TIES THAT BIND.

Master’s Mercy

Zara stood outside the master's door, her heart still racing from the sudden and violent expulsion from his room. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down, but her mind was reeling.

What had just happened? One minute she was serving coffee, the next she was being thrown out of the room like a discarded rag doll. And those eyes... she couldn't shake the image of the master's electric blue eyes, burning with an inner fire.

She looked down at her uniform, and saw that it was stained with coffee and water. She groaned inwardly, knowing that she would have to change before she could continue with her duties.

As she turned to head back to the maid's quarters, she heard the sound of footsteps behind her. She turned to see Ms. Lee approaching, a look of concern on her face.

"Zara, what happened?" Ms. Lee asked, her voice low and urgent. "I heard a loud noise coming from the master's room."

Zara hesitated, unsure of how much to reveal. But something about Ms. Lee's kind face put her at ease, and she found herself pouring out the whole story...

At the other end of the mansion, Minho was fuming with anger. In all his years, not one single maid had ever seen him in such a state of undress. And yet, on her very first day, Zara had stumbled upon him, towel wrapped around his waist, his eyes blazing with intensity.

He made his way to his walk-in closet, his mind racing with thoughts of how to contain the situation. And then, he noticed something that made his heart sink. His eye contact lenses, the ones that changed the color of his eyes to black, were sitting on the counter, unused.

Minho's eyes widened in shock. He had removed the lenses so he could take a bath, and now... now Zara had seen his true eye color. He felt a wave of frustration wash over him, and he slammed his fist on the counter.

He made his way out of the closet and back into the bedroom, where he saw Ms. Lee cleaning up the mess Zara had made.

"Ms. Lee," he said, his voice still tight with anger. "I want to see Zara in my office in 10 minutes."

Ms. Lee nodded, her eyes cast downward. "Yes, sir. Right away, sir."

Minho's eyes narrowed, his mind already racing with thoughts of how to deal with Zara's impertinence. He turned and walked away, leaving Ms. Lee to wonder what had just happened...

Minho sat behind his desk, his eyes fixed on the door as he waited for Zara to arrive. He could hear the faint sound of her footsteps outside, and then the soft knock on the door.

"Enter," he called out, his voice firm but controlled.

The door opened, and Zara slipped inside, her eyes cast down as if she was holding back tears. Minho's gaze flicked to her arm, which was reddened from the hot coffee earlier. For a moment, he felt a pang of... something. He wasn't sure what it was, but it was enough to make him hesitate.

At first, he had been planning to fire her immediately. But after she saw his real eye color, he changed his mind. He wanted to know why she had reacted that way, and what she would do now that she knew his secret.

Zara's eyes remained downcast as she approached the desk, but Minho could sense her gaze flicking up to meet his. And when she did look up, he could see the faintest glimmer of surprise in her eyes.

But it was quickly replaced by a look of confusion. Minho knew why. His eyes, which had been a bright, electric blue just a little while ago, were now back to their normal black orbs. Zara's gaze searched his face, as if wondering if she had imagined the whole thing.

Minho's expression remained neutral, giving nothing away. But inside, he was watching her, waiting to see how she would react...

"I'm so sorry, master," Zara said, her voice trembling. "I didn't mean to intrude on your privacy. I was just trying to deliver your coffee."

Minho's expression remained neutral, giving away nothing. Zara looked at him, trying to read his emotions, but his face was a mask.

"I... I thought I had knocked, master," Zara continued, trying to explain. "I didn't mean to startle you."

Minho's gaze seemed to bore into her, but his voice was calm when he spoke. "It's fine, Zara. Accidents happen."

Zara's eyes widened in surprise. She had been expecting him to yell at her, or worse, fire her on the spot. But instead, he seemed to be letting her off the hook.

"Thank you, master," she said, her voice filled with relief.

Minho's gaze lingered on her for a moment, and then he nodded. "Just be more careful in the future."

Zara nodded eagerly, feeling a wave of gratitude towards him. "Yes, master. I will."

Minho's expression softened slightly, and he nodded again. "Good. You can go now."

Zara turned to leave, feeling a sense of relief wash over her. She had been expecting the worst, but instead, she had been given a second chance...

As Zara left his office, Minho's gaze lingered on her, his mind racing with thoughts. He had decided to let her off with a warning, but it wasn't out of kindness. No, it was because he wanted to keep her close, to observe her and see if she truly had seen his eyes.

At first, he had been convinced that she had. The way she had reacted, the look of shock on her face... it had all pointed to the fact that she had seen his true eye color. But now, as he thought back on their conversation, he wasn't so sure. She hadn't seemed to notice anything out of the ordinary, and her apology had seemed genuine.

Minho's eyes narrowed as he pondered the situation. He couldn't shake the feeling that Zara was hiding something, but at the same time, he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. And so, he had decided to keep her on, just in case. Just in case she did know something, and just in case she might reveal more in the future.

He quickly composed himself and pulled out his phone, dialing Liam's number. "Liam, I need you to arrange a new contract today," he growled, his voice low and menacing. "I want it drawn up and brought to the office within the hour. And the submissive is Jenny Choi."

Liam's voice was calm and collected on the other end of the line. "Yes, sir. Right away, sir."