Sana stared at her mother and grandmother, framed in the open doorway, and tried not to panic. How long would it take those eyes to notice the baby bulge under the baggy sweater?
Second-guessing herself served no good. Sana needed to focus on how to best handle the moment, which began with gauging her grandma's current mood.
As she struggled for what to say, Dahyun stepped forward and bowed. "Hello, I'm Kim Dahyun."
"Dahyun? Are you the musician?" Sana's grandma said.
Her smile tightened but didn't disappear. "That's right, ma'am."
"Oh, no need to call me ma'am." The grandmother took her arm and hauled her into the apartment. "Call me Granny, dear."
What the hell?
Sana been so freaked out worrying that her grandmother would learn about the baby—only to be ignored completely. But then, Dahyun represented everything her mother and grandmother wanted in a daughter-in-law. Sana followed them inside, closing the door behind her.
Her mother's laugh bounced around in the vaulted ceiling. Her mom had many wonderful qualities, and she could certainly be charming when she wanted.
Sana inched her purse around over her stomach and followed Dahyun and her grandma deeper into the apartment, the pair still with their backs to her. Dahyun pulled out a chair for the two eldest women at the dining table. Odd choice, but Sana wasn't going to argue, since sitting at the wooden ice-cream-parlor-style table would conveniently hide her pregnancy.
Had Dahyun known that? A sharp and watchful edge in her eyes indicated she was very aware of everything going on around her. Realization washed over Sana. Dahyun was shielding her from her grandmother. She had maneuvered everyone so Sana's stomach was never visible, while keeping her grandmother distracted—offering to take her wrap, pulling out her chair, asking about her trip down.
Could they actually pull this off without her grandma finding out about the baby in such an explosive way tonight? It looked increasingly possible as Sana's mother seemed enraptured with asking Dahyun about her new music video they saw on TV. Neither of them spared so much as a glance across the table at Sana. Her grandma was too busy soaking up the attention to even fidget with her glasses chain dangling from her neck.
It felt good to breathe. Of course, Dahyun offered only a temporary reprieve. The news would come out soon enough, but in a more controlled setting.
Fifteen or so minutes of small talk later, Dahyun clasped the grandmother's hand. "Ma'am, it's been a delight meeting you. I hope you don't find me pushy here, but I've just gotten here to visit Sana and have to leave soon..."
"Oh, don't let me keep you two lovebirds. We will just head back to our hotel." She turned to Sana. "We will lunch together, dear. Before Takuya's wedding. The three of us, as soon your love here goes back home."
"Sure, granny. We really do need to talk."
"I know a great place with all organic foods. It'll help you with that water retention. Your face is a little puffy." Her grandma leaned close to press her cheek to Sana's. "Dahyun is a keeper. Don't mess it up, dear."
Sana secured her purse over her stomach. "Of course, granny."
Sana so didn't want to have a conversation with her grandma about finding an "acceptable catch," especially in front of Dahyun. She could even let the "puffy face" comment pass if it meant getting through this visit without a confrontation. Come to think of it, her mother too would probably see this baby as an opportunity to reel in that "catch."
Sana shivered in disgust at the thought of her child being used that way.
They breezed toward the door with a wave over her shoulder but not even a backward glance at Sana as Dahyun escorted her out to the hall.
Sana sagged in the chair, her purse sliding to the hardwood floor with a hefty thump. She smoothed her hand over the slight bulge of her stomach, the baby rolling under her hand. No child of hers was going to be seen as merely an opportunity to climb up some social ladder.
A tear dripped off her chin.
Damn. Sana scrubbed the back of her wrist along her face. She hadn't even known she was crying. She heard the creak as Dahyun closed the door, and she swiped her fingers under her eyes again, praying she'd cleared away any mascara tracks.
As Dahyun stepped into the apartment again, Sana scavenged a smile. "I can't even begin to thank you."
"For what?" Dahyun pulled a chair closer to her and sat.
"For running interference with my grandma and mother, for not saying anything about the baby."
"I'm all about making things easier for you and our baby."
Our baby.
Dahyun's words sent a shiver through her. Of excitement or fear?
Sana thought of their kiss in the corridor and how quickly she could land right back in her arms again, in her bed. Dahyun had a way of making her lose control, and that scared her most of all.
Sana clenched her hands together to keep from clasping her hand on the table. "You've been great. Really. Coming here the minute you found out, dinner, handling my family." In so many other ways, but still she couldn't forget the past of no communication, not even so much as a text. They needed to talk about that night sometime. Discussing it seemed less daunting now in light of the land mine she'd just dodged with her family. "You haven't asked how I ended up pregnant."
