“Ah. I won’t be waiting for you, so don’t look for me even if I’m late. I might stay out overnight.”

“Over…night? You’re going to stay out overnight?”

“Yes, overnight. 24 hours in a day is not enough.”

Ji Yeon Woo, who kindly informed him again, nodded her head.

“Good night.”

Thanks to you, I won’t be able to have a good night.

A thirst burned through his throat as if someone had lit a fire.

The smile quickly faded from Nam Do Hyun’s face as he let out a hollow laugh.

If it was Shin Ji Yeon from a year ago who rushed to him like a moth and asked to get married, she would undoubtedly jump at Seo Jin Won this time too.

With that level of spirit, she would do more rather than less.

She might have already jumped in without catching her breath.

“There’s nothing you’re really afraid of, Shin Ji Yeon.”

Knowing what kind of guy Seo Jin Won is.

Anxious like a child left by the river, Do Hyun found it difficult to calm his heart.

***

When there was about an hour left until the meeting with JIN, the number of customer service inquiries suddenly increased due to a homepage error, so Ji Yeon had to ask the TF team for understanding and miss the meeting.

Just as the meeting was entering its initial stage, Do Hyun appeared in the conference room without notice.

The TF team and JIN employees, who had not heard the news of Do Hyun’s arrival, fluttered as if they had seen a ghost.

The employees quickly stood up from their seats and bowed to Do Hyun.

“I was thinking of attending today’s meeting as well. Would that be alright with you?”

Do Hyun asked, looking at his employees and Jin Won, the representative of JIN.

Jin Won was the first to greet Do Hyun.

“What wouldn’t be alright? Please have a seat.”

JIN employees felt burdened by the sudden appearance of the representative.

However, since their company’s representative said it was okay, they had no choice but to put on a smiling face.

As Do Hyun took his seat, Jin Won spoke to him in a friendly manner.

“We’re still in the early stages of concept development, so I didn’t expect you to attend already, Representative.”

“It’s because I have a lot of affection for it.”

You have a lot of affection for the company.

That’s all Jin Won thought.

Soon, the meeting progressed in earnest, and JIN presented the concept PT they had prepared in advance.

Although the presenter, JIN’s Team Leader Choi, was conscious of Do Hyun, Do Hyun didn’t say a word until the presentation was over.

In the quietly settled conference room, the lights came on, and everyone gathered their gazes as if waiting for Do Hyun’s opinion.

“I can see that a lot of effort has been put into the overall quality of the materials.”

It seemed like it would end with praise, but that was just JIN’s wish.

“But the content is overall disappointing. Everyone knows that Sunshine Resort only deals with the highest quality. Emphasizing only the best has created unnecessary clutter.”

The conference room became solemn at the dissatisfied evaluation that flowed out as if it had been waiting.

“I would like the theme of ‘relaxation in everyday life’ to be reinforced. The scenery around Yeosu Resort is uniquely valuable enough to be highlighted. It would be nice to see outdoor-connected facilities featured more prominently.”

At the detailed opinion, the hands of the employees holding pens flew quickly over the paper.

“Let’s schedule another meeting with the TF team for the revised concept.”

The meeting concluded with Do Hyun’s words.

The employees stood up, tidying up their surroundings, but Do Hyun remained seated until the end.

After all the employees left the conference room and even Jin Won stood up, Do Hyun spoke.

“I heard that Shin Ji Yeon is in charge of the advertising TF team this time. How is Shin Ji Yeon?”

“She has good insight and sense. You have a good employee.”

“Yes, she is a good employee.”

A good employee, he wanted to know what Jin Won thought of her beyond that.

Furthermore, he wanted to know what the two of them talked about during their dinner appointment last time.

It seemed that Do Hyun wasn’t the only one who was curious.

“It looks like Ji Yeon couldn’t come today because she was busy.”

Do Hyun, who read the disappointment on Jin Won’s face, stood up from his seat.

“An issue suddenly came up on the PR team’s side, so she was absent.”

“I see. I guess we’ll see her at the next meeting then.”

He wanted to ask if she got home safely when they met today, but he regretted not being able to send his regards.

Jin Won, who had been stuck to his seat, lowered his upper body.

“Good work today.”

“See you next time.”

Do Hyun, who left the conference room with Jin Won, walked with their backs turned to each other.

Before setting foot in the elevator coming down from the upper floor, Ji Yeon popped out through the open door.

Her bangs were disheveled from the wind, showing how hastily she had run.

“You were here.”

“You must have run here with great effort.”

Do Hyun, who glanced sideways at Ji Yeon, pressed the button for the elevator that had already gone down.

Without even catching her breath, Ji Yeon looked around the corridor. The corridor was filled with only the voices of Do Hyun and Ji Yeon, as the meeting had already ended.

“I wanted to attend the meeting.”

“Unfortunately, the meeting has already ended.”

