Page 35 of Gumiho Kiss
Hyun Soo took a deep breath and spread his lips into a grin.If she didn’t want to admit how she truly felt about the incident, he supposed he could indulge her.Pretending everything was fine was better than bursting into tears.If Lady Lee did that, he didn’t know what he would do.
“Ah, now everything makes sense,” he said.“Who better to get rid of an unruly ghost than a grim reaper?”
Lady Lee’s mouth moved downward instead of into a smile, a clear sign his attempt at humor had failed.She continued to speak in a hushed tone.“That’s something else I wanted to tell you.The creature we fought—he wasn’t actually a ghost.He was a goblin.”
Hyun Soo blinked.“A goblin?Are you sure?”
She nodded.“The blue fire is what tipped me off.That and ...”She fidgeted with the red ribbon in her hair.“He admitted it himself when I called him out for it.”
She said it so matter-of-factly, almost trivially, that something inside Hyun Soo snapped.“Have you no fear, woman?”
Lady Lee tensed, indignation flashing across her face, but he wasn’t finished.Now that the dam holding back his pent-up feelings on the matter had burst, everything flooded out before he could stop it.
“How am I supposed to protect you if you have no sense of self-preservation?Is jumping into fights you can’t win a habit of yours?”
She crossed her arms.“I never asked you to protect me.That was all Young Master Kang’s idea.I was doing just fine before you showed up.”
Hyun Soo threw his hands in the air, his temperature rising.“You tried to take on a goblin.You were about to take on those thugs in the alley last week”—he pointed a furious finger at her when she started to protest—“don’t try to deny it!Just who do you think you are to be going around doing these dangerous things?It’s almost like you think you’re ...you’re ...”
Lady Lee leaned back, the outrage clearing from her eyes.Maybe his words were getting through to her, and she realized now how foolish she’d been.He waited for her to mumble an apology or at least an admission of wrongdoing.
But instead of guilt or regret, a different emotion bloomed on her face.And it was the last one he would have expected.
Fear.
Chapter13
The Offer
Chin Sun tried to speak, but her throat was so tight nothing would come out.She stared up into her bodyguard’s eyes, and within those dark orbs, she could almost see the life she’d built falling apart.Had he put the pieces together?Did he know she was Gwishin?Or worse, the gumiho from the woods?
She stumbled back a few steps, eyes darting about for an escape.Uncle was completely focused on Inspector Kim right now; he wouldn’t notice if she disappeared.The other officers were busy moving the body and questioning witnesses.If she made a break for the gate, she could make it.
She started to lift her foot, then hesitated.What difference would it make if she ran?Mr.Park wouldn’t keep her secret.
“Lady Lee,” the bodyguard said, drawing her eye.He ducked his head, chagrin marring his handsome features.“I apologize for my outburst.I didn’t mean to startle you.”
Chin Sun nearly toppled to the ground.What?He ...he thought she was scared because he’d shouted?
Her shoulders sagged with relief, a laugh bubbling up in her chest.She coughed to hide her amusement.“Thank you for apologizing, Mr.Park.I?—”
“But that doesn’t mean I’m wrong.”His gaze locked with hers.“Even if it’s inappropriate for me to reprimand you, it doesn’t change the fact that you’re reckless.And since my ultimate priority is to protect you, that includes protecting you from yourself.Going into a fight unprepared is the quickest way to lose your life.”
Chin Sun took a breath to say that it was her choice which fights she engaged in, but before she could, he continued, “And since I get the feeling you don’t intend to stay out of trouble anytime soon”—his lips quirked up into an almost teasing smirk—“that leaves me with only one option.”
She closed her eyes, waiting to hear the words, “I’ll have to tell your uncle to lock you up” or “I’ll have to let your fiancé know you’re unfit to be his wife.”That was how the general public would deal with a rebellious maiden like herself.She tried her best to be virtuous in the ways a noblewoman should be, but she couldn’t fully tamp down her willful spirit.Instead, she’d hidden it behind demure smiles by day so she could embrace it as Gwishin by night.
Until this infuriating bodyguard had pierced her facade.
And now she was about to lose the little freedom she’d carved out for herself.Reckless was a good word to describe her.Far too reckless.
“I’ll just have to train you myself,” he finished.
“What?”Chin Sun opened her eyes.“You want to ...train me?”
It was a joke, right?He couldn’t actually?—
But there was no humor, no trickery in his steady gaze.Her jaw dropped, all thoughts of maintaining composure forgotten.This bodyguard—this former soldier—wanted to teach her,her, how to fight.“You’re serious.”
