Oh Se Jin, who went to meet the representative, did not come back to see Yu Ra again after whatever conversation they had.

Thanks to that, the meeting was concluded well, and work processing gained speed. While engrossed in work, losing track of time, a knock was heard at the office.

Knock knock.

“Yes.”

In front of the open door, Lee Hyun was looking at her with narrowed eyes, as if displeased.

“Aren’t you going home?”

Only then did she lift her head to look at the clock on the wall, and it was already past quitting time.

“Ah, it’s already this late.”

“Let’s go.”

It was surprising that he, who was always busy, came a few days ago and came again today. Lee Hyun, who Yu Geon had told her about until her ears were tired of hearing, was not someone to waste time like this.

Yu Geon used to say Lee Hyun was a workaholic, seeing him pour most of his time into company work, and also teased that he was possessed by a ghost who couldn’t work when alive.

That Baek Lee Hyun had come to see Yu Ra twice already this week. Though his behavior was strange, it wasn’t entirely unpleasant.

“Hmm.”

“Today, let’s go where you want to eat.”

It was as if he was conceding this time since they went where he wanted last time. She wanted to tease him a bit, and at the mention of what she wanted to eat, a food came to mind that made her mouth water.

Getting up from her seat and packing her bag, Yu Ra asked Lee Hyun again to confirm.

“Is it really okay?”

“I’m not a picky eater.”

“That’s true. Alright, let’s go.”

Riding in Lee Hyun’s car, Yu Ra mentioned a familiar place. They endured traffic to reach the bustling area. After parking the car in a suitable spot, they plunged into the crowd.

The warmth spreading from the casually held fingertips felt good. As they passed through the crowd, when Yu Ra bumped into someone, Lee Hyun wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him.

Yu Ra’s heart fluttered again at this minor skinship. She didn’t know why such a small thing made her so excited, but her broken heart seemed to be beyond her control again today.

The place they arrived at after passing through the busy alley of the university district was a restaurant she frequented during college days.

The meat boasting the best quality at an inexpensive price was Yu Ra’s regular menu. Unlike the satisfied Yu Ra, Lee Hyun’s expression darkened when he saw the sign.

His lips seemed to quiver at the large “Gopchang Specialty” sign. Looking at Yu Ra with a disgruntled gaze, he grumbled.

“Of all places, here?”

“I thought you weren’t a picky eater?”

“Sigh.”

Ignoring the deep sigh from within him, Yu Ra pulled Lee Hyun’s hand.

Lee Hyun smiled faintly as he looked at Yu Ra’s flushed face.

“You’re drunk.”

“I’m not. I’m just in a good mood.”

“I’m glad you’re in a good mood, even if it’s like this.”

A few days ago, as an apology, they watched a performance together and even intimately shared flesh, but he didn’t want to leave even a little resentment.

From that day, she had returned to her original self as Jin Yu Ra, but Lee Hyun felt something was still a bit lacking. So he had rushed to her like this after working frantically for days and postponing prior engagements.

Yu Ra, looking even more cheerful, washed away the unpleasant feelings that had been weighing on his mind.

“Oppa.”

“Hmm?”

“Why are you being so nice? It’s just a contract, isn’t it?”

“It is a contract.”

“Isn’t it enough to just not look strange to others?”

Just enough, not to look strange… When he first proposed the contract, he did have such thoughts.

Giving his heart to someone and sharing something together was unfamiliar and uncomfortable for Lee Hyun. So he thought it would be enough to just keep up appearances to a suitable degree.

On one side of those feelings, he also felt that with Jin Yu Ra, that discomfort might not be so bad.

That’s why he put forward suitable excuses like marriage pressure or waste of time. If not for that, Jin Yu Ra might not have accepted his proposal.

“It’s not bad to look better.”

That was Lee Hyun’s true feelings. He wanted to become truly close, not just adequately. He wanted to melt that coldness that thoroughly built walls, and he wanted to keep those glances that occasionally looked elsewhere fixed only on him.

Even if it was a gaze without any reason, it was unpleasant and twisting when it turned away from him towards others.

“That’s true.”

“Why? Don’t you like it?”

Yu Ra rolled her eyes at Lee Hyun’s question.

Kind Baek Lee Hyun, gentle Baek Lee Hyun, warm Baek Lee Hyun… Yu Ra loved every Baek Lee Hyun that reached out to her. It was a true feeling she couldn’t express to him, who was in a relationship out of necessity and considering divorce.

“It’s uncomfortable.”

“You’re uncomfortable with me being nice to you?”

“I mean it’s strange.”

“What is?”

The look of not knowing anything seemed especially annoying today. How could someone so perceptive not understand this?

Was it because of the alcohol? The inner thoughts she had suppressed and hidden deep inside suddenly burst out without her realizing.

“It’s confusing. It’s like you’re jealous of the men around me. But that can’t be.”

“It’s natural for any husband to be jealous of his wife’s male acquaintances.”

“But we’re not an ordinary couple.”

That natural thing had nothing to do with us. That’s how it started, and that’s how it would end. Yet Baek Lee Hyun persistently refused to change his attitude.

Yu Ra was so flustered that she even nitpicked about Lee Hyun’s hands not stopping during their conversation.

“Look at you now. What man grills gopchang he doesn’t even like to eat this enthusiastically? I never thought Baek Lee Hyun would grill gopchang.”

“I’m good at grilling meat. I was a cook in the military.”

Why bring up the military here, and why boast about being a cook? Yu Ra’s thoughts kept getting tangled, and she felt dizzy, unsure of what she was even saying anymore.

“How nice. There’s nothing you can’t do.”

