Burning The House Of Cards: taking revenge on my billionaire family
Chapter 27 - 26. A Brother’s Love

Chapter 27: Chapter 26. A Brother’s Love

Lee Mason came just like his sister, firm and without hesitation. He walked like an observer, eyes scrutinizing every part of the room—from the decorations to the furniture—as if he were there to invest in real estate.

It felt even more so because he had just returned from a business trip and still had his suit, looking impeccable as the eldest son and now, the apparent heir.

Truth be told, there was nothing inadequate about him. The man was handsome, well-built, and had enough brains in his head. It was just while he was adequate, he wasn’t excellent—not as excellent as Lee Seul-ah was anyway. Moreover, he was too alike his mother in appearance, in contrast to Sarah who had their father and their grandmother’s look.

It also didn’t help that the first wife was the one asking for a divorce, putting her children in an unfavorable light. So even while he was good, he would never be as favored as Sarah while their grandfather was still alive.

In a way, Sarah understood the first wife’s frustration. Too bad the woman was straight-up vicious about it. It was as if the woman was adapting standard villainess acts in dramas.

And Sarah’s mother became the victim of it.

Sarah could imagine the gleeful face of that woman; now that her son became the apparent heir. To her knowledge, she was also the one who fervently set up an engagement between Mason and a female celebrity who was also the daughter of a prominent congressman—all to secure that prim and proper heir image.

Sarah thought the man did look like a prim and proper heir now, standing where his sister stood a while ago. But rather than looking at her whole body and scrutinizing the wound Sarah got, he stared straight at the girl’s face.

Sarah put her controller down and looked back at the older man, a subtle smile on her face. "How nice of you to visit me, Oppa."

Mason put his hand inside his pants, looking around once more before looking at Sarah again. "Why is there no one here?"

"Oh, I dismissed all of them," Sarah shrugged casually.

"All of them?"

Adding a smile to his words, Sarah replied sweetly. "All of them."

"Even though I’m the one who prepared them for you?" Mason tilted his head, eyes flashed coldly, voice dipping low.

Sarah paused, staring at the cold eyes with ease. She had seen one much colder and fiercer, voice more vicious. This display of dominance from Mason honestly felt nothing for her after experiencing six years under his manipulation.

Honestly, she was initially worried that she might recoil from her past. She was worried about being unable to control feeling inferior, scared, and disgusted at the man, prompting an immediate physical reaction.

But it seemed like five years was enough for her to put a sturdy wall around her mental state because she acted smoothly in front of the man who had ruined her life in the past. Rather than showing that she wasn’t intimidated, Sarah put on an innocent mask.

"Really, Oppa? I couldn’t tell, they were so insolent and incapable that I thought the house manager just pulled the leftover, most useless staff," she shrugged and tilted her head, blinking her pretty black eyes. "You’re not seriously saying you’re the one who drafts them?"

Mason raised his brow for a second before frowning a little bit, trying to suppress his annoyance. "Were they upsetting you?"

Sarah narrowed her eyes, looking visibly displeased. "Should I be upset about being made to wait at the airport? Being made to wait forever for them to prepare me a drink—"

"Alright, I got it," Mason sighed. He took a seat on the table in front of Sarah, his voice a tad bit softer. "But don’t you still need people to take care of your business?"

Sarah shrugged with her arms wide open. "I have no business, though. It’s suffocating being surrounded by a lot of people."

"Not even one attendant?"

There was almost a smirk on Sarah’s face. "The last time you sent me one...pfft--" she snorted, leaning back and covering her mouth, eyes glancing into the window; she could see it, her old assistant--the one supposedly monitoring her while abroad--fidgeting outside the annex. Honestly, it would be funnier if the man followed Mason inside and heard everything.

"What was that?" Mason followed Sarah’s gaze outward.

"Oppa, don’t you think it’s weird?" Sarah started her telltale while still looking at her former attendant outside, smiling subtly while doing so. "I might be spending my time playing around, but all I did was just drink and sleep around. I didn’t gamble, I didn’t do drugs."

Even while being trash, she couldn’t pretend to do shit that would lead to serious investigation. So, while it wasn’t uncommon for conglomerate kids to use substances, she vehemently avoided it. Thus, no matter how much she spent on alcohol and hotel rooms, it wouldn’t use up all the allowance his father and brother sent her.

And yet...the money in her account, controllable by the attendant, never seemed to last.

Sarah shifted her gaze to Mason, who had a frown drawn on his face. The gaze in his eyes was hardened, and Sarah flashed a smirk for a split second.

"Where do you think all the money you sent me went?"

"Are you saying—"

Sarah stretched out her body, feeling the bruise on her ribs acting up, and winced, but managed to speak something with a huff. "All I’m saying, Oppa...is that I’m sick of other people’s presence around me."

The older man looked at the frown and the small bead of sweat on the girl’s temple. It was then that he looked at her condition; the little scratches marred her fair skin, and the bandage on her hands and leg.

