Episode 4 — Private Secretary
“Can I start work as early as tomorrow?”
“If necessary, I’ll contact you. When that happens, just come here.”
He stepped a little closer. Since he had come so near that their faces might almost touch, Iseol stiffened and stared straight ahead.
The logo embroidered on his sweatshirt filled her entire field of vision.
Without another word, he slipped something into the pocket of Iseol’s jacket and turned away.
The faint gust created by the man carried an even stronger wave of his unpleasant perfume.
As soon as he turned his back, Iseol slightly frowned and lowered her head to check what he had left in her pocket.
It was the key card to this room.
Standing there for a moment in a daze, a faint smile slowly spread across her lips.
“I passed…”
Fortunately, the disaster she had feared—failing from the very first test—had not happened.
Just moments ago, irritation, anxiety, and confusion had been tangled chaotically in her head. But now that she had succeeded, an indescribable sense of pride surged through her.
It was the satisfaction that only came when one’s desire for recognition was fulfilled.
Not only had she secured a new job, but it also came with a massive salary. It was enough to make her chest swell with excitement.
From now on, I need to stay even sharper.
Even after realizing that she would be working under a very demanding boss, Iseol’s enthusiasm burned brighter than ever.
She resolved that she would absolutely satisfy him, prove her abilities, and earn incentives worthy of her performance.
* * *
Bzzz— Bzzz—
Still deep in sleep, Iseol blindly moved her hand around, searching for her phone without even opening her eyes.
She thought it was her alarm, but it was actually a call.
Seeing that it was from an unsaved number, she was about to ignore it and go back to sleep—when her eyes suddenly flew open.
For some reason, she had a bad feeling.
No way…?
Clearing her groggy voice, Iseol hurriedly answered the phone.
“Yes, this is Han Iseol.”
[From now on, answer my calls before the ringtone goes off more than twice. I don’t like waiting.]
Just as she expected—it was him.
Her new VIP client since yesterday.
Kang Taesan.
[Prepare a protein shake, a sous-vide steak, and a salad without dressing and place them on the room table. I’ll be done working out in two hours, so have it ready before then.]
The call ended immediately.
Iseol stood there blankly for a moment before replaying the automatically recorded call.
“Sous-vide steak? At this hour?”
The current time was 5:00 a.m.
Five in the morning.
Moreover, neither of those were dishes that could easily be bought anywhere, which instantly made Iseol’s head spin with complications.
Even so, she jumped out of bed without complaint and began getting ready for work.
Since she had been told she could dress comfortably from now on, she only lightly tidied her skin instead of putting on full makeup. For clothes, she chose a sweatshirt and jeans rather than a suit.
But even while changing, her mind was filled with the instructions he had given.
Would there even be a salad shop open this early?
Sitting on her bed, Iseol thoroughly searched through salad shops across Seoul.
The few places that were open were mostly unmanned stores—and even those didn’t sell the items she needed.
“Sous-vide steak…”
Deep in thought, she searched for nearby office districts.
Surely areas with many companies would be better than the hotel where he was staying.
There would likely be plenty of office workers who exercised early in the morning before going to work, so perhaps some shops opened early to target them.
When she searched for office complexes near the hotel, countless gyms and salad shops appeared.
“Oh, found one.”
Iseol immediately called, but no one answered.
Perhaps because the opening time was 7 a.m.
She decided to go there and wait anyway, leaving without hesitation.
After all, the time granted by her VIP wasn’t very generous.
* * *
Arriving at the shop around 6:10 a.m., Iseol desperately pleaded with the owner who had just begun preparing to open.
She explained that it was extremely urgent and asked if he could make the order quickly.
She even offered to pay double.
At first, the owner refused awkwardly, saying it would be difficult, but eventually he relented when Iseol begged so earnestly.
It had taken quite a bit of effort to find the shop again, but it seemed she would succeed without any issues this time.
Only then did Iseol allow herself a relaxed smile.
Of course, she couldn’t let her guard down yet.
The mission wasn’t over until she delivered the food and placed it in front of him.
“Your order is ready.”
“Thank you so much.”
After thanking the owner several times, Iseol took the subway rather than a taxi.
Crushed inside the hellish morning commute train, she focused more on protecting the food than protecting herself.
After getting off at a station near the hotel, she checked once more that the food hadn’t been damaged before heading inside.
Using the room key he had given her, she entered the suite.
But he wasn’t there yet.
It seemed his workout hadn’t finished.
Well, it’s only 6:45 a.m.
Following his instructions, she began setting the food on the table.
But the sous-vide steak had cooled down in that short time.
It had been warm when she left the shop.
He hadn’t specifically said it had to be warm, but she thought it would taste better that way.
She quietly looked around.
Even though the suite had a living room and kitchen, there wasn’t a microwave or gas stove.
Then how should I heat it?
After pacing around the kitchen while thinking, Iseol suddenly picked up the electric kettle.
Her idea was simple.
If she boiled water, poured it into a bowl, and placed the steak plate on top, maybe the rising heat would warm it a little.
If it works, great. If not, oh well.
The plate holding the steak was quite thin, so the effect was better than she expected.
Each time the water cooled, she quickly replaced it with fresh hot water.
Soon, the steak felt pleasantly warm.
“Wow, you’re really smart, Iseol.”
She smiled proudly at her own cleverness.
Just then—
Click.
The sound of the door opening echoed.
Iseol quickly moved the bowl of hot water used for heating the steak out of sight.
Entering the living room, he glanced at her but didn’t greet her, heading straight toward the bathroom.
“Um, Director?”
Instead of answering, he simply turned to look at her.
“The meal is ready.”
“Yes. But…”
She had called out instinctively, thinking it would be best if he ate while the food was still warm—but the moment she heard his blunt voice, she realized her mistake.
Iseol had no right to instruct or guide her boss.
Especially not now, when she had only just begun working.
“I thought I should report it.”
“I have eyes. I can see that much myself. You don’t need to report every little thing.”
“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Clearly annoyed, he went into the bathroom.
“Oh… I let my guard down.”
Without realizing it, she had wanted him to quickly confirm that she had successfully completed the task—and maybe even praise her.
Only after his remark did Iseol come back to her senses.
I almost told my boss to hurry up and eat…
Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath.
She reminded herself to stay calm at all times and not get easily carried away.
While he was showering, she reheated the steak again, worried it might get cold.
As she stared absentmindedly out the window at the beautiful view, the bathroom door opened.
After putting away the bowl of water, she stepped aside.
He walked toward the table, wearing nothing but a bathrobe.
Each time he moved, glimpses of his firm muscles showed beneath the robe, but Iseol tried her best not to look in that direction.
Sitting down, Kang Taesan didn’t touch anything else at first.
He drank the protein shake.
Then he ate the salad.
Finally, he took a bite of the steak.
The moment he put the meat into his mouth, he paused.
Seeing that, Iseol tensed instantly.
Did something go wrong?
“I thought it would be cold, but it’s warm.”
“Yes. I heated it.”
“How?”
“If you place the plate over hot water, it warms up quite nicely.”
Looking at her as if surprised, he showed the faintest smile.
Did he just… smile? Was that praise?
Praise didn’t just make whales dance—it made Iseol want to dance too.
Feeling proud, she tried hard to suppress the corners of her lips from rising and forced her face back into a neutral expression.
After tapping his phone a few times, he set it down.
Immediately, Iseol’s phone vibrated briefly.
“I sent you my trainer’s number. Get the diet plan from them and prepare the meals exactly like that from now on.”
