May 1, 2020
Book Two of the UNDONE series, following unrivaled
Jeon Jungkook is one of the youngest security experts in the country and he is working to keep his boss's company out of crisis. He is not alone. His friends are all professionals and d...
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“Ready?” he asked and at her smile he opened the door and escorted her out.
As the door to her tiny apartment closed and locked behind them, Lyra felt with a certainty that things would be forever changed for her this night.
The drive to the venue indeed moved slowly as they drew nearer and the streets grew crowded.
The couple in the car had no cares however thanks to JK's careful planning. Lyra sat back and laughed at him as he tore into the snack packages before they were even out of her neighborhood.
He made sure she had a drink and shared whatever he was eating. He had her laughing the entire way with crazy stories and his “almost perfect” impersonations.
And HOW could one person eat so much? She was really amazed.
The tipping point came when he looked at her, his face serious, eyes huge and soulful and very seriously told her he was hungry for noodles.
She covered her mouth and laughed till she risked her makeup as he said, “I wish I had noodles. I am sorry I did not bring them. I love noodles. Can we get noodles later tonight?”
It struck her as hilariously funny because one, they were on their way to a very formal, very luxurious dinner and two, she could tell he was not joking about the noodles.
She drew shaky breaths until she could talk again, then she told him they could get noodles.
“You promise?” he asked, his eyes bright and mischievous.
She looked into his face and wanted to capture the snapshot of the boy laughing at her, full of trouble and fun. Right now, she would promise him anything. She smoothed the hair behind his ear, seeking any excuse to touch him.
“I promise,” she said.
Jungkook looked at her as she reached for him. He could not remember the last time he had so much genuine fun with a woman. She made him happy in a way that was brand new to him.
He caught her wrist and held her hand to his head just a moment longer when she would have drawn it away. Then smiling, he took her wrist and kissed the pulse pounding there.
At her small gasp, he smiled, a devilish twinkle in his eyes, and whispered “I'm going to hold you to that!”
She could not help but laugh back with him.
He was so much fun, he made her so comfortable with him. At that point she decided she would be perfectly happy if they just rode around the city and talked and laughed and shared snacks the rest of the night.
And kissed, but she was trying not to dwell on that.
But eventually they arrived at the Gala and her nerves came roaring back.
He sensed the change in her immediately and reached for hand.
“Nervous?” he asked, and squeezed her hand as she nodded at him.
“Don’t be! You are stunning tonight. We will be seated at the KimCom table and you will know everyone there, “he paused for a moment, his face growing serious, “And I know you are worried, but don’t be….we will get to eat pretty soon!”
He watched as she hung on every word, taking comfort from his experience and calm. Then he watched as his last words sunk in and caused the exact effect he was seeking.
It started with a small smile, then a playful punch to his arm, and by the time they had stopped and the door opened for them, they were both once again laughing at each other and with each other.
The photos taken as they stepped out to walk the Gala carpet were a timeless capture of two people, young and beautiful, laughing and glowing in the first bloom of love.
Neither of them thought much about that as they walked, Lyra relying on JK to navigate the stops and photo demands. Both of them were too busy smiling at each other and whispering.
Some of the photographers were charmed, shouting out “tell us the secret" or “what are you whispering to her?”
Those comments made them laugh all the harder because in reality he was whispering in her ear all the dishes he hoped for the menu tonight.
Once inside the crush of the doors, Lyra felt like she could begin to relax. JK quickly found their table, but across the room his friends beckoned them.
Kim Taehyung had saved them a seat at the iNovis table and was waving and dancing, inviting them over.
Jungkook looked at Lyra and she barely had time to nod before he was pulling her across the floor to the table with all his friends.
She had met most of them only briefly before and only as a secretary. Before she could grow shy, they welcomed her in with rowdy laughter and cheers. They moved and made a place for her, all the while teasing JK about everything from his bowtie to his socks.
“I think he looks very handsome,” she defended him, which made him blush and the teasing shift to include her, with Taehyung complaining she had not yet complimented him. She felt so at ease with this group already.
Jungkook made sure she was settled and then went off in search of mixed drinks to kick off the evening.
She loved watching all the people dressed in such beautiful clothes. JK had just returned to the table when a commotion stirred at the entrance of the room.
She saw Kim SeokJin first. She drew in a hard breath. She had never seen him so angry. He looked composed as always, but his mouth was set in a hard line and his eyes were hard and glittered with fury. It did not take long to see why. Next to him was Alex, clinging to his arm, the red talons of her nails digging into his biceps.
Lyra shrunk behind Jungkook, suddenly wishing she had never thought about coming to this event. JK continued taking to his friends, but put his arm around Lyra and drew her closer to his side, instinctively protecting her. The warmth and strength of him made her relax.
Nothing could harm her with this man beside her. She took a deep drink, determined that no one, not even Alex Choi would ruin this evening.
Jungkook felt Lyra tensing when Jin made his appearance. She actually hid behind him. He pulled her close and she immediately relaxed. His heart beat harder at that.
At first, he thought she was nervous that her boss was there. But he soon saw the looks she was giving Alex and how she seemed to be almost hiding from her.
Did Lyra know Alex? Did she know her aside from being the woman who was obviously trying to drag her boss into a relationship?
He reminded himself that he was at a party, no work allowed! He would think about that later.
Jin soon joined their group and Lyra was able to relax once she saw Alex intended to stay across the room. She sat there entertaining old men and idols alike. Lyra did not care, so long as her attention was kept firmly in her own corner of the room.
Sometime later Lyra noticed the crowd begin to rumble with a late arrival. She saw Park Jimin making his way through the crowd.
She stood and stared. He was an extraordinarily handsome man. He looked so sleek tonight and the way he moved was pure sin.
She heard a sound beside her and blushed, embarrassed for JK to have found her admiring another man so blatantly.
She looked up to apologize, but found he was not looking at her at all.
What the hell had his attention so firmly caught? She noted the dart of his tongue and his hard swallow. She followed his line of vision until she saw Dae.
Damn it! She was not kidding when she said she had something special in mind. She was a knockout in the white silk pant suit and rhinestone bustier.
Dae had been so kind to Lyra and she felt a bit ungrateful, but right that moment Lyra felt a swell of envy that had her ready to somehow mark JK as taken. Part of her knew she was being silly; the other part was just plain jealous.
She turned again to see JK's reaction to Dae as she walked closer. As she did, she was surprised to see he was no longer staring across the room at another woman, but his eyes were firmly on her face. She blushed as she realized he read her emotions.
JK watched Lyra's face as Dae approached and the breath was knocked out of him as her eyes found his.
They were hot with jealousy and possession. He had felt the echo of that when he had seen her admiring Jimin, but her possessive look and the heat in her eyes had him hardening in response.
He slowly smiled at her and enjoyed the flare in her eyes.
He bent and whispered for her ears only, “I am the luckiest man here. You are so beautiful tonight.”
He saw the goosebumps form on her skin as she gauged, then accepted his sincerity.
They drifted back to their seats, her hand firmly in his, ignoring the stir of voices and people around them.
