As Ye Rin sat down in front of him, I Hyun picked up the menu with an expressionless face.

‘This is my first time here today. I need to act calm.’

It was truly a series of embarrassments.

I Hyun spoke in a low voice.

“What would you like to eat?”

“I’ll have a simple ricotta cheese salad.”

I Hyun’s brow furrowed slightly.

Then he called over the waiter and placed the order.

Many dishes were soon placed on the table, in addition to the menu Ye Rin had said she wanted.

“Please eat.”

“Thank you for the meal.”

This situation of sitting face to face with I Hyun and having a meal felt so strange.

After having a one-night stand with him, meeting again so closely like this was not part of the plan.

She was nervous and uncomfortable, with no appetite at all.

Seeing Ye Rin barely touching her food, I Hyun asked.

“Why aren’t you eating properly?”

“I’m not really hungry…”

Just as she said that.

Obliviously, Ye Rin’s stomach let out a growl.

“I wasn’t hungry, but now that I think about it, I guess I am.”

Stammering, Ye Rin stabbed a piece of steak with her fork and lifted it up.

It was surely good meat that would taste delicious, but unfortunately she was too nervous to properly savor the taste.

After eating like that a few times, Ye Rin finally put down her fork.

I Hyun also barely touched his food, leaving most of what he ordered.

“Secretary Han, I hope you can carry out the task I assigned without any issues.”

“But what if I can’t find that woman?”

I Hyun frowned slightly.

“It will be very troublesome for Secretary Han.”

“Why?”

“You’ll probably find out the reason tomorrow.”

She didn’t want to know.

She wished tomorrow wouldn’t come, and in fact, if she could turn back time, she desperately wanted to do so.

‘Should I just confess that I was the one who spent that night with him?’

But seeing I Hyun’s cold face, that thought went right back in.

‘Right. He said he suffered a lot of damage. What if he asks me for compensation?’

It can’t be.

No matter what, she had to keep it hidden.

She had no intention of quitting this company, so even more so, I Hyun must never find out that she was the woman he spent that deep night with.

I Hyun glanced at the leftover food once and then spoke in a pleasant baritone.

“Secretary Han, if you’re not going to eat anymore, shall we get going?”

“Yes, that sounds good.”

After coming down to the lobby, Ye Rin straightened her back, not getting in the car in order to see him off.

Suddenly, the passenger side window rolled down and I Hyun appeared.

“Aren’t you getting in?”

“Pardon?”

The car behind honked its horn loudly.

“It seems like you should hurry and get in.”

With no choice, Ye Rin got into I Hyun’s car.

“Director, are you perhaps going back to the company?”

“I’m going home.”

“Ah, I see.”

Ye Rin couldn’t figure out why I Hyun had told her to get in this car.

If he had said he was going to the company, she would have thought he was going to drop her off there, but that wasn’t the case either.

Then was it because the subway station was far from the hotel and he wanted to give her a ride?

But if he was the type to take such good care of his secretary, why had previous secretaries quit within a week?

While Ye Rin was thinking about this.

I Hyun tapped the navigation system a few times.

“Address.”

“Excuse me?”

“Enter Secretary Han’s home address.”

“…”

Ye Rin looked at I Hyun with a bewildered expression.

He looked back as if he didn’t understand why she was looking at him like that.

“Director, surely you’re not planning to take me all the way home?”

“That’s right.”

“Why…?”

“Secretary Han, did you bring your car?”

“No.”

“That’s why.”

What does he mean ‘that’s why’?

It’s common for a secretary to drive their boss home, but not for a boss to drive their secretary home.

This is absolutely not a normal thing.

Moreover, being alone with I Hyun like this felt so unfamiliar to Ye Rin.

Her whole body remained tense due to I Hyun’s overwhelming presence.

The scent of his cologne permeated the entire car.

Because of that, memories of that intense night naturally followed, even though she didn’t want to recall them.

Ye Rin hesitated, unsure what to do.

Meanwhile, I Hyun slightly furrowed his brow.

“Secretary Han, do you know how many times we’ve circled the same place?”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

With no choice, Ye Rin entered her home address.

“You can just drop me off at a nearby subway station…”

“What if you get into an accident or something?”

“Pardon?”

“If you can’t come to work tomorrow because of that, it would be very troublesome for me.”

It was pure nonsense.

Ye Rin put on a business smile and spoke in a gentle voice.

“That won’t happen, Director.”

“Secretary Han, you tend to be too certain about everything.”

Really, what are the chances of having an accident on the way home that he’s acting like this?

But I Hyun was truly stubborn.

I Hyun’s car continued driving towards Ye Rin’s home address entered in the navigation.

It would have been less uncomfortable if she were the one driving I Hyun home instead.

No, that probably wouldn’t have been very comfortable either.

“If Secretary Han can’t come to work, you won’t be able to find that woman. Then I’ll have to wait another day.”

Was that really the reason he was driving her home?

But even if it wasn’t, there was no way to confirm I Hyun’s true intentions.

As they drove like that, I Hyun’s car stopped near Ye Rin’s home surrounded by shabby villas.

