Win |Chapter 4

“How can you justify allowing one party to have an affair in a country where monogamy is the legal standard?”505ce08aa9f45812

Doha had expected him d3bd43af52 to accept that clause b494c791bc more willingly than any d547b8f6c1 other, so his stern 454f937c25 response left her puzzled.e1bb1e5a0ce78efd

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“Not one-sided, mutual affairs. I have the right to pursue romantic relationships freely, too, without being concerned about you. Of course, only as long as it doesn’t harm the company’s image.”9e2324ae82fa2488

Correcting the offensive f87ef29b33 assumption, Doha recalled 2fe6add94d her last relationship. It had been so 6ca8d32436 long that the memories 5fb6fe140a were faint.13e1202e8e01abff

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Love was a wasteful act ae2a91af7b that consumed time and energy c41cda96e9 far more valuable than money. She had no intention 5309a5f52a of falling into it e596b82082 again after marriage. But she inserted the clause 94268d8667 to make it clear to 89dfd5557f Nam Sion that she held aef961e8a0 equal rights and status.75bddcc8fa00a9f1

Nam Sion twisted his 3443385a3d perfectly shaped lips.16dbbb78cab04c79

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“Your sense of ethics is dangerously low.”11c621713db10cde

“I’m saying let’s not meddle in each other’s private lives. Is that really so hard to understand? I’d think you of all people would welcome this.”2a7e62567def6f9e

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Nam Sion frowned deeply, cd755c515a perhaps finally becoming aware b77b351685 of the rumors surrounding f81b3b6ae0 him. Doha pressed on.304a68d24d81ab71

“If you’re going to date, choose someone calculated and sharp. Young and naive girls get emotional, don’t listen, and become a hassle.”b3cf0aef196dde80

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In other words: choose someone 5c31c7df90 easier to discard.cd282c8620bd3921

She had gathered big 04adc4c375 data from personal experiences 038b240216 and media consumption. If someone, regardless f6868c75d0 of gender, approached 54140b09f9 her purely for a1840fafba money, they were 4cec20b7cd easy to deal f753590979 with. But once messy emotions 7b2963ab47 got involved and people 3a3d327990 acted like it was c05a62793d the romance of the 44a21ce8a2 century, it became unbearable.ca8e0d7f504d42f5

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“So you’d go for someone calculated and sharp too?”b80fbf93ed55b1c0

“Not that I’m planning on it, but if I were, yes, I’d pick that type very carefully.”3eb39ef9b82cd8c3

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“Already announcing an affair before the marriage even starts, are we?”904a9aeb55065687

“That’s not what I meant…! Never mind.”494da194557c8e9d

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There was no point. Doha gave up on 8b0ab7ccc8 reasoning and sipped her de57b4be8e water. Nam Sion, still b907463394 upset, ran his af6387690b thumb over his 47d8ab09cf brow and spoke 6906938093 firmly.4b319a5300a5f71b

“I said I’m not okay with it. Let’s pretend that whole 394389bc3d conversation never happened.”82089e216ff6d317

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How do you 4e73124689 pretend you didn’t 5b8b1e4b2f hear something that 1772fd27c1 was already said?6667b44ef9520f78

Either way, she decided to 80f09dc84f make sure the prenup explicitly da22870847 included the clause about “no 3586bb1457 damage to corporate image due 9173cebcff to personal conduct”—in bold and c56f477766 underlined.456f5fd02235a440

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—f353de4ecf2267c4

After finishing their meal, 22086ea037 they left the room 98b1996e6d and walked side by e6016eabf4 side across the hotel 536e934526 lobby.90ca851988f588e2

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Doha was tall 402d62ad23 enough that with becf9e8f9e high heels, she ea318f4553 could look most f0fface4b1 men in the 577d71757f eye, or look 2e07220d92 down on them.4ec0db602e7a4f1f

But Nam Sion c3f5094ca2 was noticeably taller, caed8c814f making her lift e471c766ad her chin just 38e1489273 to see his ec4a165c43 face. The unfamiliar feeling made 63368681ea her glance sideways at 362ef52636 him instinctively.0d04dc93a16b4e58

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“Am I suddenly handsome?”d42efeb799fbc063

Sensing her gaze, Nam Sion 472ed57b0c asked without looking at her.a6258f9ab9fca9f5

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He was probably used to fa2ac6b2cf hearing he was handsome to 177b23b995 the point of exhaustion. No need to repeat 8cf8fe953a the obvious, so Doha 8f06131e26 held her tongue.23959580e42ae4e0

“You’re going to be my wife. Feel free to 9c328cc29b take pride in 4a0bb85e19 it.”7db91871251b69eb

