Chapter 2
Please Stay With Me Just for Today
It wasn’t something he ever expected to hear from a stranger.
“Please stay with me just for today.”
He doubted his ears as she said it without looking away.
For a woman making a proposition, her face was far too innocent. Gangwoo studied her as if to confirm whether she was really the same woman who had fled the bar moments earlier. When she repeated herself clearly, his brow furrowed.
“With me… just for today.”
Having steeled herself, she bit down on her red lips. The way her full lips were pressed together drew his eyes despite himself.
Fatigue washed over him, and he wanted to end this situation quickly. After a moment’s consideration, he asked,
“Do you even know who I am?”
The question seemed unexpected. She couldn’t hide the disappointment flickering across her face.
“…No.”
“Then let’s pretend I didn’t hear that.”
He had no intention of getting dragged into something so absurd. Turning away as if nothing had happened, he took a few steps—only to stop short when she suddenly grabbed his arm.
The boldness of her grip sent a sharp sensation racing up his arm.
“Just one day is enough. You can think of it as charity.”
“……”
Gangwoo frowned as if pressing her for an explanation. She looked just as unfamiliar with—and flustered by—this situation as he felt.
Why?
Her expression was calm, but the hand gripping his arm felt desperate. Each time their eyes met, her gaze skimmed over his face with a strange wistfulness. It unsettled him.
“Men think one-night stands are easy, don’t they?”
That added remark shattered what little composure he had left.
For someone rolling her eyes as she spoke, her words were surprisingly bold. Her voice remained steady and composed, but her eyes betrayed her.
She was trying to persuade him—arguing that this kind of request wouldn’t be a problem for a man. And yet she was far too clumsy to be dismissed as a gold digger. Worse, the desperation in her made it even more irritating.
He examined her more carefully.
She had a gentle, moderately pretty face—an ordinary East Asian woman’s appearance.
It reminded him of the stereotype his foreign friends in New York often held about Asian women. She fit the mold perfectly.
Her looks weren’t his type, not enough to provoke attraction on their own. That contrast—between her innocent appearance and her provocative words—felt jarring. Still, the bastard who had filled her head with such ideas about men irritated him most.
“Who told you that?”
“Pardon?”
“Who said men turn into dogs in heat the moment they see a woman?”
“……”
Despite his words, his tone remained smooth, almost refined.
He was speaking calmly, yet the situation felt absurd.
Why was he angry, of all things?
Her face flushed briefly, but she didn’t avert her gaze. She met his eyes head-on, unflinching.
“…Ha.”
Gangwoo scowled deeply.
They hadn’t exchanged anything overtly provocative, yet his body reacted. He didn’t know what drove her to cling to him so desperately—but that uncertainty only made him more on edge. Even he found himself ridiculous.
In this exchange, he was the “dog” she spoke of.
The corridor outside the bar was quiet at this late hour. Even small sounds felt amplified.
That was when Jinho, who had come looking for Gangwoo after he’d been gone for a while, approached.
“Why haven’t you come back?”
Jinho spoke casually, then stared at Gangwoo’s face before glancing at Chaekyung gripping his arm with clear confusion. Without addressing her directly, Jinho silently asked with his expression,
Who is this woman?
Gangwoo had no way to explain a woman he didn’t know himself. Ignoring the unspoken question, he asked instead,
“Where’s Elliot?”
“He’s in a great mood. This project should go smoothly. He even asked about another one—”
Gangwoo didn’t hear the details. He cut Jinho off.
“We’ll talk later.”
“Oh. Got it. Are you heading back in now?”
Jinho glanced sideways at Chaekyung—the unspoken question obvious.
Gangwoo followed his gaze to the hand still clutching his arm and let out a quiet sigh.
“Elliot’s yours, Director Kim. Tell him I had something come up and stepped out.”
His tone was professional, dismissive—clearly signaling Jinho to drop any personal curiosity. Whenever Gangwoo spoke that way, he deliberately addressed Jinho by title. Jinho caught on quickly.
“Yes, sir.”
“I’ll be staying here. Call if you need anything.”
“Call you? I doubt there’ll be a reason. I’ll wrap things up.”
“….”
Certain that Gangwoo would be spending a pleasant night with this woman, Jinho tactfully withdrew.
