Night Garden [K TH 21+]

8

Yung Mi threw on her cross country shoes and headed out to run the 5 kilometer trail that wound around the estate. She hoped concentrating on the uneven terrain would force everything else from her mind. She had dreamed about the gardener again.

The substance of the dream had slipped away, but the feeling had lingered. A vague sense of frustration spoiled her mood. Maybe it was just PMS.

Freezing her ass off gave her something tangible to focus on. She could always count on physical activity to banish unwanted emotions. Agust D really should be a therapist. He made her talk about her feelings instead of fucking them away. But D wasn't here to bitch, so she could exercise instead of dissecting her feelings.

After a shower and some strong oolong tea, she started organizing what she wanted to explain to Mr. Kim about her plans. She called him, telling him to meet her at the main house in half an hour. She knew she would have to contain her enthusiasm or she would scare him, again. She seriously felt like a kid getting a pony for Christmas.

She had so many books marked, scribbled sketches and half drawn plans, not to mention half a million pics on Pinterest. She lugged her collection downstairs to the overly ornate library. It had a large table where she could spread it all out. She didn't ask for help from the staff because, despite the papers looking like a chaotic mess, she knew where everything was.

She was still making notes when Mr. Park ushered the gardener into the library. Her cheery good morning garnered a perfunctory nod from the young man. Her offer of tea was declined with a succinct "no thanks." Obviously, he was still angry about last night.

"Again, I am sorry if the package mistake upset you." She watched him with concern.

"Don't mention it." He glanced at her, returning his eyes to the spread of materials on the table.

OK then. "I'm so excited to show you all this. Today we'll make a list of projects and a tentative schedule. When it warms up midmorning, we can walk the gardens."

She showed him ideas for the sitting area in the greenhouse, the wildflower meadow, the koi pond and a wandering walking path through the tropical foliage beside the swimming pool. The pièce de résistance would be the reclaimed walled garden that she planned to fill with white flowers and night blooming plants.

"What do you think?" she asked, hoping he would offer something, anything. He was looking at her with an assessing gaze. The same enigmatic gaze ...