CHAPTER 184: CHAPTER 183. THREE WISHES

The net, unfortunately, still needed some proving after a series of interrogations. The person who handled Joseph’s money might have croaked, but he still had some collaborators inside the company.

For a good net to work, the prey must be isolated first.

Well...whether it was through the court or settlement, Daesung would get busy for months, so they still had time. Besides...there was something more urgent for Sarah as winter rolled in.

Well...calling it urgent was a bit much, but she did agonize herself quite a bit over it. Even with all the hustle she had to pull for her hunting, it kept swirling in her mind without her being able to do anything until the day came.

In the end, she ended up staring at the ceiling when she woke up, pondering as Hajin hugged her beneath the blanket--just the usual. She pulled herself up and stared at the bodyguard, who was blinking at her drowsily.

"Princess?"

"Did you put your real birth date in your application?" Sarah asked.

"Is there any reason not to?" Hajin yawned and rolled to his back. "Unless I fake my passport too, that kind of thing is meaningless."

"Well...that’s true," Sarah nodded. "Hmm..."

Hajin raised his brow curiously, rolling to his side and propping his head with his palm. "What is it? You’ve been acting cute first thing, Princess."

Sarah scrunched her nose, folding her legs as she put on a serious face. "I just...have no idea what to gift you."

Hajin almost burst out laughing, but Sarah looked so serious that he didn’t have the heart to. "You can say happy birthday," he shrugged.

Personally, Hajin didn’t care about birthdays. He wouldn’t even remember it if Sarah hadn’t brought it up all of a sudden a few minutes ago.

"That, you know...it’s weird saying it without the gift," Sarah pursed her lips. "Don’t people usually act like they don’t remember until the surprise gift is ready?"

Pfft--Hajin pressed his lips to prevent more laughing sounds from coming out. His princess looked too adorable to be made angry. "Then why did you ask me instead of playing dumb while thinking about the gift?"

"Because I’m stuck," Sarah grumbled, jutting out her lower lip. "Besides, you’ll find out whatever I buy--and if I purchase it online and have someone send it here, you’ll be the one receiving it first by the door."

Hajin laughed while getting up, giving his adorable princess a peck on the cheek. "But you know, Princess...you don’t really have to play the surprise part."

Sarah covered her reddened cheek. "Huh?"

"I mean, I never did with my mother," Hajin shrugged. "What about you?"

"Oh, hmm..." Sarah looked up to recall how she used to do it. It had been more than ten years since her last birthday, which ended in a tragedy. "Since we weren’t staying in the same house, Mother would call me first thing and then say it again when we met while giving me the present..."

Sarah rubbed her necklace unconsciously; the last birthday gift from her mother. Thanks to this family heirloom, she could return to the past somehow. As for the other family members? She never received anything, not even a happy birthday. Someone from the secretary’s office would send her a card in her father’s name, but it was so blatantly obvious that it didn’t come from him. Really no difference from the new year card a company would send to its clients.

Even Mason, with all his flowery and twisted thoughts, made no effort to wish her a happy birthday.

But, well...Sarah also thought she didn’t need a superficial thing like that. If it weren’t given with sincerity, did she even need it?

Hajin smiled and stroked the slight frown on Sarah’s forehead. "See? She didn’t wait to say it until later too."

"Well, then..." Sarah tilted her head, staring at the clear and deep grey eyes. "Happy Birthday?"

"Thank you, my Princess," Hajin smiled widely, eyes curled in genuine happiness.

He too, didn’t care about any happy birthday except the one uttered by his most precious person.

"But I still have no idea what to gift you..." Sarah pouted.

She had been buying him everything, including the new bike and expensive watch. Whatever she bought, Sarah would feel like there was nothing special about it. She even thought about cooking something for him, but she felt like it would be more like a punishment than a gift.

Hajin laughed at the girl’s serious expression. "Honestly, you don’t really have to--"

"Should I go with the cliche ’your birthday present is me’?" Sarah spread out her arms, as if presenting herself, and Hajin paused.

He looked at Sarah silently, without blinking, and the silence made Sarah feel self-conscious. "No?" she dropped her arms, embarrassment crawling to her heated face as she turned her face away. "Uhh...forget about--mpph?!"

Sarah found her back against the mattress again, and the warm weight pressing on her. On her lips and around her waist. She gasped and welcomed the tongue into her mouth, as her back arched and her hips lifted in reflex.

And that was it.

Just when Sarah was about to close her eyes and tilt her head to enjoy the sudden kiss, Hajin pulled away. Sarah was blinking in confusion, because she thought they were about to have sex. But why did this man look at her with bright, mischievous eyes from above instead?

"In that case, are you agree to do anything I want today?"

Sarah winced in suspicion. "Anything is a bit..."

"Why?"

"You’re the type of person I can’t trust with unlimited wishes," Sarah narrowed her eyes.

Sure, she was ready to do something more than the usual thing, but being more experienced than her, who knew what this man would end up too if he was given a free rein?

Hajin laughed, because...well, he agreed. Even he had no idea to what extent his mind would bring him. "Then...what about three?"

"...I guess I can do three," Sarah nodded.

"Alright, my first..."

Hajin shifted away and got down from the bed. "Don’t call me ’puppy’ today."

