“Ten years ago, or now……”

Jeho’s brow furrowed as he looked at her.

“Nothing has changed.”

He leaned his head towards her, staring intently into her eyes. Even though he was just looking at her steadily, shame washed over her as if her innermost thoughts were exposed.

Yuri discovered her parents’ secret purely by chance.

She accidentally broke a flower pot her aunt had left before departing for Europe, and inside the broken pieces, she found a sealed flash drive. The files contained her deceased mother’s diary, which held unimaginable truths.

That her father, Assemblyman Chae, and his aide, Mrs. An, had been lovers since the year Yuri was born; that her mother knew everything and forgave them; that when Yuri was born, with the help of her aunt, who was an obstetrician, they had seamlessly passed off Yuri as their own daughter – it was all too much to accept.

At first, she was too stunned to cry. It was only after a few days that the tears finally came pouring out.

But she couldn’t confide in anyone. She kept it hidden even from her best friend, Hyunkyung. It was such a shameful family secret.

– It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.

But then Yuri remembered what Jeho had told her. He had already left for America a month ago… She wished he was by her side. If he could tell her it was nothing and smile at her, it might offer some comfort.

From then on, Yuri would imagine herself crying her heart out in front of Jeho whenever she thought of him. Perhaps because she believed they would never meet again, she seemed to pour out her pain to him in her heart.

That’s why.

Remembering that time…

The effects of alcohol might have weakened her resolve as well.

But Yuri, who had suddenly become a liar, was only flustered.

“Th-this isn’t real crying.”

Feeling like she had to say something, she steadied her trembling voice.

“It’s because of the alcohol.”

Alcohol was the only thing she could blame. Yuri quickly got out of the car, turning her head as if shaking something off. Fortunately, he didn’t try to stop her.

“Take care going in.”

After a brief farewell, Yuri hurried towards the front gate. Jeho, who had been watching Yuri, only started the car after she disappeared behind the gate.

“And she said she doesn’t cry easily……”

Muttering to himself, Jeho pressed down hard on the accelerator, driving into the thick darkness.

[This is the timeline separator]

At 5 AM, the heavy front gate opened as Chairman Kwon and his bodyguards left the house for their morning exercise. Despite being over eighty years old, Chairman Kwon, with his sturdy build, could easily be mistaken for one of the bodyguards.

As Chairman Kwon arrived at the walking path, a man in a dark gray windbreaker approached him.

“Good morning, Chairman.”

As the bodyguards immediately moved to block him, the man slowly removed his hood.

“It’s fine, step back a bit.”

After recognizing the man’s face, Chairman Kwon raised his hand to dismiss the bodyguards.

“Do you still do morning exercises in America? With your father?”

Instead of answering, Jeho studied Chairman Kwon’s expression.

“They say no news is good news, so I believe they’re doing well.”

Chairman Kwon truly didn’t know anything. His secretaries had long since come under the control of Director Kwon, intercepting reports. Rather, every move of Chairman Kwon was being reported to Director Kwon, making the morning exercise time the only moment free from Director Kwon’s surveillance.

“Neither you nor I have much time, so let’s get to the point.”

Jeho changed the subject without updating him on his father’s situation.

Chairman Kwon shouldn’t be shocked yet. If he were to collapse from shock, it would be like handing the knife handle to Director Kwon.

“You didn’t urge me to return just to put me in charge of one office building construction project, did you?”

“Of course not.”

Chairman Kwon answered in a strong voice.

“I have no intention of handing over the company to someone who hasn’t been proven. That Woosik, in less than 10 years, he’ll sell the company to a foreign hedge fund. Minwoo is the same. But you’re different.”

“Don’t say that, find a professional CEO instead.”

Chairman Kwon frowned, but having expected this answer, he silently accepted it.

“Even if we find a professional CEO, we need someone to keep an eye on things. I want you to do that. Become the largest shareholder and take the position of chairman of the board.”

“If I accept the offer, what will you give me?”

While others would fight tooth and nail for that position, Jeho asked what he would get in return. Normally, this should be irritating, but Chairman Kwon liked Jeho’s attitude.

He had been like that since he was young. Jeho had never once been afraid of Chairman Kwon. He was cut from a different cloth than Minwoo, who couldn’t even make eye contact properly and always shrank back.

“Alright. What do you want? Tell me.”

“Grandfather.”

For the first time since their reunion, Jeho called Chairman Kwon ‘Grandfather’ instead of ‘Chairman’, a smile appearing on his lips.

[This is the timeline separator]

“Ms. Yuri, Jeho asked me to give this to you.”

Kim Sojang approached Yuri’s desk and handed her a car key. Jeho had apparently come to meet Kim Sojang but didn’t come up to the office, instead meeting outside and then leaving.

“Ah, yes.”

Yuri, who had been anxiously wondering what face to show Jeho, suddenly felt deflated.

Until just moments ago, she had been racking her brain trying to figure out how to avoid Jeho, but now that he had left without seeing her, she even felt a bit disappointed.

Yuri, exasperated with herself, quickly put the car key in her drawer.

Because of her ridiculous display of tears, she had made a fool of herself… While she would be grateful if he just dismissed it as common drunken behavior, the truth was she still felt uneasy.

It seemed best to avoid running into him as much as possible. Whenever she met him, her emotions became too turbulent. It’s always wise to avoid anything potentially dangerous in advance.

