I Tae hesitated briefly upon learning that Ha Yeon had gone out with Min Je. It was a mistake to only tell the person he assigned to watch that they should contact him immediately when Ha Yeon left the house.

If he had known she was with Kang Min Je, he would have considered coming so urgently.

‘Well, what to do now……?’

I Tae pondered for a moment. But that pondering did not last long. He was not one to miss a golden opportunity to drive a wedge between the two.

“Ms. Jang Ha Yeon, we meet here again?”

He deliberately emphasized the word “again”. To make it easy to misunderstand that they were meeting secretly without Min Je knowing. As he intended, Min Je’s expression crumpled mercilessly when he turned his head and saw I Tae’s face.

“Ah…… Director Cha I Tae?”

Ha Yeon rolled her eyes trying to recall a name she couldn’t remember, then with difficulty remembered his name.

As soon as the name “Cha I Tae” came out of her mouth, Min Je’s head turned towards Ha Yeon.

“You two, know each other?”

Since wariness was brimming in his eyes, Ha Yeon scratched her face as if embarrassed.

Is he someone he doesn’t like very much? Judging by his gaze, it didn’t seem like they could be on good terms at all.

Though they had only met once or twice, it was clear that she knew I Tae, so she couldn’t bring herself to say she didn’t know him.

“Why, are you displeased that she knows me?”

I Tae said provocatively to Min Je with his characteristic sly expression. At the same time, Min Je’s gaze sank coldly.

“Why would I be displeased? I’m just curious how you two know each other.”

There was an illusion of sparks flying from the gazes of the men looking at each other.

Ha Yeon couldn’t understand why things were turning out this way no matter how much she thought about it. Especially from the start, she couldn’t comprehend why I Tae was riling up Min Je as if he was very close to her.

But apart from that, she didn’t dislike that Min Je was showing wariness with a face dripping with possessiveness. This was like, jealousy towards a woman he liked.

“What brings you here?”

Ha Yeon first buried those emotions in her heart and asked I Tae why he had approached her as if he knew her.

What brings him here? From I Tae’s perspective, Ha Yeon casually uttered words that would make him jump for joy, and when she looked at him with a face that really didn’t seem to know what was going on, his lower eyelid twitched briefly.

Her asking like that meant she had completely forgotten about saying she would contact him.

If it were any other time, he would have shown his sharp emotions, but right now Kang Min Je was in front of him.

I Tae contained his boiling emotions and said with a kind smile on his lips:

“I was wondering if you had forgotten that we were supposed to call each other.”

He was speaking as if they were very close, but it was a problem that could be understood if one thought about it a little deeper. If they were really close, they would have been in contact long ago, not talking like this here.

Min Je quickly grasped that. Of course, because it was Ha Yeon’s business, for a moment his reason flew away and he almost pounced on Cha I Tae. It was really fortunate that he realized before getting into a fistfight.

“Ah, because of that……”

Ha Yeon trailed off, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. Suddenly she thought it was strange. How did he manage to appear just when she went out every time?

But she couldn’t rashly question him based on assumptions alone. That could backfire.

She glanced at Min Je, and saw that he had stepped back with his arms firmly crossed, taking an attitude of observing the current situation. That seemed to mean he trusted her, and Ha Yeon felt one corner of her heart grow heavy for some reason.

“I’m sorry. Honestly, I thought you would take not calling as a rejection.”

Huh? I Tae let out an incredulous breath without realizing. Is she trying to save face in front of Kang Min Je now?

Cracks appeared in the face that had been wearing a painted-on smile. Moreover, the situation was unfolding a bit differently than he had thought.

He thought Min Je would become suspicious and upset when he found out that Ha Yeon was privately in contact with him.

He thought he would rebuke her, asking how she could repay the kindness she received in such a way. Generally speaking, it would have been right for him to be angry, calling Ha Yeon a traitor and ungrateful.

But he was consistently taking an attitude as if he would judge after hearing Ha Yeon’s explanation. It was frustrating. What on earth was this woman?

Does he really believe this woman’s paintings have great value? I Tae had only glanced at her paintings halfheartedly because he only thought of using Ha Yeon as a tool to bring down Min Je.

His talk about how the works were this and that was just a means to recruit her. Yet after being rejected, he felt bitter.

Even so, rejection? She was going to reject him? Unfiltered venom rose in I Tae’s gaze.

“I’m sure no one has offered you better terms than me?”

I Tae said meaningfully, throwing a crooked glance as if targeting Min Je.

“Terms?”

Min Je’s eyebrow twitched as he realized that the man had approached Ha Yeon with some kind of ulterior motive. As sharp energies suddenly became entangled, Ha Yeon stepped between the two.

“Even with better terms, my answer wouldn’t change. I think that’s a sufficient answer.”

Huh? I Tae laughed scornfully again. It was quite impressive how she drew the line without blinking an eye, that kind of aura coming from such a small body.

He felt very annoyed. To reject so coldly the hand he had extended, even breaking his own pride. She must not take him seriously to talk back so bluntly like that.

But he knew that if he didn’t back down at this point, his image would become even more pathetic. That annoyed him even more.

