Chapter 8
Even though she had been drinking, Ji-an could intuitively sense that this would keep happening as long as she remained Tae-jun’s secretary.
If she could end this uncomfortable relationship in one night…
…she would have no choice but to follow Tae-jun’s wishes.
Unlike her resolve, it took some time to actually voice the words, but Ji-an tightly gripped the hem of her skirt and spoke.
“If I sleep with you once, will you stop making things difficult for me?”
She deliberately emphasized the phrase “sleep with you” to provoke Tae-jun’s pride.
But instead of getting upset, he let out a short laugh.
“That depends on how you do.”
“Excuse me? That’s not fair. You need to be clear so I can decide.”
Ji-an expressed her discomfort toward the arbitrary Tae-jun.
“I’d have to be satisfied enough to even think about stopping. From the sound of it now, you’d probably just lie there like a log, and I’m not so desperate that I’d want to hold a woman like that.”
His explicit words and gaze stuck黏黏地 to Ji-an’s eardrums.
Since they had already been together once, there was no reason to feel burdened.
Besides, she had been drinking today and wasn’t entirely sober, so she felt she could accommodate Tae-jun for the most part.
If it absolutely had to be done, today seemed better than any other day. Ji-an stopped hesitating and slowly nodded.
“Fine. Let’s do it.”
“Are you serious?”
Perhaps it was her imagination, but Tae-jun seemed genuinely taken aback.
Since she expected him to smile with satisfaction at getting the answer he wanted, Ji-an found his reaction strange as well.
“Yes, I’m serious. I might not be able to satisfy you, Director, but I’ll try.”
When Ji-an nodded again in confirmation, Tae-jun let out a low laugh.
“Try…”
He let out a short laugh, then turned his head and stared intently at Ji-an.
It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, but he remained that way for a long time.
Time dragged on so slowly that one minute felt like an hour.
After a while, without any particular answer, Tae-jun turned the steering wheel to the left and moved the car.
‘Haa.’
The moment the car carrying the two of them merged onto the road—
Ji-an could be certain of their destination.
‘WS Hotel, Room 1104.’
The memory of Tae-jun’s low whisper right by her ear became vivid again.
She didn’t know if this was the right choice, but the water had already been spilled.
Ji-an gripped her seatbelt tightly with both hands and took a deep breath.
Just imagining what was about to happen made her feel as if her mind was bleaching white.
When the car first started, their destination had been the WS Hotel.
But Ji-an, sitting in the passenger seat, soon fell asleep.
It almost seemed too easy, the way her mind grew comfortable on the drive to the hotel.
After spending one night together, Ji-an would probably think she had done her part.
‘This is for the best.’
After a moment’s thought, Tae-jun turned the car toward Ji-an’s pre-verified home address.
After driving for about thirty minutes, they arrived in Ji-an’s neighborhood.
Not knowing when she might wake up, Tae-jun parked in an alley close to Ji-an’s home.
‘What a rundown neighborhood.’
That was Tae-jun’s impression as he looked around the area for a parking spot.
The buildings were even more dilapidated than in the photos, and with few streetlights, many places were quite dark.
‘It looks dangerous for a woman to walk around here alone.’
For a moment, Tae-jun’s brow furrowed.
Because he wondered who he was worried about.
‘Whatever happens to her, it’s none of my business.’
Tae-jun quickly pushed aside his thoughts and opened the window to clear his mind.
Though summer was slowly approaching, the night air was still cool.
Suppressing his emotions as he felt the wind against his cheek, Tae-jun slowly turned his head to look at Ji-an.
‘She sleeps so fearlessly.’
Seeing her asleep, breathing steadily, made him feel irritated.
If she had been truly nervous, she wouldn’t have been able to fall asleep.
Tae-jun wondered how Ji-an could act that way around him.
‘There’s no way I’m making her comfortable.’
Before he knew it, Tae-jun found himself quietly studying her face.
Her small face with pale skin was filled with well-defined features.
Long, thick eyelashes, a nose with a rounded tip, and small, plump lips painted red.
Even though she must have been through a lot, Ji-an’s face showed no trace of time, looking just as it had before.
Watching her sleep so vulnerably, Tae-jun’s chest warmed with old feelings he had once held for her.
In particular, her pretty lips—his favorite feature—drew him in.
As if bewitched, his hand moved slowly toward Ji-an.
Then he suddenly came to his senses and stopped mid-air.
Tae-jun clenched his fist tightly.
‘What the hell am I doing?’
Various emotions churned and tangled in his chest like a whirlwind over his impulsive action.
Frowning at the unpleasant feeling, he tried to return his body, which had been leaning toward Ji-an, to its original position—when a loud ringtone echoed through the car.
‘…!’
At that moment, to his chagrin, his eyes met Ji-an’s as she woke with a start.
‘Damn it.’
Tae-jun cursed inwardly and quickly pulled back.
