Chapter 5

“What on earth is Director Ji Dokyeom thinking?”

While Leeyeon was pondering the proposal she had heard the previous night, the gallery hallway became noisy.  

Then, Dokyeom, with his strikingly handsome face, appeared in front of the director’s office.  

When Leeyeon looked slightly surprised upon seeing him, Dokyeom raised a long finger to his lips, signaling her to remain silent.  

As he approached her, he asked, 

“Is Director Cha Heeyoung inside?”  

It was a question asked in the same tone as usual.  

“Yes, she’s in.”  

Dokyeom walked over to Leeyeon’s desk and gestured toward the director’s office door with a tilt of his chin.  

“May I go in?”  

“Just a moment.”  

When Leeyeon made the call, a quick response came back, telling him to come in.  

“You can go in now.”  

Dokyeom passed by Leeyeon with an icy expression, as if the secretive proposal he had made the previous night had never happened.  

‘It wasn’t just a dream, was it?’  

As she was thinking that, Leeyeon belatedly noticed a note that Dokyeom had left on her desk.  

[Come to the parking lot 10 minutes after I leave the director’s office.]  

It was a single sheet of paper that proved it hadn’t been a dream.  

Now it was time to act on the conclusion she had reached after a sleepless night of deliberation.  

***  

Swish—  

Out of nowhere, rain poured down at the end of the workday.  

Since she hadn’t left an extra umbrella at the office, there was no way for her to avoid the heavy rain.  

It had already been about 10 minutes since Dokyeom had left the director’s office, so there was no time to hesitate any longer.  

Thus, Leeyeon had no choice but to walk through the pouring rain as she headed toward Dokyeom’s car.  

When Dokyeom saw her climb into the passenger seat, soaked to the bone, he handed her a handkerchief.  

“I’m fine. I have one of my own.”  

Leeyeon smiled faintly and pulled a handkerchief from her bag to wipe her face.  

Dokyeom turned on the heater at a low setting to keep her warm and took off his jacket, offering it to her.  

But even that was refused.  

“I’m fine.”  

That made it the second rejection of the day.  

Watching his hand pause mid-air, Leeyeon bit her lip slightly.  

Then she began to explain why she couldn’t accept his handkerchief or jacket.  

“I appreciate the gesture, but I can’t accept it.”  

“Why not?”  

“Because I don’t believe in favors without a reason.”  

“What do you mean?”  

“Shouldn’t receiving something mean you also have to give something in return?”  

Although she seemed naive, it was clear she wasn’t entirely so.  

The way she calmly voiced her opinions in response to Dokyeom’s words was refreshing.  

Until now, Dokyeom had only encountered people desperate to take more from him, people corrupted by the world. So Leeyeon, who even refused such small gestures of kindness, was fascinating to him.  

“That could be true, or it might not be.”  

“And besides, since I’m already drenched, wearing your jacket would only make it wet as well. I’ll just accept the thought behind it.”  

Even though she was off work, she knew Dokyeom still had a packed schedule ahead of him and didn’t want him to go without his jacket.  

“Alright, then.”  

Dokyeom tossed the jacket onto the back seat and shifted the conversation to the main topic.  

“Have you thought about the proposal I made yesterday?”  

“Before I give you my decision, there’s something I need to clarify.”  

“What is it?”  

“I want to know why you’re entrusting this job to me.”  

Dokyeom stared at her with an expressionless face before speaking.  

“As I said yesterday, I want to confirm the tip-off I received because it’s been bothering me.”  

“Couldn’t you investigate it yourself, Director?”  

At that question, Dokyeom let out a faint laugh.  

“And what if it turns out to be false?”  

“……”  

“Would you take responsibility for the fallout?”  

Thinking about it, he had a point.  

Even though Cha Heeyoung was his stepmother, their outward relationship didn’t seem particularly hostile.  

“I’m not asking you to steal confidential information or anything.”  

Dokyeom tilted his head slightly.  

“All I want is for you to briefly report who Cha Heeyoung meets and what she does. That’s it.”  

