“You should’ve offered to pick her up,” Yoon-ah complained as she paced behind the couch.
“I did,” Orion said without looking away from the game he and Julian were playing. His fingers flying over the controller, he added, “And she said she was okay.”
“You still should’ve insisted.” Yoon-ah stopped behind him. “Are you sure she’s coming?”
“Yes,’” he said. “Though I wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t. Why would you go and ambush her at her workplace like that?”
“Because I wanted to meet her and I knew you wouldn’t bring her to me yourself,” his mother retorted unrepentantly. “What time did she say she was coming?”
This time Orion didn’t answer. He was already nervous enough as it was without his mother constantly bugging him about Vina’s arrival. What if the dinner went badly? What if she didn’t like them? What if his mother said something to scare her away? What if… what if… what if…
It’s funny how life throws the most unexpected curveballs. Sex with Vina should’ve gotten her out of his system. Instead, it had shoved her further in and she was all he could think about. The whole week he’d mulled over their relationship. The first thing that had hit him was how annoyed he’d felt when she’d insisted that what had happened was just sex. He wouldn’t go as far as calling it a cosmic experience – but it was certainly more than just sex.
Every time she’d said the word ‘fake’, he wanted to break something, which had ushered in his second realization. A part of him – a big part of him rebelled at the thought of their relationship being fake, even if it was. The thought of ending their relationship, fake as it was, was enough to make him break out in hives. He didn’t want to end it.
And that’s how he’d come to his third realization.
While he wasn’t looking, feelings for Vina had crept up. Normally, that would’ve made him immediately step back. But for some reason he didn’t want to. His reminders himself that he was too busy for a real relationship were for naught because all he kept thinking about was her. He wanted more. How much more? He wasn’t sure yet.
But the one thing he knew was that he wanted dinner to go well.
“What time did she say she was coming,” Yoon-ah repeated.
Orion ignored her, but she’d already ruined his concentration because the next moment Julian’s avatar slashed Orion’s avatar’s head off his body.
“Got you,” Julian exclaimed, lifting both arms victoriously.
“Urgh!” Orion groaned as he tossed his controller to the floor.
“What time did she say she was coming?” Yoon-ah insisted.
“Hey! Madam Hong!” Orion spun to face his mother with an annoyed expression while his brother burst into laughter. “Is this how you’re going to be when she gets here?”
“How am I?” his mother complained.. “I just want to know what time she’s getting her so I can plan when to set the table.”
“You asked her to come over at six. It’s just five.” He glared at her.“Can you please relax? You’re making us all nervous.”
“Omo! Look at how you’re glaring at me.” Yoona tsked disapprovingly as she glowered at her son. “Someone would think I’m doing this for myself instead of you. This your future wife we’re talking about here.”
Normally, Yoon-ah calling anyone his future wife would’ve raised his hackles, but today the term didn’t leave him feeling quite as irritated as it usually would. He sighed. “Vina will come when she comes, so just quit hounding me, okay?”
“Okay, okay, okay.” Yoon-ah started towards the kitchen. “I’m just going to check on the chicken.”
“Eomma?” Orion stopped her from leaving.
“Mm?” She turned to face him.
“When-” He corrected himself, “If Alvina comes, I don’t want you grilling her or asking her unnecessary questions.”
“What do you think I am? The CIA?” When all Orion offered her was raised eyebrows, she let out an annoyed huff. “Fine, no unnecessary questions.”
The moment she left the living room, Julian started laughing.
“What?” Orion stared at his brother.
Julian chuckled. “Do you really think she can keep that promise?’
No. No, he didn’t. And that made him even more nervous. God, he hoped this dinner went well.
At precisely six p.m., Vina’s cab dropped her off in front of the Lee’s home. Orion went outside to meet her. The moment he laid eyes on her he realized two things, that he’d missed her and that she was even more nervous than he was. Her anxiety was in her wide-eyed gaze as she took in their home and the little tremble in her smile when she greeted him, “Hi.”
“Hi.” He took her into his arms in an embrace meant to both reassure her and remind himself of how it felt to have her in his arms. “You came.”
