The café was packed, the air thick with the scent of espresso and baked pastries. Mira stirred her iced americano absently, watching the condensation drip onto the table. Across from her, Seo-yeon scrolled through her phone, her designer sunglasses perched on her head despite the overcast sky.
"You're telling me," Seo-yeon said, stabbing a finger at her screen, "that Chairman Tall-Dark-and-Mysterious hasn't actually asked you out? Despite the private dinners, the contracts, the entire childhood playground reconstruction—"
Mira groaned, rubbing her temples. "He's not—"
A sleek black Genesis G90 pulled up to the curb, its polished exterior gleaming under the café lights. The doors opened, and a woman stepped out.
Everything about her screamed old money.
Her heels clicked sharply against the pavement, her tailored Chanel suit hugging her frame perfectly. A diamond brooch glinted at her collar, and her hair was styled in an elegant updo that probably took hours to perfect. She moved with the effortless grace of someone who'd never had to rush for anything in her life.
Seo-yeon whistled under her breath. "Who's that?"
Mira didn't answer. Her fingers tightened around her glass.
The woman pushed through the café door, the chatter dimming as heads turned. She didn't glance around—her sharp eyes locked onto Mira immediately.
Up close, she was even more striking. Flawless makeup, a vintage Rolex peeking out from her sleeve, and a smile that didn't reach her cold, calculating eyes.
"Mira Yoon," she said, her voice smooth and polished. "I've heard so much about you."
Mira's stomach dropped. "Do I know you?"
The woman's smile widened, revealing perfectly white teeth. "Not yet. But you will." She extended a manicured hand. "Eun-ji Han. Jae's fiancée."
The world tilted.
Seo-yeon choked on her tea.
Mira didn't move.
Eun-ji withdrew her hand, unfazed. "I thought we should talk. Woman to woman." She glanced at Seo-yeon. "Privately."
Seo-yeon bristled. "Listen, Miss Chaebol Princess—"
Mira stood abruptly, her chair scraping against the floor. "Outside."
Eun-ji's smirk was victorious.
---
The sidewalk felt too exposed, the city noise suddenly overwhelming. Eun-ji leaned against the Genesis, examining her perfect manicure.
"Let's be clear," she said. "I don't care what childhood promise Jae thinks he made to you. Our families have been planning this merger for generations."
Mira's pulse roared in her ears. "Merger?"
"Marriage, business—it's all the same in our world." Eun-ji flicked an invisible speck off her sleeve. "But then you reappeared, and suddenly he's restructuring entire divisions just to work with you." Her eyes narrowed. "Adorable. But it ends now."
Mira forced her voice steady. "If you have a problem, take it up with him."
"Oh, I have." Eun-ji reached into her Birkin bag and pulled out a thick envelope. "But since he's being... difficult, I thought I'd appeal to your professional sensibilities."
Mira opened the envelope.
Inside were photos—her and Jae at the omakase restaurant, his hand brushing hers as he passed a dish. Another showed them in the office elevator, standing closer than necessary. The last was a document listing every property she'd ever lived at, including her current apartment address circled in red.
Her blood ran cold.
"Leave him alone," Eun-ji murmured, "or I'll have you transferred to our Alaska branch so fast you'll think it's a promotion."
She slid into the Genesis without waiting for a reply.
The car pulled away, leaving Mira standing there, the documents trembling in her hands.
---
Seo-yeon was at her side instantly, snatching the photos. "What the actual hell? Is she stalking you?"
Mira couldn't speak.
"Okay, first—that wasn't an engagement ring," Seo-yeon said, flipping through the images. "Second, this is blackmail. We should—"
"No." Mira's voice was hollow. "We shouldn't do anything."
Seo-yeon gaped at her. "You're just going to let her—"
"What, Seo? Fight her?" Mira laughed bitterly. "She's Eun-ji Han, of the Han Group conglomerate. I'm a junior executive with a speech impediment."
Seo-yeon grabbed her shoulders. "You're Mira Yoon. The woman who rebuilt her voice word by word. The one who survived every bully who ever laughed at her." She shook her gently. "Fight back."
Mira's phone buzzed.
Jae: Where are you?
She stared at the screen, Eun-ji's threat ringing in her ears.
Then she typed:
Me: Stay away from me.
She blocked his number.
---
The moment Mira stepped into her office building the next morning, she knew something was wrong.
The usual morning bustle had been replaced by hushed whispers and sideways glances. At her desk, a single white envelope sat waiting, her name written in sharp, precise strokes.
Mira's fingers trembled as she tore it open.
Inside was a transfer notice—effective immediately—to the company's remote branch in Busan. A demotion disguised as a relocation.
