Chapter 24

Iseo froze as if her whole body had turned to stone. With Taeseok standing so close, she couldn’t even breathe properly.

“What… are you doing?”

“I can’t wait any longer. Knowing that the woman connected to Han Jitae is living in the same officetel, right across the hall, makes me want to push up the wedding.”

“Even if it’s a small wedding, preparing for a marriage isn’t that easy.”

“I’ll take care of it. But more importantly—”

Before he could finish, Iseo grabbed the tie of her robe tightly. The way Taeseok was looking directly at her made her feel like she was about to melt into nothing.

“Is it really your first time, Ms. Choi Iseo?”

“What is?”

“If you’ve never had a real relationship, I was wondering… am I your first? Holding hands, hugging… and…”

The hot breath from Taeseok’s soft lips touched Iseo’s cheek.

“Wh-what do you mean, first…?”

Trying to remain calm, Iseo gulped nervously despite her words.

“You talk like you’ve had tons of experience.”

“I may seem that way, but I’m not who people think I am.”

Rumors had always followed him—he had complicated relationships, he slept with women and then discarded them. That kind of talk had become his reputation.

“I think you keep forgetting, but we’re not married yet. Even if we were, that doesn’t mean I’m giving you permission for everything. So stop this. Think logically.”

At her words, one corner of Taeseok’s mouth curled into a smirk.

“Permission? The fact that you’re talking like that must mean you know I’m capable of something. And I tend to follow instinct more than reason.”

As Taeseok leaned in even closer—

Iseo’s phone rang.

“I-it’s a call.”

Saved by the bell—literally. Grateful for the interruption, she rushed to grab her phone from the table. The caller was Jian.

“Hello?”

[Whoa, easy! You nearly burst my eardrum.]

Taeseok stood a few steps away, watching her intently.

[Choi Iseo, congratulations.]

“Huh?”

[Wait, don’t tell me you haven’t seen the message yet?]

Startled by Jian’s words, she quickly checked her phone.

“We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at NY Entertainment. Congratulations on passing the final interview. Please review the onboarding information and prepare for your first day.”

Iseo’s hand, still holding the phone, trembled slightly.

[What were you doing that you didn’t even know you got the message?]

“I’ll call you back later, Jian.”

After hastily ending the call, Iseo ran over and hugged Taeseok around the neck.

“Oh my god. I got the job! The company where I had the interview—I got in!”

The scent of her body wash still lingered faintly as she clung tightly to him, making Taeseok’s nose tingle. His lips lifted in a soft arc as he looked down at the woman laughing like a child in his arms.

“You just said not to do this, and now you’re the one making the move? Hugging me like this, dressed like that… what am I supposed to do?”

Her soft chest pressed against his firm body, visible beneath the thin dress shirt.

“W-what? Oh.”

Blushing furiously, Iseo took a step back. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d smiled this brightly.

“It’s not like it’s your first job. Why are you so excited?”

“Because it’s something I really wanted to do.”

“I’ll be waiting. Go get ready.”

“Where are we going?”

“You haven’t eaten yet, have you?”

A little while later.

Taeseok’s car pulled up to a restaurant in Pyeongchang-dong.

This restaurant was part of a business managed by Hyejeong, who doubled as CEO. Taeseok had rented out the entire place—his way of sending a message to her, who was keeping tabs on him and Iseo.

“You just said we were going to eat.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“I just meant… it’s dinner time, but why is there no one here?”

“Who knows.”

Following the man who seemed to be the manager, Taeseok and Iseo took their seats.

“Did you know?”

“Know what?”

“About my acceptance. You made this reservation… I wondered if you already knew. Like in movies or dramas, when someone rents out the whole place. It’s not like that, right?”

“Get used to things like this.”

Taeseok’s gaze fixed on Iseo, dressed in a pastel dress. It wasn’t flashy, but she seemed to radiate light.

“How awkward. I was rude the first time we met. I didn’t expect we’d meet again like this, but just like the rumors, you really are beautiful.”