Dahyun scratched her jaw, leaning back. "Well, we weren't thinking enough."
Memories of their frantic coupling churned through Sana's mind, her body still humming from their make-out session in the hallway. That night, they'd torn at each other's clothes. And yes, they'd kissed then, too, deeply, frantically, desperate to connect. "We were pretty preoccupied at the time." Sana shifted in her chair, suddenly unable to get comfortable.
Her eyes lingered on Dahyun's neck as she remembered the strength of it under her lip.
The night they met they ended up having impulsive sex, something Sana had never done before. She'd only ever been with two people before.
Dahyun angled closer, skimming her knuckles up and down Sana's arm. "We may not have been dating, but I sure as hell always noticed you that night at the party."
Dahyun's stroking hand moved slower, shifting from soothing to sensual, the heat of her skin searing through her sweater. Sana wanted her so damn much.
Too much.
Sana inched out of reach before she did something impulsive like draw Dahyun down to the floor with her. God, why hadn't someone warned her about how out of control her hormones would be during pregnancy? Crying one minute and ready to jump Dahyun's bones the next.
Dahyun rested her hand back on the table, giving Sana the space she needed.
Sana cleared her throat, settling on a subject sure to douse any passion. "How did you manage that whole scene with my grandma so perfectly?"
Dahyun's eyes smoked over her, assessing for three very loud beats of her heart before Dahyun relaxed in her chair again.
"I don't know."
"Well, I appreciate your help all the same." Sana toyed with a peppermill in the middle of the table. Maybe if she ground some flakes she could explain away the tears stinging behind her eyes. "I know I'm just delaying the inevitable."
Dahyun tugged a linen napkin out of the basket and passed it to her. "Telling your grandmother about her first greatgrandchild should be a happy event—at a time and place of your choosing."
"Thank you for understanding." Taking the napkin from Dahyun, she dabbed at her eyes, cursing the hormonal flood yet again. The weight of everything going on overwhelmed her. It all felt like too much and Dahyun had offered her help. What did she have to lose by going to live with her, just for a couple of weeks to get her world in order and work out logistics for their life as parents?
Dahyun helped her. Now Sana would help her. "Okay, Dahyun."
"Okay what?"
Sana drew in a deep breath and crossed her fingers as the words bubbled out. "I'll go to live with you for a while and pretend to be your fiancée."
Dahyun's small eyes flashed with surprise briefly, then her face smoothed into her best calm expression. "For a while?"
So she caught that part. "Yes, I can't leave my life indefinitely." And she couldn't let herself get caught up in playing house with Dahyun.
Her features hardened, more angular with her face. "And you're willing to accept my offer.. of the money, I mean?"
"A loan. With interest and a payment plan." Her pride would only let her go so far with this crazy idea. "I wouldn't feel right otherwise, especially since I'm not agreeing to move with you permanently."
"We could consider the money an investment for our child."
"Dahyun, don't push your luck. Even if millions aren't much to you, it's the principle here."
"Fine," Dahyun conceded. "I hear you."
"I'll accept a low interest rate." Sana wouldn't allow her pride to push her to the point of bankruptcy.
"Good business decision. I'm obviously not going to argue, since I would have given you the money."
Sana had gotten a second chance, one she couldn't afford to lose. Her baby deserved a strong, capable mother.
She jabbed Dahyun in the chest with a finger. "But I really mean it when I say two weeks. I'm nervous enough being away from my normal life for that long."
"You come back to your life in two weeks, but we leave the engagement on the books to quiet your grandma and my bosses." Dahyun clasped her finger and folded it against her chest, enfolding her in the warmth of Dahyun's touch and chocolate-brown eyes.
"After a while, we can say time apart took its toll."
"Hey, we just became engaged." Dahyun's thumb rasped along the inside of Sana's wrist, her pulse leaping in response. "Do we have to plan the breakup already?"
"Quit trying to make me laugh." And quit trying to turn me on.
Dahyun linked their fingers, holding her as firmly with her gaze. "But you have the most beautiful smile. Call me a selfish idiot, but I like to see it."
The heat of Dahyun's hand and her sharp eyes stoked the barely banked fire inside Sana. She needed to hold strong.
Sana eased her hand away. "I have one final condition."
"Name it. I'll make it happen."
Sana clasped the arms of her chair to keep her hands off Dahyun and her resolve in place. "Under no circumstances will we be sleeping together again."