“Director, you can let me off here.”

I Hyun’s car gradually slowed down.

I Hyun leaned forward, scanning the surroundings through the front windshield.

There weren’t even proper streetlights, and it was a sparsely populated area with poor security.

“Is this Secretary Han’s home?”

“Yes. Thank you for driving me.”

I Hyun chewed his lip slightly, still looking displeased.

“Director, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Alright.”

Ye Rin hurriedly got out of I Hyun’s car.

After watching his car drive away, she belatedly turned around.

“If only it were a dream…”

How nice it would be if all of this turned out to be just a dream when she woke up tomorrow.

Thinking that, Ye Rin began walking.

[This is the timeline separator]

I Hyun must have had many meetings since morning, as fortunately he didn’t show his face in the office.

While Ye Rin was working on other tasks, putting aside the search for the missing woman that I Hyun had asked for.

A call came in from an unknown 11-digit number.

“Hello, this is Han Ye Rin.”

-Secretary Han? This is I Hyun’s mother, Yun Hye Ran.

“Ah, hello, madam.”

-Have lunch with me today.

After briefly stating her business, the call ended.

As Ye Rin was looking at the blank phone screen, Secretary Choi approached from the side.

“Was that a call from Madam Yun?”

“Yes, it seems so.”

“Here it comes, it’s here.”

Secretary Choi put his hand to his forehead.

Ye Rin asked curiously.

“I wonder why the madam wants to have lunch with me?”

“These days, the madam is obsessed with getting the director married.”

“I see.”

“Secretary Han will probably have to take on that task too.”

“Me?”

Secretary Choi patted her chair as if to encourage her.

“It’s not difficult. You just need to somehow get the director to sit down for a matchmaking meeting.”

It sounded like a challenging mission just hearing about it.

Watching Secretary Choi return to his seat with a relieved expression, Ye Rin let out a short sigh.

It was a moment when she slightly understood why her predecessors couldn’t last long and submitted their resignations.

[This is the timeline separator]

Ye Rin entered the cafe at the address Hye Ran had sent.

Although it was lunchtime, there were no customers.

Ye Rin approached Hye Ran, who had arrived first and was waiting for her, bowing as she greeted her.

“Madam, I’m Han Ye Rin, the secretary who started serving the director yesterday.”

“Yes. I’ve already seen your resume, so no need for introductions.”

Hye Ran pointed to the empty seat in front of her, gesturing for her to sit.

“Secretary Han, is brunch okay?”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

“I’ll speak casually. Is that alright?”

“Of course, madam.”

It had been a series of uncomfortable meals from yesterday evening until today.

“There’s only one thing I want Secretary Han to take care of by I Hyun’s side.”

Hye Ran continued speaking while fiddling with her well-manicured nails.

“Our I Hyun is refusing to go on blind dates, making excuses about being busy with work.”

“I heard from Secretary Choi.”

“You just need to help I Hyun meet a good match and get married.”

Hye Ran smiled brightly as if to say it wasn’t that complicated.

“I’ll do my best.”

Somehow, all the tasks assigned since yesterday were beyond Ye Rin’s capabilities.

“I went to see a fortune-teller who’s said to be very good, and you know what? They said that if our I Hyun gets married within this year, he can have a happy family life without any problems.”

“I see.”

“Especially if he falls in love first and has a love marriage, he can live even more happily.”

Hye Ran covered her mouth with one hand and giggled, seeming pleased just thinking about it.

Ye Rin simply listened to Hye Ran’s story in silence.

Hye Ran took out an envelope from her bag and handed it over.

“I’ve selected some women who would be suitable matches for our I Hyun. I’ve numbered them, so set up appointments in order.”

“I understand.”

Hye Ran grabbed Ye Rin’s hands that were resting on the table.

“You must make sure our I Hyun goes to the matchmaking meetings somehow.”

“Yes, madam. I’ll do my best.”

“I Hyun has an elder brother, you know.”

Hye Ran recited one of the conditions Chairman Cha had set for becoming the successor.

“He said he’ll give the successor position to whoever gets married first, that’s why I’m so desperate about this.”

Only then did Ye Rin start to understand a little why Hye Ran had called her out personally to implore her like this.

“Secretary Han, wouldn’t it be so fulfilling if the boss you served became the next chairman of Jiseok Group?”

“I suppose so.”

Ye Rin smiled gently while saying words she didn’t mean.

She had never had such grand dreams.

Ye Rin had been satisfied with supporting her boss to the best of her abilities within her capabilities.

The problem was that all those small happinesses were crumbling since meeting I Hyun.

“Then I’ll ask you a favor, Secretary Han.”

She had a strong feeling that if she didn’t get I Hyun to sit down for a matchmaking meeting, she would be called before Hye Ran the very next day.

[This is the timeline separator]

After returning to the company, Ye Rin checked the list inside the envelope Hye Ran had given her.

Then, seeing the name of the woman at the top of the list, she bit her lip.

“No way…”

Turning to the next page to see the photo of the number one matchmaking candidate, Ye Rin dropped the paper with a thud.