CHAPTER 14

‘Did she ask me a question? Take off the coat, wash hands, have dinner while Luca reports.’

Recalling the question, he nodded briefly towards her. Plump lips formed a gentle curve, and her eyes half-closed, radiating a gentle energy around the focal point. Taejun swallowed dryly.

‘Is it thirst? Or is it hunger?’

Whenever he looked at this woman, he felt thirsty. He felt like grabbing something, shoving it greedily into his mouth, and gulping it down.

Taejun watched Minhee’s back as she disappeared into the dining room with Rose and Luca, like a teacher leading a class of children. He took off his coat and hung it in the closet by the front door. He washed his hands and glanced up at his reflection in the mirror, his expression unfamiliar.

He couldn’t explain what was different about it, but something was definitely different. The magic that Miss Minnie cast on Rose seemed to have an effect on him as well.

Minhee’s voice was like the flapping of fairy wings as she stood on her tiptoes and fluttered around, scattering glittering magic dust. Enchanted like a sailor bewitched by a siren, Taejun was mesmerized by the voice, nodding his head and doing as he was told.

‘Snap out of it…’

As they entered the dining room, Rose rushed out and held out a piece of paper.

[Santon, this is the menu for tonight’s dinner!]

Taejun looked at the paper.

‘A large orange blob and green clouds…? Are those black dots crawling on a pile of sand, ants?’

In the drawing, two people wearing pants and two people wearing skirts stood next to the table.

‘Judging by the color of their clothes, the person with the black clothes seems to be me.’

Rose, with anticipation in her eyes, raised her fist, holding it up to him.

‘What do I need to do?’

Taejun glanced at Minhee, one eyebrow raised in a plea for help. She pointed to the paper, lifting her thumb slightly. Taejun watched Minhee’s gesture nervously and opened his mouth.

[Uh……. good job, Rose].

[Thanks Santon, next time I’ll draw a ribbon in your hair too].

[……Ribbon?]

A puff, and the sound of a balloon deflating in the distance made Taejun look up. Minhee was wide-eyed and covering her mouth with the back of her hand, and Luca’s head was bowed and his shoulders were shaking, as if bursting into laughter.

With a bewildered expression, Taejun brushed through his messy hair and sat at the table. As soon as he sat down, the chef wheeled in a cart and set up the dinner on the table.

‘Salmon and broccoli.’

After directly seeing the evening menu, recalling Rose’s drawing, it seemed to make sense. In that case, the pile of sand with the ants crawling over it is…… chocolate chip cookies.

[Is dessert, a cookie?]

[Santon! How did you know?]

[The drawing-]

[Oh, right! Dad said Santon is a real genius. A genius is a smart person who knows everything. If Santon eats fish, he can have my chocolate chip cookies for dessert!]

Minhee, Luca, and even the chef who was putting down the plates all looked at Taejun at once. The word genius is often used as an exaggerated compliment, but in Taejun’s case, it didn’t feel like an exaggeration, so everyone was nodding their heads in agreement.

‘My brother……knew I was lying.’

Taejun looked at Rose, who was eating absentmindedly. He thought he was doing a good job of fooling his brother. He’d told him that his brain had become duller as he’d grown up, that he wasn’t the gifted or genius he’d been expected to be, and that he was sorry.

[Boss, the selection of candidates for the weekend nanny is complete. We’ve selected all the candidates that meet the conditions you instructed, and I’ve already sent the resumes via email].

Luca caught Taejun’s attention.

[I coordinated with the secretary and set the interview time for Thursday at 5:00 p.m. If you want to hold the interview at the office or at your home, we’ll go with that].

Minhee looked at Luca sitting next to her with a newfound admiration. Luca, reporting to Taejun, was efficient and professional, quite different from the casual interactions he had with Minhee.

‘As expected, not just anyone can become a personal secretary to someone like Baek Taejun.’

Taejun’s response was also concise.

[Home].

[Okay. Understood].

[Miss Minnie?]

Minhee was about to shove the salmon, glistening with sweet teriyaki sauce, into her mouth when she heard Taejun’s voice calling out to her, and her mouth dropped open in surprise.

Taejun stared at her parted lips for a moment, then lowered his eyes. Minhee’s ears heated up for no reason, so she shut her mouth and carefully set her fork down on her plate.

Next to them, Luca pretended not to look, alternating between watching Taejun and Minhee like watching a ping-pong match.

[Can you help me with the interview for the weekend nanny?]

[Me……?]

[Yes. I think you’re better suited for this job than me, because someone like me can’t know what kind of person Rose needs…….]

