This is the fourth story in the Undone series.
This is Jung Hoseok's time to shine.
He is taking control of a new project at Stellar Design, and he has decided it's time to take control of his love life as well. He is weary of being alone, and he...
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The time between Isabelle's arrival at the hotel and the call the car was there for her was agony.
She drew a hot bath while she fussed with the last of the reports. She finally packed them into cases and put them by the door. Work was firmly behind her.
She took her time in the bath, pampering herself, lotioning and perfuming her body.
The whole time her mind was violently ricocheting between Hobi’s hands, the veins popping, and those long tapered fingers roaming and the empty suitcases taunting her in the next room.
Compounding all those emotions was the nagging voice that reminded her that she had still not been truthful with him.
She had to tell him the reason he was here and her role in it. A part of her bargained that it had been years and he was happy and wildly successful. She could almost justify letting it be. Then Olivia’s voice would ring clear in her head. “ He will never understand. He will hate both of us.”
She felt tears of frustration begin, then roughly swiped them away.
Hobi was right. They sould take the night the way it led them. She was selfish enough to pray it ended with their friendship firmly intact and the deeper feeling she had for him given permission to bloom.
She scowled at her reflection in the mirror. What a weak way to express how she felt about him. If she was too great a coward to take this chance she might as well pack her bags now and set them beside the door as well.
She cursed loud and long, telling herself to focus on the night that was waiting for her…..for them.
She sat on the edge of the bed and forced to riot in her heart to quiet and cleared her head. Finally she stood to begin to dress. At least there was no hesitation there.
Looking in the closet she smiled. It showed how very deeply Hobi had inspired her, even in his absence.
Without being aware of it she had designed several pieces that drew from his quirky fashion style. She could see the lines and colors they played with in that first Izzy and Fitz project and many of those inspiration pieces had been packed for this trip.
She drew out a pair of wide leg dark denim jeans. She remembered picking them as she packed in her small bedroom at home. They were high waisted with a bit of flair and she knew they showed her ass to best advantage.
She had spent two weekends painting the floral designs and drawing the intricate details by hand. The style was pure Hobi, the color and whimsy all her. She pulled out a cropped black cashmere turtleneck and knew it would skim over her breasts and hug her perfectly.
Picking lingerie took longer, although the thought crossed her mind that it just needed to be comfortable and pretty.
If she got that close to Hoseok again she did not want anything between them, not even the finest silk or lace. That decision did not help her nerves at all.
She fussed with her hair until it suited her and applied the natural makeup and lip tint she knew he preferred.
Checking the mirror she turned one way then another. It was the best she could do.
Anyway, this was Hobi. He had seen her two days into a study session with mystery stains on her tee shirt. He had held her hair as she threw up with a reaction to pain meds after a tooth was pulled. He had touched and caressed her body with such reverence and tenderness that she could feel his fingers on her skin even now.
This was Hobi. He would look past the clothes and makeup to see her, to catch her mood, to connect with her spirit. This was Hobi. He would be looking at her, the real her, only her.
The call that the car was waiting startled her out of her thoughts. She was not sure she was ready. In fact, she knew she was not. But it was time to go.
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Hobi asked Tae for a ride to the loft later that evening and his friend agreed without question.
Tae was worried for Hoseok. It was clear to see he had a connection with Izzy but there was an air of fragility that hung between them. Tae knew well the difficulty of making your way through the hard times to find hard earned peace in a relationship.
Looking at his dear friend he noticed the shadows under his eyes and how solemn he had been the past several days. Tae hurt for him, but held out hope this was the darkness just before the light broke thru.
“Sure,” he responded. “ will you come early and help Sky with the last minute details? I will be helping Nev get the bar set up.”
Hobi readily agreed, anxious for anything that would district him from the swirl of doubt surrounding him.
That was how he happened to be on a ladder installing a new art piece of a Dancer created from newspaper when the first guests arrived. Sky had already started collecting pieces for the recital. Her work reminded Hobi that he needed to turn his focus to the studio and the kids.
The work on this work project was done. The next phase was more Dae’s domain. The recital was in a matter of weeks and he wanted it to go well.
For a moment he imagined himself standing in a sea of tiny dancers in tutus of every style and color, bowing in the finale Mrs. Kim was planning. And in his imagination Izzy was right there, front row, clapping and cheering for him like she had done so many times before.
And just as if he conjured her, there she stood in the soft lights of the gallery. She was a work of art.
He would note the hand painted denim and the glove tight sweater later. At that moment he only saw her, the light that shown from her, the kindness that she radiated, the soft warmth of her skin he could feel even now.
“Damn it,” he whispered under his breath. He felt the connection to her pulling him across the room even before he was aware he was moving.
