The War of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 3) (16 page)

“Do you think he’ll ever make his return to the Korean Underworld?”

“If he has something to come back for, I’m sure he will.”

Yoori absentmindedly nodded before leaning in closer to Tae Hyun. She asked her final question of the night. “I’m certain he must’ve heard about the fires in Taecin. Do you think he knows that I’m still alive?”

“If he does, I don’t doubt that he’ll make an appearance soon. If he left the Underworld because of you, then he’ll return to it because of you.”

“May the Kings and Queens who had fallen before you be your examples. . .
”

07: House of Cards

“Do you think I’m too easy?” Yoori asked out of the blue, wincing in pain after Tae Hyun rubbed some ointment around the bruises and cuts on her right leg.

It had been
several days since the attack by the Cobras and although many of her wounds remained, many had also faded under Tae Hyun’s stringent care. It hadn’t occurred to Yoori how “easily” she gave in to Tae Hyun until she mulled over her predicament. There she was, wearing a pink tank top with white short-shorts (Tae Hyun’s suggested outfit), being rubbed down by the sexy one himself, and she wondered if she should have waited on forgiving him.

S
he verbalized this thought to Tae Hyun, who was shirtless and only wearing black lounge pants. “Should I have waited a couple of months before I forgave you? Was three weeks too soon?”

Tae Hyu
n gave her an unimpressed stare. He then tilted his head to check out the white bandage wrapped around the wound on her thigh. Because the wound was still susceptible to pressure, Yoori had to prop her bent leg up on a wooden chair. Her leg was essentially hovering over Tae Hyun’s muscular shoulder while he crouched before her and tended to her wounds.

“Are you asking me if I think y
ou putting me out of my misery ‘too soon’ was a mistake or are you asking me if I think prolonging my ‘punishment’ would make me treasure you more as my girlfriend?” He shook his head slightly, keeping his eyes on her thigh. “Your irrationality never ceases to amaze me, Brat.”

One would think that after
their reconciliation, Tae Hyun would spoil Yoori rotten with sweet talks and compliments. This was far from the case. He was exactly the same with her as when they were “BFF’s.” He was sweet when he wanted to be, combative when he needed to be, and sexy as hell whenever he chose to be.

Yoori
glowered. Although she also treated him no differently, she still didn’t appreciate his smart aleck remarks.

Tae Hyun smirked while “accidentally”
poking a bruise on her knee, causing her frown to thaw into a wince of pain.

Casually, he added,
“For the record, three weeks was long for me. I’m sorry it was too short for you.”

“
Ow, jerk-face!” Yoori cried, smacking his naked chest with her left hand. “How dare you poke an injured person? You totally did that on purpose!”

“Of course I did,” he said guiltlessly. He
caressed the area he had poked. “You’re the one being a jerk. I can’t help but be offended.” He chuckled when she mouthed a string of curse words. Sending tingles up her body with soft touches, Tae Hyun gazed up, giving her the most enticing bedroom eyes she had ever seen. “I’m sorry about that. Would you like me to kiss it and make it all better?”

His
crooning voice stroked her senses in all the right spots. Yoori not only felt dazed, but also frustratingly enticed. It did not help that he was wearing close to nothing.

How dare you use your sexuality as a weapon?
She thought feebly, resisting the urge to nod like a bobble head.

Yoori
rubbed her wound, her heart beating dramatically. In lieu of succumbing to another one of his seductions, she forged on with her chain of thoughts.

“I’m not
saying it was too short for me—because it wasn’t.” She held his eyes with hers as she spoke, the bitterness dissolving from her stare. “But I think other girls prolong the punishment so that their boyfriends—or ex-boyfriends—would remember to never hurt them again. I can’t help but think that I gave in too easily. I don’t know
. . .
I don’t want you to think of me as being
. . .
you know
. . .
” She whispered her next words. “
Easy
.”

Tae Hyun’s lips
stretched into an amused smile. He blew warm air on her thigh. The feel of his breath made her shiver with need. She mentally cursed him for his silent way of seducing her.

“
Three weeks may be short to some people, but you forget that we’re closer than other couples. Who else do you know have been together for nearly every minute of every single day since they’ve met?” He leaned in closer to inspect some of the healing cuts on her thigh. He rubbed the last of the ointment onto her awaiting skin. “I don’t know about you, but I think we’ve become one of those stupid couples who are interdependent on each other.”

Yoori
noted the subtle blush on Tae Hyun’s cheeks when he casually stated this. The sight warmed her heart. The all-powerful God in this secret society was blushing as he tended to her wounds. Nothing could beat this adorable moment.

“In essence,
three weeks would equate to a three month timeframe for us. And that’s too long for me. The time we spent apart was hell—I’m glad it’s over.” He addressed the last of her concerns with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “And I’ve been rubbing ointment over your body for a few days now, and I haven’t gotten any action. It’s safe to say you’re not easy.”

Butterflies
, of both desire and bashfulness, quaked in her bruised tummy.

“Shut
up!” Yoori grumbled, blushing immensely.

Though she was flushed, her heart lifted at his admissi
on that he was head over heels for her. She had received these admissions in the past, but they were given under “dramatic” circumstances. It was another thing to have him admit it when they were casually hanging out. She had to take advantage of this rare opportunity.

“W
hat is it about me that you’re hooked on?” she inquired, faking coyness.

She was playing a dangerous game since she was his ex-girlfriend. The last thing she should be doing was tease him, but she
was curious. She knew without question that he adored her as much as she adored him. What she had never really known was the reason for his interest.