“……”  

“If you can’t do it, there’s no need to force yourself—”  

“I’ll do it.”  

Leeyeon quickly blurted out her response.  

If she didn’t accept this proposal, Dokyeom would likely replace her with someone else as Cha Heeyoung’s personal secretary.  

In that case, all the time she had spent enduring by Cha Heeyoung’s side would have been for nothing.  

The truth was, Leeyeon’s family had a bitter history with Cha Heeyoung.  

Although she had tried to forget what Cha Heeyoung had done to her family, resentment always resurfaced whenever life became difficult.  

That’s why she had deliberately sought out Cha Heeyoung.  

She had endured as her personal secretary, waiting for the right moment.  

Whenever she saw her mother, Soon-ok, lying helplessly in a hospital bed after losing everything, Leeyeon found the strength to endure whatever Cha Heeyoung threw at her.  

Keeping an eye on Cha Heeyoung’s every move wasn’t difficult.  

It was necessary for the revenge she had planned.  

What had caught her off guard was Dokyeom’s sudden proposal.  

“I’ll do it.”  

Hearing the words he had been waiting for, a faint smile curved Dokyeom’s lips.  

She had no choice.  

Whether she got caught by Cha Heeyoung and was fired, or whether she rejected Dokyeom’s proposal and was fired today, the end result would be the same.  

In that case, it was better to stay as long as possible and gather whatever information she could.  

Moreover, she couldn’t afford to lose her position as Cha Heeyoung’s secretary, which paid a high salary, without having a backup plan.  

“You’ve made the right decision. Since you’re giving me something, I should give you something in return. That’s only fair.”  

Leeyeon’s eyes widened slightly, as she hadn’t expected to receive anything from Dokyeom in return.  

“If you ever want to get revenge on Ko Junho.”  

The word “revenge” startled her internally, though she didn’t show it outwardly.  

It was as if a thief had been caught red-handed.  

“Feel free to use me however you like.”  

“Pardon?”  

“If you’ve gone through something like what happened yesterday, I doubt you’d want to let that guy off the hook.”  

Of course, that was true.  

Not only had he cheated, but he had also insulted her father’s sincerity.  

But how was she supposed to use Dokyeom for revenge?  

Seeing her confused expression, Dokyeom spoke in an even tone.  

“I never intended to marry Artist Bae Yerin out of affection.”  

The more he thought about it, the more absurd it seemed, and a faint laugh escaped him.  

“While I was wondering how to get rid of her, I found out about her relationship with Ko Junho.”  

Looking directly at Leeyeon, Dokyeom added another proposal.  

“Let’s date. That’s my second proposal.”  

“What did you just say?”  

“Let’s date.”  

“Pardon? Suddenly, what…?”  

“Not a real, serious relationship. A fake one, where we both get what we need and cut off unnecessary people.”  

Leeyeon closed her eyes tightly, then slowly opened them.  

Dokyeom was still sitting there, gazing at her steadily.  

“What exactly would you gain from dating me, Director?”  

“I’d avoid having to go through with an engagement to a promiscuous woman.”  

“And what would I gain…?”  

“I’ll give you anything I can offer. Whatever it is.”  

Talking to Dokyeom seemed to have made her more composed than ever.  

What would Junho think if he found out that I and Dokyeom were close?  

Junho often badmouthed Dokyeom whenever he visited Jicheol Gallery.  

Especially when the female employees admired Dokyeom, Junho’s sarcastic remarks would intensify.  

“I heard somewhere that Director Ji Dokyeom has a very messy love life.”

“Honestly, Ji Dokyeom hasn’t earned anything through effort. He was just born with a diamond spoon in his mouth. And yet, he acts so arrogant.”

Although Junho always dismissed Dokyeom as an insignificant man, he seemed to be very conscious of him.

Thinking about how Junho had scrimped and saved to buy luxury brands similar to what Dokyeom wore made it obvious.

Looking back now, it was an utterly ridiculous inferiority complex.

‘If Junho oppa finds out that I’m dating the Director…’

As Leeyeon contemplated this, Dokyeom’s gaze lingered on her face for quite some time.