“I did.” She wound her own arms around his waist. “Did you think I wouldn’t?”
“It occurred to me.” He pulled back to see her face and found her smiling.
His heart yanked in his chest at the beauty of her smile, and all he could think about was getting a taste of it. He started to lower his head, she closed her eyes…
“Alvina!” A female voice trilled from behind him.
“Urgh!” Orion groaned as he turned to face his mother.
But she wasn’t in the slight bit interested in him. She made a bee-line for Vina and immediately drew her into an embrace. “You’re here.”
Vina looked frozen with shock. Her wide eyes flew to Orion as if to ask him when she and his mother had gotten close enough to hug. Orion just winced. What could he say? His mother had found her Tiger.
To Yoon-ah’s credit, she wasn’t quite as bad as he’d expected her to be. Though she spent dinner questioning Vina, her questions weren’t that intrusive. Where was Vina born, how much Korean she knew, how it felt to grow up while traveling the world, how she liked her career, did the food meet her exacting standards… nothing weird. Yoon-ah’s questions were just the normal stuff one might ask if they were trying to get to know each other. Still, he kept an eye on Vina to make sure that she wasn’t uncomfortable.
VINA WASN’T UNCOMFORTABLE. In fact she was enjoying herself more than she’d thought she would. It was interesting to watch the dynamics of the Lee family. Compared to her family, they were very different.
“Eomma, did you really make this?” Julian, who she’d since surmised was their stalker, stared at his mother in suspicion as he bit into a forkful of baked chicken.
“Of course, I did.” Yoon-ah’s narrowed gaze settled on him. “Who else could’ve cooked it?”
“You? I don’t think so,” Orion joined the fray. An amused light in his eyes, he teased, “It tastes too good.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Yoon-ah’s glare switched from one son to the other. “Are you two trying to imply that I got someone else to cook this just so I could impress Alvina?”
When both men nodded, she lifted her hand to hit the one seated closest to her, Julian, but he deftly ducked out of her reach.
“Eomma!” The young man exclaimed. “We have a guest.”
Yoon-ah instantly deflated. A pained smile creased her face as she turned to Vina. “Sorry, these two punks just seem to bring out my bad temper.
“Stop blaming us for your anger issues,” Orion teased. “Therapy. Think about it.”
“You little-” Yoon-ah paused. Once again remembering where they were, she sucked in a deep breath and glared at her oldest son. “We have a guest.”
“Oh no, just hit him if you want.” Vina offered, “I don’t mind.”
Yoon-ah immediately reached for one of the table mats and smacked Orion’s head with it. Vina laughed. This was what real family was supposed to be like. Even though the three constantly bickered and goaded each other, it was obvious that it was just for fun and beneath it all was lots of love.
How she wished that she had the same relationship with her family that Orion had with his. Even though she was close to her mother, she couldn’t even imagine teasing her as Orion did to his. Na-ri just seemed so fragile, and Vina was afraid that if she said the wrong thing she might end up hurting her. Orion was more fortunate than he knew. If all he had to deal with was his mother poking around in his love-life once in a while, then he had nothing to complain about.
“Let me help you with that,” Vina offered when Yoon-ah stood up to clear the table.
“No, no, no. Sit down. You’re our guest.” She pointed at her two sons and gestured for them to stand up. “These two hooligans will do it.” Despite loud grumbles, the two stood up, started picking dishes from the table and transporting them to the kitchen. Yoon-ah called out to Julian, “Ri-jun-a, you’re doing the dishes.”
“What?” Julian immediately protested. “That is so unfair. Hyeong, never washes the dishes anymore.”
“That’s because I have my own house and my own dishes to do now,” Orion retorted cockily.
“No, that’s because you have a guest,” Yoon-ah suggested, “Why don’t you show her around the place while Ri-jun and I clean up?”
“Good idea.” Orion smiled down at Vina. “Come on let me give you a tour.”
