Chapter 10
“Thank you so much. I keep telling myself it’s none of my business and I should just ignore it, but my nieces keep weighing on my mind. I’ll pay you back this year for sure—if not, then by next year at the latest!”
It wasn’t even that much money, but Minjeong’s eyes were already filling with tears at Yunseo’s kindness.
“You should’ve told me if something like this was happening.”
“Hey, how could I? If I said anything, the few relationships I still have would probably fall apart too. Anyway, this should put out the immediate fire.”
Minjeong smiled faintly.
“As for the boss, I’ll beg somehow. I’ll mix in some family circumstances. Actually, my mom collapsed again recently. And coincidentally, the one taking care of her is my sister-in-law. Everything’s completely tangled. If I take a leave, I should be by my mom’s side. With divorce talks going around, I can’t just leave things like that.”
Yunseo was a little surprised.
They were the closest at work, but they had never talked about family matters. This was the first time she was hearing about Minjeong’s situation.
“I see. That sounds like the right choice. But why did your mother collapse? Is she very sick?”
“She had a chronic condition, but my brother kept stressing her out, so that’s what caused it. It’s okay. The doctors said she’ll get better with treatment.”
Without saying a word, Yunseo tightly held Minjeong’s hand. They had once been coworkers and very close, yet she hadn’t known even this much. She felt sorry.
“Everything will work out. If you need more help, tell me.”
“Oh no, that’s enough. I have some shame too. I was so lost and exhausted, but having you really saved me. Thank you so much!”
Yunseo was the one who was grateful. Without Minjeong, this plan would never have worked.
Now that she had crossed one major hurdle, she could proceed with the plan step by step.
Seeing how smoothly things were going from the start, maybe heaven was helping her.
Or maybe Grandma Kim Inja was watching over Yunseo and Seungwoo from somewhere.
Grandma… maybe you already knew? I won’t give up. I’ll protect Mr. Seungwoo no matter what.
Yunseo steeled her resolve once again.
“No.”
But an even bigger obstacle stood before her.
“I heard Secretary Park is taking a leave.”
“Yes. How did you know?”
“I contacted her because I was wondering how she was doing.”
Yunseo felt her mouth go dry.
Seungwoo, looking sharper and more irritable than he ever did at home, stared at her with piercing eyes.
“It’s only two months. Hiring someone new would be awkward, and someone with experience like me—”
“It’s too perfectly timed. Secretary Park suddenly says she needs to care for her mother, and right on cue, you say you want to come back to work.”
Keeping his gaze fixed on Yunseo, Seungwoo slowly rubbed his chin.
Only then did Yunseo realize what she had done wrong.
The emotion in his eyes was unmistakable—suspicion. And it stemmed from how recklessly she had once accused Manager Han.
“Do you think I have some other motive?”
Yunseo struck right at the core. Seungwoo said nothing and continued to look at her.
“It’s really not like that. What I said about Manager Han back then—”
“So you were thinking that.”
Seungwoo stepped closer, his footsteps heavy.
The hand that had been rubbing his chin touched her cheek. Yunseo shivered and flinched slightly.
“I don’t care who put you up to it. You don’t have that much influence over me anyway.”
He spat the words out.
If he thought about her being manipulated, he would start suspecting her even more—so he deliberately didn’t say that part.
Yunseo lowered her eyes, suddenly overwhelmed with sadness. You don’t know my feelings. You don’t know anything.
“But whether I keep you within my territory is another matter.”
Seungwoo stepped back and lifted his chin slightly. Already much shorter than him, Yunseo felt herself shrink even more.
“Begging won’t change anything. And don’t ever put Manager Han’s name in your mouth again. This is your final warning.”
He turned away. His broad back looked wider and more solid than ever—like a deep darkness she could never approach.
“Go. I’m busy.”
Watching him head to his desk, Yunseo turned toward the door without bowing.
At that moment, resentment surged up inside her.
She had made a mistake, yes—but his attitude just now completely crushed her existence.
She knew his feelings, but having them confirmed so ruthlessly was different.
“I know too. That I have absolutely no influence on your life, sir.”
Just before grabbing the doorknob, she blurted out words she hadn’t planned to say.
“I only wanted to help the company and my coworkers. I never once thought about stepping into your territory.”
After saying that, Yunseo walked to the door. She could feel his sharp gaze on her, but she opened it anyway.