"Huh?" Sarah pushed herself up, widening her eyes. She thought Hajin liked being called that, but...was he getting bored with the nickname? She scooted to the edge of the bed, watching Hajin put on a robe curiously. "What should I call you, then? Your name?"

Hajin turned around, and Sarah could see his deep, deep smile. In that instance, she knew what he wanted, and she shook her head quickly. "N-no!"

Sarah tried to scoot back, but Hajin quickly caught her waist, keeping her at the edge of the bed. "Princess," he whispered with a smirk on his lips. "It’s my birthday."

"I can’t!"

"But you promised?"

"Ugh, but..." Sarah bit her lower lip, groaning at those clear, hopeful grey eyes. "F-fine, but only for today!"

She said that, but it took a while to prepare herself. It wasn’t her first time using it, but it was hard to use it when she really meant it; the same way it was harder kissing Hajin when her heart was involved, compared to kissing him when it was just an act.

Taking a deep breath, she ended up covering her face while doing it, just looking at Hajin through the gap between her fingers.

"Hajin...Op...Oppa..."

It was low, quiet, almost like a whisper. But inside a quiet bedroom, Hajin could even hear the slight tremble behind the words, which got his heart racing and his lips parted in awe.

"Wow..."

"Ugh!" Sarah closed her eyes in embarrassment; her own fluster annoyed her. "Why are you so fixated on this, anyway? You weren’t born or raised here!"

"What are you talking about, Princess?" Hajin gasped, tapping his chest in protest. "The blood flowing in my veins is Korean!"

"Ugh--shut up!"

Hajin tilted his head. "Shut up what?"

"...shut up...Oppa," Sarah grumbled; the effect instantly diminished with her faltering voice at the end. She sighed and pursed her lips in annoyance. "But it’s so weird calling you that when you still called me ’princess’."

"Should I use something else, then?" Hajin chuckled while kneeling between her legs, playing with her hand. "Sweety?"

"God, no!" Sarah grimaced. What a horrid thought!

"Seul-ah?" Hajin kissed her hand with his smiling lips, nuzzling her wrist and her racing pulse. "Seulah-yah?"

"W-wait, wait--"

Hajin arched his brow, looking up in surprise. "What?"

"Don’t...use that one," Sarah frowned. Her mother used to call her that, and it just...felt wrong, somehow.

Hajin didn’t ask further, and thankfully, he didn’t pursue another weird-sounding name. "Seul-ah," he smiled and kissed her wrist before letting her hand go. "I’m going to use my second wish."

"Huh? Oh, yes..."

That fast? Sarah watched as Hajin took something from his jacket, which was hanging beside the wardrobe. There was a square box in his hand, looking very much like it contained jewelry.

Sarah raised her brow. "Huh?"

"Please wear this," Hajin went down again, placing the box on Sarah’s lap.

Inside, there was a bracelet with a horizontal S-shape hook that looked like a symbol for infinity. On the other side, nestled on a golden lotus throne, was a smooth, deep green jade.

Sarah blinked slowly a few times before frowning. "Wait...why are you giving me a gift?"

"Because I want to," Hajin shrugged.

"Then it’s not a wish, isn’t it? How could it be considered a wish?" Sarah shook her head in exasperation. Sometimes she just had no idea how Hajin’s mind worked. The bracelet was nice though...she thought while stroking the jade and the thick golden throne that got her eyes narrowed. "Is there a tracker inside?"

"Just like this," Hajin tapped his own pendant, smiling charmingly. "I wanted to have a necklace so we match, but you already have one."

"Oh..."

"Normally, the one who is supposed to be guarded is the one with a tracker, you know? In case of kidnapping or something."

"Oh..."

Hajin smiled and rubbed her wrist again. "You’ll wear it, right?"

Sarah looked down, rolling the bracelet between her fingers before raising her hand. "...Put it on."

Hajin smiled even wider, putting the bracelet around Sarah’s wrist while humming. He peppered kisses around it once he was done, before standing up and kissing her lips briefly.

"I’ll save my third wish for our date this afternoon," he grinned; they hadn’t talked about any date, though. "What do you want for break--"

"Are you," Sarah grabbed the robe’s sleeve before Hajin could get away, looking at the man through her lashes. "Are you not going to use it for something...physical? Oppa?"

The stark red color spreading through her cheeks, ears, and neck almost cut the strand of reason Hajin had painstakingly held together since Sarah said she would gift him herself earlier. Almost.

"What is this? My Seul-ah is getting more perverted," Hajin grasped the reddened cheeks and laughed.

"That’s your fault," Sarah grumbled.

"Is it? You’re the one who wants to gift me yourself, though?" Hajin tilted her head. The mattress dipped as his big figure returned to the bed. "Then, tell me."

Sarah replied quietly. "What?"

"Tell me what you mean when you said you’ll gift yourself."

"Umm..."

Biting her lips, Sarah scooted closer to whisper in Hajin’s ear. Even if there were only the two of them in that house, mentioning what kind of ’services’ she would be willing to do that day out loud was just...too much.

"Oh..." the grey eyes widened as Sarah continued her list in his ears. "W-whoa..."

When she was done, Sarah immediately pulled away and bunched the blanket to her lap, feeling embarrassed by her own boldness. "Something like that...maybe?"

Hajin paused for a few seconds before tackling Sarah to the mattress and made her shriek in surprise. He laughed while keeping her in his embrace, sighing into her shoulder. "Ahh...I am so glad to be born."