Then how should she return the jacket?

After pondering for a moment, Yuri concluded she could return it through Minwoo. There seemed to be a strange sense of rivalry between the two men, but they were cousins, not enemies, so it shouldn’t be a big problem.

As it neared closing time, Yuri received a text message from the wedding planner.

Only upon seeing the message did Yuri remember today’s schedule. If the wedding planner hadn’t reminded her, she probably would have forgotten and gone straight home.

That’s how little interest she had in her marriage to Minwoo. Other than the expectation of escaping from her twisted family and finally being able to breathe properly, she had no other desires. And yet, this was supposed to be her wedding.

“Sigh.”

Feeling somewhat bitter, Yuri let out a small sigh.

It’s strange. Until now, she had never questioned this arranged marriage, but why did she keep feeling so uneasy?

As Yuri was trying hard to shake off her gloomy mood, she received a call from Minwoo.

[Isn’t today the day for fitting the wedding attire?]

“Yes. I just got a reminder text.”

[I don’t think I can make it today. I got scolded terribly by grandfather for leaving early yesterday. For the time being, I can’t leave work before 10 PM even if the sky falls.]

“Okay. I’ll go alone today.”

After hanging up, Yuri finished organizing her work and got up from her seat. She left work a little earlier than usual and headed to the underground parking lot. The car Jeho had driven this morning was parked in her designated spot.

As she got into the driver’s seat, she could smell the faint citrus scent permeating the car. The heavy yet refreshing scent was undoubtedly the cologne Jeho had used yesterday.

Why was she only noticing this scent today, when he wasn’t here, when she hadn’t noticed it yesterday?

Yuri took a deep breath, gripped the steering wheel tightly with both hands, and quickly started the engine before any unnecessary thoughts could arise.

[This is the timeline separator]

“Is this the dress?”

“Yes.”

Nancy Song, the wedding dress designer, answered while observing Yuri’s expression. In front of them lay a shabby dress that could be considered an antique. KG Group’s Mrs. Na Dohee had insisted it was a family tradition to use the wedding dress of Yuri’s future grandmother-in-law, altered for the ceremony.

For an ordinary bride, it would have been a disappointment, but Yuri accepted it indifferently.

“If it’s tradition, we should follow it.”

Nancy Song, relieved, prepared the dress for the wedding photoshoot. Even if the ceremony dress was settled, the photoshoot dress should at least be glamorous.

“Shall I put your hair up?”

“No, it’s fine.”

“Then please go inside first, and a staff member will come to assist you.”

Most brides-to-be would have their hair done and try on the wedding dress, but Yuri entered the changing room with her usual hairstyle.

As if rebelling against the old-fashioned design of the ceremony dress, the wedding photoshoot dress had bare shoulders and a rather deep neckline.

Concerned that it might be too revealing, Yuri decided to try it on briefly before the staff arrived. The exposed cleavage bothered her a bit, but she thought it could be fixed with alterations or covered with a bolero. Unable to zip it up fully by herself, Yuri came out of the changing room to ask for help.

“Could you help me with the zipper?”

For some reason, instead of Nancy Song, Jeho was standing where she should have been. Startled, Yuri froze in place for a moment.

Jeho also seemed surprised to see her here, furrowing his brow. But he quickly regained his composure and asked,

“Are you asking me? To zip you up?”

At those words, Yuri snapped back to reality. This was no time to be dazed. She was wearing a revealing dress with her cleavage clearly visible. As Yuri was about to hurriedly cover her chest with both hands, she changed her mind and turned her back to Jeho.

“Yes, please help me.”

She didn’t want to show her embarrassment by frantically covering her exposed chest. If she asked him to zip her up while naturally turning her back, there would be no need to cover herself.

“If that’s what you want……”

Jeho responded, approaching with unhurried steps.

“But what brings you here?”

Having made the mistake of being irritable last night, Yuri deliberately asked in a very calm voice.

“I’m here on the Chairman’s orders to get fitted for a suit.”

Jeho replied in an equally calm voice as he swept Yuri’s hair to the side of her neck. As his fingertips brushed against her exposed nape, an unexpected tingling sensation spread throughout her body.

Why hadn’t she thought about the physical contact that would occur when he zipped her up? Regrettably, it was too late to regret her naive choice.

Along with the faint citrus scent, the touch of his hand barely grazing her as he pulled up the zipper stimulated her nerves, and Yuri’s face quickly turned red.

The only fortunate thing was that since her back was turned, he couldn’t see her like this.

But then…

As Yuri turned her head without thinking, she realized that her reflection was clearly visible in the full-length mirror beside her.

She wasn’t the only one looking at the mirror. A pair of deep, intense eyes were fixed solely on her.

However, his gaze wasn’t on her exposed cleavage, but on the upper part of her arm. As Jeho lifted the loose lace, a bluish bruise was revealed. It was the area that had been red and swollen until yesterday.

“Doesn’t it hurt?”

As he gently caressed the bruised area with his thumb, Yuri involuntarily shuddered.

“N-no. It just looks that way.”

Looking at the bruised area with troubled eyes, he slowly raised his head.

“Let me ask you once more.”

Bringing his lips close to Yuri’s ear, he whispered,

“Do you really have to go through with this marriage?”

Their gazes met hotly in the mirror.