“It can’t be helped today. I’ll make sure to attend the next meeting without being late.”

She had no choice but to be disappointed. It was the first time since joining the company that she was in charge of resort promotion as part of the TF team.

She wanted to handle the tasks she was originally in charge of and the Yeosu Resort work without any shortcomings, not just as support but as the person in charge.

Suddenly, things got complicated, and she was totally out of her mind.

While waiting for the elevator, Do Hyun instructed Ji Yeon.

“You don’t need to do that. From now on, go to the advertising outsourcing with Manager Kim Yang Mi.”

“Why should I do it together with Manager Kim when it’s my responsibility?”

“I mean to distribute the work properly. It was originally Manager Kim’s share.”

Even though she joined the TF team, the amount of work in the PR team didn’t decrease.

He was telling her to hand over some work as she was stubbornly handling the advertising outsourcing alone without flexibility, but Ji Yeon didn’t agree and only refuted.

Sometimes she would come home later than him, the representative, but she was stubborn until the end.

“I know it well. I’m your representative. This is my company.”

“……”

“Then listen to me.”

If she didn’t listen, it seemed Do Hyun would handle it his way. However, Ji Yeon was not the type to back down easily even if he threatened her.

Although the elevator had come up from the lower floor, Ji Yeon blocked Do Hyun’s path.

She couldn’t let Do Hyun go easily because she had unresolved questions.

Ji Yeon grabbed Do Hyun’s hand and dragged him into the conference room, as it wasn’t a conversation to have in the open corridor.

As soon as the conference room door closed, Ji Yeon asked Do Hyun.

“Are you really doing this simply because it looks like I have a lot of work?”

“What else would it be?”

“Yesterday, you scolded me for coming home late, and today, you’re telling me to hand over the TF team work as well.”

Even before taking on the Yeosu Resort project, Ji Yeon was handling a large volume of work.

He didn’t even pay attention when she was going to work with an IV drip, but now Do Hyun’s behavior of trying to manage her schedule was contradictory.

“Is it because you don’t like me meeting with Representative Seo?”

“It was late yesterday, and you looked overburdened today, that’s all.”

“You’re saying there’s no personal feelings involved, right?”

“It’s not personal. It’s just simple concern.”

She was clinging on even though she knew she wouldn’t get the answer she wanted.

She wanted to hear him say that he didn’t like her meeting Jin Won.

“When we divorce, you’ll have nowhere to go. So that you don’t wander around when we divorce in 2 years, find a man who will understand your situation now. If that’s Representative Seo Jin Won, then meet him.”

He was so cool that her arms felt chilled.

I don’t even have time to look at other men because of you right now.

It’s all because of you, Nam Do Hyun, she wanted to shout confidently.

But the voice only mumbled timidly inside her mouth.

“You didn’t even check on me for a year to see if I was eating and living well.”

Isn’t it more Do Hyun’s fault, who appeared after a year and messed up her heart?

And then he arbitrarily tells her to meet another man, making her wonder why she alone has to suffer.

She felt wronged, frustrated, and even resentful of Do Hyun’s indifference that was clearly visible.

“What did you just say?”

The puppy’s dry wick was only suffering internally, so it wouldn’t be strange if it exploded right now.

Although she felt upset, bitter, and disappointed, she forcibly suppressed the boiling emotions.

She didn’t want to show even a speck of her feelings, so she gritted her teeth and forced a smile.

“Thank you so much for worrying about me.”

Rattle, rattle.

Tap.

A blue pen that came rolling out of nowhere touched Ji Yeon’s foot.

Ji Yeon, who bent her waist, picked up the pen that had hit her shoe.

“Why is there suddenly a pen…?”

It was strange that a pen suddenly rolled over even though the building wasn’t tilted.

Do Hyun and Ji Yeon’s gazes lingered at their feet and then moved to where the pen had rolled from.

Only then did they notice brown hair sticking out over the white desk.

As the head turned, Ji Yeon gasped.

“Re… Representative.”

Jin Won straightened his bent waist, smiling awkwardly.

Jin Won, who had left the conference room with Do Hyun, remembered that he had left his briefcase behind and returned to the conference room.

When he picked up the briefcase he had placed under the table, Do Hyun and Ji Yeon barged in.

He tried to get up, making his presence known depending on the situation, but he couldn’t intervene in the unusual conversation.

In the end, he had heard the secret that Do Hyun and Ji Yeon were hiding.

“I think I’ve heard something I shouldn’t have heard now.”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

At the words that burst out simultaneously, Jin Won looked down at the cold floor and awkwardly lowered his body.

“Uh, um… Should I pretend to faint or something?”

Ji Yeon turned her head to Do Hyun in front of her.

With turbid eyes, Ji Yeon pointed to the back of her neck.

“Senior, could you please hit my neck?”

It was Ji Yeon who actually wanted to faint like this.