Chapter 67

“You look pretty. Chin up, be confident, and let me handle it if we get mobbed for questions.” Jyeon picks up my hand by the wrist and envelopes it in his arm, so I hook onto him. His touch causes the same butterflies to stir, and I swallow it down. A cozy partnering to face this damn sea of employees and press at this stupid event. I want to pull myself free, but I know it’s futile. He’s in show mode, just like a million times in the past when we presented a happy marriage to the public eye, and it weighs heavily on me. To be back here with something so stupid.

I’m tense, as far from relaxed as I can get, and I’m overly aware of him and his presence this evening. I’m emotional and feeling raw and can’t seem to pick a mood to stick with. I’m swinging from upset to angry and then teetering on irritation.

I must keep reminding myself that all of this is for my own sake. My freedom, my inheritance, my being able to find closure and putting the past behind me once and for al