cleared a little but Taewoon only leaned down to point at his drawing and explain specific nuances to her.

            “I was actually inspired by you for this detail.”

            Forgetting how close he was, Jinli turned her head in surprise. “Me?” She found herself staring into Taewoon’s eyes. His lips curved into a smile and she felt turn dry.

            “Am I interrupting something?” There was a drawl at the door.

            In her haste to move away, Jinli knocked over her container of pencils. Daehyun was standing in her office, with his arms crossed and eyebrow raised. Taewoon straightened. “It’s nice to see you again.”

            Her husband ignored the greeting and went straight to her desk. “Are you almost done with your work?” His voice had turned sickly sweet, the tone it took on when they were in public and there were people present.

            “Not quite. Why are you here? I didn’t think you could find time in your busy schedule to drop by for a surprise visit.”

            Daehyun looked taken aback. “No time for you? Of course not, my sweet. I always have time for you. Hurry and finish up. I’d like to take you out for lunch.”

            Jinli smiled thinly. “Please take a seat. I’m going to finish going over this with Taewoon and I’ll be right with you.”

            He gave the man behind her a slightly disdainful look. “Fine.” And he sat in the extra chair, watching the two of them closely.

            “So what is this really about?” Jinli asked the moment they got into the car.

            “Your daddy dearest wants to talk to us.”

            Jinli tensed. She could not deal with both her father and Daehyun at the same time. “So what’s the game plan?”

            “We go in acting all lovey dovey and reassure him that nothing is wrong. Just keep your cool, Princess.”

            Her father was already sitting at the table by the time they were led through to the private room. He took a sip of his tea and scrutinized them as they came in. Jinli said her greetings and he gestured for them to sit.

            “You must be wondering why I called you out all of a sudden.” Without waiting for a response, he continued. “Why do the two of you look like I’m going to eat you up? Relax. You would think a daughter would be happier to see her father.” The practiced jovial tone made Jinli sick. “Can’t a father inquire when he would be holding grandchildren? I’m not getting any younger.”

            Smoothly, Daehyun reached down and held Jinli’s hand. “Don’t worry, Father, we are definitely working on it.”

            Jinli forced a smile. “Surely you don’t want a grandchild so soon to remind you of your age, right?”

            Her father’s gaze was all-knowing and he smirked. “I suppose all men are like this. You may have to try a little harder with this one, Daehyun, before you move on and find someone else to bear your children, is that right?”

            “There’s no challenge so far that I haven’t been able to overcome,” came his swift reply.

***

            There was another and Daehyun stilled, groaning as he felt the pleasure course through his body. He kissed her softly on the lips and she swung her legs over to cuddle next to him. “Are you staying over tonight?”

            He glanced at his watch. In the dim light, he barely made out that it was nearly eleven. “Do you want me to?”

            Hyosung smiled. “I always do, baby. You know that. But we have a foreign client calling in twenty minutes. Will you be okay by yourself?”

            Daehyun scoffed and gently swept her bangs off her face. “I’ll be the one in , waiting.”

            She giggled and kissed his bruised lips. “Hmm, maybe I was a little rough just then.”

            “If I can’t walk into work tomorrow and look like a decent man, I just may have to stay here all day, and keep you with me.”

            His words made her laugh and his heart expanded to hear the familiar sound. “I promise you I wouldn’t mind.” She blew him another kiss and he watched her walk out.

            Once he was alone, however, Daehyun was plagued by unhappy images. He kept replaying in his mind Taewoon and Jinli staring up at him. What had they been doing? What would they have done if he hadn’t walked in at that time? He rolled his eyes in annoyance and decided he needed to distract himself.

            He stepped into the hallway and saw Hyosung sitting at the dining table. Her back was to him and he smiled, thinking to surprise her.

            “You’re going to need to do a little better than that. It’s already so obvious something’s wrong. You need to do things subtly. Don’t you dare mess this up.”

            Daehyun paused. His eyes narrowed. What was she talking about? Just then. She hung up and turned around. Hyosung smiled at him. “Baby, missed me so soon?” She was acting too natural to have been talking about anything that affected him, he reasoned. And that made him feel more at ease.

