Seoul Spankings Read Online Free Page A

best she could.
    “We can’t keep Ee Sajangnim waiting,” Miss Lee urged. “ Bahlee, bahlee .”
    When I stared at myself in the full-length mirror next to the wardrobe, I couldn’t believe the results. I touched the necklace, shook the bangle, and twirled. The dress flared out around me, a sumptuous, jewel-toned parachute drifting below my knees. I should have twirled on satin ballet shoes, rising onto my toes for an elegant arabesque. Instead, atop the glittery golden sandals I teetered on the brink between falling and flying. My toes would ache by the end of the evening, but, before that, I would dance on magical shoes transported to an ethereal land.
    I lifted the tiny gold lamé clutch, just big enough to hold my lipstick, oil blotting paper, and a few tissues.
    “I’m ready,” I said, and my new borrowed shoes carried me forth in a waft of rose-scented elegance.

 
     
     
Chapter Three
     
     
    As Miss Cha ushered the green-and-gold-clad figure out of the elevator and across the foyer, heads whipped around. Gone was the schoolgirl, and in her place floated a woman who looked her best and knew it. Whatever Miss Cha had charged to the company account, it was worth it. The curved seams of Indi Go’s bodice accentuated her body in a way her previous dress had not. Her hair, too short for ordinary femininity, lay in a shining cap. My hairdresser must have smoothed the uneven ends and applied deep conditioning. It would take time to remove Indi’s rough edges, but I had the resources.
    The dress. My God, the dress. On me, the softness and bows would wash out the hard angles I had worked years to achieve. On this girl, the green flounces transformed her into a creature of mystery and delight, flutters and promises. I licked my lips, imagining the depths hidden just below the sweet, demure neckline.
    What was I thinking? What was Miss Cha thinking? Did she forget Indi Go was unsuitable in every possible way? How could Miss Cha dress Indi Go like a runway model? Indi Go would board her plane tomorrow and release me from this public relations nightmare. And I thought marrying a woman would cause a stir. I had never considered the scandal of an American who couldn't say a single word of proper Korean.
    “On Young Ha Say Yo,” she said, dipping her shoulders toward me in a passable imitation of the correct greeting. Such a simple thing, something I would have taken for granted in anyone else, had I not seen her performance earlier. Each syllable correct, if stilted. Each detail of her dress and hair was perfection. She stood awkwardly, like a runner shod in stilettos, but she did not shame me.
    Beside her, Miss Cha beamed with the pride of a mother. She adjusted Indi Go’s sash and brushed an imaginary piece of lint from her skirt. Indi Go stared at me, wide-eyed and ready. I could order her as my servant, or I could invite her as my guest.
    With a heart lighter than before, I turned toward the limousine waiting outside. It was an extravagance for the congested Seoul traffic, but a comfort I had come to view as a necessity. I held out my hand and offered it to my would-be bride.
    “Come,” I said.
    And she did.
     
    ***
     
    “Yesului jondange kachura.”
    I tried to make sense of the unfamiliar words, but a sleek, uniformed chauffeur held open the door of an immaculate black car, glossy as a grand piano. After Hyunkyung entered, I slid into the smooth seat like Cinderella into her pumpkin coach. Was it a day ago I’d drowned my sorrows in homemade chocolate chip cookies? Was it a week ago Great-Aunt Matilda summoned me to her home? I’d gone armed with every answer to every possible accusation she could throw at me. I couldn’t help it if Greg needed the apartment. Yes, she’d told me so. Yes, I realized the baby’s due date in two months meant Greg had been cheating on me for as long as we’d lived together. No, I didn’t know what he was thinking.
    Stop it! Greg had no right to this evening. I’d given