However, Min-hee suddenly stopped talking and, with a light laugh and a shrug, changed the subject.
“Well, that’s okay. When it comes to Secretary Seo, CEO Ki tends to act uncharacteristically. So I was just wondering?”
Tilting her head curiously, Min-hee smiled at Yeon-woo.
Yeon-woo instinctively looked away from her penetrating gaze, feeling a tightness in her throat.
“CEO Ki and I have a professional relationship as superior and secretary.”
“Okay, thanks for the clear answer.”
Min-hee smiled briefly and then turned away, seemingly satisfied and leaving with an air of relief.
Finally, the dinner ended.
However, Tae-han was still surrounded by a crowd of people.
“CEO Ki Tae-han, we didn’t get a chance to greet you earlier. We are from Songwoo Construction…”
Many were eager to make an impression and hand over their business cards. Yeon-woo, standing a few steps away, collected the cards on his behalf.
Yeon-woo checked the time.
9 PM.
It was later than she expected. She wasn’t tired, but Min-hee’s words echoed in her ears.
“Thank you for the clear answer.”
Why did her words sting like thorns?
“Secretary Seo.”
It felt like a long time had passed before Tae-han was finally alone. He beckoned her over, and she quickly approached.
“The car is waiting at the back gate.”
“Let’s go together.”
Yeon-woo looked up at him incredulously. Tae-han stared back with tired eyes.
“It’s late. I’ll give you a lift, so come with me.”
“No, I can’t. I need to…”
She planned to take a night bus to Cheonan.
Before she could explain, her phone rang in her bag.
Yeon-woo hesitated to answer in front of Tae-han.
“Why don’t you answer? Is it your boyfriend?”
At his question, Yeon-woo saw an opportunity to use the moment.
“It is my boyfriend. Excuse me for a moment.”
She nodded to Tae-han and turned away, noticing his eyebrow raise uncomfortably.
“Hello?”
“It’s me. Are you done with work?”
“Yes. I’m about to leave.”
She had texted Kyu-bin from the restroom earlier.
“Tell me where you are. I’m nearby.”
Kyu-bin had just finished a meeting. Yeon-woo was glad she wouldn’t be alone on her trip to Cheonan.
“I’m at…”
Unaware of Tae-han’s furrowed brow, Yeon-woo informed Kyu-bin of her location.
“I’ll be there quickly by taxi. Let’s go to Cheonan together.”
“Sounds good.”
After confirming she’d wait at the main entrance, Yeon-woo ended the call, relieved.
Thinking about traveling to the terminal had been exhausting, but this was a welcome change.
Turning back, she saw Tae-han with his hands in his pants pockets, watching her.
Yeon-woo, still uneasy under his gaze, spoke up.
“My boyfriend is coming to pick me up, so I’ll be fine.”
Tae-han’s expression subtly changed.
It was the look of someone displeased, but unable to pinpoint what bothered him.
“Thank you for your hard work today.”
Yeon-woo bowed to him.
There was no need for her to accompany him further, as the driver was waiting and she wasn’t his executive secretary.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to him?”
“Huh?”
But it seemed Tae-han had no intention of backing down.
“I mean your boyfriend, Secretary Seo. I should meet him beforehand if you’re planning to get married, right? I’ll even send a wedding gift.”
Yeon-woo was caught off guard by his unexpected comment.
He was right, if only Kyu-bin was actually the person she was going to marry.
But Kyu-bin was not that person, so she couldn’t just introduce him recklessly.
“Next time, then. He said he had drinks at the company dinner. I’ll formally introduce him to you later.”
“Tae-han?”
At that moment, a voice called out to him from not too far away.
As Tae-han turned around, Yeon-woo also looked up. Min-hee was approaching from a distance.
“Well then, I’ll excuse myself.”
Yeon-woo quickly walked away, not wanting to see the two together.
Tae-han watched her leave with an unsatisfied look, then turned around with a face that seemed to have much to say.
“Ha…”
Yeon-woo let out a sigh of relief only after stepping outside.
It was a relief.
Yet her heart felt heavy.
Tae-han, who attracted people like a magnet, and Min-hee, who naturally called his name and filled his side.
Even knowing there was no room for her in between them, she felt a surge of emotion.
She couldn’t stop picturing the two of them together, even though she hated it.
How long had she been standing there?
Just as she began to feel the cold, a taxi approached and stopped. Then the back door opened, revealing a familiar yet unfamiliar face.
Tall with a casual outfit, hair fluttering in the wind, and broad shoulders wrapped in a checkered shirt.
It was the figure of a grown man, but the smile facing her was still the same as before.
“Kyu-bin!”
Yeon-woo exclaimed with joy.
“Yeon-woo.”
Kyu-bin approached with long strides.
Although Kyu-bin had become a full-grown man, Yeon-woo greeted him with a bright smile.
“I recognized you right away. Seo Yeon-woo hasn’t changed at all.”
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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