Seung-Eon knew it was wrong. Goddamn it, he knew it all too well, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop. Every glance at you made his chest tighten, every thought of letting you go was unbearable, and even knowing he was crossing a line only made him more determined.

He looked at the huge, luxurious bedroom in his penthouse where you were forced to stay, his eyes scanning the expensive furniture, the soft light of the lamps, the small presence of Taro at your feet.

He had paid off the debt you owed because of your father, knowing that without him you wouldn’t have been able to study at a university, yet still he couldn’t let you leave. “This is for your own good, Celine! It pains me just as much as it pains you, goddamn it!” he said, quickly closing the door behind him. His hands pressed against the wood for a moment, and his gaze softened just slightly before sharpening again with determination.

At least he had allowed Taro, your Shiba Inu, to stay with you, a small mercy in the middle of everything.

“Don’t let her out of the room. No matter what she does or says, she’s forbidden from leaving,” he instructed his men standing guard in front of the locked door. He spoke firmly, voice harsh and commanding, yet in his mind he was thinking about every possible scenario, about how easily you could slip away if he wasn’t vigilant, and how unbearable it would be to lose you again.

He couldn’t lose you. Not again. Not after all these years, when he had finally found you again. Every thought, every heartbeat, every plan he made now revolved around you.

Joo Seung-Eon would do whatever it took to keep you in his life, no matter the cost, because losing you was no longer an option—he would never let that happen again.