CHAPTER 92

Lara and Minhee turned around at the same time.

Taejun’s gaze was firmly fixed on Minhee without a moment’s hesitation. Minhee sucked in a small breath as his dark gaze scanned her like a thirsty man.

Lara slowly stood up and moved behind the chair, blocking the line of sight between the two. Taejun took a step to the side, making room for her to pass, and she placed her hand on his arm, tugging lightly to get his attention. His brow quirked slightly, and he glanced down at her.

[TJ! Have you met Gus Westman well? I know his daughter, Valerie Westman. We met a few years ago at the party hosted by our Lagosian Gallery at Art Basel. Valerie bought a couple of Koons from me. If it would be helpful, I can host a casual mixer party for you.]

Lara glanced down at Minhee as she spoke to Taejun, the corners of her mouth quirking up in a sneer. Her intentions were blatantly obvious, even without words.

‘Yes, yes. You’re great with your high-class connections.’

Lara, who had been flaunting her abilities in front of Minhee, showing off what she could do for Taejun, now looked more desperate than envious. Taejun, however, didn’t seem to care about such things at all.

From what Minhee has observed of Taejun, he treats work like an interesting mathematical formula, a cerebral exercise to which he devotes a certain amount of time every day, like working out at the gym. The money he made was a byproduct, not the goal.

[Talk to Kim Junhee about that.]

Taejun indifferently replied to Lara, but his persistent gaze remained firmly fixed on Minhee, never letting go. It was definitely not just Minhee’s imagination. Taejun’s eyes still melted into the same wistful melancholy every time he looked at her.

‘You’re going to do this, but you can’t love me? Why?’

Taejun behaved today as if he wanted to mark Minhee as his own, disregarding the eyes of his employees.

The man who won’t even let her say she loves him is now openly displaying his possessiveness and abnormal obsession. 

‘How am I  supposed to interpret this…?’

Minhee was confused, finding serious contradictions in Taejun’s behavior. She needed time to think.

[Min!]

The sudden voice startled Minhee so much that her shoulders jumped, and her heart dropped. There was only one person who called her name like that.

Minhee was surprised to realize she had completely forgotten about seeing Noah again. He was her first love, just thinking about him made her heart ache.

Then she heard a noise from the stage and realized that a live band had started playing dance music just in time for dinner to end.

‘That’s right! We promised to have our first dance together.’

Noah grinned and strode over to Minhee, his long shadow falling over her as she fidgeted with embarrassment.

Noah approached Minhee with a bright smile. As he towered over her, the shadows of Taejun and Noah stood side by side, with Lara next to them. The three of them looked down at Minhee with different gazes.

Lara’s lifeless eyes suddenly gained interest as she alternated her gaze between Noah and Minhee.

Taejun glanced at Noah and furrowed his brow menacingly, his icy gaze directed at Minhee. She flinched as she saw his eyebrow rise in question.

She smiled awkwardly at Noah, who smiled back at her with a wide grin.

[Hi, Noah]. 

Taejun’s gaze, which had been focused on Minhee, quickly shifted to Noah. A glare of cold, suppressed rage pierced through him, enough to freeze even a roaring fire.

Noah winked at Minhee, then bowed his head, offering her his hand in an ostentatious gesture, like a medieval knight asking a lady to dance.

‘Ah, I had forgotten.’

Even as a child, Noah would turn heads with his seemingly random gestures. No matter what he did, he was loved and applauded, and he was used to having a lot of eyes on him. 

So he did what he wanted to do, not caring what others thought of him. Even now, that didn’t seem to have changed.

But the sight of Taejun and Noah standing side by side sent a chill down Minhee’s spine. It was as if her instincts had sensed danger and sent up a faint warning sign.

[My lady, may I, Noah Brown, have the honor of your first dance – oh?]

Minhee abruptly stood up and grabbed Noah’s hand.

[Noah, let’s go!]

[Wow, Min, did you want to dance?]

Noah asked in a surprised voice as Minhee pulled him along.