It occurred to him that Seul-ah decided to drive away on her own because she was so frustrated at how her attendant and the driver treated her. Unconsciously, her mind brought her to places bearing her strongest emotion.

Ah...Mason glanced outside the window again, with cold eyes and a stiff jaw. It made sense now, and it seemed he needed to strike the hammer over the insolent dog who couldn’t understand his master. The man was supposed to corrupt Lee Seul-ah, not disrespect her.

But that was a problem for later. Right now, there was something more urgent. There was no way he could let this girl on her own without any assistance—the poor pretty thing wouldn’t be able to do anything on her own, as an HS Group’s princess who never met hardship in his life.

Besides, Mason needed to plant his own man to watch over her.

"Are you going to reject bodyguards too?"

Sarah nodded and replied swiftly. "Yes."

"Really?" Wonseok sighed, putting on the face of a very troubled and disappointed man. "You think you can keep yourself safe just because you went to a gym?"

"Why not?" Sarah shrugged, fixing her gaze on the television screen again, where her game was still paused.

Wonseok stood up with a frown, eyes blazing fiercely. Sarah had seen those eyes often, every time the man lost his temper—which was basically all the time. "Lee Seul-ah! You’re a daughter of HS Group!"

"So what?" this time, Sarah didn’t play innocent. She shot an equally fierce gaze at the older man.

Mason’s temper faltered for a bit when Sarah threw him that gaze, as the younger’s face scrunched up in anger. "What...?"

"So what?! That meant nothing! My mother is also a wife of HS Group—"

Sarah closed her mouth and pressed her lips tightly. She looked up at Mason with angry, agonized eyes. With chest heaved up and down from sudden bursts of genuine emotion, Sarah averted her gaze and turned her head away.

The sofa dipped slightly as Mason sat himself beside her, the coldness vanished from his stoic face. A gentleness that no one had ever witnessed was in the smile that appeared as he softly stroked Sarah’s cheek and brought the younger’s face back to face him.

"I’m sorry," his fingers slid down to rub her chin. The voice that was usually harsh and spiky turned sweet and soft as cotton candy. "I’ll allow it, so don’t sulk, mm?"

Sarah lowered her gaze; the frown on her face unraveled and she looked soft and meek and pitiable just like in the past, the angry flush even looked pretty on her fair cheek. The rubbing hand climbed carefully into the pink, bitten lips and Sarah flinched. But she did not move away, and Lee Wonseok smiled deeply.

So she’s not ready yet, the older man thought regretfully, still moving his thumb across the soft, pink pairs that started to tremble. Too bad, but I should be patient and ease her intothis.

He had worked hard, patiently bringing the upright girl to fall into debauchery. His mother and siblings thought he did it to make Seul-ah fall from the grace of the directors even more and praised him for it. But Mason did it for another, more sinister, more immoral objective.

It was to have his sweet, pretty Seul-ah for himself.

Because surely, the Lee Seul-ah now, the Sarah Lee who only thought about playing around, would no longer have any prude, boring thoughts. The girl—no, the young woman might still feel reluctant now, but it wouldn’t be long before he could taste this beautiful specimen. At long last.

Look, Sarah didn’t pull away from his touch, and Mason was filled with twisted mirth. "You forgive me, don’t you?" Mason tilted his head, peering closely into the pretty face he dreamed about since a long long time ago.

"I’m not...angry," Sarah muttered, soft and quiet like a whisper, only for Mason to hear and indulge in.

"But you still need people to keep you safe," Wonseok stroked the pale, trembling cheek. Sarah was so fair, so pretty, so delectable. "You know how much I care about you, right? Seul-ah ya?"

Sarah bit her lips again—the soft coral tint getting redder and more inviting. "Just...one. I’m okay with just one..." she said finally.

"One..."

Sarah lifted her face, looking at the older man from beneath her lashes. "I want to make an audition. I want someone who can be a bodyguard and can cook and do other things."

"That would be hard..." Mason narrowed his eyes, fingers brushing the deep red hair with affection.

"I read about a butler that can do all of that," she suddenly pulled out a fantasy novel from the side table, showing it to Mason with a sheepish smile. "I want something like that."

Sarah smiled sweetly with sparkly eyes, and how could Mason deny that one, cute request?

"Alright," he answered finally, rubbing the hand Sarah used to take the book so energetically earlier. It delighted him that Sarah didn’t pull her hand away, even smiling so prettily.

Well, what gave the pretty little one some leeway? It was just a multi-talent bodyguard. Since it wouldn’t be easy to find one, he just had to send one of his men to join the audition.

"Thank you, Mason Oppa!"

Mason smiled widely, longing for that soft voice to call his name sweetly, sensually one day. He leaned closer with glee, lips touching the red hair that unexpectedly looked pretty on the girl. "I know you’re always a good girl, my sweet Seul-ah."

Behind the slightly ajar door of the guest bedroom, Amber clasped her mouth shut with both hands, crouching against the wall.