ADT 03

Chapter 3

Tell Me the Real Reason You Came to Me

Perhaps he liked seeing her flustered. After widening the distance between himself and Yuri a little, Hushin spoke in a deep, heavy voice.

‘Well, forget about that. How about I make you a proposal, Ms. Jin Yuri?’

‘…….’

‘I also really need a secretary who works as hard as you do. Would you consider coming to work for me?’

‘Ha! What kind of ridiculous… Are you saying you want to recruit me even though I’m your fiancée’s secretary?’

Yuri could only be dumbfounded by his absurd proposal.

‘What’s the big deal? I’m saying I want to have you because you’re too good to give to someone else.’

‘Vice President Park Hushin, please stop joking around. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear what you just said. Then.’

Yuri no longer wanted to hear what Hushin had to say, so she simply bowed her head briefly and hurried toward the entrance.

Just as she was about to turn the doorknob, Hushin’s deep voice came clearly from behind her.

‘I’m not joking, so tell me whenever you make up your mind. And the sooner you decide, the better.’

After that, Yuri deliberately avoided meeting Hushin alone. Honestly, she was afraid.

She didn’t know how her feelings might change if she met him again. That was why she no longer had the courage to face him.

For a moment, Yuri had been thinking about her past with Hushin, but then she remembered meeting him last night at Seol-a’s request.

She had gone there to persuade Hushin to attend the year-end party, and she could still clearly remember the shocking words he had said.

‘If I attend that party, you should tell me first what you’re going to do for me, Ms. Jin Yuri. Then I might at least think about it….’

‘There’s nothing I can do for you, Vice President. This is a favor from Director Seol-a.’

‘What should I do? I want to receive something from Jin Yuri, not Baek Seol-a.’

‘Um… I have someone I’m going to marry. If you keep doing this….’

At Yuri’s words, Hushin let out a mocking laugh.

‘It’s not like I asked you to sleep with me, so why are you suddenly putting up such a strong wall? I just want to hear your answer about the secretary position I offered you last time. Or perhaps you wanted me to say that? If you want it, I can.’

‘No, how can you say something like that….’

Yuri no longer wanted to continue talking with Hushin. His words were certainly rude, but the blatant desire hidden within them made it feel as though he truly wanted her.

Yuri was afraid that if Hushin said even one more word, she would really be swept away by him.

She felt pathetic for being unable to breathe properly and having her heart beat faster whenever Hushin said something vulgar.

‘I’ll tell them that you can’t come. Then.’

Yuri did not want him to see her face, which had turned red all the way to her earlobes from embarrassment. She quickly bowed and hurried out of his office.

＊＊＊

Yuri impulsively pressed the address for Hushin’s home that was already saved in her navigation system.

It was a place she had visited several times while running errands for Seol-a. Perhaps her fingers remembered the way, because she naturally entered the gate password.

“Ah… I must be crazy. Why did I come here, of all places?”

She could only be shocked that she had actually turned such a dangerous thought into action, as though she had really intended to have an affair with him right away, just as Seol-a had said.

Hushin lived in a luxury villa complex, so security was extremely strict. No one could even enter from the entrance without entering a password.

The villas had been built in various designs according to the owners’ tastes, and they were spaced far apart to protect the residents’ privacy.

December 31, 8:00 a.m.

Although Yuri regretted doing something crazy so early in the morning, for some reason, she could not move from inside the car.

Perhaps because she had been up and rushing around since dawn, a sudden wave of exhaustion washed over her, and her eyelids grew heavy.

The area in front of Hushin’s house was quiet under the warm morning sunlight. When Yuri turned off the engine and rested her head against the driver’s seat, her eyelids naturally began to close.

Tap, tap, tap.

When she heard a sound as if someone were tapping on the window nearby, Yuri reflexively opened her eyes wide.

Her eyes met Hushin’s eyes as he stood outside the driver’s window.

“Gasp!”

Startled by the sudden sound that escaped her, Yuri covered her mouth with her hand. Then she opened the car door and stepped outside.

Perhaps he had just returned from exercising, because he was wearing nothing more than light training clothes, but his firm, muscular body stood out clearly.

His face was slightly damp with sweat, and his light breathing made him look strangely seductive.

His slightly furrowed eyebrows gave him an annoyed expression. Hushin suddenly asked Yuri,

“What are you doing in front of my house at this hour? Did Director Baek Seol-a tell you to bring me something again?”

“Ah, no…. It’s nothing like that.”

