THE PROPOSAL || KTH

Chapter 10 || Owner

Y/n pov

Five months later...

I descended the stairs, looking around the spacious living area to catch a glimpse of my husband, but he was nowhere to be seen. I spotted Somi passing by, so I stopped her and asked about Tae-hyung's arrival. The ever-so- loyal maid denied making me frown. Tae-hyung should have been home given it was past ten at night, and it was starting to worry me. For the months we had been married, he rarely stayed out late at night. He was always home by eight.

I moved toward the couch and made myself comfortable as I sat there waiting for my husband-temporary husband. I forgot that every time, but that was because not once did I feel this marriage wasn't permanent. Kim Tae-hyung treated me like a woman would want her husband to treat her. It was difficult to think that wasn't real. I had to keep reminding myself of the timeline again and again to keep myself from falling deeper into the pit than I already had.

That was a one-way path I was walking into. There was no going back. The heart had chosen its owner, and nothing could change that.

Brushing my thoughts aside, I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. It was answering not-reachable earlier, and I hoped this time the call would get connected. I needed to know where he was to calm my nerves.

"Dammit! Where are you, Tae-hyung ?" I groaned when the call went unanswered. Along with worry, I felt my temper rising. He was going to get it from me once he came back. He could have at least left a text informing me he was going to be late.

I closed my eyes and buried my face in my palms. I didn't know when I came to care about him so much that being away from him for long made me so restless as if a part of me was missing. A small voice of annoyance left my mouth, my anxiety getting the better of me. I didn't like the power Tae-hyung was having over me. Before it was his presence that affected me, now it was his absence as well. I hadn't felt like that for anyone before.

"What happened, dearest sister-in-law? Waiting for my brother?" My head jerked, hearing the most annoying voice of my not-so-lovely brother-in-law.

I looked over and narrowed my gaze at Woo-jin. "What are you doing here at this hour?"

"If you aren't forgetting, this is my brother's house. I can come whenever I want," he replied with a shrug as he walked over and slumped down on the sofa across from me.

"Tae-hyung isn't home," I informed him.

"He's at poolside." Woo-jin smirked.

"What? When did he come home?" I got up from my place, my heart suddenly at peace hearing about his whereabouts. Then a question crossed my mind, making me frown. What was he doing at poolside at this hour? That was so unlike him. Usually, he would come straight to our room after coming home from work.

"Just now. I came with him. We had a meeting with father at his place," Woo-jin replied. "Why don't you go and talk to him? He was tensed about something this evening."

"I'll go and see." I didn't wait there for another moment and made my way to the poolside through the back door that led directly there.

A smile curled onto my lips the moment my gaze fell over his tall frame standing near the pool, his back facing me. A gush of warmth filled me at the sight of him, and that was when I knew I had fallen completely and irrevocably for my husband. No matter what, all the methods I tried to stop myself from falling for him, everything had failed. I didn't have regrets, though. He was the kind of man who made it hard not to be affected by him -compassionate, respectful, and owner of a golden heart.

Sometimes, I still had a hard time believing this man was mine now. He was such an enigma, a mystery I still hadn't solved.

He kept a part of him to himself, which I had noticed in the almost six months of our marriage. There was a deep sense of pain, but he hid it so well behind his facade of a brooding man. There was more to the man than he showed himself to be, and I didn't know if he was ready to open up to me. I didn't have high hopes knowing what I felt for him, he might not feel the same. Ours was still a temporary marriage regardless of what or how I felt.