The next day, things slowly returned to normal. Kim Yeon was discharged from the hospital, and both mother and daughter headed back home.
The sterile smell of antiseptic faded behind them as they stepped outside, replaced by the cold morning air.
Ingrid offered Shan Wolf a ride back, and he quietly got into the car. As they drove, his eyes drifted toward Kim Yeon through the rearview mirror.
She sat silently, staring out the window, her hands folded tightly in her lap. Even without tears, the trauma still clung to her like a shadow that refused to let go.
Ingrid noticed his gaze. Her grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly.
The doctors had warned her that Kim Yeon was suffering from PTSD.
The word still echoed in her mind, heavy and unforgiving. It was not something that healed overnight.
Not something a mother could simply fix, no matter how powerful or composed she appeared to the world.
A week passed.
Ingrid was back in her office, working as usual. To everyone else, she was once again the cold, ice headed Manager of the Investor Relations Department.
The woman who never hesitated, never faltered.
She checked the papers methodically, sorting them into neat stacks. Documents were signed. Investments were approved.
Trades were finalized with sharp precision. Her movements were efficient, practiced, and emotionless on the surface.
Yet her mind wandered.
It lingered on a moment from a week ago, when exhaustion finally caught up to her and she had collapsed into Shan Wolf's embrace. The memory surfaced uninvited, warm and unsettling.
How long has it been since I have slept that well?
The thought startled her. She frowned faintly, then shook her head as if to chase it away.
"Comparing me to Alfred Lord Tennyson's Brigade poet."
She let out a quiet chuckle, the sound barely audible in the large office. Rising from her chair, she walked toward the curtains and parted them slightly. Her gaze fell onto the open office floor below.
There he was.
Shan Wolf sat behind his cubicle desk, focused, diligent, his posture straight as he worked. The sight made her pause longer than she intended.
"Though I admit, he is handsome. Unlike back then. Messy hair, worn clothes."
Her lips curved faintly.
"I guess him blackmailing me got his confidence."
As if sensing her eyes on him, Shan Wolf looked up. Their gazes met for a brief moment. He gave a small wave, subtle enough not to draw attention from anyone else around him.
Just enough.
"How prudent."
She scoffed softly and turned away, returning to her desk. Still, as she sat down, a light smirk tugged at her lips.
Her thoughts drifted back to the hospital. To the moment she was close to breaking down, tears threatening to spill, and his voice grounding her.
Telling her to stop running. To look back. To see that she had already done everything she could for her daughter, Kim Yeon Mikage. The memory lingered longer than she liked.
Meanwhile, in the Vice President's office, Jen Heo Won was working as usual, surrounded by reports and digital screens.
Her expression remained calm and controlled as she spoke.
"All right, Rachel. Go check it out for me."
"Okay, got it," Rachel So Mi replied, tapping quickly on her tablet before standing up.
The door opened, and to her surprise, Gin Chu Won walked in. "Jen Heo," he said flatly.
His neck was wrapped in thick medical cloth, clearly bandaged where Shan Wolf had twisted it and cracked his jawline. His expression was dark, irritation barely contained.
"I have an image to maintain," he continued. "How could you bring me to a place like that? So fucking embarrassing."
Jen Heo Won gestured dismissively toward Rachel, signaling her to leave. As Rachel walked past him, Gin Chu Won reached out and smacked her ass. The sound echoed sharply in the room.
Rachel jolted, her face flushing red with embarrassment.
"How are you doing, Rachel?" he asked casually.
"F...fine, sir," she replied quickly, keeping her head down as she exited the office.
The door closed, leaving the two cousins alone.
"So what is it?" Jen Heo Won said, settling into the sofa with practiced ease. "Did you come here to complain about your neck? You are lucky it was not fatal when I got the fucking call."
Gin Chu Won sat down on the opposite sofa, adjusting his posture carefully. "Well… that too," he replied, his tone lowering. There was something else on his mind. Something more personal.
He paused, then looked at her.
"But you have someone named Shan Wolf working in the Investor Relations Department, right?"
"Yes. Why?" Jen Heo Won replied, crossing her legs calmly.
Gin Chu Won clenched his hand into a fist and rested it beneath his chin, his eyes narrowing.
"Can I kill him?"
As Rachel So Mi was exiting, she instinctively held down her ass, cupping it with both hands, her face flushing with mortified embarrassment.
"Just what do these people see me as?!" she blurted out, voice trembling with frustration and humiliation.
A calm, almost amused voice replied behind her.
"You still don't know? After watching them for a few years… what exactly they see us as."
Rachel froze, her head whipping around. Her eyes widened as she recognized the speaker.
"Min… Min Rin Kin?!" she exclaimed, surprise and disbelief overtaking her words.
The woman's lips curved into a small, knowing smile.
"Oi, I abandoned that name long ago. I'm now Eva Kin. Though…" She paused, her gaze steady, measuring
Rachel carefully. "…I think there are a lot of things for us to talk about. So, do you have time?"
Rachel's flustered embarrassment slowly melted into cautious curiosity. Her hands still lingered at her sides, slightly trembling, as she nodded, uncertain but intrigued.
The atmosphere between them shifted, charged with unspoken history and anticipation, as Eva Kin's presence seemed to fill the corridor with quiet authority.
As night fell, Shan Wolf prepared to head back home. He noticed that Sae Jin Mei wasn't around.
He remembered the call from her a week ago, shortly after Kim Yeon had been saved and was receiving treatment at the hospital.
Sae Jin Mei had told him she couldn't do it, that she needed time alone until she was ready.
"Sigh… I should visit her this weekend," he muttered to himself as he left the Won Group headquarters, walking toward his penthouse with measured steps.
A Porsche slowed and stopped beside him. The window slid down, revealing Ingrid Mikage's familiar face.
"Get in. I'll drop you off," she said calmly.
"Okay…?" Shan Wolf replied, a mix of confusion and mild amusement crossing his face. A free ride was always welcome.
They arrived at Shan Wolf's penthouse. He invited Ingrid inside, suggesting at least dinner, but the moment they stepped into the apartment, the atmosphere shifted.
Without warning, Shan Wolf pressed close from behind, capturing Ingrid in a deep kiss as they both dropped their bags.
"Hang on…" she whispered, panting. "Shan Wolf, is this why you invited me inside?"
"And was this why you offered me a ride in the first place, Ingrid? Especially when your home is just across the street?" he murmured, his voice low and teasing.
"Mmmm…" she moaned, unable to resist.
Shan Wolf's hands slid up her white dress, revealing more than she had expected. Her breasts bounced slightly, the fabric clinging in all the right places.
Beneath, she wore only a minimal bikini-like lingerie that accentuated her curves. His hands roamed her body, cupping her warmly.
"Ah… you big bad wolf… you shouldn't…" Ingrid moaned again as Shan Wolf nibbled and left gentle suckles along her neck.
"Say that out loud…" he whispered, continuing to hold her tightly, wrapping her in his embrace from behind.
He lifted her effortlessly, pressing her against the wall near the entrance. She wrapped her legs around his waist instinctively, clinging to him as their lips met again in a heated kiss.
When they finally parted, Ingrid pressed her hands against his cheeks, tracing the lines with teasing fingers.
"Just pretend you didn't notice, bastard," she said, her lips curving into a playful smirk.
Shan Wolf mirrored her smile, leaning in closer. His voice softened, almost reverent, as he whispered, "Yeah, yeah. I'm your bastard, Ingrid…"
Her heart skipped a beat at the words, and the room seemed to shrink around them, leaving only the two of them in the glow of the penthouse lights.
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Chapter 65 — End.