It was a fight she could never win, but maybe because it was the first time she had acted this way, she felt strangely refreshed.
“And one more thing.”
She went all in.
“The glasses I cherish the most—you broke them. Shouldn’t you at least pay for that?”
Yunseo hurriedly opened the door.
She realized she had crossed a line.
Asking him to pay for glasses—no matter how expensive—wasn’t even one-thousandth of the debt she owed.
She had said something she shouldn’t have out of resentment that he didn’t recognize what she had done for him.
After closing the door in a rush, cold sweat finally ran down her spine.
“Um, sir?”
Juseok entered with an awkward expression.
Seungwoo looked up at him.
Fatigue filled his eyes.
“What is it?”
“I think this part might have been reviewed incorrectly.”
Seungwoo nodded and took the file Juseok handed him.
“Hmm, you’re right.”
There were so many files to go through that he must have gotten confused. A comment meant for another section was written there.
Still, since mistakes like this were rare for Seungwoo, Juseok looked a bit flustered.
“I handled it properly, but I thought you should know.”
“Got it. Leave it there.”
“Yes. And today’s meeting—”
“I know. Seven o’clock, right?”
“Yes. I’ll prepare for it.”
Juseok bowed and was about to leave.
“Wait.”
After stopping him, Seungwoo stayed silent for a moment.
There was nothing in particular he needed to say, but he felt like he shouldn’t let him go yet.
Juseok turned and waited.
“Did you take care of Secretary Park’s situation?”
After a brief pause, Seungwoo spoke.
“Yes, as you instructed. But it’s become a bit tricky. It’s hard to find someone on short notice, and this position really needs a lot of work—”
Juseok quickly bit his lip.
“I didn’t mean you give too much work, sir.”
“Enough.”
Seungwoo frowned and looked away.
“Well, we’ll manage somehow. When someone’s sick, that comes first. Her mother collapsed—we can’t force her to keep working.”
“Manager Han will be busy.”
“Well, he’s always busy. Might as well accept it as fate. Haha.”
Seungwoo looked at the smiling Juseok without smiling back.
Why does Manager Han keep coming up?
He had warned her not to mention him again, yet she suddenly wanted to work and brought up Manager Han again.
He had said he wouldn’t suspect her, so this should’ve been buried.
But still—
“Did you have something else to say?”
“I do. A replacement.”
Seungwoo slowly interlaced his fingers and rested his chin on them.
“Choi Yunseo.”
Juseok’s eyes widened.
“Do you mean the one I know—”
“Yes. My wife.”
Juseok frowned.
“For two months, she’ll replace Secretary Park. She’ll understand the handover quickly—it’s work she’s done before.”
“No, sir.”
Juseok shook his head, as if it were impossible.
“There will be talk. And how am I supposed to have the madam as my subordinate?”
“Just treat her like before. Don’t think of her as my wife. You don’t need to go easy on her either.”
“Still… wouldn’t it be better to quickly hire an experienced secretary?”
Seungwoo knew that would be better too.
“At this point, how? There’s no one proven, and it’s only two months. It’s not long. Please.”
Having said that much, Juseok couldn’t insist anymore.
“Understood.”
“If you run into any problems, tell me. I’ll handle them immediately.”
After Juseok left, silence filled the office. Seungwoo slowly curled his long fingers into a fist.
Fine. I’ll keep her close and watch her. If she has another motive, it’ll show eventually.
But was that really the only reason?
Why did her last words keep resurfacing?
‘The glasses I cherish the most—you broke them. Shouldn’t you at least pay for that?’
It was as if she had seen right through how even his dreams had been unsettled because of those damned glasses.
She was clever. Cunning, even. Bowing on the surface, yet playing him from above his head.
Shaking his head in irritation, his phone rang—of all things, it was about the glasses.
[We’ve restored them as close to their original condition as possible. Would you like to come pick them up, or should we send them to you?]
After Yunseo left that day, Seungwoo had quickly gathered the broken pieces. At dawn the next morning, he sent them to the most renowned glasses craftsman he knew.
He asked them to restore both the shattered lenses and the temples as close to the original as possible.
And she didn’t even know.
“Hold on to them for now.”
He had planned to give them back right away, but her attitude was unacceptable.
“I’ll come get them myself.”
He was going to give her a proper scolding.