[Don’t say that!]

Minhee cut Taejun off mid-sentence. Beside her, Luca inhaled sharply.

[What do you mean ‘someone like me’. Mr. Baek, you’re doing a good enough job as it is. You’re the most helpful person for Rose. If needed, I’ll prepare a list of questions for reference and send it to you by email before the interview.]

Minhee smiled at him as if to encourage him, and Taejun blinked in a daze.

[Santon, did you take pictures of Miss Minnie with your eyes? Take one for me too!]

Rose smiled widely, revealing the broccoli between her missing front teeth. Taejun’s head turned quickly towards Rose, and he blinked a couple times.

[Boss, take a picture of me too.]

Luca giggled, leaning on Minhee’s shoulder, lips puckered like a duckbill. Taejun’s head snapped back to Luca this time, one eyebrow raised in surprise.

Even Minhee, next to him, turned to Luca and grinned widely, making a “v” with her fingers, and Taejun’s tight lips softened and he smiled.

[Let’s eat.]

Luca’s eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat as Taejun lowered his gaze to his plate and moved his fork and knife around.

[First time I’ve seen him smile, so handsome-]

Luca was chatting with Minhee, playfully making mouth shapes, but when he noticed Taejun lifting his head, he swiftly grabbed a broccoli and stuffed it into his mouth.

‘I see I’m not the only one who’s shocked by his smile.’

Minhee understood Luca’s reaction well. Although she wanted to join in, fangirling over Taejun’s smile like meeting a fan who liked the same celebrity star, she reminded herself of her role.

[Rose, what was the most fun part of your day today?]

Rose grimaced a little, not liking the texture of the salmon all that much, but her eyes twinkled as she picked at her share on the plate, determined to eat the cookies.

As the attention of the three adults focused on her, she seemed to bask in the sudden shower of interest

[Senior Sister Day! I played with Kate].

[Rose, could you tell us more about what Senior Sister Day is?]

[Uhm, Senior Sister Day is, um, when Kate gets to play with me].

There was a tradition at Aster School where the seniors, the oldest 12th graders, were paired with the youngest kindergarteners, and once a month they would play with them or read to them during recess.

[Miss Minnie, do Koreans like to ke….bab?]

Rose widened her eyes and asked an offbeat question to Minhee.

Minhee tilted her head, pondering the peculiar question.

[Kebab? You mean the food on a skewer?]

[No, kebab music].

Aha! Minhee smirked at Rose.

[……Not kebab, but K-pop?]

[That’s right, K-pop!]

[K-pop is Korean pop music by Korean singers].

[Ah……. my senior sister, Kate, loves K-pop, and Rose can sing the Korean version of the song “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.”]

[Teacher likes K-pop too, I’ll play some music for Rose one day].

Luca suddenly joined in the conversation between Rose and Minhee.

[Minhee, I like K-pop too!]

[Really?? Do you have a favorite song or artist?]

In recent years, once people realized that Minhee was Korean, they often confessed to liking K-pop.

[I like songs by Kai!]

Minhee’s eyes sparkled with delight as she glanced over at Luca, who was sitting next to her. Somehow, they hit it off right from the start.

[Me too! Luca, you have the same taste as me. I stood in line all night when they performed in New York last time!]

[Me too!! Who’s your favorite?]

[The leader! King J is my ultimate bias!]

[Whoa, whoa, whoa. Don’t freak out, Minnie…….]

[Why, why, why? Have you seen him in person? He comes to New York often because he has a girlfriend here, but even though fans deliberately look for him, they can’t see him, while non-fans often spot him!]

As Minhee excitedly talked, Luca sneakily glanced at Taejun. Minhee followed Luca’s gaze and discovered Taejun looking at her with a strange expression. She quickly closed her mouth and lowered her head.

‘You’re crazy, Seol Minhee. You don’t even know your place.’

[…He’s Junhee’s brother.]

Taejun added a nonchalant remark, and a moment of silence ensued.

‘Who is Junhee? Who is his brother? Is he someone I should know?’

Seeing Minhee’s confused expression, Taejun added.

[Kim Jaehee. He’s one of our company’s clients and the younger brother of Kim Junhee, my business partner.]

‘Kim Jaehee! King J’s real name!’

Minhee’s jaw dropped in genuine surprise. Luca nudged Minhee’s chin up with his index finger and whispered.

[Get a grip, Minnie!]

Taejun continued to eat his dinner as if nothing had happened, and Luca continued to eat as well.

Rose was cheerfully singing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” with an awkward Korean pronunciation.