“If you insist that much, I can’t press you further. What a shame.”

His flashing eyes fixed on Ha Yeon’s face. Though his mouth was saying it was a shame, his eyes didn’t look that way at all.

“Yes, it’s a shame for me too. Well, there will be other opportunities. We’re a bit pressed for time to see everything here before closing, so we’ll be taking our leave now.”

Like I Tae, Ha Yeon also said it was a shame, but anyone could see it was just politeness, words said perfunctorily.

Hah, Min Je made a deflating sound before quickly closing his mouth. I Tae’s expression immediately soured.

I Tae, who had clenched his fist tightly, quickly hid his expression and said:

“Contact me anytime if you change your mind.”

“Yes, I will.”

Ha Yeon answered immediately without any hesitation. She had a big smile on her face, but somehow he couldn’t shake the feeling that she was trying to chase him away quickly.

Why did his insides feel so turbulent? Looking at that woman made his insides strangely turbulent. What was she trusting in to be so stiff-necked when she had nothing? Did she really believe she could succeed in this field on skill alone? Numerous questions complicated his mind.

He was someone who believed that a person could not succeed by being honest alone. Money changing hands behind the scenes and appropriate compromises were essential elements for success. So maybe that’s why Ha Yeon, who kept acting as if she was standing alone in a bright light of justice, kept grating on his nerves.

“Then.”

I Tae’s expression froze coldly as he quietly bowed and turned away.

Min Je, who had been fixing his gaze on I Tae’s retreating back for a while, said:

“He’s not someone to be taken lightly.”

“I know, he didn’t give a good impression from the start.”

Ha Yeon, who had been muttering, flinched when her eyes met Min Je’s. His gaze was one that was barely holding back from digging into exactly how she knew I Tae.

“He said he saw my painting that I brought to the gallery before. And then he was telling me to come to his gallery. He’s a typical con man. I have enough discernment to see that, so don’t worry.”

“So, when did you meet him?”

When a question that diverged from her explanation came back, Ha Yeon blinked quickly. Was when she met him a more important issue than the fact that she wasn’t fooled by him?

“Well, once at the gallery, once at the municipal art museum, and including today, it’s the third time meeting him.”

As Ha Yeon counted on her fingers while speaking, Min Je asked again in a murky voice:

“You met three times?”

“We didn’t meet by appointment. We ran into each other by chance.”

“……”

Min Je just twitched his eyebrow without saying anything.

“Sigh, I know too. That it’s a bit strange.”

As Ha Yeon sighed and ran her hand through her hair, Min Je corrected her words.

“No, not ‘a bit’ strange, but ‘very’ strange.”

Since that was something Ha Yeon had thought about too, she soon nodded in agreement.

“He’s probably trying to use you to get back at me.”

That bastard. Min Je barely held back the harsh curse that was about to flow out. He needed to find out exactly what intention that man had in approaching Ha Yeon. But not right now.

“Let’s continue for now, our date.”

“Ah……”

Ha Yeon, who had completely forgotten they were on a date due to I Tae’s appearance, let out a sigh.

“We still have a lot left to see.”

Saying that, Min Je subtly pulled Ha Yeon’s hand. Ending up holding hands with Min Je and looking around the art museum, Ha Yeon had to struggle afterwards because the artwork didn’t catch her eye.

Leaving the museum at closing time, they got in the car to go to the restaurant Min Je had reserved.

Since Ha Yeon didn’t say much in the car, Min Je glanced at her face even while driving.

Though he had grandly called it a date, it was an outing with nothing special. As he looked at her with a gaze mixed with concern about whether she might not like it, something seemed odd.

The way she was fidgeting with her fingertips with her cheeks flushed pink, it was as if she was recalling the time they had held hands.

Min Je rubbed the back of his neck, which was inexplicably heating up. This woman could sometimes be so pretty it drove one crazy.

At the restaurant where soft lighting created a sentimental atmosphere, the two had dinner while chatting about various things.

“Eat more.”

As Min Je kept pushing food towards her, Ha Yeon waved her hand.

“Stop, I can’t eat anymore.”

Min Je chuckled at Ha Yeon’s words that if she ate more, she’d have to roll home.

“Suddenly I’m reminded of a work we saw at the art museum earlier. There was a big rock on a scale, but the needle was pointing to ‘0’, remember?”

“Ah, yes, I remember.”

“I wish I could be like that on the scale no matter how much I ate.”

Min Je burst out laughing at Ha Yeon’s small but impossible wish.

“I just had that thought too. Maybe impossible things like that are what create unique artistic worlds.”

“What do you mean?”

The two talked about various topics, losing track of time. So even though it was summer when the sun sets late, it was dark night when they left the restaurant.

The car carrying Min Je and Ha Yeon glided to a stop in front of the house.

“Thank you so much for today. It was enjoyable.”

Ha Yeon smiled and greeted Min Je.

Hearing that greeting, Min Je seemed to understand how reluctant lovers feel when parting after a date.

“Shall we date?”

So he impulsively blurted out the words he had been thinking about all along.