Sana agreed to go with her, to give herself breathing room to regroup and, yes, to help Dahyun secure her career. But Sana refused to let Dahyun blindside her one more time. She couldn't risk the way sex with Dahyun stole her ability to think straight.
As Sana stared at Dahyun's broad shoulders and steamy brown eyes, she wondered if she'd cut off her nose to spite her face.
Dahyun had known she would win in the end. Still, Dahyun was damn glad to be pulling up to her home with Sana firmly planted in the seat next to her. Sure, Sana tossed that "no sex" clause into the agreement, a frustrating turn. Not unexpected, though. And not insurmountable. Dahyun had seen the arousal in Sana's eyes, the tightening of her nipples under her sweater.
Dahyun had hope.
++++
Their day traveling together had gone well with a catered supper on Sunday night. Dahyun bided her free time and kept things low-key. She had a few months to win Sana over, and she wasn't going to blow it on the first day by pushing too fast. Right now, Dahyun needed to focus on getting Sana settled into her place for the night as smoothly as possible.
The streetlamps brightened the inside of the sedan. Sana pressed her hand to the window, her eyes widening. "You have a house."
The rapper laughed. "Yeah, what did you think?"
Sana laughed lightly, then looked back at the house as Dahyun drove around to the garage. "I just expected you to live in some cool condo in a singles' complex." She looked closer and gasped. "This is all so...domestic."
Sana hadn't thought of it that way and wasn't sure Dahyun was comfortable with the label. Dahyun turned off the ignition and closed the garage door. "During my debut I spent all the time in the apartment given by my agency. I'm ready for a space of my own."
"Babies are noisy and take up lots of room."
"Unless you're pregnant with a dozen of kids, I don't think we're going to have a problem with space." Winking, Dahyun stepped out of the car and opened the door for her, leading her out to the covered walkway connecting the new garage to expensive home.
Dahyun had bought the property for its location. As she walked up the steps to the side entrance, she saw the details anew through Sana's eyes.
"This is absolutely gorgeous." Sana spun on her heel, her loose dress swirling around her calves. Her curves and beauty sucker punched Dahyun.
"I like being at the center of things."
Sana skimmed her fingers along the marble fireplace mantel, her gaze skipping around the room with obvious appreciation.
Dahyun hadn't been shopping for the two of them when she'd bought the house, but appreciated the dumb luck of owning a home Sana liked. Or would that qualify as having something in common?
Sana traced the chair rail down the hall.
Dahyun set her luggage at the foot of the stairs. "The couple who lived here before remodeled the whole place, wiring and all. They even gutted and updated the kitchen and baths."
"What about furniture?"
Dahyun glanced at the bare walls and mostly vacant rooms. A few moving boxes were stacked in a corner in each room. "I haven't had time to pick anything out and my old place came furnished. So once I got here, I bought the bare basics. I figured I might as well wait to do it right rather than buy a bunch of crap I regret later on." Dahyun gestured for Sana to follow her. "Come on back to the kitchen. I have seats and food."
"You could hire a decorator." Sana's footsteps echoed down the hall on her way into the kitchen. Her gasp of pleasure at the spacious layout made Dahyun smile.
"I can wait. I have everything I need." Dahyun steered her toward one of the two bar stools between the kitchen and eating area. "A recliner, a big TV. There's a bed upstairs with a top-of-the-line mattress."
Her lips went tight as she sat, resting her elbows on the countertop. "Where will I be sleeping?"
"In my bed of course." Dahyun's temperature spiked at just the words. Dahyun opened the refrigerator. "Bottled water? Fruit?"
"Yes, please." Sana stood and took the drink and grapes from her. "Then I hope for your sake that your guest room has a comfy bed or sofa."
Dahyun loved the way Sana didn't take her bull, just quietly lobbing the serve back to her. "No furniture there, either. I'll sleep in the recliner for now and have another mattress delivered."
"That really sucks for you tonight, because I am not going to feel sorry for you and invite you to share the bed." Sana tipped back her water.
"You're mean." Dahyun slid a hand behind Sana's waist and brought a grape to her lips.
"I'm fairly certain I made myself clear about the sleeping arrangements before." Sana plucked the grape from her hands and popped it into her mouth.
"Can't blame me for trying." Dahyun's thumb stroked along her spine as she watched her eyes for any signs of arousal—like the widening of her pupils, the pulse along her neck quickening.
"Dahyun, we can't just sleep together and then have a civil relationship. It's not logical. We have a child to think about. We can't afford to take risks."
