Page 64 of Gumiho Kiss
In a burst of courage, Chin Sun grabbed his hand and placed it against her jaw.“When we’re alone, you can call me Chin Sun, and I shall call you Hyun Soo.Is that fair?”
“Chin Sun?”called a voice behind her.
She dropped Hyun Soo’s hand and whirled around, all the blood leaving her face.
Uncle stood in the corridor, mouth open, paper clasped in his right hand.He looked from his niece to Hyun Soo and back, eyes rounder than the moon.“Chin Sun, what are you ...?”
Chapter22
The Rift
Chin Sun snapped up like a string breaking from a geomungo.“Samchon, this—this—” She glanced down at Hyun Soo, who had gone stiffer than stone.
Uncle’s expression hardened, shock overcome by outrage.His hands went slack, the parchment he’d been holding fluttering to the ground.
“You!”Samchon glowered at the bodyguard.“You seduced my niece?!”
“Uncle, no!”Chin Sun tried to block Samchon’s view, but he ripped her away from her beloved.She crashed against a wooden pillar with a grunt, then pushed off, distraught at the disaster her carelessness had wrought.If Uncle wouldn’t listen to her, what could she do?
Samchon wrenched Hyun Soo to his feet, breath coming out in a hiss.“I brought you under my roof because I believed you were a man of character, sworn to uphold virtue and truth, but you have proven yourself a servant of darkness, eager to swallow up the light of this house.”
“Nauri, you’re mistaken,” Hyun Soo insisted.“My intentions toward your niece are entirely honorable.”
“There is no honor in stealing what belongs to another.”
“I assure you, I’ve stolen nothing.It was only after Lady Lee explained she’d decided not to marry Kang Dol Sam that I made my feelings known.”
“A-a-after ...Chin Sun!”Samchon’s stuttering turned to a roar, his eyes locking on to his niece’s with such ferocity that fear shot through her heart.He grabbed the letters he’d dropped and shoved them in her face.
She didn’t need to read them.She knew exactly what they were.The messages she’d hastily scrawled a few hours ago, expressing her decision to end her engagement.One had been for Uncle and the other had been for Young Master Kang himself.Neither explained the reason behind her decision, only her sincere apology.
Uncle must have intercepted Kang Dol Sam’s before it could get to him.
“Did Mr.Park pressure you to write these?”Samchon demanded.“Did he ask you to break off your betrothal?”
Chin Sun lowered her gaze.“He didn’t ask me to.It was my idea.”
Footsteps approached, followed by a startled gasp.“Father, what’s going on?”Sang Mi asked.She looked from Uncle to Chin Sun to Hyun Soo, eyebrows knit in confusion.
The heat of Samchon’s stare rippled over Chin Sun’s shoulders.Without a word, he crumpled the letters in his fist and tossed them aside.Finally, he said, “Youwillmarry Young Master Kang.”
Defiance flooded Chin Sun’s belly.She didn’t meet Uncle’s eye, but her voice rang clear as she replied, “I will not.”
The back of Samchon’s hand collided with her cheek.“Curse you and your infernal stubbornness, child.Don’t you understand what will happen if you don’t follow through with this marriage?”
Chin Sun covered her burning cheek and lifted her gaze.She said nothing, but the resolve in her eyes was answer enough: neither reprimand nor physical punishment would change her mind.
As that realization dawned on Uncle’s face, his nostrils flared.“If you won’t do it for the family’s sake, then do it for his.”He gestured to Hyun Soo.“Otherwise, I will see him flogged for this.”
Chin Sun’s breath whooshed out of her lungs.“You wouldn’t.Samchon, with the state he’s in, you’d be sending him to his death.”
Defiling an innocent maiden was no minor offense.A penalty of one hundred lashes awaited any man foolish enough to get caught.
Conflict shimmered in Uncle’s eyes, but he lifted his chin.“If that’s what it takes to preserve this family, so be it.”
“But, Uncle?—”
“Choose.”
