Five hours before Nam Do Hyun dropped the bomb.

Do Hyun, who had returned to the company after finishing his field work, stopped by the coffee shop on the first floor.

After ordering a cup of coffee and standing in front of the pickup counter, Do Hyun glanced at the watch on his wrist.

“Shin Joo will also come to the company dinner today, right?”

“Yeah. Since the PR team is also coming, Team Leader Shin will be there too.”

Perhaps it was because of the name Shin Joo, or maybe just because of the close distance.

The voices from the table behind him struck Do Hyun’s ears.

“Shin Joo didn’t seem like that, but I guess her extravagance is no joke. Look, the debt collectors even came to the company.”

“It’s tiring dealing with those with pretty faces. Their vanity shoots through the roof.”

When Byun Tae Jin leaned back in his chair and made a joke, his colleague snickered.

“Who was the one who was head over heels for such a vain woman? Wasn’t it you, Byun Tae Jin?”

“Hey, can’t you be quiet?”

Tae Jin quickly got up from his chair, looked around, and shushed them.

However, the voice of the colleague sitting in front of him didn’t diminish at all.

“This bastard Byun Tae Jin, I guess you’re embarrassed about being rejected?”

“I’m not embarrassed, I’m pissed off. Does it make sense that a bitch who’s tight on money and in debt dared to reject me?”

Nam Do Hyun didn’t want to pay attention, but their conversation flowed into his ears on its own.

The jaw of Nam Do Hyun, who was standing in front of the pickup counter, gradually tensed.

“Your order of iced Americano is ready.”

As the employee placed the coffee on the pickup counter, Do Hyun reached out his hand.

“Hey, try approaching her one more time. I might accept it this time.”

Do Hyun’s hand, which was about to pick up the coffee cup, hovered in the air.

A vicious smile flashed between Byun Tae Jin’s thin lips.

“Definitely. Bitch. It would be a hassle if she asks to get married though.”

The two of them laughed at each other’s faces, as if finding it amusing.

“Heh heh. Hey, if she asks to get married, you can just dump her. What’s the problem?”

“Her face is damn pretty, her body is damn nice. It wouldn’t be a bad deal to use her and then throw her away.”

As if tracing Joo’s body, Byun Tae Jin’s hands drew deep curves in the air.

The molars he had been clenching made his jaw ache.

Holding the coffee cup, Do Hyun pushed his tongue against the soft inside of his mouth and left the coffee shop.

As the sweltering heat rushed in, his irritation soared even more.

“Ah.”

Do Hyun had to stop walking just a few steps out of the coffee shop.

The plastic coffee cup he was holding in his hand crumpled, and the brown coffee splashed out of the opening.

[This is the timeline separator]

Joo, who was standing in the center of the living room, looked at Do Hyun walking down the hallway, unable to hide her excitement.

She must have been so anxious that she asked before Do Hyun even set foot in the living room.

“What were you thinking when you said those things?”

After finishing the company dinner, Joo ran into the employees and impulsively took Do Hyun home.

Although avoiding it made it seem like admitting the truth, it didn’t seem like her defense would work right now.

“It sounds like I spoke without thinking.”

“Isn’t that right?”

“No. I saw it clearly.”

It was on the way home after getting in the car driven by Team Leader Kang.

He saw Joo and Tae Jin arguing in front of the store, and he couldn’t just watch, so he stopped the car.

He intended to intervene appropriately and get Joo out of there.

However, seeing Tae Jin unabashedly demeaning Joo, he unknowingly got involved more than necessary.

“Were you drunk? So you lost your judgment?”

“I wasn’t drunk, but I guess I lost my judgment.”

Joo couldn’t figure out what he was thinking at all.

Seeing Nam Do Hyun’s nonchalant attitude, only Joo became anxious.

“How are we going to handle this?”

He must have done something because there was a solution.

She believed that Nam Do Hyun wouldn’t have acted impulsively without any thought.

The words Joo had been waiting for flowed out between Do Hyun’s slowly parting lips.

“Let’s get married.”

Oh my.

What is this person saying right now?

Joo’s upper body suddenly leaned forward.

“You’re not just blurting this out in a panic, right?”

“You told me to handle it.”

“……”

“Then I have to take responsibility.”

Until recently, Nam Do Hyun said he wouldn’t marry her.

Yet now he’s saying let’s get married to handle the situation. She wondered what he ate in the evening to keep making bombshell declarations.

‘Ah, could it be because of that.’

There was one thing she could think of.

If it weren’t for that obstacle, Joo would have also firmly stated in front of the employees that they were in a relationship to get married.

“I’ve also thought about it a lot. But what can I do if I can’t?”

“When did you keep asking to get married, and now you’re saying you can’t?”

It hadn’t been long since Nam Do Hyun, who said he wouldn’t marry her, suggested marriage as a way to handle the situation. She wondered what he ate for dinner to keep dropping bombshells.

Seeing Joo’s reluctance, Do Hyun became confused.

Joo glanced at Do Hyun and hesitated.

“I’m not confident.”

“You need confidence to marry me?”

“If I marry you… I’ll have to do that too.”

“That?”

Do Hyun narrowed the space between his eyebrows as if there was nothing that came to mind.

Joo clenched both fists and spoke with force.

“I don’t have the skills in that area, so I… I don’t think I can be a seductress.”