Since she hadn't shoved Dahyun away, she urged her a little closer "Don't you think our kid would like to see us together?"
"Are you suddenly magically ready for a long-term relationship?"
Dahyun's eye twitched. "Sure, why not?"
"How charming." Her lip curled. Sana shoved Dahyun's arms away and charged toward the stairs.
"Hey, I'm trying here." Dahyun spread her arms wide, following. "This is uncharted territory for me, too."
Sana gripped her roll bag. "I'm going to bed. Alone. Enjoy your recliner."
Not a problem, since Dahyun doubted she would sleep, anyway.
"I will. Thanks. I'm a deep sleeper." Dahyun slid the suitcase from her hand. "And I'm also someone who can't watch a pregnant woman lug a suitcase up the stairs."
Without another word, Dahyun loped ahead of her. Dahyun had Sana in her house and she had time to work her way into her bed and heart. And once Dahyun got there? She intended to make sure Sana wasn't so quick to boot her out.
++++
Loneliness echoed around in the empty bedroom.
Sana slumped against the closed door, Dahyun's footsteps growing softer as she made her way to her recliner. Sure, Sana jammed too much furniture and plant life into her own apartment, but this space? It was beyond sparse.A mattress on a frame.
One brass side table for a lamp and alarm clock.
And a closet full of clothes hanging from the racks and neatly folded on the shelves.
Sana pitched her purse on the bed, the bag bouncing to rest on the brown-and-blue comforter. Again the ring rolled out like a bad penny that kept turning up. Sana placed it on the brass table. The generic piece of furniture.
Damn it, she didn't want to feel sorry for Dahyun. But something about this place made her sad, made her want to bring flowers and color and noise to the rapper's world.
Dahyun's whole house looked forlorn, for that matter, all the sadder given the home absolutely shouted out for love and attention, parties and family. Although Dahyun did have two bar stools in the kitchen. Had they come with the place or had be bought them with the notion of entertaining someone?
Kneeling, Sana unzipped her suitcase and pulled out the silky nightshirt that still fit. But for how much longer? She smoothed a hand over the growing curve of her stomach. Certainly not femme fatale material.
Her eyes scanned the empty walls, the barren bay window that cried out for a pair of comfy chairs, perfect for a couple watching a sunrise together. But other than those bar stools, it didn't appear Dahyun has brought anyone here.
Anyone except Sana.
Dahyun knew Sana hadn't been dating anybody, but the rapper had been. Well, that's what Sana read on magazines. Sana wouldn't have slept with a someone who was seeing someone else, no matter how swept up into the attraction she may have felt.
Sana peeled off her travel-weary clothes and slid the nightshirt over her head. The silky fabric teased her breasts to pebbly peaks, leaving her achy. Wanting. It would be so easy to walk down those stairs and satisfy the ache between her legs.
She eyed the door and actually considered taking what she wanted. She even stepped forward.
She had to remember the reason why she was there.
++++
Dahyun stepped over, Sana's laptop closed and resting on the bedside table by the alarm clock. The ring box sat by the clock, closed. Her ring finger was still bare. Sana agreed to be her fiancée, but she hadn't committed one hundred percent to the plan.
Dahyun set the breakfast tray on the corner of the mattress and took her time studying the sleeping woman in her bed. Sana's hair was spread over the cotton pillowcase, the sheets tangled around her legs. Her nightshirt rucked up to the top of her thighs. Dahyun remembered well how soft those legs were to the touch. Keeping her hands to herself with Sana in her space all the time was going to be tougher than Dahyun had expected, but the game went to those who were patient.
Dahyun sat on the edge and indulged herself by stroking her hair away from her face. Dahyun hated to disturb her, but also didn't want to leave her alone in a strange place without checking on her. "Wake up, sleepyhead."
Sana rolled to her back and stretched, the nightshirt pulling taut over the growing curve of her stomach. Feeling the baby move the other day had been...amazing. And unsettling.
Persuading Sana to stay became all the more important.
Sana's eyes flickered open, vague and unfocused. She smiled, reaching up to Dahyun, and just that damn fast the rapper forgot about careful plans and brushed a kiss over each beautiful eye. Her soft skin enticed Dahyun to hang around a while longer, kiss the tip of her nose, her chin. The younger would have liked to work her way lower, but Sana wasn't fully awake yet, and she wanted her aware and consenting.
Sana wriggled slowly, sensuously, beneath Dahyun, waking her up hard and fast, harder still as Sana sighed sweetly. Dahyun rested her forehead against hers.