His heart pounded as loudly as the ringtone, afraid that his momentarily weakened feelings might have been noticed.
The phone screen showed Yoo-hyun’s name.
Why did he have to call at a time like this?
Tae-jun, his chest churning with displeasure, touched the call button.
“Yeah.”
He could feel Ji-an looking at him with startled eyes.
Even though he had turned his gaze to the window while answering the phone, all his nerves were focused on her.
—Is the company dinner over?
“Yeah. Just finished.”
—I’m with Dad right now. Can you come over? It’s almost two weeks since Hyung came back to Korea, and we haven’t had a single family meal together.
Checking the time, it felt already late by instinct.
As expected, it was nearly 10 PM.
“It’s already late, and I still have work to wrap up, so I need to go back to the office. I don’t think I can make it today. Sorry.”
—Really? That’s too bad. Then let’s find a time soon and have dinner together.
“Yeah, okay.”
Just as he was about to end the call, Yoo-hyun continued.
—And that Ji-an Seo I recommended—she might have a short resume, but she’s really good at her job. You could say she’s sharp.
“Is that so?”
—She’s an employee I had my eye on, so she’ll do well. I was going to bring her in as my secretary, but I recommended her to you instead. Take good care of her, and let me know if there are any problems.
“…Alright.”
The call ended like that.
Throughout, Yoo-hyun acted as if he were Ji-an’s guardian.
Yoo-hyun was naturally fond of people.
Even though Tae-jun knew that well, he didn’t feel pleased about Yoo-hyun’s interest in Ji-an.
‘Are they in some kind of relationship?’
Tae-jun stared at the darkened screen, his brow furrowed.
“Um… Director.”
Just then, Ji-an cautiously spoke to him from the side.
Instead of answering, Tae-jun looked at her with a hard expression.
“It wasn’t intentional. I’m sorry for falling asleep.”
At her apologetic expression, Tae-jun felt an unpleasant itch in his throat.
He didn’t want to make Ji-an feel even a little comfortable.
For some reason, his nerves had suddenly become sharply heightened.
“But why did you come to my neighborhood? Why didn’t you just wake me up?”
Even her calm, measured tone was displeasing.
“I’m not so desperate that I’d wake up a sleeping woman just to put her in a bed.”
Consequently, his words came out harsh again.
The way Ji-an rubbed the back of her neck with an awkward expression was like a thorn in his eye.
“Get out.”
“I’m truly sorry about today. And thank you for seeing me home.”
Although he saw Ji-an bow her head deeply, Tae-jun immediately turned his head away.
‘What’s there to be sorry and thankful for to a boss who only wanted her body?’
Every single thing she did bothered him.
As he remained motionless, he heard the sound of Ji-an closing the car door.
Tae-jun glanced briefly to confirm she had gotten out, then immediately drove off.
His hands gripped the steering wheel with full force.
Ji-an stood watching until Tae-jun’s car, quickly receding, disappeared from the alley.
“Phew.”
As soon as it was completely out of sight, a sigh escaped her lips.
Earlier, when the ringtone in the car had made her open her eyes wide—
…the sight of her familiar neighborhood reflected in her eyes made her head throb painfully.
It was humiliating that Tae-jun had seen the neighborhood she currently lived in.
‘What must he have thought seeing this place?’
Ji-an slowly looked around at various spots that Tae-jun might have seen.
All she could do was sigh.
“My head hurts.”
She had drunk quite a bit, so she couldn’t even take a painkiller.
Muttering that nothing was going her way, she was about to start walking toward her home—
“Who’s the guy in that expensive foreign car?”
“…!”
Her half-sister, So-jin, spoke to her from behind.
They weren’t close enough to have a conversation, so Ji-an frowned as soon as she saw So-jin.
But So-jin deliberately walked right up to Ji-an and stood facing her.
“Seeing him drive you all the way to your front door, it doesn’t look like an ordinary relationship. Is he your boyfriend?”
“We’re nothing. So mind your own business.”
Ji-an spoke indifferently and tried to walk away, but So-jin blocked her again.
“Come on. You two were just standing here for a while doing who knows what in the car. There’s no way you’re nothing. We’re both grown adults—why be so shy? Ah! Are you not actually together yet? Well, I guess it’s the trend these days to test physical compatibility before dating.”
“Seo So-jin. How can you have a conversation if you don’t even listen to me? I clearly said we’re nothing. I’m going in first.”
Ji-an strode past So-jin.
“Crazy bitch.”
Left alone in the alley, So-jin muttered an insult at the back of Ji-an’s head.
But Ji-an didn’t even acknowledge it and quickly disappeared into the distance.
“Maybe it’s because of her delicate looks, but she sure has a talent for bewitching men. Where on earth does she meet guys capable of driving a car like that?”
Despite being in the same situation, the fact that only her own love life seemed to be going poorly made So-jin feel inferior.
On her phone screen was a photo of Ji-an getting out of the luxury foreign car.
