Indebted...

Part-27

"You're going to sit here and watch me get ready?"

He just shrugged.

I gave my head a little shake. "All right."

His eyes followed the movements of my hands as I smoothed lotion into my skin. I thought he'd cheekily offer to give me some help with it, but he remained in his seat, seemingly content to just watch.

We hadn't spoken again of the revelations he'd made about his father a few days ago. He'd been a little different since then. Not bad different. But ... pensive. Distracted. Quieter than usual. I'd sometimes catch him staring into space, lost in his thoughts. Other times, I'd catch him staring at me, his expression so blank it made my skin prickle. If I asked what was wrong, he'd merely shrug and blow off my question.

I wondered if he regretted telling me about his childhood. Taehyung was very self-contained and wouldn't like to feel exposed. Having someone know your darkest, most painful secrets could indeed make a person feel stripped bare.

Right then, his eyes never left me as I dressed, dabbed on some makeup, and brush my long strands. "Don't put it in bun," he said when I went to tie my hair. "Wear it down for me." As we weren't going anywhere, I relented and dropped the hair tie back into the drawer.

He pushed out of the chair, grabbed my rings from the nightstand, and slid them both onto the third finger of my left hand. He'd done it a few times over the last few weeks. I'd never had to return the favor, because I hadn't yet seen him without his wedding band.

He tugged on my hand. "Breakfast."

"Breakfast," I agreed as he guided me out of the room, down the stairs, and into the kitchen.

"Coffee?" he offered.

"As if there was any doubt," I said. "I'm in the mood for French toast this morning. Want some?"

"Sure."

We each ate French toast and drank coffee as we alternated between talking and checking the seemingly endless number of notifications on our cell phones.

After Taehyung and I finished our breakfast, I cleaned the counter and island while he stacked the dishwasher. He'd no sooner switched on the machine than the buzzer sounded.

"You make the coffees," said Taehyung, his half-full cup in hand. "I'll take Mia and Changbin into the formal sitting room."

"All right." Remembering how the planners took their coffees, I prepared the drinks and made myself a fresh cup. Once I'd placed all the mugs on a tray, I carried it into the formal sitting room and then set it on the coffee table while saying my hellos.

"We brought your gown," announced Mia.

I smiled. "So I see." You couldn't exactly miss the big, bulging dress bag. "Thank you."

As usual, all four of us settled on the sofas. Taehyung interlinked our fingers and rested our joined hands on his thigh.

Glancing down at her tablet, Mia said, "We touched base with everyone-the photographer, the florist, the vendor, the band, the cake baker, and the lighting technician. All the details have been confirmed; everyone knows where they're supposed to be and when."

Changbin handed us a sheet of paper. "We've finalized the seating arrangement. If you're happy with it, we'll send it to the necessary people. I was impressed that none of the guests missed the RSVP deadlines-there are usually a few we have to chase up. You should be flattered that no one wants to miss it."

I scanned the seating arrangement and nodded, happy with what I saw. The guests were mostly family, Kim-Verse employees, and Taehyung's closest associates.