DDB Ch 7

When she lifted her buried face, she saw the man’s face at the head of the bed.

Baek Ishin.

Standing with his back to the window, his hand on the headboard, his handsome face stabbed at her vision.

Even at their first meeting, she felt that his face was perfect, without a single flaw to be found. Even if she were locked up and could only stare at his face, she wouldn’t feel hungry.

Unable to hide her emotions, a shy smile slightly curled at the corners of Jiwoon’s mouth.

“Seeing you smile, it looks like you slept well. Your appearance has improved too?”

Has it?

Struggling to sit up, Jiwoon knelt on the bed, smoothing down her disheveled hair with both hands, trying to compose herself.

Despite the sleepless nights that had lasted for a fortnight, she really did seem to have slept well. Her head felt clear, and her eyes, which had been heavy, were now fresh. Just yesterday, she could hardly sleep, only managing to doze off repeatedly.

“…How many hours did I sleep?”

In response to her question, the man lifted his left wrist to check his watch. His sexy wrist bone, just visible beyond the cuff of his sleeve, came into view.

“About 19 hours?”

“19 hours?”

She was kidnapped yesterday morning, brought to a mansion on the outskirts of Seoul, met Baek Ishin, and was led to a room where she then fell into a deep sleep…

“Then is it morning now?”

“Yeah, it’s 8 AM.”

Her heart fluttered.

For eight years, suffering from complex sleep disorders, she hadn’t slept more than three hours at a stretch until a fortnight ago.

But the two times she met this man, both times she fell into a long sleep. Could this be proof of her hypothesis?

Jiwoon covered her mouth and nose with both hands, silently screaming inside. Her pale face flushed, and her heartbeat quickened.

“Baek Ishin.”

When she called his name, Ishin, slightly narrowing his brows, looked down at Jiwoon intently.

Looking up at him with her head tilted back, Jiwoon opened her mouth with an excited expression.

“Perfume…”

She had been curious since their first meeting.

Perhaps she was bewitched by this man’s scent.

On the day she left Italy, she tried every perfume available at the duty-free shop. Her nose was numb by the next day, but she couldn’t find the scent like his.

The smell of wood, the fragrance of wildflowers, mint… and a scent that vaguely stirred something in her memory.

Maybe this scent was what led her to sleep. So, she had to know.

“What do you use?”

What on earth does he use to give her such feelings? Why does he keep pulling her into this strange emotion?

She wanted to know.

🐬🌊🐳

“What perfume do you use?”

At the woman’s question, Ishin furrowed his brows.

While he was gauging the meaning behind her question, the woman, kneeling on the bed, leaned forward as if to smell him.

Her smooth nose came close to his waist, almost touching it. For a moment, he felt like the air was rippling.

Her slightly raised head and the long eyelashes lowered in a rather decadent manner.

Looking down at her, Ishin opened his mouth, feeling his throat dry for no reason.

“Do you need perfume?”

At his question, her drooping eyelids lifted slightly.

Her eyes, dark but with a peculiar glint, looked at him resentfully as if to say that wasn’t the point. Perhaps that’s why he teased her more.

“Why? Do you think your smell is bad right now?”

Suddenly, he remembered Seo Jiwoon from eight years ago.

“You smell nice, oppa.”

“Do you live in this neighborhood, oppa?”

“What’s your name, oppa?”

The young girl, with a beauty too mature for her age, had a gaze that felt like a gentle breeze.

“Baek… Ishin, that’s a nice name.”

Even though she didn’t smile much, she would occasionally smile shyly at him.

“Do you know? Ishin. It’s the name of the main character in the drama I like.”

On a day when it was pouring rain, she had casually said this while taking a walk near the safe house.

“Once I’m ready, I have to leave for abroad. But I like it here.”

Jiwoon had cut her long hair that reached her back with scissors and was all set to leave.

“When I settle down, can I send you a letter or something?”

Seo Jiwoon, the daughter of Seo Beom-soo, the expert restorer who had infiltrated [Heritage Beyond] before Ishin to retrieve the real painting.

Only Ishin and Director Park would know that Jiwoon, with her natural genius, had helped her father back then. Moreover, it was Seo Jiwoon, not Seo Beom-soo, who touched the crucial parts. In fact, almost all of it was Jiwoon’s work.

“I wish you would come to find me at least once. I can’t keep waiting for you on this rooftop every time.”

As soon as the fake painting was completed, both father and daughter were moved to a safe place. They never thought the plan would go awry because of that damn British traitor.

“No, don’t erase my memories. I don’t want to forget. No, no, I said no.”

“The painting, dad… and you, too. I won’t remember any of it. What’s the point of living then? Huuh, hic.”

The memory of Jiwoon crying when she was told she had to erase her memories to survive is vivid.

Forced to erase her memories and barely saved from that bloody alley, the problem wasn’t just with the memory…

Meeting her stubborn gaze, Ishin spoke.

“If you’re worried about the smell… maybe you should take a bath first.”

The young girl who once asked him to come find her was now holding onto him with a completely different gaze. And just like back then, he…

“After that, the perfume…”

He had to protect this woman.

“I’ll buy it for you.”

Perhaps misinterpreting Ishin’s cold, settled gaze, Jiwoon’s face showed clear confusion.

“Do I really smell? Not joking?”

Then she sniffed her arm to check her own scent.

Watching her, Ishin nodded.

“Yeah, you smell.”

A lot.

At his playful comment, Jiwoon’s face turned crimson.

Jiwoon, stiff with embarrassment, awkwardly moved back, putting as much distance as possible between her and Ishin, who was standing upright with a hand on the bed’s headboard. She even stuttered.

“Th-the bathroom…”

Jiwoon, tilting her head back, sniffed herself again with a serious expression, trying to gauge her own scent.

“Can I use it for a bit?”

Suppressing the laughter that threatened to escape due to Jiwoon’s reaction, Ishin gestured towards the bathroom attached to the room.

“As you wish.”

Then, he whispered in a chilling tone.

“As long as you’re within this house’s walls, I won’t stop you from doing anything.”

Standing straight, he slightly raised the corner of his mouth.

“Then, wash up nicely.”

He casually withdrew his gaze from Jiwoon and moved towards the door.

“Get rid of the smell, gather your scattered mind, and come down. Let’s have breakfast together.”

With that, he disappeared beyond the door.

🐬🌊🐳

After washing up, Jiwoon, having no change of clothes, put on her pajamas again and left the room. Despite that, her mind was much clearer from the good sleep.

Now, details of the house that hadn’t caught her eye before became noticeable.

The curved staircase, the floor underfoot, all made of white marble. The chandelier hanging from the high ceiling didn’t look ordinary either.

The interior structure of the house, the sophisticated decor, all gave the feeling of visiting a noble’s home in Europe. Even the morning sunlight coming through the large windows seemed unusually luxurious.

Judging from the atmosphere and attire, Baek Ishin was far from an ordinary man.

When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she heard Ishin’s voice.

“Here.”

Turning her head, she saw Ishin inside the white marble hall, covered with an elegant carpet.

Leaning against an elaborately carved wooden door, his appearance was impressive even at a second glance. It was hard to believe that this man was the one who killed someone and took the painting.

Wouldn’t a brush suit his hand better than a gun or a knife? Or perhaps, he himself being displayed as art in the center of a museum.

Jiwoon’s heart fluttered for no reason.