Chapter 12
“Think it over. I’ll give you a few days.”
“You know that sounds scarier than a threat, right?”
“Ha-eun, you really don’t know what a real threat is. Want me to show you properly?”
When he deliberately let his cold, sharp gaze show, Ha-eun’s chatter instantly died away. She must have thought the look was genuine.
Even at twenty-eight, she was still clueless about the ways of the world. And yet, something about her felt different. The atmosphere she gave off—it had shifted.
“Even that girlish air of yours… it’s almost all gone now.”
Lost in thought, he murmured to himself, but then—knock, knock. The silence was broken as the door to the executive office opened. His gaze naturally slid toward the entrance.
It was Secretary Seo.
Once the door shut again behind him, Jung-ho straightened from his lazy posture as Seo approached. He glanced at the documents handed over the desk.
“What is it? More approvals left from this morning?”
“No, sir. This is the document you asked me to find separately.”
Only then did Jung-ho nod in understanding and take the file.
“You said it would be hard to find.”
“I thought it was all deleted, but fortunately the file was still archived.”
“Well, I’ll take that stroke of luck. Good work finding it.”
As he flipped through the first page, a faint crease formed between his brows. His eyes scanned the lines quickly, flipping several more pages in succession.
Click.
Only after some time did he close it with satisfaction and tilt his chin toward Seo.
“You checked through it beforehand?”
“Yes, sir. I did a light review myself before bringing it.”
Jung-ho nodded as if he expected no less. A glance at the clock told him the lunch meeting was nearly upon him. The morning had vanished in a blur.
Maybe it was because Ha-eun had stopped by earlier. The thought made a ghost of a smile tug at his lips. He rose unhurriedly, shrugging his jacket back over his shoulders.
“Let’s head out. Time for the meeting.”
“Yes, I’ll have the car waiting at the entrance.”
“Wait—Seo, one second.”
He had just crossed the office and was near the door when he suddenly stopped, as if remembering something, and called his secretary back.
“What is it, sir?”
“Wasn’t it yesterday that President Lee said he’d send something over?”
Ah—that call with Hae-kyung about new investments came back to him.
“It arrived just a little while ago.”
“Bring it to me this afternoon. I should give it a look this time.”
“You’ve always been reluctant about his investments.”
“No choice. Yesterday I owed him one, after all.”
Finding out about Ha-eun’s return hadn’t been hard for Jung-ho. Still, without that call yesterday, he wouldn’t have learned so soon. For once, Lee Hae-kyung had earned his favor.
By the time the last appointment ended, night had already fallen. Sliding into the backseat of his waiting car, Jung-ho tugged loose his tie with a weary sigh.
“Haah…”
Two buttons undone eased his breath at last. Only two hours spent with that man, yet it drained him every time.
It was like testing the limits of his patience again and again. Perhaps the only thing improving was his tolerance for nonsense. Seo wasn’t much different.
“Good work today, sir.”
“Don’t schedule me with that man again for now.”
“I’ll politely decline going forward.”
The answer came instantly. Jung-ho gave him a sideways glance from the window, then let his head fall back against the seat.
He loathed old politicians.
They treated corporations as if they were beneath them, lording power around. If not for his father’s strict orders to stay courteous, he would have ignored that man entirely.
Quitting work early would’ve wasted less of his time. He shifted his gaze outside, watching trees and high-rises slide past, before leaning back with deliberate ease.
“Where to, sir?”
“Hmm… the roads look worse than I thought.”
He clicked his tongue at the clogged traffic ahead.
“Rush hour, sir.”
A quick glance at the dark sky made his brows knit faintly. Whether home or the officetel, either way would take a while.
“Let’s go to the officetel.”
With that simple order, he closed his eyes. By the time he opened them again, the car had already stopped at the building.
After a day of outside meetings, all he wanted was a shower. He left Seo with a word of thanks and headed in.
But halfway down the hall, he froze.
There was an unexpected guest waiting at his door.
“You sure know how to keep me on edge, Lee Ha-eun.”
The sight of her, suitcase in tow, told him she had accepted his offer.
It was puzzling. In the office she had looked unsettled, reluctant even. Yet here she was, luggage in hand.
Arms folded loosely, he studied her. Her outfit had changed—no longer the tidy two-piece, but jeans and a hoodie. She looked freer somehow.
Four years had left their mark.
A soundless laugh escaped him as he approached. At the noise of his steps, she whipped her head up from where she sat perched on her suitcase.
“You’re later than I thought.”
“What is this scene supposed to be?”
His eyes shifted from suitcase to girl, one then the other.
“You said to live together. So, I came on my own two feet.”
So that was why she’d asked for his address.
“A moment ago you were accusing me of blackmail?”
“Don’t worry. I thought it through.”
Jung-ho gave a disbelieving laugh, unlocking the door with a tap. Before he could tell her to go in, she had already dragged her suitcase past him and stepped inside.
He stared after her, utterly dumbfounded. Ha-eun ignored him completely, striding boldly into the living room.
Click.
The door shut behind them, and she could feel his sharp gaze burning her back. But she didn’t flinch. She no longer tiptoed around his moods or tried to read his face like she once did.
After all, it was Jung-ho who had first proposed cohabitation—as a condition before breaking off their engagement.
She clenched her fist tightly, swallowing down the awkward heat rising inside her, and halted dead center in the living room. Turning, she fixed him with steady eyes.
“Which room is mine?”
“You really plan on living here starting today?”
“Yes. Why else would I drag a suitcase here?”
She gestured plainly at the luggage she’d brought.
“You were just arguing that it makes no sense to live together when we’re about to break off the engagement.”
“Call it flexibility. Or damage control, maybe.”
“So in exchange for breaking things off, you’re accepting my proposal without complaint?”
“What, do you think I came running because I’m scared of you?”
He gave her a doubtful look.
“Well, that wasn’t exactly my meaning.”
“I know. I was joking too.”
Ha-eun lifted her chin slowly, meeting his eyes with a look that said: Weren’t you the one who threatened me with compensation just now?