With a goodbye to Yoon-ah and Julian, Vina followed Orion out of the kitchen and through the back door. As soon as they stepped out into the patio, the night’s cold air hit her. Even though she was wearing a jacket, she had to rub her arms to warm them.
“Cold?” Orion asked.
She wrinkled her nose. “Just a little.”
“Let me warm you up,” he offered. Then as if it was the most natural thing in the world, he circled her shoulders with his arm and drew her closer to him. Her eyes flew to meet his and her body stiffened as surprise shot through her. Noting her shock, Orion gestured with his chin towards the house. “They’re watching.”
Oh, so that’s why he was being affectionate. Vina didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed. For a while, they just strolled around with Orion showing her the highlights of their extensive estate… his mother’s garden, the pond, the pool. Vina saw it all but she barely paid attention to it because she was too distracted be the feel of Orion’s arm around her and his body against hers.
The side of his body bumped against hers with every step they took while his heat warmed her and his scent teased her. She couldn’t help remembering how it’d felt to have him flush against her and inside her… It was a relief when they stopped by the gazebo and he pulled away from her so she could sit.
“So?” he asked once they were both seated side-by-side.
Vina cocked her head to study him. “So?”
“So what do you think about my family?” His tone was casual but something about the way he was watching her told her that her opinion was more important to him than he was letting on.
She smiled. “I think they’re very nice.”
“Even my mother?” He arched his eyebrows. “She spent the whole night interrogating you.”
“It wasn’t so bad.” Vina shrugged. “Besides, my family are going to do much worse to you.”
Orion frowned. “Much worse how?”
She forced a teasing smile to her face. “I don’t want to ruin the surprise.”
To be honest, now that she’d met his family, she was genuinely worried about his meeting with hers. She’d thought they were in the same situation – that his family was just as bad as hers. But she’d obviously been wrong. Their families were nothing alike.
What if Orion took one look at her family and ran for the hills? What would she do if he did? Get someone else to act as her fake boyfriend? The thought alone was enough to leave a sour taste in her mouth. She didn’t want any other man to be her fake boyfriend. She wanted Orion.
“What are you thinking about so deeply?” Orion cut into her thoughts. When she turned her head, she found him watching her thoughtfully.
“Nothing much.” She shrugged. “Just about how different our families are.”
“You say different like it’s a bad thing,” he said as he studied her keenly. When her only response to his comment was a shrug, he said, “It can’t be that bad. After all they raised you and you’re… okay.”
“Okay?” She chuckled. “This is the first time anyone has ever called me… okay.”
“Are you fishing for compliments?” he teased.
“A little.”
“Fine.” Grinning, he edged closer to her and settled his arm around her shoulders. “You’re much, much better than okay.”
Her common sense told her that she should move away from him, let his arm drop from her shoulder. And yet she didn’t want to. He was so warm, so comfortable, and she felt safer just being near him. So she stayed.
She should probably warn him, she thought as she sat cradled against the side of his body. It wasn’t fair to let him walk into the lion’s den unwarned and unarmed. Her tone took on a more serious note as she said, “I’m not joking.”
“Not joking about what?” He rubbed his palm against her upper arm.
“About my family being different.” She turned her head to meet his eyes. “They’re not as nice as yours. When you get there, they probably won’t be as welcoming as your mom and brother are.”
“That’s understandable.” Orion smiled a little. “After all I am trying to take their daughter from them.”
Vina laughed but there was a touch of bitterness in the sound. “Believe me, that is not the issue. If they could sell me to you, they would.”
His eyebrows rose. “They’re that desperate to get you married?”
“They’re that desperate,” she confirmed. “But that doesn’t mean that they’ll just send me off to anyone. They want someone who brings prestige or money to their name.”
Orion sighed. “I kind of got that from your conversations with your grandmother. But I thought she was the only one.”
“She’s not.” Vina settled back into Orion’s arm and folded her arms over her chest. “She and my father will likely ask you some pretty intrusive questions about who you are, what you make and your plans for the future.”
“I see.” He studied her keenly. “What about your mother?”
“She won’t say anything.” Vina murmured, “She never says anything.”
