Contract Marriage with a Male Friend - Chapter 35

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#35

“Greetings? Wait, hold on—let me put this down…….”
“How about we meet right now.”
Her wide, reddish-brown eyes trembled slightly.
“R-right now? What are you talking about?”
“Exactly what I said.”
Beom-jin tracked the movements of the men in black suits descending from the car with his eyes, pressing Su-i closer against him with a tightened grip.
One, two, three…… one more in the back seat.
And there’s another car as well.
So much for a casual visit—anyone would think a head of state was arriving.
“If you want, I could introduce you to someone I’m bound to call family right now.”
Spotting the man walking with an arrogant expression, surrounded by secretaries and bodyguards, Beom-jin’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
“Even if he is a fool.”
Su-i, who didn’t catch his muttered words, shook her head vigorously.
“No, absolutely not!”
Beom-jin could act however he pleased, but she couldn’t—not at all.
“I haven’t even chosen a gift yet, I look terrible, my mind isn’t ready, and I don’t even know if I’ll be able to greet him properly.”
“You yourself are the gift. You went from running wild like a beast to being perfectly tamed.”
“Who, who says you tamed me!”
“You’re always beautiful, and as for being ready—yes, that’s something you should do. I’d like you to be properly prepared for living as my wife, my family, from now on.”
The warmth of his hand gently stroking her back and the deep voice reaching down from above her head anchored Su-i’s drifting heart with steady reassurance.
“If you don’t want to greet him, don’t. I’ll handle all of it for you.”
“……How could I not greet him.”
“You don’t have to, Su-i. Just look at me. That alone is more than enough for you to do your part.”
Su-i let out a hollow laugh at Beom-jin’s absurd words.
I don’t understand anymore.
What time it is, where I am.
With Beom-jin, all sense and reason just evaporates.
Even my pointless worries.
Su-i relaxed into his embrace, surrendering herself entirely to him.
As if he’d been waiting for exactly this, Beom-jin pressed his lips to her forehead and shoulder, then caressed her gently, again and again.
“Sigh.”
“What.”
“I think I’m getting used to this absurdity.”
“Absurdity?”
“What you’re doing.”
Always finding excuses to kiss me.
Whispering that I’m cute.
His habit of clinging like he can’t bear to be apart, holding me close and whispering strange things.
“Get used to it fast. It’s only going to get worse after we’re married.”
“Worse than this? Are you actually planning to become a pervert?”
“Don’t make me sound unreasonable. We haven’t even started yet.”
Su-i shook her head in disbelief, her expression one of exasperation.
“What if you make a mistake like this in front of other people?”
“Then so be it. You only need to know that I’m your husband.”
“So you get to be a pervert, and I’m supposed to look like an idiot?”
“I like the way you say ‘honey.’ It sounds good.”
“Oh, really.”
When she huffed softly, he felt Beom-jin laughing.
‘That tickles.’
A sensation like a swarm of butterflies suddenly taking flight bloomed in her chest.
Afraid her face would flush even more, Su-i closed her eyes while keeping her head resting against his chest.
Immediately, long, thick fingers tickled the corners of her eyes, then grasped her soft cheeks, released, and repeated the motion.
“You’re so cute I could die.”
“Oh, come on.”
Su-i tried to stop him from playing with her cheeks like she was clay, but soon gave up.
Fine, let him. It’s not like it wears down.
If she told him to stop, he’d just ask what he could do instead and end up doing something far more outrageous.
‘Besides, I need to get used to being watched anyway.’
Using the excuse of someone’s watchful gaze, Su-i surrendered to Beom-jin and to her own soaring heart.
In that moment, confirming that Dok-go Seung-jin had entered the building, Beom-jin continued playing with Su-i’s cheeks as he spoke.
“By the way, a gift arrived.”
“A gift?”
“From those fools at the department store, congratulating us on the wedding.”
“Oh, those people from back then…….”
“You don’t need to recall their faces.”
Don’t you realize that telling me not to think about something only makes me think about it more?
Su-i then looked up at him with curious eyes.
“What is it?”
“Vintage Wine and a Whiskey Set.”
“They’re not too expensive, are they?”
“They’re appropriate. We’ll look at them after work.”
What would constitute ‘appropriate’ by Beom-jin’s standards?
Su-i shook her head slightly.
Never mind.
What you don’t know can’t hurt you, she thought.
If she knew…… somehow Beom-jin would feel farther away.
“Do you hate it?”
“Oh, no. Yeah, let’s look at them together after work.”
“We’ll look at them, drink them, and then I’ll feed you, and after that we’ll—”
Su-i froze, her face flushing as she glared at him pointedly.
“Really. You only say perverted things.”
“So who told you to be so provocative?”
“W-what did you say?”
“That you’re too provocative, Su-i.”
From the moment we first met until now, there’s never been a moment you weren’t captivating.

“She’s cute, right? The little one I always play with here.”
“……You know who I am and you speak carelessly. Without fear.”
“She’s very sensitive, so she never goes to bad people. And you—you waited patiently for her to come to you. You were so careful, stroking her so gently because you were afraid she might get hurt. That’s not something just anyone can do.”

Recalling his first meeting with Su-i, Beom-jin chuckled softly.
That day, that moment.
If he hadn’t left the house.
If he hadn’t sat down heavily in the alley with a resigned heart.
If he hadn’t been stroking the small cat that approached him—
He never would have met her.
The only light that had warmed his monochrome world.
“Do you really want to go to the party?”
At his question, Su-i recalled the invitation from the two people she’d met at the department store.

“We’d like to invite you to a party next week if that works for you?”
“That’s right—it’s a fairly large-scale party, so you’re welcome to just come by and take a look. Meet some people.”
“My younger sister will be attending as well. Since everything is connected business-wise, once you become a daughter-in-law of the Kangho Group, you’ll inevitably see each other anyway.”

At the time, she’d hastily thanked them for the invitation in order to placate Beom-jin, who was watching them with an air of barely restrained intensity.
But truthfully, she was curious.
She wanted to understand the world Beom-jin inhabited.
Now it was something she had to come to understand.
They must all be people with impressive backgrounds, extraordinary figures.
‘From now on, I’ll be thrown into the midst of people like that.’
One year.
For exactly one year, she would have to survive fiercely in that battleground.
‘Can I do it?’
To gauge him, she wanted to attend this party.
“If it’s not too difficult for you…… I want to go.”
At Su-i’s answer, Beom-jin drew a low breath.
Difficult doesn’t begin to cover it. Maddeningly so.
Just thinking about all those eyes following Su-i like a dog made his blood boil, something hot threatening to erupt.
But it was a necessary hurdle to cross.
He needed to announce to the entire world that this girl was his wife, embedding her firmly in everyone’s mind.
So no one would harbor inappropriate thoughts about Su-i.
“Fine, let’s go.”
Beom-jin parted Su-i’s fingers and pushed his own deep between them.
“But you can’t leave my side.”
“Okay, got it.”
“No matter what happens.”
Su-i nodded.
She didn’t want to be separated from Beom-jin even a little.
Alone, she’d probably lose her nerve and melt away.
“But why are you really here?”
“The on-site inspection ran later than scheduled. Your office was on the way, so I stopped by.”
With a composed expression, Beom-jin borrowed his cousin Dok-go Seung-jin’s schedule and made it his own.
Su-i, having no way of knowing this, nodded with relief, thinking there shouldn’t be any major problem.
“When do you have to leave?”
“I can stay another thirty minutes or so.”
Su-i, who’d been thinking for a moment at his answer, opened her mouth.
“Hmm, would you be able to go somewhere with me then?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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