And then Sana froze, her eyes snapping open wide. "Dahyun—" she shoved at her chest and slid to the side "—I thought I told you to stay out of my bed."
Dahyun eased back, frustration pulsing through her veins. Patience. "You're in my bed, remember?"
"A technicality." Sana tugged her nightshirt down to her knees with one hand and pulled the sheet up higher with her other.
"I thought of you as more of a morning person." Dahyun lifted the black lacquer tray from the corner of the bed.
"That was back when my stomach didn't live in my throat." Sana eyed the breakfast tray packed with juice, milk, toast and eggs. "Thanks, though. This is nice of you."
"I'm sorry you're not feeling well."
"I'm better now. At least I can keep food down." She plucked up a piece of toast and nibbled at the corner.
Content Sana was going to eat, Dahyun stood, for the first time in...well, ever wanting to delay leaving to start her busy schedule. "I'll be back at lunchtime."
"You don't need to. I can entertain myself." Sana sipped her milk. "I have work on the computer and calls to make."
"All right, then. We'll meet up for dinner. Tomorrow I need to introduce you to my manager, and there's a big event in the evening later this week."
"Ah, so I'll get to meet one of the people who don't like the fact that you have a pregnant girlfriend." She scrunched her slim nose. "Great. I can't wait."
"Actually it's the boss who has the problem, not my manager."
"I hear what you're saying."
"It would really help convince people to buy into our engagement if you would wear this." Dahyun scooped the ring box off the table and placed it on her breakfast tray. Winning a point was all about the presentation. If Dahyun offered her the diamond nestled in her palm, it seemed too much like a real proposal. Hopefully, by casually dropping it on the tray, she would feel less crowded.
Sana nudged the box with the tip of her index finger. "You can't really expect to marry someone just to please the world."
Her question churning in Dahyun's brain, she decided honesty would work best. Sana was smart and insightful, two things Dahyun enjoyed most about her.
"Honestly, Sana, I'm not sure how far I would go with this. I'm still taking things a day at a time, working to make the best decision possible to secure the baby's future, which means smoothing out your world and mine. Making the engagement as official as possible—including flashing this ring around—will go a long way toward taking care of those concerns. It could keep your family off your back for a while too."
Sana lightly punched her arm. "Now you're playing dirty."
"I'm someone on a mission." Dahyun tapped the little velvet box.
Sana hugged her knees and stared at the ring as if it was a bomb, not a three-carat, flawless rock.
Nice. Dahyun restrained the urge to laugh. Especially since it really wasn't all that funny.
Sana tore her eyes from the ring. "What will I say if someone asks when we're getting married?"
Dahyun cricked her neck from side to side, working out the stress already knotting its way up and it wasn't even seven o'clock yet. "Tell them your mother is planning the wedding. Tell them we're looking for a date that fits in with our schedules. Tell them we're thinking about bolting to Switzerland and will keep them posted."
Sana scooped up the box and held the ring so it reflected the morning light streaming through the stained-glass window.
She stayed silent, but her eyes said loud and clear she thought Dahyun was lying to herself.
++++
Steam from the shower still coating the air, Sana tucked the towel more snugly around her body and raced to the telephone. God, she felt like a teenager rushing to catch a call from her crush. Gasping, she snatched up her cell phone from the bedside table, her wet hair a dripping rope over her shoulder. "Hello?"
Her mother's voice popped through the airwaves, loud and frantic. "Sana, your father tried to call you and can't reach you. Where are you?"
Sana dropped to the edge of the bed, her stomach knotting as she mentally kicked herself for not checking caller ID.
"I'm on a trip, but I have my cell phone. I'll give him a call. Thank you for the heads-up," Sana said quickly, hoping to end the conversation.
"Dear, he says you're having financial troubles."
Sana measured her words carefully. Her parents had plenty of money and didn't hesitate to share it with her, which was generous. Except that money came with big strings attached. And quite frankly, she didn't want to be a trust-fund kid, living her entire life off Mom and Dad's hard work, never accomplishing anything on her own. "Things are tight at work, but I'm settling that out."
While she half listened to her mother, she stared at the little velvet box.
Dahyun had been so calmly helpful in dealing with her mother. Dahyun had helped her with her everything and her mother. The younger was certainly trying to understand what Sana needed, as well, even down to small details like the flowers in her office and the toast for the morning.