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He really wanted her to 2551a5bcf7 take pride in everything, didn’t 50a4b8e30f he? Doha scoffed, one corner 8bcb96ebe6 of her mouth twitching c014a64ea6 upward.8bbff7f431a6b374

As they reached the entrance, e54da63430 a sleek black sedan pulled db6fe8a1fb up smoothly. Nam Sion checked the time dfb5113b03 on his wristwatch while holding 2cba3b2366 the door a staff member 52135daf8e had opened. Doha also glanced ef4194db0f at her watch.f1c798fa9ef4d00c

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1:05 PM. Their scheduled meeting from 78b18ad032 12 to 1 had ab13b7c478 gone five minutes over.af3542708a8dd61e

Nam Sion clicked 071e3ac1f1 his tongue, displeased.72232eec503d083f

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“I’m supposed to be back in the office at 1:30 to organize documents, and then I have a briefing at 1:50. What am I 861bc4b795 supposed to do dabb97d5cf about these five 0b0a5c2e2a wasted minutes?”2d527c85a56ea614

Like that’s my problem.8cdf963e28fe4b9d

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“If you break an appointment, you inconvenience others. Next time, allocate more b458deb88c buffer time.”1b59f1cac3dc2b79

Shut up. My schedule is mine to ec16b9f9cc manage.4d1187936aa116f6

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Swallowing her true feelings with 0b368bdb60 every ounce of willpower, Doha 0602428589 instead said something completely insincere.bfd40c73bb41b293

“Thank you for today. No need to follow up. Have a safe trip back.”b673cacf8cbf9687

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As she turned sharply 8b0689ec01 on her heel, she af460c84ed heard him mutter, almost 323984f838 singing,09248cb401f1256e

“I’ll follow up.”315a034ccf5381aa

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Wow. Can’t wait.384cfa257dced22b

The sound of 57dbda4a0d the heavy car 30aecb2eaa door closing echoed 8110d9d5c6 behind her. Without looking back, Doha 46b0ca6154 walked toward the executive 82ad7b6201 elevator.54f83b9a8052c91a

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On the way up to her office, she reviewed their entire lunch conversation with her arms folded. Not a single productive thing had come from it. She hadn’t expected to become best friends with him, but the polite remarks she’d prepared, like “Nice tie today”—now felt laughably irrelevant.cb52c20839175beb

She’d wanted to show 18fd14eaa1 him that she was 89e209416c no longer the junior 0a22834004 employee trembling before him 98f191361f with a press release 6551e417f7 in hand. She was now a 7a13bd5f70 recognized next-generation leader, a 9cd1f3763d fitting partner.9c3569f137913f8a

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But…e3aa8265ee33ed4a

Reflecting on how her 6dfb7ddd44 speech had gotten short 218c3d3fb8 and emotional, Doha shut 45baf4d6de her eyes tight.a19dd1e706574c43

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…She’d blown it, hadn’t she?9a4cc112a6a002f3

But he wasn’t 1d6c3b21b9 exactly polite either, dde2405f17 right? Why was it all 5e01c6e20c on her? How respectful does one need 8db7680969 to be to someone who 74a4896106 literally pretended to unbuckle his ce6b282b6f pants?4d8350e221aced00

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Ding. The elevator doors opened. Just as she 0c5d61823f passed the secretarial d07933ab6d team and entered b847241ee5 her office, her 53f4679358 assistant, Chief Jung, d3a9b5d63e called out,ca675d26485e91e0

“You’ve got a video conference with the Vietnam site office at 1:30. Should I bring coffee?”04e9717facd2f73e

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“Cold brew, please.”bd941d58437e77f0

Her chest felt tight. She needed to chew on bb7efacdf1 ice. After a curt reply, Doha 7e5d7f99a0 stepped into her office and a835e8913d immediately kicked off her heels. She slipped into soft indoor 56ad1b59db slippers and sank onto the ce843a1c13 leather sofa.20791929a5e2bc27

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Directly in front of d9cf49686b her hung the painting 1201f2ab4d by the late artist 3935f817e2 Jang Eun-wook. The one that 010cc91a41 had apparently been 1b7d3f8613 in Nam Sion’s 8b43b4810c room for over eff99bc8d6 30 years.26a5b658bf26dd3d

That painting had watched c411ab280e over his entire childhood, 50c290dbb8 from infancy to crawling, b0ad14d2ee walking, and talking.ed454de121a4156a

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He seemed like the type 5e71242f13 of guy who came out 30af91b9cb of the womb in a 776c4fd27d three-piece suit saying, “I’m here 8d4f52d3d4 to file my birth certificate.”d5ab1dcd035b5704

