Chapter 78

* * *

"Invite me to your home."

At the sudden statement, Dane, who was about to take off his shirt, paused his movement and looked at Greyson. When he just silently stared at him intently, Greyson spoke again.

"I have something to give you. To be precise, for Darling."

"You have something for Darling?"

Dane asked, finally resuming his movement. The fact that Greyson's gaze remained fixed on him as he slowly put his removed shirt into his bag and took out a new one made Greyson quite satisfied. Greyson, who was leaning against the cabinet, tilted his head but then straightened it again when he realized that his height was much taller than the cabinet.

"Yes, so I need to go to your house."

Dane continued to look at Greyson as he pulled out the shirt that was rolled up over his chest. Greyson momentarily lost himself watching the firm breasts disappear under the shirt, but soon came to his senses and returned his eyes to Dane's face.

"What is it?"

As expected, Dane showed interest. Greyson answered calmly, pretending to be nonchalant.

"A cat tower."

"A cat tower?"

Dane immediately frowned and repeated the same word questioningly. Instead of explaining, Greyson took out his mobile phone and held out a picture of the cat tower he had prepared. Dane stared at the enormous cat tower on the screen and then opened his mouth in a slow tone.

"Something this big won't fit in my house."

"The size can be reduced."

Greyson quickly said and pointed to one side of the picture.

"You just don't assemble this part. This part can also be excluded. If the height is a problem, it's fine to just go up to here."

Dane was silent for a moment as Greyson pointed to each area with his finger.

So it can grow that big.

In fact, that model was exactly the one Dane had been eyeing. This bastard was casually offering as a gift something he had to save money for months to buy.

Though it grated on him, he was an extremely practical man. Leaving his emotions aside, he quickly calculated with his reason. With this, he could use the money he had saved to do something else for Darling. Okay, not bad.

"So?"

"What?"

When Dane, who had quickly made up his mind, asked, Greyson hesitated. Dane questioned him once more.

"What do you want, my chest?"

Seeing Dane about to take off his shirt, Greyson's mouth gaped open, but he soon sighed. This time, Dane hesitated at the unexpected reaction. Greyson spoke to Dane as if admonishing him.

"It's not good to try to solve everything with your chest."

"What?"

Dane's face contorted in disbelief. What is he saying, this breast fetishist...

To the dumbfounded Dane, Greyson continued calmly.

"I told you, invite me to your home."

And before Dane could speak, he added.

"I want to see Darling."

Dane silently looked at him. As if to hear what nonsense he was talking about. Greyson, of course, continued to speak.

"You said cats shouldn't be taken out of the house, right? That would be even more true since it hasn't been long since she was discharged from the hospital. Then what other way is there but for me to go to your house?"

Seeing him deliberately shrug his shoulders, Dane fell into thought for a moment. There was absolutely no flaw in his words. It was perfect, as if he had thought of the answer in advance.

Of course, he must have thought about it.

Dane, still not letting go of his suspicion, asked once more.

"What's your reason for wanting to see Darling so badly?"

This was the trump card answer Greyson had prepared. He brought a familiar smile to his entire face and spread his hands wide.

"I'm a 'fan' of Darling."

Dane's reaction came a beat late.

"What?"

With his deeply furrowed face, Greyson just smiled and looked at him.

* * *

Dane's house was located in a quiet and secluded residential area. It was a small house located at the very last corner, which appeared after driving along the road for quite some time after entering the district. Greyson parked his car on the road in front of the house and took out the shopping bag he had placed in the back seat. Of course, this too had been prepared by his secretary.

A boy playing ball in the neighboring house stopped and looked at him with surprised eyes at the flashy sports car, rare to see in the neighborhood. Greyson smiled brightly at him and then headed toward Dane's front door with light steps.

Ding-dong, the small, cute bell sound felt like it was knocking on Greyson's heart. There seemed to be a presence inside, and a moment later, the door flung open. Naturally, Dane was standing there, looking at him.

"Hello. Thank you for inviting me."

Greyson smiled and held out the shopping bag along with his greeting. Though he hadn't exactly been invited, Dane didn't bother to correct him and just took the shopping bag before turning around first. Confirming that he was barefoot, Greyson took off his dress shoes at the entrance and put on the spare slippers placed inside the house.

The inside of the house, unexpectedly, looked cozy and comfortable. The overall colors were bright and cheerful, so that sitting on the sofa with a cat in one's arms and drinking tea when sunlight entered the living room would seem like the most peaceful scene possible. And right after entering, there was a small staircase leading to the second floor past the pantry on the left side of the living room. Next to the stairs, a second living room connecting to the garage was visible, and going down three small steps from the first living room, there was a small dining area combined with a third living room connected to the kitchen.

It took less than a minute to look around the house once. Greyson stood there blankly at the modest size where everything could be roughly seen in just a few steps.

Dane had placed the shopping bag on the dining table and was in the process of checking what Greyson had brought. Seeing that it was filled with premium canned cat food, the most expensive among the ones sold, which he couldn't often buy, he thought he had made the right decision to listen to Greyson.

This should be enough to feed her comfortably for a year.

As he was inwardly satisfied and about to gather the cans to put them in the cabinet where Darling's snacks and supplies were kept, he suddenly caught sight of Greyson. Seeing him standing alone in one corner of the living room, his brow furrowed involuntarily. What is he doing?

As if his thoughts had been transmitted, Greyson turned his gaze toward him. When their eyes met, Dane rolled his eyes to one side. Greyson followed his gaze to where the cat tower was.

"Darling is there, at the very top."

"Ah..."

He had momentarily forgotten that he had come here on the pretext of wanting to see Darling. Greyson quickly put on a loving expression and approached the cat. Darling was lying with her eyes closed at the top level of the cat tower. As if she wasn't sleeping, she slowly swayed her tail, which was hanging down, from side to side, and Greyson stared at her blankly.

Even looking at her again, she was an ugly cat. He still couldn't understand how someone could cherish such a cat so dearly. Moreover, she couldn't see or hear, so how did they communicate? He had heard that even with animals, people develop a connection as they raise them, but could such a connection be formed even with these disabilities?

As he was looking at the cat with pure curiosity, the cat, who had been lying with her eyes closed peacefully, suddenly flinched. The way she flared her nostrils and sniffed around was enough for even Greyson, who was a layman when it came to cats, to know she was anxious. Why is she acting like this?

"Remove your pheromones."

When he was momentarily confused, Dane, who had somehow approached abruptly, said in a low voice. And then he gently picked up Darling and, as if he knew everything, kissed her face and made a small "tsk tsk tsk" sound with his tongue as if to soothe her. Can't she hear anyway? Greyson thought, but Dane didn't stop there.

...Ah.

A familiar scent that Greyson also knew began to spread faintly. Dane was releasing pheromones to the cat. When used appropriately, an extreme Omega's pheromones not only make the other party comfortable and suppress hostility but also make them feel affection. Does that apply to animals too? Or is it because Darling is familiar with Dane's scent?

Though he couldn't know the reason, the cat soon seemed reassured and made a purring sound.