Left behind, Gangwoo felt irritated—by the awkward situation, and by how unlike himself his behavior was. Yet when he looked at her face, he couldn’t bring himself to shake her off roughly.
“Let go. I’m not leaving.”
Though he meant to sound gentle, irritation crept into his voice. To anyone else, it would’ve sounded calm and even—but it was his own judgment that wavered.
Only then did Chaekyung release his arm.
“With a face like yours, there are plenty of men who’d accept this offer. Find someone else.”
“It has to be you.”
She said it firmly, meeting his eyes.
It has to be me?
“Why? Why does it have to be me?”
“I… can’t say. But I promise I won’t bother you afterward. I won’t use this as an excuse for anything—no contact, no meetings. I swear.”
“……”
Her expression was resolute, which only made him understand her less. Gangwoo frowned.
It has to be me—but after today, we’ll never meet again…
The contradiction sent his thoughts spiraling. None of it made sense. Yet the insistence that it had to be Ji Gangwoo was strangely provocative.
Curiosity was always dangerous. Knowing that, he still couldn’t turn away—like a moth flying into flame.
It had only been an hour since he entered the bar’s private room. He’d stepped out strategically for business, planning to kill thirty minutes at the bar with a glass of whiskey.
Instead, something unexpected happened.
A woman with an awkwardly innocent face kept staring at him. He threw out blunt jokes to relieve his boredom, relieved when she stood up to leave—because women like her were easy prey for the worst kinds of men.
Then, on his way back to the room, he’d run into that sight.
Some hyena-like bastard gripping her wrist.
Helping her had been nothing more than decency toward someone in danger. He never imagined it would snowball like this.
The silence stretched.
Even without speaking, she waited stubbornly for his answer.
Reasoning wouldn’t work with her. If he wanted her to back off, he’d need another approach. Maybe frightening her would cancel this ridiculous proposal.
Normally, he would’ve cut this off without hesitation. His mind was screaming danger—but his feet refused to move.
Since he couldn’t walk away, he asked calmly, coldly, hoping she’d retract her words herself.
“If I accept your offer, what do I get?”
“……”
“Why should I agree if there’s nothing in it for me?”
“My first time.”
“…….”
The hesitation-free answer left him speechless.
Her face flushed red, yet she didn’t avert her eyes. Embarrassed, flustered, yet struggling to remain composed—every subtle reaction was laid bare. And despite it all, her resolve was unwavering.
They stood there, staring at each other for a long moment.
Her being a virgin meant nothing to him. He wasn’t desperate enough to be swayed by that.
That was what his rational mind insisted.
But his body betrayed him, responding to the raw instinctive stimulus.
For the first time, it wasn’t the mood or the alcohol—it was the woman herself that drew his interest.
Reason told him no.
But tonight, he chose deviation.
Gangwoo looked down at her steadily, then grabbed her wrist. He pressed the elevator button and waited. She had more than enough opportunity to pull away—but she didn’t.
Silence followed as they waited.
Internally, he called himself insane countless times.
A one-night stand? I’m not some naïve kid discovering sex for the first time.
A dry laugh escaped him.
Their eyes met briefly. Unlike before, she looked away.
She can’t even meet my eyes, yet she made that offer?
Ridiculous—but agreeing made him no better.
He walked down the corridor and opened the door in one motion.
When he stepped closer, she stepped back—until her back met the door.
Gangwoo braced one hand against it and looked down at her. He wanted to know why he reacted so strongly to her. Wanted to confirm it.
At this close distance, things he hadn’t noticed before came into focus. Every detail of her filled his vision.
She swallowed hard, frozen in place. He stared into her tense eyes. Her shoulders trembled slightly beneath her long, straight hair.
“Are you sure you won’t regret this?”
His voice was low, sinking even deeper.
He thought she deserved at least one last chance to back out.
“…Yes. I won’t regret it.”
She answered decisively.
Her clear black eyes reflected him.
An unfamiliar aura—dense with desire—rose within him. Seeing a version of himself he’d never confronted before sharpened his gaze further.
“You chose this. So take responsibility.”
His eyes dropped to her tightly pressed lips.
As his gaze deepened, his face slowly tilted toward hers.
