BTL Ch 3

You could totally tell how happy the housekeeper, who’d been looking after Taegeon since he was a kid, was to see him, just by looking at all the food she’d prepped and left for him. Hayeon’s jaw practically dropped at the sheer variety of dishes, so many that she wondered if the housekeeper had mistaken how many people would be eating.

“Jieun’s on duty today, so you’ll probably only see her tomorrow evening,” Taegeon added, explaining his busy fiancée’s schedule as a surgeon. “She said she was bummed you didn’t tell her a week earlier; she would’ve made time somehow.”

“Well, I only heard about the wedding last week,” Hayeon replied.

Taegeon knew better than anyone how nonchalant his cousin could be, often forgetting things that weren’t super important to her. He just nodded, like “I get it.”

“You didn’t hear the news last week; you remembered it last week. I even sent you an email last November so you wouldn’t forget,” he teased, playfully glaring at his cousin, who hadn’t even bothered to reply to his email. Hayeon chuckled. She clearly knew her excuse was pretty lame.

Taegeon just laughed it off, like, “You’re impossible,” then picked up his spoon and asked, “So, how long are you planning to stay?”

“About a month. I’ve got too much on my plate to be away longer than that.”

A month. That meant she’d be sticking around for another week even after Taegeon’s wedding before heading back to Canada. Hayeon took a sip of water, peeking at Taegeon through the glass. Then, it suddenly hit her.

‘…Once Jieun and Mr. Kang leave for their honeymoon, it’ll just be him and me in this house, right?’ Hayeon’s eyes darted left and right. The housekeeper was there, but she left at 6 PM, so she didn’t count. Hayeon swallowed, feeling a little awkward all of a sudden, and since the conversation had just died down, the gulp echoed loudly in her throat.

She blinked in embarrassment, her face instantly turning beet red. Seeing her, Taegeon smiled, realizing what was up. “Let’s just eat for now. You must not have had a proper meal after flying for over ten hours. Hayeon must be starving too, having not eaten since lunch.”

The meal that followed was quiet. The silence, broken only by the clinking of dishes, was finally interrupted by Taegeon, who had just finished a bowl of rice and was wiping his mouth. They chatted about everything and nothing, from how he’d been doing to casual topics. It was mostly Taegeon asking questions and Hayeon occasionally chiming in, but the vibe was super friendly.

Then, Taegeon called out, “Chaeheon.”

Chaeheon, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, raised an eyebrow. ‘Wow, he really doesn’t talk much,’ Hayeon thought, taking in her impression of Chaeheon. Meanwhile, Taegeon cleared his throat and subtly asked, “When are you planning to come back?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, how long are you going to live abroad? Don’t you think it’s time to settle down in Korea?”

At that question, Chaeheon calmly looked at Taegeon. “I don’t know. I think it’s better for you if I stay abroad.” Leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms, Chaeheon slowly closed and opened his eyes. “I don’t want to get caught up in any pointless fights either.”

Taegeon gave a wry smile at Chaeheon’s answer. “Chaeheon, I know you’re having a tough time caught between my uncle and me.”

The situation at KW Group was anything but stable; it was like walking on thin ice. They were all wondering when the thin ice beneath their feet would crack and who would be the first to get sucked into the endless abyss below. It was a precarious tug-of-war between the two sides. This all started four years ago when Kang Jincheol returned to Korea after being transferred — or rather, exiled — to an overseas branch. It also happened right after Taegeon had been appointed vice chairman of KW.

Currently, Kang Jincheol was locked in a power struggle with his nephew, Kang Taegeon, and was using Chaeheon as a pawn in his greedy quest for the chairman position, simply because Chairman Kang Manho doted on Chaeheon so much.

Chaeheon shrugged indifferently. “Not really.”

