Stepmother Han Hye-su 3
The place they arrived at was a café renovated from an entire commercial building. Its design was simple yet skillfully preserved the old-world charm of the original architecture.
She parked in the large lot beside the café. As she stepped out she slipped off the jacket she had been wearing and strode ahead toward the entrance.
Two steps behind her, Han Pan’s gaze was drawn naturally to the long slit running up the back of her skirt and the leg line it revealed. The legs were truly, remarkably smooth. The lines themselves were especially beautiful. He thought she possessed the gracefully extended, swan-like beauty of a ballerina’s legs.
Compared to his mother’s copper-toned, healthy sensuality, hers carried a soft eroticism born of pale skin and an intellectual air.
Inside the café, the space was packed—clearly a hot spot. They each ordered an iced americano and a latte, waited a moment, and received their drinks. After taking a sip of hers, she spoke.
“The rooftop here has an incredible view. Want to go up?”
“Ah, shall we?”
She shifted her body and asked,
“Han Pan, do you have a girlfriend?”
He made a sheepish face.
“Ah… no… not yet…”
“Really? You seem like you’d be quite popular… You’ll have one soon.”
She smiled sweetly and moved toward the stairs; he followed. They took the corner staircase up to the second floor. Two steps behind her, Han Pan watched the slit of her skirt open with every step, exposing her thighs, and felt his heart begin to beat rather quickly. The slit stopped just below her hips—a subtly sexy skirt. Standing still you might not notice, but every time she walked it felt like a dazzling, quiet invitation.
The stairs to the rooftop were outside. As they climbed, bright sunlight washed over them. Looking up the rather steep flight, Han Pan found himself staring straight at her backside. The thin lining of the skirt seemed almost translucent. No panty line was visible, and the thought that she might be wearing a thong sent a reaction through his cock—yet he shook his head hard, telling himself it was a filthy thing to think.
He had noticed that the women around him paid far more attention to their clothes than their age might suggest. Was this the trend these days? His own mother, of course, and Eun-yeong as well; by that logic his two older sisters would be no different. The moment the thought reached his sisters he let out a hollow laugh at himself for even thinking it.
The rooftop was almost empty because of the heat, yet the view was quite decent. Surrounded by apartments, it still managed to offer a respectable panorama. Hye-su, who had gone up first, made a full circle as if surveying the open space. Watching her from behind, Han Pan said,
“That skirt is really striking.”
Her eyes widened.
“Pardon?”
“The skirt. It’s striking… Usually the slit doesn’t run that long down the back. Whoever designed it put that there on purpose.”
“My, are you interested in fashion?”
He laughed cheerfully.
“I’m a man—of course a woman’s fashion naturally draws my interest, doesn’t it?”
Hye-su smiled.
“Men who actually give a critique are rare.”
“Is that so? Other men just don’t know.”
A smile touched her lips.
“Speaking as a man, you must be very interested in that sort of thing.”
Han Pan answered evenly.
“Of course. At an age overflowing with vigor, interest in that direction runs pretty high. Hahaha.”
His hearty laugh made her laugh brightly too.
“This skirt is subtly sexy, don’t you think?”
“Yes, it has a subtle sexiness to it.”
He smiled and agreed. She didn’t wait for any further reply.
“Want to see something fun?”
She set her coffee on a nearby table, took hold of the waist of the skirt, and began twisting it to one side. When the open slit settled against one leg, the entire front of her thigh was laid bare.
“How about this? From subtle sexy to active sexy, right?”
Her whole presence had changed. The intellectual air from moments ago vanished, replaced by something decidedly hot. Han Pan wondered if she was deliberately trying to appeal to him; a strange feeling rose, and he answered with a smile.
“Hmm. Unbutton a couple of those shirt buttons and it would suit you even better.”
She looked as if she had just realized something.
“Ah, you’re right.”
After a brief thoughtful pause she undid two buttons. The slender line of her neck and her collarbones, previously sealed away, came into view, giving her a cool, summer-appropriate air. Han Pan nodded.
“Ah, now it looks much better… A moment ago you seemed completely closed off; now you look like someone I could actually talk to.”
His banter drew a wry smile from her.
“Men really are all the same.”
He grinned.
“There’s a saying—boys will be boys.”
“I suppose there’s also ‘girls will be girls.’”
“Haha, true enough.”
After a short hesitation Han Pan spoke again.
“What if you put the slit right in the center?”
At that she stared at him in silence. He could see her pupils waver faintly. She lowered her gaze to the skirt and carefully shifted the slit until it sat precisely between her legs. Han Pan calmly took the straw of his coffee cup between his lips, drew a sip, and said,
“Men would like that even more—the precarious feeling.”
She glanced at him.
“You like this sort of thing?”
He thought for a moment before answering.
“I already said it—boys will be boys… I’m a man too… well, of course… uh…”
The thought struck him that he was doing something with his father’s woman. Yet Hye-su accepted him more coolly than he expected.
“Before you’re a man there are other relationships, yet you’re being quite provocative. Do you always like this kind of thing?”
He shrugged.
“It differs from person to person, but I find myself thinking it would be nice if my own mother were sexy.”
“Is that so?”
“If a mother has a magnificent body and shows it off, her son would live with more confidence.”
“Oh? Is that how it is? I’ve never thought about it that way…”
“Now you know.”
She let out a sigh.
“I suppose so.”
A brief silence settled between them. Hye-su picked up her coffee again and took a sip; Han Pan watched her and lifted his own cup. She set the cup back down and was about to twist the skirt back to its original position when he stopped her.
“Just leave it like that.”
She gave him a puzzled look.
“Why?”
He spoke in a faintly insolent tone.
“Your son says he likes it.”
At those words Hye-su felt herself freeze for a moment. The gaze he fixed on her was shining, and she felt a charisma in it—different from her husband’s, a magnetism her instincts whispered about. As if under some unknown magic spell, she lowered the hand she had raised.
“Let’s go now…”
Han Pan said it and walked ahead; Hye-su picked up her coffee and followed. The stairs from the rooftop down to the second floor were quite steep. In her high heels she teetered, and he held out his hand to steady hers. With every step the skirt parted precariously, revealing the full length of her thighs, and the display thoroughly captured the eyes of the men on the second floor. Hye-su was conscious of those stares. Having so many male gazes fixed on her at once brought a dizzying sensation she had never felt before. Something new.
Once they reached the second floor she said,
“Something… feels different.”
“What does?”
“Just… the atmosphere around us.”
Han Pan had already noticed several men, even those with dates of their own, looking at her and at him; an inexplicable sense of superiority rose in him. She was not his date, yet simply being with a woman like her was an unknown pleasure. He smiled and headed for the first floor; she followed.
They arrived at the parking lot. Han Pan stood in front of the driver’s door and said,
“I’ve always wanted to try driving a car like this. Any chance you’d give me the opportunity… Mom?”
The word “Mom” that left his lips made Hye-su’s face show a flicker of surprise. It felt awkward, yet not unpleasant. No—it was exactly what she had wanted. The single word shook her with fierce intensity.