The following web novel series is a work of fiction. It contains high levels of explicit and implicit sexual deviance, which may be offensive to some readers. It also explores potentially controversial themes such as the blurred lines of consent, complex emotional dynamics, and power imbalances. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Reader discretion is advised.

Marriage Situation

Chapter 1

Yooyoung sat at the bar of a hotel lounge, staring out the window at the wet, rainy night beyond.

She’d found this place from a magazine spotlight. Just like that ad had shown off the bar, she was on display in a tantalizing dress that revealed far more skin than she usually wore. A dress by a famous designer, bought specifically for today.

I feel like it’s going to fall down and show my chest at any moment. Yooyoung fixed the shoulder straps—intentionally designed to slide down—for the umpteenth time and sighed.

Her life had always been one of subservience. She had lived her life the way her parents had wanted, without her ever once rebelling. The pinnacle of a boring life, where thinking of tomorrow only brought on a yawn.

So... she had wanted to try doing something bad, just once. She had wanted to try throwing herself out there before the day ended, but...

“It doesn’t suit me.”

She desperately wanted to be a deviant, but she only felt awkward being in such a sophisticated space for the first time.

“I’ll head back to my room after I finish this drink,” she murmured, lifting her glass of whiskey to take a small sip.

But just then—

The door of the lounge opened with a clack. A man entered, his firm, well-honed body wrapped in an expensive suit.

His brow was furrowed beneath slightly tousled bangs, but even that created an impression. Though his sharp features gave off a warding atmosphere to those who dared to look at him, it was still impossible not to look at all.

The man sat at the end of the bar and gestured to the bartender with his eyes. “Glen Moray. On the rocks.”

The low voice echoed through Yooyoung’s body while the bartender poured the man whiskey from a bottle.

The stranger began to lift the freshly-poured glass when he glanced at Yooyoung. “Ah.”

Their eyes met.

Yooyoung realized she’d been staring and immediately lowered her gaze. It was true she had come to find a man here, but... not this man.

He was attractive enough that everyone in the lounge, regardless of gender, couldn’t help but stare.

A dangerous man who didn’t suit her at all.

He wasn’t what she was looking for in her escape today.

But even as she thought so, all of her senses were on him.

I’d better go.

Yooyoung finished off her drink and tried to get to her feet when—

“How is that whiskey?” asked a low male voice that skimmed her ears.

It belonged to that very man at the end of the bar.

Did he just talk to me? Yooyoung checked behind her to make sure he wasn’t talking to someone else.

But as if to confirm he was talking to her, the man continued, “I mean the whiskey you’re having now.”

“Ah, it’s good.”

A lie.

It wasn’t like it was soda. After she had gulped it down, she had to breathe through her mouth because of its strong smell, and therefore, there was no way to tell what its scent or taste was like.

“That’s good to hear. I also enjoy single malts.”

The man’s red tongue slipped between his lips to wet them. It was a tantalizing sight.

“Is it not too strong for you?” he asked.

“The truth is, a little.”

He smiled at Yooyoung’s honest answer. His full lips curved smoothly. “The best thing to do then is drink a Twice Up.”

“A Twice Up?”

“You mix half-whiskey and half-water in a glass. You can enjoy the scent the same, but it’s less of a burden.”

The man gestured to the bartender with his eyes, and the bartender swirled whiskey and water before setting it on the bar.

“Are you here alone?” the mysterious patron asked.

“Ah, yes.”

“Me too. Do you mind if I sit beside you?”

Yooyoung’s downturned eyes widened, and she briefly stared at the stranger.

This man is dangerous.

Dangerously charming, that was.

Yooyoung could already tell from their short conversation. She was hardly familiar with their settings. There was no way she could dare to handle a man like him.

Yet...

She couldn’t turn him down. Face turning red under his gaze, she nodded.

* * *

Jihoon found it a nuisance to get involved with other people. Because of that, there had never been a time when he had struck up a conversation with a woman at the lounge bar that he often stopped by for short breaks. But today, a woman had caught his eye.

Her face was rather ordinary. Yet, he found himself watching her for some reason.

What could that reason be—and why was she drinking here all alone?

Her exposed skin was flushed red from the alcohol. She shifted her posture as if she found the unfamiliar setting uncomfortable, and even as she covered her exposed legs, she scanned the men at the bar with her eyes.

Was she here for a man? It really didn’t suit her at all.

“Doesn’t suit her”? Jihoon smirked at the thought. What did he think he knew about this woman? He’d never seen her before.

And yet, for some reason, he wanted to relieve the tension from her rigid shoulders. That was why he’d spoken to her.

Now, an hour into their enjoyable conversation, the highly intoxicated woman was within his reach. The heat made his own body heat up.

“I’m sorry,” the woman mumbled, leaning against the wall of the small elevator. “I knew it... The alcohol was too strong. I’m so drunk.”

“It was forty proof, after all,” he said.

“I see.” She closed her eyes. Inside the moving elevator, the exhales slipping between her reddened lips carried the sweet scent of whiskey. The shoulder strap she had been concerned about for a while now had slipped down her arm. A little lower and it would be enough to reveal her plump breasts in their entirety.