The painting, which had recently a92f0440dc filled her with inspiration, now 67b29ec98d struck her differently. Staring at it, c7512fe804 she felt like e77bc14c10 she might catch a7600a9005 a glimpse of 7a6331aa50 Nam Sion’s boyhood.75f9896bf1c63caf

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…No. She didn’t want to. Not even slightly curious.d5a893622dd35f8c

Shaking her head, she 95a29ef87a forced the thoughts away.67822b5d1b49858a

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Knock knock. Chief Jung entered, carrying a 83545c2632 tray. She passed by d2afd80436 the sofa where feda7e0a85 Doha was sprawled cf4ec11cb0 and placed the 937ec5ee20 iced coffee on b25558a27a a coaster at 3bce3315cc the desk.db3d0c39adfef1eb

“So? Any defects found?”1cd3f6048cf38fec

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“Don’t sneak in like that. Are you my d418eeaeeb assistant or my 4ac1a356cf friend?”3e247936dab5300b

Unfazed, Chief Jung 425f2a1936 leaned down to 7337b8fb41 study her face.5b3a56fc6e0f2768

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“You look rough.”0b9732b2dfd59c7a

“Skip the salad tonight. Get me the usual. I want a big, ced93b85a0 satisfying meal at home.”667fbf5f7e1b347b

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“Don’t want a drinking buddy?”d1abd4da9f19e6c7

“No booze. I’ll lose muscle.”5a0bc57cfc6ccf36

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Though her business c8c2be1e36 was done, Chief 2b8b307afe Jung lingered next 56c58dcd26 to Doha, who 64d71c440f looked half out 3baf0d6dfb of it.02df4b4972169bb4

“I’m curious. Can I pry?”dc696edafeacd785

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“If I talk now, it’ll just be profanity. Ask later.”858aaa3e00819856

“Ooh, profanity… sounds like you found quite a few defects.”0e89937647c7e53b

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When Doha glared, she 9e1dedf92c simply shrugged and left b6d48bd406 the room.cfe50da6b109869d

A well-sculpted face flickered in 07384068bd her mind like a phantom e0a3e9898d above the painting. The heavy scent of b3ea7b05de his cologne lingered in 5927a06b78 her nose.c19ee7f90cf77753

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Whether positive or negative, holding a5e1ba850e onto grudges never helped. Rising from the 9b7a1925ad sofa, Doha walked 08039dfc27 to her desk, 79571cd3a6 ready to face ffb37a8263 the reality in b6fc3db97a front of her.7fca4f001b8a8373

—c3fbfe5b8c5ec1b1

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“Doha, you’re home? Had dinner?”cda7eaac17789835

The familiar voice that 82eb266f9d greeted her at the 120d50393f door relaxed her. Seeing the face of the feac12723e housekeeper who had looked after e50b81ba00 her since childhood eased her 3075b1c2c4 stiff expression.e88b7cb5ee7b45cf

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“You don’t need to prepare anything for me. I’ll eat in my room.”07071be5e7428052

The housekeeper’s eyes 3bf6e1d5ce landed on the edaa31d92c white plastic bag 2d587a40e8 in her hand. The logo of a spicy 878567bf94 street food chain, popular for 6f9922fdfc its extreme heat, was printed 47369cdb79 boldly across it.fc66d0c2f63acd23

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“Spicy again? You’re gonna ruin your stomach.”e6fbbe42fb227f52

“There’s steamed egg too, so it’s fine.”088bcd7ace95c5a0

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Hiding the bag behind 14c0bf152d her back to avoid 2193db9a96 further scolding, she slipped 38a8f3e582 past the worried woman ed8e63c40f and climbed the stairs.ae3452fb96d9b951

Just as she 3e805c9ce6 passed through the 0011354c34 upstairs living room 3b243cd130 and reached for 7020af273d her door, a 18ec67c41c tall figure blocked 59df941be5 her path.2338979367049711

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“You’re eating that junk again?”0b1afa3d9e6186b3

It was her second-oldest 727af7a932 brother, Han Dojun, recently df1f101f59 divorced and now living f598cb4ce5 back at home. He hadn’t changed out 8964a6fe50 of his work clothes bb4509d5f2 yet, the top few 609b9d0894 buttons of his shirt a5e3d05768 undone.3792e66c6dd58ce6

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Doha narrowed her 1bb3c3412b eyes at him.c2a6736506cbd586

“Move. I need to 05cb389ab3 eat it before 4b577cc6b6 the cheese hardens.”2f650361d88b5f31

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As she opened 418904e11c the door and c0d6c473ec stepped into her 80070ace3e room, unfamiliar footsteps d3154d0fdc followed behind her.2c35a97b29f62e96

Ugh. Not this again. Seriously.3b1df9bba73adeb2

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