Orion was silent for quite some time before he quietly said, “I guess to be forewarned is to be prepared.” His arm on her shoulder tightened and he brought her deeper into his body. Startled, she looked up but found him smiling. “Don’t worry, I’ll do okay.”
Vina shook her head. “You’re not the one I’m worried about. I’m worried about them.” She worried her bottom lip. “I’m worried they’ll scare you away.”
As soon as she said the words, she realized how intimate and desperate they sounded. Orion did too. His eyes darkened and got more serious. “They won’t.” He squeezed her shoulder. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Oddly enough, his words and the look in his eyes were enough to comfort her. Despite only having known him for a couple of week, she trusted him. That should’ve scared her – and yet it didn’t. With a sigh, she settled her arm over his stomach and buried her face into the side of his neck.
For a while, they just sat on that bench, silent and enjoying each other’s company. Eventually, Orion broke the silence. “Are your family the reason you’re so against marriage.”
After a short pause, she nodded. “I’ve seen what it’s done to my mother.”
If it was any other man, she wouldn’t be talking about this stuff. But with Orion she felt safe, like she could tell him everything. Sitting up, she added, “I’m not going to risk it happening to me too.”
“What about a family?” Orion studied her. “Don’t you want kids of your own?”
“No, I don-” She started but then decided to be honest. “I do, but right now isn’t the right time. Maybe in the future I can adopt a child. Or use an anonymous sperm donor.”
Orion’s eyebrows rose. “You’d rather have a child by an anonymous sperm donor than by a man who loves you?”
She nodded firmly. “Yes.”
The look Orion gave her was filled with disbelief. That look sent annoyance streaking through her. She was used to people not understanding her or her reasoning. But for some strange reason, she’d expected Orion to be different. But he wasn’t. He was just like everyone else who had their idea of what ‘normal’ was and expected her to conform to it.
Abruptly, she stood up. “It’s getting late.”
Orion immediately grabbed her wrist to keep her from moving. “Where are you going?”
“In.” Her lips pursed, she tried to jerk her hand from his but he held on tight.
Looking up at her in confusion, he asked, “Why are you angry?”
“I’m not angry,” she gritted out.
“Is it because I asked you about the sperm donor?” he asked. When she didn’t answer him, he tugged at her arm. “I wasn’t judging you or anything like that.”
That’s certainly what it had sounded like.
“I just wanted to understand you better. I’m sorry if it came off sounding judgy.” The earnest note in his tone deflated all her anger. This time when he tugged at her arm and pleaded, “Come sit down,”, she did.
He scooted closer to her and closed his arm around her shoulders. “Stop being angry.”
She stayed stiff against him. “I’m not angry.”
Smiling, Orion studied her. “Song Im-na?”
“What?” she retorted sulkily
He brought his other arm to the front of her body so that he was hugging her. “Stop being angry.”
“Get off me.” She shoved at him with her arm. But he wouldn’t budge.
He nuzzled her neck with his face. “No.”
“Aish! Seriously!” Frustrated, she turned to glare at him just as he lifted his head. Their eyes met – his twinkled with amusement right before he leaned in to capture her lips in a quick kiss. The kiss caught her by surprise, leaving her gaping at him when he pulled back. But he wasn’t done. Smiling, he came back in for more.
His mouth was softer this time, more relaxed and lazy. He opened it over hers, but made no attempt to engage her tongue. Instead he kissed her lazily, his lips moving slowly, erotically over hers. She was the one who deepened the kiss. She raised her palm to cradle his cheek as she snuck her tongue into his mouth.
His taste…so sweet…mm. He caught her little whimper with his lips and turned it into a moan. She loved his kisses, she loved them so much. She could do this forever given the chance. Unfortunately, that chance was snatched off her lap mere moments later.
“Ri-On? Vina?” A shrill voice startled them out of the kiss. “Where are you guys?”
Orion groaned as, with obvious reluctance, he pulled away from Vina. “I guess that’s our cue to go back in.”
“I guess.” Vina sighed, wishing more than anything that she was back in his arms.