Lee Hyun’s hand approached Yu Ra’s pouting lips. He seemed to carefully lift her chin, then brushed something away with his fingertips.

“Eat the meat, not your hair.”

Yu Ra felt like her ears would go deaf from the increasingly loud pounding of her heart. How could such a simple act of removing a single strand of hair that had been sucked into her mouth be so sensual?

“See, this. You weren’t this affectionate before.”

“Our Yu Ra shouldn’t drink with other people.”

Yu Ra pouted at the unexpected remark.

“What are you saying? That’s not what we’re talking about.”

“It’s well-grilled. Try it.”

Yu Ra chewed the gopchang he offered vigorously while grumbling.

“No, when someone is talking…”

However, the juice and savory flavor instantly filling her mouth, along with the perfectly balanced sauce, were perfect. The fantastic taste of the gopchang melting in her mouth shook Yu Ra’s thoughts.

“Oh, wow! It’s delicious.”

Yu Ra became so absorbed in the gopchang that she forgot what conversation they were having.

Se Jin twisted his face in anger, unable to quell his rage as he drank whiskey at the bar set up in the guest room.

He received a request to understand that it would be difficult to observe Yu Ra’s practice due to additional work. Far from apologizing for the rudeness that day, they rather withdrew the practice observation, amplifying his anxiety.

He had gone to meet Yu Ra to find a way to keep seeing her, but somehow the representative stepped in first and thwarted the meeting.

And that wasn’t all. The face of Baek Jin Ho sitting across from him in the representative’s office was truly threatening, exuding a coolness disguised as calmness.

‘Did you use Jin Yu Ra team leader as a condition to create this situation?’

Baek Jin Ho’s appearance with thick lines gave off a completely different vibe from Baek Lee Hyun.

If the delicately featured Baek Lee Hyun looked like a sinister snake, Baek Jin Ho looked like a thousand-year-old imugi with a different build altogether. Se Jin instinctively avoided the gaze that looked down on him as if ridiculous while leisurely crossing his legs.

‘What do you mean by that…’

‘Our Songlim is reaping the full benefits of the pianist. That’s an undeniable fact.’

When Se Jin first met Jin Ho in Europe, what he had put forward was the effect that would be gained by his choice.

He had boasted as if bestowing a favor by choosing Songlim despite Argon reaching out. Those words were certainly not lies, and the results were already showing.

Baek Jin Ho smiled softly as if satisfied with that part. Soon, he slowly got up from his seat and gazed out the window for a moment, then turned back with eyes that had quickly become cold.

‘But that doesn’t mean you can flirt with a married woman.’

It was clear that the events of that day had been conveyed to Baek Jin Ho, whether from Yu Ra’s mouth or that bastard’s. It was troublesome for things to go wrong at this point when the performance hadn’t even started yet.

To others, it might seem that Songlim was in a disadvantageous position, but looking deeper, Se Jin was in an even more regrettable situation. He couldn’t let such a hard-earned opportunity slip away so futilely.

‘There seems to be some misunderstanding.’

Baek Jin Ho chewed on the word “misunderstanding” as he perched slightly on the backrest of the sofa. Then he fixed an even more threatening gaze on Se Jin.

‘I don’t know if you’re aware, but Jin Yu Ra team leader is my sister-in-law. If my choice causes harm to Yu Ra, I can’t just stand by and watch.’

At that moment, Se Jin recalled the part he had been missing. When Yu Ra married Baek Lee Hyun, the world was abuzz once again about the union of CH Group and Jinhwa Group. Along with that, the relationship between Baek Jin Ho’s wife and Yu Ra was also discussed.

Se Jin had missed that part while focusing on Yu Ra. Feeling that prolonging the conversation would only backfire, Se Jin held his tongue.

Thinking there was still a chance, Se Jin quietly accepted Jin Ho’s advice. But the more he dwelled on that moment, the more infuriated he became.

“Mere Songlim of all things.”

As Se Jin slammed down the glass containing whiskey, the sound of it hitting the table echoed in the quiet room. Startled by the sound, Jin Woo rushed over.

“Um, sir. Are you alright?”

“Shut up.”

Ignoring Jin Woo, who was fumbling and at a loss for what to do, Se Jin poured whiskey into his glass again.

“If you keep drinking such strong alcohol, it’s not good for your hands.”

At Jin Woo’s words, Se Jin’s hands, which had been fine until then, began to tremble.

Whether due to nerve damage or stress, his hands would inevitably shake on days like this when he drank excessively. As if trying to hide this unpleasant trembling, Se Jin picked up the glass and threw it to the floor.

With a sharp shattering sound, glass shards flew in all directions. The startled Jin Woo trembled and shrank back.

“What do you know to interfere! I don’t need any of this. Get out, I said get out!”

Jin Woo, pale-faced, slipped out of the room and stared at the firmly closed door for a moment before taking out his phone. He urgently dialed a number saved as “Director”.

“Director, this is Ko Jin Woo.”

−What’s the matter at this hour?

The voice, heavily cracked, sounded as if just woken from sleep. But Jin Woo was too scared to even think about being rude and asked for help.

“Sir is drinking again. He won’t listen to me at all and just gets angry.”

A low sigh from the director came through the phone. Jin Woo was holding the phone with both hands and stamping his feet. There was a rustling sound, and then the other party spoke as if trying to calm Jin Woo down.

−Alright. I’ll be coming to Korea soon, so just hang in there until then.

“Really? You need to come quickly.”

−Yes, I’ll come quickly.

As Jin Woo ended the call, another dull sound came from the room. Jin Woo shook his head and ran to his own guest room as if fleeing.