“Ha, Shin Joo, seriously.”

His head rang.

How much of it did she sincerely believe? Hopefully not all of it.

“Forget everything I said last night. I’m not asking you to do that.”

He said it to scare her, but she innocently believed it all.

“Really?”

Why is she so happy about that?

Seeing Joo secretly delighted, Do Hyun clearly stated.

“I told you. You’re not a woman to me. I never wanted that either.”

Why does he have to confirm it so painfully again?

Feeling stubborn, Joo looked straight into Do Hyun’s eyes.

“It goes both ways. You’re not a man to me either.”

Do Hyun’s gray eyes wavered for a moment at Joo’s agreement.

“That’s a good thing.”

A demand was added to the end of the indifferent words that popped out.

“But there’s one condition. If we get married, you have to fulfill the duties of a wife.”

“Duties of a wife?”

“I’d like you to get along with my family to some extent. It would be even better if you could occasionally keep my parents company.”

“So you’re saying you want me to be a good daughter-in-law if possible?”

It wasn’t a difficult request. Even if it was a superficial marriage, she had no intention of neglecting the basic role of a wife.

Joo readily agreed even before Do Hyun finished speaking.

“I’ll pay fair compensation for your labor too. 500,000 won a month. I’ll even provide room and board.”

“F-five hundred thousand.”

What Joo needed most was ‘room and board’.

On top of that, if she played the role of a good daughter-in-law, 500,000 won would be deposited into her account every month.

She thought she might be able to pay off the debt her father took out in her mother’s name within a year.

“Too little? Should I raise it more?”

“Ah, no. No matter how I think about it, 500,000 won is a lot. I think 300,000 won would be sufficient.”

“You’ll do it for 300,000 won?”

There was no better option than this. Therefore, there was only one answer.

“Yes. I’ll do it, I’ll marry you.”

“Then the deal is done.”

Joo nodded her head vigorously enough for her neck to fall off.

She no longer had to wander around with nowhere to sleep, skip meals to reduce living expenses, or overwork herself to save even a penny more.

Joo called out to Do Hyun, who was about to pass by her and enter the bedroom.

“What should I say to the company tomorrow?”

Do Hyun, who had opened the bedroom door, gazed into the air for a moment as if thinking.

The time for contemplation wasn’t very long. Do Hyun turned his head to Joo and recited casually.

“Tell them what you saw and heard.”

“……”

“That the company’s CEO isn’t doing what he’s supposed to and is having an office romance with you.”

[This is the timeline separator]

In a private art gallery with soft classical music playing.

Park Young Ran, Nam Do Hyun’s mother, who had rented out an entire art gallery, was peacefully appreciating the paintings.

At that moment, Nam Seung Hee, dressed in a bright red dress, entered the art gallery where visitors were restricted.

The curator standing behind Young Ran hurriedly approached Seung Hee and blocked the entrance.

“Ma’am, we’re closed today. I’m sorry, but please leave.”

“Let her be. She’s my daughter.”

Park Young Ran said without even looking back, her gaze still fixed on the artwork.

The curator quickly bowed, realizing his mistake.

“I-I apologize.”

“If you understand, then move aside.”

Nam Seung Hee lightly kicked the curator, who was unnecessarily bending his upper body, with her leg and walked towards Young Ran.

Young Ran, who had unfolded her crossed arms, looked Seung Hee up and down.

“I told you to wear appropriate clothes for the occasion.”

“I chose this outfit with the enthusiasm to enjoy cultural activities.”

The dress tightly hugged her figure, and the chest was deeply cut in a V-shape, revealing her cleavage.

Seeing Seung Hee proudly lift her exposed chest, Young Ran narrowed her eyes.

“Can’t you fix that cheap way of speaking? Do you have to behave without manners even outside?”

“Yes, I understand.”

Due to the filler she got yesterday, Seung Hee’s lips protruded even more.

Secretary Kim approached Young Ran’s side with muffled footsteps, carefully observing the situation.

“Madam.”

Secretary Kim was busy being mindful, knowing that Young Ran extremely disliked having her appreciation of the artwork interrupted.

Young Ran, who had already lost concentration because of Seung Hee, looked at Secretary Kim with an indifferent face.

“What is it?”

“Just now, the CEO met with the Chairman and said there is someone he wants to marry.”

Seung Hee’s face filled with intrigue at the news of her younger brother, who usually said he would never get married.

“Which family is the woman from? Food industry? Or the health and lifestyle sector?”

“He said it’s Shin Joo, a manager in the PR team of the same company.”

A brief silence followed, and then Seung Hee burst into laughter, holding her stomach.

“Hahaha. Nam Do Hyun, are you crazy? There are plenty of women, yet you go after your own employee?”

“What did my husband, what did he say?”

Young Ran, who came to her senses belatedly, pointed out the most important fact.

“He… gave his permission.”

Young Ran, whose face turned red and blue, crossed the art gallery without hesitation and went out the exit.

Seung Hee, who followed in a hurry, stuck close to Young Ran.

“Mom, where are you going all of a sudden?”

“We need to stop the marriage.”

“Are you going to grab the girl by her hair?”

Young Ran, who had stepped out of the art gallery, abruptly stopped and spoke to Seung Hee.

“Why would I grab her hair?”

“Then?”

“I should grab the hair of the mother who raised an ignorant brat.”