Although his family had been forced to leave Korea due to his father, Kang Jincheol’s, drug trafficking charges, Chaeheon actually found living abroad quite suited him. Plus, the hotel business he’d inherited from his late mother had been smooth sailing since he took it over, and he’d recently bought a golf course nearby, which was proving pretty profitable. So, he wasn’t really “suffering” from living overseas. If anything, Korea was more of a struggle, with his father, Kang Jincheol, constantly looking for an opportunity to benefit from his success.

Pushing away the memory of Kang Jincheol’s phone practically catching fire with calls when he found out Chaeheon had booked a ticket to Korea a few days earlier, Chaeheon asked, “So? What do you want to say?”

Chaeheon knew Taegeon was suffering from insomnia and pushing himself day and night to avoid being swallowed whole by his father. He was curious why Taegeon, despite all his own struggles, would bother to call him back to Korea.

“Hmm.” Taegeon briefly hummed, then leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. “I’ll get straight to the point. I’d like you to take over the KW Hotel business.”

***

‘Wow, we have a David statue in our living room,’ Hayeon thought to herself as she walked down the stairs after getting ready for school the next day, seeing a figure in the living room. The man, dressed in athletic wear as if he’d just come back from an early morning jog, was sitting on the sofa, head tilted back, eyes closed. With such a big guy sitting there, the sofa, which usually seemed huge to her, suddenly looked tiny.

Hayeon had never seen anything like this in the three years she’d lived in that house; it was such a strange sight that she clamped her hands over her mouth to stop herself from gasping. It felt silly that she’d taken a deep breath before opening her bedroom door. It was an automatic reaction, the kind of flutter and excitement any girl would feel seeing a handsome guy. So, she wasn’t being weird at all.

‘No, how could I forget a face like that, Lee Hayeon!’ She’d even rummaged through old photo albums last night, thinking she might remember if she saw a picture, but unfortunately, she found nothing. The day Taegeon mentioned was in the photos, but Chaeheon wasn’t anywhere to be found.

‘Ugh…’ Hayeon swallowed hard. Her throat felt dry. She felt like she needed to chug a cold glass of water before leaving.

Just as Hayeon stood there, frozen, staring at Chaeheon, the housekeeper came out of the kitchen, carrying a tray with fruit juice. “Oh, Hayeon dear, you’re up early? I was just about to call you.”

At the housekeeper’s voice, the man’s eyelids slowly lifted, revealing his still-sleepy eyes. Startled, Hayeon turned her head. She then descended the last few steps, as if she’d just come from upstairs, and smiled.

“What are you doing there? I’ve prepared your cereal and milk, so go eat.”

“Okay.” Her voice was a little hoarse. Feeling a bit embarrassed by her own voice, Hayeon cleared her throat softly and glanced sideways. She saw Chaeheon lowering his hand from where he’d been pressing on his eyelids. His dark eyes, where the pupil and iris weren’t clearly defined in the dim light, immediately landed on Hayeon.

The man, who had just woken up, exuded a somewhat dangerous aura. Just a brief moment of eye contact was enough to make her whole body tense up, her palms sweating. It was as if Kang Chaeheon was born to charm people. Was this what they meant by “captivated”?

Just then, the housekeeper stepped in, blocking Chaeheon from Hayeon’s view. Hayeon, who had been holding herself stiffly, relaxed her back, feeling a pang of disappointment at the broken eye contact. She wanted to say something, anything, to keep his gaze on her. But what?

Hayeon turned away, listening to Chaeheon thank the housekeeper. How could a man’s voice, even when he’d just woken up, be so sweet? She thought she could be his morning alarm for life if it meant hearing that voice.

“Ha…” Hayeon sighed deeply as she stepped into the kitchen, hiding herself from Chaeheon’s line of sight. She patted her chest, feeling her heart pound wildly beneath her palm. “Seriously, what is wrong with me?”

She had never realized she could be so timid and shy. She wasn’t usually someone who got nervous easily, but in front of Chaeheon, her body automatically stiffened. It was all very new. Her own behavior around Kang Chaeheon. And strangely, she didn’t even dislike this new side of herself, so Hayeon couldn’t help but let out a little laugh.