“Is it my wittiness?” she prompted in a sultry voice. She attempted
to act sexy when he peered up at her.

Yoori
never saw herself as a sexy woman. If anything, she felt dorky compared to most girls. Yet, after being around the walking sex God that was Kwon Tae Hyun, she couldn’t help but feel bigheaded that she reeled in the best fish in existence. Any girl would feel cocky, and Yoori was no exception.

“Is it my sarcasm? My fiery personality? My impressive physique?” Feeling oh-so-confident with herself when his amused eyes returned to h
er thigh, she leaned in closer to give him her best bedroom eyes. “My sex appeal?”

Hushed silence came over the room as
she awaited Tae Hyun’s reply.

She had already decided
that if he said the right thing, then she might actually throw caution to the wind and pounce on him right then and there. They’d never had sex and even though she was a complete prude (and even though he was her “ex-boyfriend”), she couldn’t ignore the sexual frustration gnawing within her.

Say the right thing and you might get some
,
she urged in her yearning mind.

With his attention still on her wounds, he finally parted his tantalizing lips. “
Your unrivaled ability to be a really weird flirt. There’s something strangely addicting about your social awkwardness.”

W
hat?

The rotatio
n of her world came to an earthshattering stop. It only exploded when he added, “Now could you stop leaning in so close? You’re blocking the light. I can’t see if that big cut of yours is healing or not.”

H
er once big head deflated in embarrassment. Of course. It made sense that the insensitive Tae Hyun would diss her and inevitably shame her failed attempt to be a super vixen. She growled under her breath. Unable to suppress her bitterness, she pulled her leg off the chair, accidentally kicked him across the shoulder, and pushed him away. Although her efforts weren’t physically powerful enough to push him off balance, it was strong enough to seize his unwavering attention.

“Stop touching me,
” she seethed, standing up with her chin held high. This was what she deserved for going out of her comfort zone and attempting to be sexy—and with an ex-boyfriend no less. “My physical wounds are fine, thank you very much. Now if you’ll excuse me, I shall put on my un-sexy pants and ignore you because you’re an insensitive jerk.”

Yoori
bestowed his entertained face with a death glare before limping across the room to retrieve her pajama pants. Her pink pajama pants were an inch away from her grasp when another hand appeared, pulling the pants off the chair they hung from and throwing them across the room.

She was outraged when two arms wrapped around h
er. “Hey! What are you doin—?”

“
I like what you’re wearing,” he whispered, his voice as sweet as honey.

Tae Hyun
whipped her around to face him, held her close to him, and allowed her to drape safely over him as he fell backward. Their welcoming bed echoed with a soft creak as it adjusted to their weight.

Yoori groaned. She didn’t want to
be tricked into forgiving him again. That charm of his was her kryptonite.

Desperate to stand her ground, she said,
“It’s winter and I’m wearing a tank top and short-shorts. I’m cold.”

S
he made an attempt to jump out of his hold. He only held on tighter.

“It’s winter and you’re showing more skin than I’ve ever seen
on you,” he continued with a chuckle. His warm body felt like a furnace against hers. “I would be an idiot if I allowed this once-in-a-lifetime sight to be covered by an ugly sweater and grandma looking pajama pants.” He grinned at the frown that overtook her face. He allowed his fingers to trace teasing circles on her bare thighs. “You know you love it when I touch and tease you,” he murmured, seduction swimming in the gaze he held on her. He lifted his lips close to her ear. “Give in, stubborn one. I promise I won’t bite—that hard.”

“Your lame attempt to use your sexuality as a weapon
, while making it seem like you’re a harmless and innocent ex-boyfriend, makes me want to barf out my imaginary red velvet cake.”

Tae Hyun
blinked, offended that she not only resisted his charms, but that she also insulted him in the process. “Did you really just say that?”

Yoori nodded proudly.

He smirked. He heaved a prolonged sigh that was a telltale sign of his strained patience.

“You’re lucky your deliciously plump ass stole my heart or else I would have
given you a grand punishment for that insult.” His voice held a mixture of bitterness and lightheartedness while he caressed the skin of her leg. “I mean, let’s see,” he started, counting off with the fingers on his free hand. “You fucked up my precious Mercedes right after I gave it to you
. . .
”

Yoori pouted
at the reminder. Her precious baby was still in the shop.

“Y
ou always ruin the moment when I try to get us in the sexy mood
. . .
”

Yoori smiled like a rebel.

“You kicked an animal that I’ve adored since I was a kid
. . .
”

Yoori rolled her eyes at the ment
ion of the dumb ducks she hated.

“A
nd you even chucked a snowball at my head.”

He laughed at the last point while Yoori sighed
dreamily at the remembrance.

“
If anyone else did that, I’d have them wishing for hell, but since it’s you, all I require is that you tease me with some skin. Is that so much to ask?” He sighed dramatically. “Maybe I should re-think trying to win you back as my girlfriend. You’re pretty prudish, weird, high maintenance, and you only attract trouble.”

Yoori
laughed at his careless comment. She got up and sat comfortably on his firm stomach. She stared down at him with confidence that only a woman could give to her boyfriend when she knew she had him in the palm of her hand.

“
Girlfriend, ex-girlfriend, or BFF, you know you can’t live without me and my quirkiness, so you shouldn’t even try.”

There was no
witty retort from Tae Hyun. There was just a smile of agreement as he stared up at her with adoration.