SD's face looked as if christmas had come early. He sat there, stunned as Sunye took off her top and stood in a skirt and leather bra. His mind was blank and his insides on fire but his body was simply too shocked to move.

Sunye sexily winked at him and licked her lips to entice him. SD always wanted a show from her and she was about to give him one that he would never forget. She held the pole and swirled around it, showing off her curves and pressed her body against the stick.

​​

"W-what…" SD forgot what he wanted to ask. His little brother down there was twitching and he would need several baths to cool himself down. His poor heart was pounding hard but Sunye's torture was not over.

She slowly walked towards him with a fiery passion in her eyes and sat on his lap, grinding against his groin.

"S-Sunye if you continue like this then I might not be able to stop," he said in a hoarse tone.

She was too close to him. He could feel her soft breasts pressing against his chest while her hands roamed from his cheeks to his neck, trailing his sharp features. She let out a sharp breath. They had been this close in proximity on that night eight years ago but somehow, he only seemed to have gotten more manly over time.

His blue eyes gazed into hers and she, too, froze. It was not his usually playful flirtations but an intense gaze which was looking right into her soul. Breaking out of his trance, his fingers were exploring her skin, causing small sparks of electricity to coarse through her veins. He pulled her closer, their lips almost touching.

"Think about it Ms. Lawyer," he whispered. "If we go any further, there isn't any turning back."

Sunye did not respond but gave him an inviting smirk, taking his left hand in hers. SD leaned forward to kiss her.

CLICK!

He paused midway and looked to his left. A pair of handcuffs tied him to the metal lining of the couch. Gaping his mouth, he turned to Sunye.

"I didn't know you were this kinky, Ms. Lawyer," he said. "Where'd you get the cuffs from?"

"Believe it," Sunye smiled sarcastically and jumped off him. "All the servers were given one pair of cuffs to bind unruly customers."

She stood over him, feeling extremely happy to have beaten him for once.

"And this is for what you did eight years ago," she said and reached for his pants, unbuckling the belt to pull it down.

"You can pull down the boxers and have a taste," SD said in a singsong tone. Sunye threw him a dirty glare. The man was truly shameless.

"And I'll leave this right here," she said as she took out the keys to the cuffs from her skirt and put it on the floor, far from his reach. She wore her top and turned to leave.

"My my Sunye, I knew you had a sadistic streak in you," he went on. "I can't wait for our next encounter and see how you resist me."

As if! Sunye thought scornfully. But if she was being honest with herself, she had almost lost control of herself for a brief second. If he had not talked about stopping, then god knows how far they would have gone.

"Enjoy your stay here," she said.

"I will but can you stop yourself from thinking about me?" he smirked. "Imagine this. Our sweaty bodies in bed, writhing against each other while you moan so loudly that the entire world can hear-"

SLAM!

Sunye left him there all by himself. How he turned an embarrassing situation like that into a twisted fantasy was beyond human comprehension. She wanted to get him back for how he always teased her but even when she was in the dominant position, the guy somehow turned the tables on her. He was not even shocked. On the contrary, the guy was too happy with himself.

She quickly headed back to the locker, avoiding everyone. Once inside, she leaned against it, trying to stop her rapid heartbeats. Why did he have such a hold over her? What was it about SD that was pulling her closer to him? Why did her calm demeanor falter whenever he was around?

"Stop it," she told herself. "Don't get too close to the flame."

Trying not to think about the devil, she changed back into her clothes and quietly left the bar. For a moment her eyes flickered back to it but she turned away and left.

After an hour, one of the strippers was pulling a man into the VIP room. She danced provocatively, seducing the man to give her more money.

"Let's take this to a more private place, shall we?" the man winked and opened the VIP room. The stripper, who was about to push the man onto the couch, yelped in fright.

SD paused midway while trying to reach for the keys. The two newcomers stared at the strange man in shock and disgust but SD did not care. He was happy that Sunye had finally taken the step to handcuff him. Next time he would try to get him whipped.

"I regret nothing!" he announced gleefully.

….

Jonghyun woke up quite late that morning. He did not sleep a wink at the lavish mansion. It was a gilded cage for him and he was not fond of staying there. If it was not for the Prime Minister's orders, he would not have stayed there.

He descended the stairs and headed towards the kitchen to grab something from the refrigerator. There were remnants of last night's dinner and a bottle of juice. He grabbed the pasta and without bothering to heat it up, chowed it up. Downing his breakfast with the juice, he ventured out towards the living room to read that morning's newspaper.

To his slight surprise, PM Lee was home that day. He was sitting on the couch, reading the paper.

"You're home today," Jonghyun noted.

"I thought of taking a day off to spend time with my family," Lee said, turning the page of the paper.

"Spending time with us or to spy on us?" Jonghyun accused.

"Isn't it the same thing?" Lee asked. He handed the newspaper to Jonghyun who took it and read the headlines.

"Disgraced FInance Minister's trial begins," he narrated. "Government mum over the arrest of their key member."

"We already told you that he will be punished," Jonghyun said. "He'll be sent to jail."

"He will be," Lee agreed. "And I want him to go to jail. But that's not all."

He stood up to face the window, staring at the landscape outside. "The prisons are full of my enemies," he went on. "The political prisoners I've sent to jail. The rebels I've put down during the war. Men who were clamoring for the monarchy to be put down. You must remember them well."

He turned around to face Jonghyun. "They're still waiting and plotting against us. If Shin Hyun is sent to jail, then it'll cost us a lot more than just our reputation. The slight dip due to Hyun is of no issue to me. I don't care about all that. In fact, he was my hindrance in the Sailors' Reef project. His cabinet had blocked all budgets for the dam because if that one was built, the yakuza would lose their hold on all the routes. The drugs and goods which were transacted through the routes controlled by the yakuza will now be rerouted to routes controlled by us. In short, it was a failure for them."

"So what do you want?" Jonghyun asked. "You want us to kill him?"

"I want him to be tried," Lee said. "But not to be sent to jail. I want him to be put on death penalty. I'll have the judge fast pace the process but I want him dead as soon as possible. Before he could even get the chance to hatch a plan with my enemies."

"You really think that the men who were anti-monarchy would flock to his side?" Jonghyun asked. "Shin Hyun fought for the monarchy. He fought for me! So that one day, I can take the throne and establish the monarchy again."

"You cannot take the vacant position of the Emperor until the will has been found!" Lee snapped. "Don't forget that the Emperor has left behind a will, naming his successor!"

Jonghyun's hands clenched into a fist but he did not show his emotions. "He is dead," Jonghyun stated coolly. "Both of us know that I'm the only survivor of the coup. And I have the blood of the Emperor so it makes me eligible to ascend the throne."

"His body was never found," Lee pointed out. "Both of us know that the Emperor had finally decided to name a Crown Prince. Both of you were raised as each other's shadows. Both of you were regarded as the Crown Prince but there could only be one. If your mother wasn't so foolhardy, the Emperor would have officially made you his heir but he didn't. He never chose an heir despite declaring to the public that Kim San was the heir…"

He leaned forward, smirking at Jonghyun's fears. The man knew what Jonghyun dreaded.

"But both of you were Kim San," he grinned. "So the question remains. Who is the real Crown Prince?"

"We both know that the Emperor had chosen me," Jonghyun gritted. "I am Kim San."

"And yet, you ask yourself only one question everyday," Lee sighed. He took a dramatic pause and asked that one thing Jonghyun was afraid of the most, "Who are you?"