What color was her skin beneath those clothes? Was it the same as her cheeks flushed from alcohol?

Jihoon’s head filled with extremely tantalizing images.

When the elevator reached the fifteenth floor, the woman walked out. Just then, her stiletto heels caught in the gap at the entrance of the elevator, and her body swayed.

“Ah—”

Jihoon caught her in his arms as she fell back. Her soft skin skimmed past his fingertips.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

“Ah, yes.”

His palms dragged up delicate arms as he pulled her back into the elevator. The woman, now in his embrace, took a shaky breath as she turned to him.

“T-thank you.”

She stared up at him without moving. Her body felt hot where it was pressed against him.

Though she said nothing aloud, her half-parted lips and sparkling eyes said, Hold me tighter.

His hands, itching to touch her since the bar, finally found their places. They moved from her slightly arched back to her slender waist, and then even down her soft rump.

“That’s...” Her body quivered at Jihoon’s persistent touch. Her eyes widened in surprise, but she didn’t push him away. “Mm...”

A sweet moan slipped from her lips. Jihoon’s hand grabbed a handful of her flesh.

Can I kiss you? He didn’t voice such a cheesy question aloud. Instead, his sharp, aquiline nose skimmed her cheek.

“Haah...” After several heated breaths, he finally captured the lips he had been wanting to devour for a while now.

“Mmf.”

He drew her soft lip in. Her surprised eyes watched him for a moment before sliding closed.

Then, her trembling hands moved up Jihoon’s muscled back to yank him close, a sign of permission.

She’s driving me crazy, he thought.

Despite accepting him so wantonly, her body quivered again in surprise when his tongue roughly slid against hers.

But Jihoon didn’t let go. Instead, he picked her up and delved even deeper.

“Hnn, mmf.” A feeble whimper slipped out, like that of a small animal being devoured.

Worked up by that soft, velvety sound, Jihoon shoved her against the wall and devoured her ravenously.

His hand skimmed over the side slits of the dress and moved higher. When it made contact with her thin underwear, he gently traced the line of it. Hot desire flowed south.

He didn’t know the reason, but ever since he’d struck up a conversation with this woman, he’d been hot with anticipation. How was he so turned on so easily? He didn’t understand it.

Perhaps it was the way she felt uncomfortable with exposure despite her tantalizing outfit, and how she was searching for a man with her gaze but then grew nervous when one approached her. That dual charm...

“You’re burning up.”

Just as he was hot as fire, so was she. When he pressed between her legs through her barely-there dress, the heat transferred directly to his fingertips.

“Mm.” The eyes hazy with alcohol and heat turned toward Jihoon. Her soft breasts, pinned by his broad chest, seemed about ready to pop out of her dress.

One kiss.

“I’m going crazy.”

One whisper into her ear.

She didn’t answer. All she could do was pant and clutch at the rail on the elevator wall in an effort to swallow down her moans.

Her tongue, which had done nothing but run, now began to chase Jihoon’s as her tension faded. The soft flesh couldn’t have felt better. And as he was sweeping the inside of her mouth—

Ba-ding.

The doors opened with an intrusive sound.

The foreign guest who was about to get into the elevator stared at them in shock. But after seeing how closely their bodies were pressed together, he smiled in understanding and raised both hands before moving away.

“Haah, haah.” She stared blankly at the guest walking away before pushing Jihoon’s shoulders away with her palms. “U-um, I think... I think I need to head back to my room...”

The fun ends here. The woman had drawn a line.

“I’m sorry,” he said quickly.

Jihoon was the one who had kissed her, so why was she apologizing?

Even so, he let the lady go from where he had her pinned against the wall. When she got out of the elevator with a more energetic step than before, Jihoon raised a brow and said his farewell. “Take care.”

Her hair was disheveled from the intense kiss. At Jihoon’s message, she pushed back the strands of hair that had fallen over her neat forehead and bowed her head. “Ah...”

He waited patiently.

“Yes. Please take care. I enjoyed my drinks today.” She turned and walked away—only to stop multiple times, fingers fidgeting at her side.

Because of the dress that exposed the curves of her body, watching her from behind made intense desire stir within Jihoon. He wanted to shove the hem of her skirt up and dive right into her.

It wasn’t like Jihoon to kiss a woman he’d just met. But what was even less like him was chasing a woman that was running away.

It was time to give up.

“That was pointless,” Jihoon mumbled to himself as he pressed the button for his floor, twenty-five.

Just as the door began to close—

Ba-ding.

The doors opened with a rattle. The woman returned, almost throwing herself at the elevator to hit the open button. She watched Jihoon as she panted.

“E-excuse me,” she huffed.

He blinked rapidly.

“It’s raining really hard. Are you taking a taxi back?”

He didn’t tell her he was staying at the hotel tonight. And he absolutely couldn’t tell her that he owned this hotel. “Ah, yes... That’s right.”

“I’m sure it’s hard to catch a taxi right now because of the rain.”

The woman turned her gaze down and chewed her lip. She whispered sweetly with the lips Jihoon had bitten and sucked to excess earlier.

“Would you like to stay the night in my room?” she asked.

He sucked in a breath.

“I-if you don’t mind, that is,” she finished.