Flowers Are Bait

Chapter 189:

Living as a married woman is said to be three years of deafness, three years of muteness, and three years of serving as a maid. And Lee-yeon was in the midst of lamenting that managing Kwon’s garden was not much different from her old days of being married.

In the upper-class mansions, all sorts of abnormal activities were occurring, things ordinary people couldn’t even imagine.

There were secret societies divided into sex parties, hunting gatherings, and drug parties. It was all part of the pleasure crimes orchestrated by the Kwon family, with many domestic figures who had learned such practices from foreign high societies attending in large numbers, as Lee-yeon had heard from the garden management team’s employees.

“Sigh… It’s driving me crazy!”

Lee-yeon clasped her head with both hands, looking at the empty space she had to fill in front of her.

Just the loosely gathered list of attendees included influential figures in society, such as the director of the National Intelligence Service, the director of a university hospital, the Minister of Justice, a spokesperson for a political party, the CEO of a construction company, a vice chairman of a conglomerate, a prestigious university professor, and famous celebrities.

Lee-yeon’s mouth hung open in disbelief.

A garden for sex? She was still in a state of shock from her employer’s absurd instructions. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of despair and let out a sigh.

But it’s just one month, only one month. She had to focus on safely escaping from this place with Gyu-baek. She lightly tapped her flat belly and murmured.

“Mom will secretly take good care of you…”

As Lee-yeon looked at the spacious yard, she envisioned the garden gradually, and her face began to flush with color.

* * *

Sitting at the outdoor table, Kwon Chae-woo was gazing absentmindedly at the figure of Lee-yeon, who had fallen asleep beside him. She became more vivid as the nights grew longer with his inability to sleep.

Brushing her hand with his thumb, he felt a peculiar sensation that was neither warm nor cold but something in between.

Compared to the touch of Lee-yeon’s skin, which he had eagerly explored with his hands and lips, the sensation of the apparition was even more ephemeral. Yet, like a restless child clinging to a security blanket, Kwon Chae-woo seemed reluctant to let go of her hand.

“Won’t you be afraid that you’ll realize your body is still bound to Lee-yeon?”

At the sudden intrusion of Jang Beom-hee’s voice into his ears, a sense of unfamiliarity gripped him.

Me, afraid?

A hollow laughter escaped his smooth lips. He had avoided sleep to the point of obsession. Just the thought of Lee-yeon brought forth a sharp animosity, like thorns. It was amusing and shameful that he used to entrust his mornings to such a woman. As a natural course of action, Kwon Chae-woo completely denied any connection with her.

However, Jang Beom-hee’s ambush penetrated his defenses, exposing his heart.

It was the sound of something that Kwon Chae-woo had firmly believed in crumbling, causing constant discomfort and discord. He pressed his index finger firmly against his creased forehead.

“Somehow, it feels like your face is getting gaunter by the day.” Kwon Ki-seok, who was sitting across from him, flipped through his tablet, and casually remarked,

“I heard you skipped another meal today.”

“…What are you doing here?”

“Just like you, it’s not like you’re just here to sunbathe.”

Kwon Ki-seok, who had been fixated on his tablet the whole time, glanced at him briefly.

“Chae-woo, maybe you should bring in a woman or someone to bring some balance to this place.”

“What?” Kwon Chae-woo furrowed his brows in annoyance. It was a remark that could easily elicit a sarcastic chuckle upon reconsideration.

.

It was even more so if he imagined the hunting dogs that followed Kwon Ki-seok, always reporting the same things.

Kwon Ki-seok had no woman in his life. No official woman, no hidden woman, no woman with whom he had regular or irregular sexual relations. It was a reclusive disposition considering that he was just approaching his forties.

Therefore, it was truly an absurd statement.

“If you can bring someone, go ahead and bring them.”

As Kwon Chae-woo raised his lips, Kwon Ki-seok turned his head to gaze at a certain spot in the garden. It was unusual for him to fix his gaze so intently, which made Kwon Chae-woo also look in that direction.

“…!”

There, the real Lee-yeon was crossing the garden with a foldable ladder tucked under her side. The moment the man realized this; he felt a wave of unease.

Kwon Chae-woo forcefully kicked the table leg, causing the tablet to fall to the ground. Only after Kwon Ki-seok’s stony gaze returned did the previously tangled tension slightly ease.

“What are you looking at?”

A subtle smile appeared and vanished on Kwon Ki-seok’s lips in response to the sharp question.

“While Lee-yeon maybe someone who makes your heart flutter, for me, she’s someone who has helped fulfill our family’s wishes, so naturally, she holds a special place.”

Kwon Chae-woo’s face turned cold in an instant. The ambivalent and alienating emotions weren’t solely directed at Lee-yeon.