Dahyun's reasons for becoming engaged might feel calculated, but what did Sana really have to lose by simply wearing the ring? Just by sliding that diamond on her finger, she could help Dahyun secure her career, which made for a more secure future for their baby.
Sana slipped the velvet box from the side table. The ring winked suggestively from the bed of velvet.
It was just a formality, really. She was here, in Kim Dahyun's house, pregnant with her child. What did it matter if she wore the ring?
Phone tucked under her chin, Sana slid the ring in place and closed her fist. She knew this was the right thing to do, but the thought of sitting around here all day staring at that ring and second-guessing herself made her nerves churn so fast she feared losing her toast.
Dahyun wanted her agency to know about their engagement. She had given Sana time to gain her footing even though the delay could cost her. So why bother waiting? Sana could meet the people Dahyun worked with and even surprise the rapper with a casual meal out where they could start on their path of a smoother relationship for the baby's sake.
Decision made, she stood. "Mom, it's been great talking to you, but I have a lunch date I just can't miss."
++++
Sana leaned forward, reading signs, watching for the right street, and more important, the building referred to as JYP Entertainment. Finally the cab cruised to a stop.
She tipped the driver and stepped out of the taxi. Automatic doors whooshed wide. The first floor was home to the trendy organic restaurant and several JYP artist stores.
Floors five and six were the corporate offices. Directions indicated that clients and visitors to the agency should enter the offices on the sixth floor.
The elevator opened directly to a reception desk and total opulence and edginess, from the black-stained oak floors to the stark white walls with original art. Two seventy-inch plasma screens sat on either side of the large reception desk, showing music videos with a small scroll of words along the bottom proclaiming they'd been produced by JYP Ent.
Sana's low heels clicked along the high-sheened floors.
The receptionist smiled. "Welcome to JYP Entertainment." Her short brown hair swished with every perky twitch of her head. "How can I help you?"
Sana glanced down at the woman's name plate—Seoyeon—and smiled. "Hello, Seoyeon, I'm here to see Kim Dahyun. My name's Minatozaki Sana."
"Yes, ma'am, if you'll wait over there?" She gestured to the large white leather sofas.
Sana flickered her thumb over the engagement ring nervously as butterflies stirred. Seoyeon eyed her with undisguised curiosity. Sana's stomach flipped again.
Suddenly Sana wasn't so sure this had been a good idea, after all. What kind of game had she been expecting to play? She'd wanted to show Dahyun she was in charge and had only succeeded in looking erratic.
Sana cringed inside. Maybe she should just leave. She inched her purse around to cover her stomach, starting to stand.
A shadow stretched from the hall and she hesitated. Was it Dahyun already?
A man, around thirty with black hair, came into sight, stern. The man stopped at the desk, passing a note, his voice low. Sana decided to make her big escape—
Seoyeon whispered back and pointed to Sana. He straightened and walked toward her.
Damn.
He approached her. "Hello, I'm Jiyong." The manager. "I understand you're here to see our Dahyun-ah."
Busted. She bowed. "Minatozaki Sana." He eyed her stomach briefly. Sheesh. Was it that obvious? Apparently so. "Seoyeon was just about to let Dahyun know I'm here."
"Follow me. You can surprise her." Jiyong gestured over his shoulder and began plowing deeper into the offices, making low small talk she barely registered.
Sana was committed now to seeing this through. She quelled her nerves as he stopped in front of a door with a brass plate: STUDIO.
Inhaling a bracing breath, she pushed open the door and stopped short. Dahyun stood with her back to her—with a woman. A smiling, stunningly beautiful woman who had her hand placed intimately on her arm.
Fluttering nerves morphed into stone-still anger and a possessiveness that unnerved her to the tips of Sana's toes.
Dahyun couldn't actually be seeing someone else? For someone who cared about causing a scandal, Dahyun sure was playing with fire on a lot of levels.
Sana stiffened her spine, feeling as frozen as the chill seeping into her heart. As she took in the couple standing together in the studio, Sana couldn't believe she'd actually allowed herself to be hopeful simply because Dahyun had brought her some toast and milk.
Sana was too easy. She'd had it with passively letting people walk all over her. She twirled the ring on her finger. At least she'd gotten a wake-up call when it came to the mother of her baby.
Dahyun brought her here, damn it. And Sana wasn't going to scamper off like some scared rabbit. Dahyun wanted a fiancée? Dahyun was about to get one. Big-time.
"Hey there, Dahyunnie." Sana rested her hands on her stomach. "I'm absolutely starving. Are you ready for lunch?"
Damn it all.