[Yes, yes.]

Minhee was too scared to look back. She wanted to know how Taejun was looking at her, or if he was ignoring her altogether. She both wanted and didn’t want to know.

[Min, wait!]

Noah stopped and pulled Minhee towards him, so they were facing each other.

[Where are you going? That’s the exit door, the stage is that way].

Noah jerked his thumb over his shoulder and pointed behind him.

[Ah…!]

Turning around, Minhee saw the exit was close by. Noah shook his head and stared at her wordlessly for a moment. His lake-blue eyes deepened, and he smirked.

[… Do you want to leave?]

Noah squeezed Minhee’s hand that he was holding.

[No!!]

Minhee shook her head vigorously. They were no longer teenagers. She understood the underlying meaning of Noah’s question. She carefully smiled at him as she pulled her hand away from his.

[Let’s go dance.]

[Okay. But first, one thing.]

Noah reached into his jacket and handed Minhee his phone.

[Give me your number. Quickly!]

[Huh? Uh…]

Minhee hesitantly punched in her number and handed the phone back to Noah. In the back of her head, she heard Luca’s voice.

[When other guys approach you, just smile and talk to them. If you find someone you like among those who ask for your contact information, give it to them.]

She didn’t intend to do that, but ironically, it had happened just as Luca planned. However, Noah was no longer the object of Minhee’s affection.

The adult Noah was still strikingly handsome. The confidence he naturally exuded shone like a crown on a prom king’s head. And he was a Southern Gentleman, maintaining his classic Southern manners even in the middle of New York City.

The smile on Noah’s face reminded her of the hot summer sun, the smell of the pool, the sweet smell of sunscreen wafting through the air, and the toasty marshmallows roasting over a crackling campfire.

But even with Noah standing before her, Minhee no longer felt the same excitement as before. Her heart was already filled to overflowing with another person, leaving no room for Noah.

Instead, she felt like she’d found an old friend from her teenage years, someone she’d spent summers at camp with and played with. 

[Min, remember this song?]

Noah signaled to the live band with a large hand gesture, and as the music changed, he tugged on Minhee’s arm and led her to the center of the stage. Minhee’s jaw dropped in surprise, and Noah burst out laughing.

[No way!]

They were not just anywhere, but in Soho, the most trendy neighborhood in Manhattan.  All around them, Manhattan’s elite in tuxedos, fashionistas in fancy dresses, and socialites filled the stage.

Over this scene, the intro to a country music song that was played at the summer camp dance parties on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, echoed through the venue.

At the unexpected country music, the initially perplexed crowd quickly started clapping and cheering. The unanticipated element made it seem “hip.” That was always the way Noah did things.

[I asked them to play this. Remember the steps?]

Every Friday at camp, when the kids had a dance party, the counselors would break into a ‘line dance’. By the end of summer camp, the kids knew the steps by heart and would dance together.

[…Maybe? But are we really going to do this here?]

[Yep!]

Noah grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye. When he had that look, no one could stop him. Minhee shook her head.

‘Are we really doing this here?’

She hesitated, biting her lip. Though she hadn’t danced it since before 11th grade, the steps started coming back to her as she heard the music.

A promise was a promise. They had agreed to dance the first song together, and with Noah’s goodwill in requesting a camp song from his memories, she couldn’t back out anymore.

As Noah started lightly stepping to the beat next to her, Minhee resignedly lifted her skirt a little and began clumsily imitating his movements while sneaking glances at him.

It seemed her body, rather than her mind, remembered the steps from when she was younger. After a few missteps, Minhee quickly caught up to Noah. The people around them started clapping along and chiming in “Yeehaw!” as they followed the line dance that Noah and Minhee were performing.

A wry laugh escaped her. To the strains of country music, the elegant guests at the Manhattan charity gala stomped their feet and clapped like cowboys and cowgirls on a Texas ranch.

Minhee finally realized she had reunited with Noah Brown. Being by his side, whether she wanted to or not, meant being swept up in the whirlwind that Noah created.