That moment—Jitae’s words suddenly resurfaced in his mind, and Taeseok bit his lip hard. Just remembering his face made his chest burn with heat.

While silently vowing to tighten security around the officetel, steak and a glass of light red wine were placed before him.

“Have a drink.”

The taste and aroma of the wine felt unusually smooth and sweet today.

“Did I hear right?”

“Sorry?”

“When you answered the phone, you said Jian.”

Taeseok still didn’t know that the company Iseo got into was NY Entertainment—and that she’d be working with Jian, who was her team leader.

“Well… actually, that’s Jian’s company. She works there.”

Taeseok’s hand, which had been cutting the steak, paused. His brow twitched slightly as he looked at her.

“You never mentioned that.”

“It’s just… I’ve always wanted to do that kind of work, and Jian happened to get hired there first. I didn’t plan it that way. Does it really matter?”

Though she’d done nothing wrong, Iseo nervously watched his reaction, offering an awkward explanation.

“What if I say I don’t like it?”

“What? You mean… me working?”

“I mean working with that guy or whatever.”

His voice was lower than usual, serious—too sincere to brush off as a joke.

“Wait… are you jealous right now?”

“Jealous? Me?”

Though he chuckled, his grip on the knife visibly tightened.

“I’m saying, don’t get too close and cause rumors or problems.”

“I get what you’re saying, but I’ll take care of my own work. Jian and I go way back.”

“This steak’s unusually tough.”

“It’s the best I’ve ever had. It melts in your mouth. You must be a picky eater, Mr. Han.”

Iseo, blissfully unaware, teased him while Taeseok downed his wine in one gulp.

“Give me your phone.”

“Now? Why?”

Taeseok called his own phone to check the name he was saved under.

“President Han?”

“Well, you are the president of Kanghwa Group.”

“I’m your company president?”

“I didn’t know what else to put. It still feels a little… awkward.”

“We’re about to become husband and wife. Won’t it seem strange if someone sees it?”

He held out his phone to her.

“My… my man?”

It made her want to curl up in embarrassment. Her face turned red as she saw the name he had saved. Then, Taeseok saved himself in her phone as ‘My Man’ as well, finally smiling in satisfaction.

“When do you start work?”

“Next Monday.”

“You sure you can handle it? Even if the wedding planners handle most things, there’s still a lot we have to do together.”

“I’ll work hard—on my job, on the contract, and on being your wife. So don’t worry.”

“You keep calling it a contract, but the moment you signed, we became husband and wife.”

Just then, Taeseok’s phone rang, and his face stiffened as he saw the caller ID.

“It’s okay. Answer it.”

He hesitated a beat when he saw the name Jang Pilsun, but eventually pressed the call button.

[Where are you?]

“Why is that the first thing you say after I pick up?”

[Don’t tell me you’re with that woman again.]

“I told you, her name is Choi Iseo.”

Even over the phone, her cold and scathing tone pierced the air as if her face were right in front of him.

[Come home by 1 p.m. tomorrow. Bring that woman, too.]

“I thought the introductions were already over. Do you have more to say?”

[Don’t argue. Just come.]

The call ended, and Taeseok’s expression hardened.

Meanwhile…

“Mother, you’re not serious, are you?”

Hyejeong asked softly as she sipped herbal tea beside Pilsun.

“You know better than anyone, don’t you? President Han never had any interest in women before, but now, he really seems to like Choi Iseo. I used to worry that he might never marry, but maybe this is actually a good thing.”

Her lips curled faintly as she gently caressed her teacup.

“What nonsense. She’s ridiculous. Marriage isn’t child’s play—it’s about families coming together. How dare she aim that high.”

That same cold, bone-chilling gaze from twenty years ago—the look Pilsun had when she cast out Taeseok’s birth mother—was still the same.

“I just worry that this marriage issue might create more distance between you and President Han. If he’s finally found someone, does that mean he’ll become CEO of Kanghwa?”

“That will only happen when he marries a proper woman. I have other plans.”