Flustered, Yuri fidgeted and hesitated for a moment. She needed time to think about how she could possibly explain this situation to Hushin.

“If that’s not it, then what possible reason could Jin Yuri have for being in front of my house at this hour?”

Hushin stared intently at Yuri as if urging her to answer.

Under his overwhelming gaze, Yuri felt as if she could hardly breathe, and her heart tightened.

Then she suddenly remembered his offer to become his secretary and blurted out,

“It’s about what you told me last time… I came to give you my answer.”

Hushin’s expression did not change, but a slight surprise could be seen in his subtly wavering eyes.

“Ha! Are you saying you came all the way here this early in the morning without even contacting me just to say that?”

“…….”

Unable to answer, Yuri merely bit her lower lip repeatedly.

Whether it was because the outside air was cold or because she was nervous, her body suddenly began to tremble.

Seeing her like that, Hushin spoke calmly.

“It’s cold, so let’s go inside first.”

Yuri silently followed him into the house.

She had felt this every time she came here, but the place was far too large for Hushin to live in alone.

Even this living room alone was larger than several of the fifteen-pyeong officetels where she lived put together.

She suddenly felt out of place and even thought that she should leave this place again.

‘What are you going to say…. Just because you quit being Baek Seol-a’s secretary, are you going to proudly say that you’ll work as this man’s secretary? Now that you don’t have a man to marry, are you going to openly ask him to sleep with you? Ha….’

Her mind was a complete mess.

She had not decided to marry Hyunwoo because she loved him desperately. She had simply wanted to have an ordinary family.

She had been swayed by Joo Sang-hee, who spoke like an experienced matchmaker, and because she had been pushed along by that atmosphere, she had felt that she naturally had to go through with the marriage.

Now that she had even decided to break off the engagement, Yuri regretted how she had lived under Joo Sang-hee and Seol-a without ever properly expressing her own opinions.

“Don’t just stand there looking uncomfortable. Sit down. It’s making me uncomfortable just watching you.”

“Ah, yes.”

Yuri, who had been lost in thought, returned to reality at Hushin’s words.

And then she made up her mind.

From this very moment, she would do whatever she wanted.

For the surest revenge she had decided on before coming here.

“I’m going to make coffee. What about you, Ms. Jin Yuri?”

“I like coffee too. Thank you.”

After answering Hushin, Yuri sat down on the sofa with a determined expression.

A little later, Hushin placed a luxurious mug filled with the rich aroma of fresh coffee on the table in front of Yuri.

He also placed a warm-looking blanket beside it.

“Cover yourself with it if you need it.”

“Yes….”

There was something strangely warm in his indifferent tone.

Yuri quietly watched Hushin sitting on the sofa across from her, drinking his coffee with an elegant air. Her lips moved slightly, but no words came out.

Hushin did not miss that expression and spoke first.

“Now, tell me the real reason you came to me.”

“The secretary position you offered me last time… If it’s still available, I’d like to take it.”

If she wanted to seduce him, staying close to him would give her more opportunities.

She had only said the words, but Yuri’s back turned cold as if she had committed a crime.

Her tightly curled fists were covered in sweat.

Hushin looked at Yuri, who had lowered her head and was staring downward.

Her fair skin, almost without any makeup, looked incredibly pure and delicate.

Her lively lips were moist, as though she had applied a pink lip balm, and his gaze naturally lingered there.

He suddenly remembered the first time he had seen her at Seol-a’s birthday party.

She had looked graceful and innocent, but there had been something strangely sorrowful about her.

Even afterward, Yuri was always beside Seol-a, so he could not help but see her often.

Yet he had never once seen her smile or laugh.

His eyes kept being drawn to her. He had tried to ignore her, but she continued to catch his attention against his own will.

That day, he had secretly followed her all the way to the terrace and played the role of a prince on a white horse, even though it did not suit him at all.

He had never once felt such pointless emotions toward a woman.

It had been a coincidence, but he had even saved her when she was in danger, only for her to run away without even thanking him.

As time passed, he became more curious about her, and for some reason, he disliked the way she always obediently followed Seol-a.

The reason he had offered Yuri a position as his secretary was because he wanted to see her obey someone other than Seol-a.

But she did not seem to have any intention of doing that at all.

He had clearly caught her secretly looking at him several times, yet she never once showed any sign of it.

She was obviously interested in him to some degree, yet she coyly pretended otherwise.

And that side of her once again awakened a strange sense of possessiveness in Hushin.