Her stomach twisted. Eun-ji's doing.
A shadow fell over her desk.
Mr. Han stood there, his expression unreadable. "Pack your things, Yoon. The company car leaves in an hour."
Mira shot to her feet. "On whose authority?"
"Does it matter?" His gaze flickered toward the window, where a sleek black Genesis was pulling up to the curb. "Some battles aren't worth fighting."
Seo-yeon's words echoed in her mind: Fight back.
Mira straightened her shoulders. "I'm not going anywhere."
Mr. Han's eyebrows shot up. "You don't have a choice—"
The lobby doors burst open.
Jae strode through the reception area, his tailored suit immaculate, his expression colder than she'd ever seen it. The entire office froze.
Mira's breath caught. What was he doing here? His corporate headquarters were across the city in the towering Park Group building - a gleaming skyscraper that housed the conglomerate's executive offices. He never came to this subsidiary branch.
Mr. Han paled. "Chairman Park, I was just—"
"Rescind the transfer." Jae's voice was quiet, but it carried the weight of a command. "Now."
Mr. Han hesitated. "With all due respect, Eun-ji Han—"
"Is not your chairman." Jae stepped forward, his gaze locked onto Mira. "And she is certainly not my fiancée."
A collective gasp rippled through the office.
Jae didn't look away. "The only person making decisions about Mira Yoon's career is Mira Yoon."
Silence.
Then—
The elevator dinged open.
Eun-ji strode into the office, her designer heels clicking against the marble floor. Her icy composure faltered when she saw Jae.
"Jae," she purred, "I didn't expect you to come all the way down here."
"Clearly." His tone could have frozen hell. "You've been busy."
Eun-ji's smile tightened. "Just ensuring our future isn't compromised by distractions."
Jae didn't blink. "Leave."
Eun-ji's perfect facade cracked. "You can't be serious—"
"I said," Jae repeated, slow and deliberate, "leave."
For a heartbeat, no one moved.
Then Eun-ji spun on her heel and stormed out, the glass doors slamming shut behind her.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Jae turned back to Mira. "We need to talk."
She swallowed hard. "We are talking."
"Not here." He pulled out his phone and typed something quickly. "My car is outside."
Mira hesitated. "Your office is across the city—"
"Not my office." His dark eyes held hers. "Somewhere private."
Before she could protest, he strode toward the exit, leaving her no choice but to follow—or stay and face the gawking stares of her colleagues.
Mira followed.
---
The black Genesis glided through Seoul's streets, leaving the business district behind. They crossed the river, entering an upscale residential area Mira had never visited. The car finally stopped before a modern hanok-style house nestled behind high walls.
Jae led her through a courtyard garden where maple leaves drifted onto a koi pond, then into a minimalist study lined with books and architectural models. The space smelled faintly of sandalwood and ink.
Mira ran her fingers along a blueprint pinned to the wall—their old elementary school, rendered in precise technical drawings. "You kept the slide," she murmured.
Jae stood by the window, backlit by the afternoon sun. "Some things are worth remembering."
The air between them grew heavy. Mira turned to face him just as he opened his mouth to speak—
Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.
His phone erupted with notifications. Then hers. Then the landline on his desk began ringing.
Jae's jaw tightened as he checked his screen. "Eun-ji."
Mira's own phone lit up with messages from Seo-yeon:
TURN ON BUSINESS NEWS NOW
The television flickered to life before she could respond. A news anchor stood before the Park Group headquarters, their mouth moving soundlessly as bold text scrolled across the screen:
BREAKING: PARK GROUP EXECUTIVE ACCUSED OF CORPORATE ESPIONAGE
A document flashed on screen—confidential financial reports with Mira's digital signature clearly visible.
Her stomach dropped. "I never—"
"I know." Jae was already typing furiously on his laptop. "She forged them."
Mira's hands shook. "Why would she—"
The landline rang again. Jae snatched it up. "What?"
A pause. Then his expression darkened. "No. Absolutely not." He slammed the receiver down hard enough to crack the plastic.
Mira didn't need to ask. The answer came in another text from Seo-yeon:
Eun-ji's holding a press conference in 30 minutes. Says she has 'proof' you leaked trade secrets.
Jae's phone buzzed with an incoming call. He rejected it without looking. "We need to—"
"Go." Mira backed toward the door, her throat tight. "You should handle this. Alone."
His hand shot out, catching her wrist. "Mira—"
The touch burned. She yanked free. "This is exactly what she wants! Don't you see? She's using me to get to you."
Jae's eyes flashed with something dangerous. "Then let her try."
Outside, the first raindrops began to fall, tapping against the hanok's tiled roof like impatient fingers. The storm was coming.
And Mira stood at its center.