            “Come here.”

***

            Daehyun didn’t come home that night. Jinli stared into her glass of wine and scoffed. Ironic. Of course he would purposely spend the night with Hyosung to make a point. After the meeting with her father, he had been unusually quiet. If the conversation had bothered him, he didn’t show it. If seeing her with Taewoon annoyed him, well, it most probably didn’t. It probably amused him.

            She sighed and tried to fight back tears. She was so dumb. If she wanted to make her plan work, she was not supposed to be sitting here, wallowing. She was supposed to have no feelings. She should be calculating and manipulative. Jinli swished the red liquid around once more and tossed it back.

            When she stood, the room spun a little. She had barely eaten and instead, came home to finish nearly half the bottle. In the refrigerator were some dishes that Eunah had made but she ignored them, reaching for the carrot sticks instead. She was a woman with a plan.

            Upstairs, she once more took out the photographs in Daehyun’s drawers. Why had he printed them out? And why were they in his private drawer? What had he been planning on doing with them? In a fit of anger, she wanted to rip them to pieces but sentiment kept her from doing so. Instead, she stared intensely at the last picture. Even though his face was partially hidden by the shadows, she could make out his handsome features.

            “Damn you. Curse you to hell, Jung Daehyun.” She threw the photos back and slammed the doors shut. Her head spun and she lay down on the bed, taking in deep breaths. In her dreams, she saw Daehyun and he made her cry.

            Daehyun got home early in the morning and found Jinli sprawled on the bed. His nose wrinkled in disgust. “What is this woman doing, not even changing when she gets home? Ya, Jinli. Get up.”

            He walked over to the side of the bed but something made him pause. A trail of tears ran down her cheek and her lips were moving. He leaned down but couldn’t make out what exactly she was saying. “I’m sorry.” Daehyun startled. Her eyes were still closed but those two words were said loud and clear.

            He looked at her and wondered what that creeping feeling in his heart was. What could she possibly be dreaming about? Just then her alarm rang and he quickly shot away, pretending like he just arrived.

            Jinli stirred and upon seeing him, shot up. “Morning,” she mumbled before wiping at her face and walking into the bathroom.

            His phone buzzed and Daehyun looked down at it. Hyung, come quickly. We need to do damage control.

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exoblaq #1
i open this account once in a while only to see if there's updates on this story and i'm so glad that every now and then there still are 🥹 i get this bittersweet feelings whenever i read new updates as it brings me back to when i first started reading it. it's like i grew up along with this story. it's been a decade and i still hold a space for the boys in my heart. thank you for being a reminder of my love for them author ☹️ best of luck in all of your endeavors!
exoblaq #2
Chapter 69: oh my gosh, congratulations so much on your wedding 🥹 as a long time reader, i am so happy for you. 🤍
idontknowvryn #3
Oooh
Khahani #4
Chapter 69: Congratulations on your marriage! May you are blessed with abundance of happiness with your significant other❤️❤️❤️
lovemejuseyo
#5
Chapter 69: Still here as well! I feel like we have all had these amazing milestones, and seeing you post feels like seeing an old friend! Sending big love on your special day!!! <3
valschanya #6
Chapter 69: After all these years, im still here. From uni to my first real job to numerous existensial crises to uni again... it's like a homecoming. Thank you for not giving up on this story!
akiazmi
#7
Chapter 1: Hey, thank you for this beautiful wrap. I have been reading this since I was a teen and now I'm in my late 20s and seeing your update really got me excited!!! 100% will find time to reread the entire story to relive all the emotions I felt with your writing. You've been amazing, I love you and congratulations on your marriage!! May you have a great love and happiness always.🥰

ps, yes I'm going to Yongguk's tour in Singapore!
ILoveKDramas1 #8
Chapter 69: Yaaay Author-nim your back with an update after so long!Some of us are still waiting earnestly for ur updates. 🤩 Congratulations on your pending wedding!!🎊
Khahani #9
Chapter 69: I am still here after all these yearsssss
frenetic #10
Chapter 69: Wow I'm so glad I checked in and saw the new chapter. I'm definitely staying till the end because I love this story to bits. Congratulations on your wedding!