Chapter Fifteen #3
I look around the dining room again, taking in the gilt-edged portraits and crystal chandeliers.
The weight of generations of noble fae bears down on me.
This isn't my world. The thought of navigating these politics daily, of dealing with Lady Han's thinly veiled disdain and Dojoon's predatory smirks, makes my skin crawl.
“I think I'll remain in Halfblood Hall for now,” I say slowly. “I'm comfortable there. Perhaps I'll reconsider someday.”
The tension drains from Dohwan's shoulders, so subtle I might have missed it if I hadn't been watching for his reaction. His knife stops its relentless sawing at his meat, and he takes a small sip of wine.
I stare at him, puzzled. That was the answer he wanted? I would have thought he'd prefer to stay here, in the lap of luxury with his family's wealth and influence surrounding him. Why would he want to stay in the relatively modest accommodations of Halfblood Hall?
But before I can puzzle it out further, Lady Han smoothly redirects the conversation to other matters.
I try not to fidget as servants clear away the last of our barely-touched plates.
The meal has left me with a sour taste in my mouth that has nothing to do with the expertly prepared food.
Every minute spent in this dining room has only reinforced how much I don't belong in this world of old money and court politics.
Lady Han rises first, the motion fluid and graceful as her silk robes whisper around her. Lord Ji follows, offering me a polite nod that feels warmer than any interaction with his wife. I bow deeply to them both, careful to maintain perfect form despite my desire to flee.
“It was lovely to meet you,” I lie smoothly, keeping my expression neutral. As I turn to offer Dojoon the same courteous bow, he steps forward suddenly.
His arm snakes around my shoulders, pulling me against his side in a mockery of an embrace. My skin crawls at the contact. His breath is hot against my ear as he whispers, “If you ever want to compare which brother is better, you have an open invitation.”
Disgust and anger surge through me as I jerk away from him. A warm hand catches my elbow—Dohwan. I look up to find his jaw clenched tight, eyes burning with barely contained rage as he stares down his brother. The temperature around us notches up.
My gaze darts to Lady Han, who watches the exchange with cold detachment. She heard every word, I realize with dawning horror. And she has no intention of intervening.
Dohwan's grip on my elbow tightens as he steers me toward the door. I don't resist, eager to put as much distance between myself and his family as possible. We exit into the hallway, our footsteps echoing off marble as we practically flee the residence.
The bright sunlight hitting my face as we emerge onto Ruby Hall's grounds feels like breaking the surface after being underwater too long. I gulp in the fresh air, trying to shake off the oppressive weight of that dining room.
The sun beats down on us as we walk across the grounds, my heels clicking against the stone path. My mind spins with everything I just witnessed in that dining room. The barely concealed hostility, the cold calculation, the predatory undercurrents. Every interaction felt loaded.
I glance at Dohwan beside me. His face is set in hard lines, jaw clenched tight as we put distance between us and his family's residence. The silence stretches between us.
Finally, I can't contain my curiosity any longer. “Why are you the heir instead of Dojoon? He's the eldest, isn't he?”
Dohwan's steps falter slightly. He looks at me sidelong, considering, like he's weighing how much to reveal. After a long moment, he lets out a slow breath.
“We have different fathers,” he says, his voice carefully neutral. “Nobody knows who Dojoon's father was. He wasn't with my mother in any official capacity. So he's unregistered. My father is my mother's mate. On paper, I'm the only one who can be officially acknowledged as the Han family heir.”
Understanding crashes over me in a wave. The stark differences in their appearances, the bitter undercurrent of resentment—it makes sense now.
“So that's why you two don't get along,” I say, the words slipping out before I can stop them.
Dohwan's jaw flexes, the muscle jumping beneath his skin. “Yes,” he confirms after a pause. “Dojoon has always resented me, even before I was old enough to understand why.”
“Why doesn't your mother stop him?” I ask, watching Dohwan's face carefully. “She just sat there while he made those comments.”
Dohwan's shoulders tense, his expression closing off. He shrugs, but the motion looks forced.
“And why does he get to live in the Han residence if he can't inherit anything? Shouldn't he have his own place by now?”
His jaw tightens. “I don't want to discuss this.”
Heat rises in my chest at his dismissal. Don't I have a right to ask? I'm trying to understand him, to figure out what is going on to make him the way he is. And he's shutting me out. “What did he mean about your conquests in school?”
Dohwan stops walking abruptly, pulling his arm from mine. His eyes flash with something dangerous. “It's nothing. Ancient history.”
“It's clearly not nothing if you're getting this defensive about it.” I cross my arms, standing my ground. “Why won't you tell me?”
“Why do you always have to start a fight?” He ruffles through his hair in frustration, his voice rising. “Can't you just let things be?”
“How is trying to understand you starting a fight?” I throw my hands up, exasperated. “Why does wanting to learn who you are have to turn into an argument?”
The sunlight catches his face as he glares at me, highlighting the rigid set of his jaw and the fire burning in his eyes. The temperature around us spikes again, matching the tension crackling between us.
“Not everything needs to be picked apart and analyzed,” he growls. “Some things are better left in the past.”
I stare at Dohwan's tense form, studying the rigid line of his shoulders and clenched fists. A suspicion forms in my mind.
“Was it other females?” The words slip out before I can stop them. “Is that what your brother meant? About your conquests? Other females you fucked?”
Dohwan's whole body goes still. A low growl rumbles in his chest as he turns his face away, muscles jumping in his jaw. “Drop it.”
“So it was.” I cross my arms, lifting my chin. “Were there many?”
His eyes snap to mine, blazing with barely contained fury. “Do you really want to do this? Because I can start questioning you about every male you've ever let insert himself between your legs as well.”
Heat flares my cheeks, but I shrug, maintaining eye contact. “Why not? I have nothing to hide. What would be the harm?”
The temperature spikes around us as Dohwan's eyes begin to glow, pupils narrowing to slits.
His lips curl back, exposing the sharp points of his fangs.
“The harm,” he snarls, voice dropping to a dangerous rasp, “would be that I would then have to hunt down and neuter any male who ever laid hands on my mate.”
My mouth falls open as I gape at him. Something hot and primal coils in my belly at his words, at the raw possessiveness in his tone. My thighs clench together involuntarily as arousal hits me like a punch to the gut.
What is wrong with me? I should be outraged at his caveman attitude, not turned on by it. But the feral gleam in his eyes and the way his power crackles in the air around us has my body humming with need.
Dohwan inhales sharply, nostrils flaring. His eyes darken as they lock onto mine. “Don't look at me like that,” he warns, voice rough and strained.
“Like what?” I breathe, unable to look away from him.
“Like you want me to prove it.” His hands flex at his sides. “Like you want me to mark you up and make sure everyone knows you're mine.”
Heat pulses between us, my body yearning toward Dohwan like a magnet.
His eyes burn into mine, promising things that make my core clench with need.
For a wild moment, I think he might actually grab me and take me right here in the courtyard.
And for another insane moment, I'm not sure if I would stop him.
“Dohwan!”