[Inside Daniel's Office]
The air in the room felt heavy, thick with a tension Daniel couldn't shake.
The file on his desk lay open, but his eyes barely skimmed the words. His mind was elsewhere—back in that dim bedroom, replaying the sound of Anna's soft voice as if it had been burned into him.
Her moans. Her whispers.
"Your lips are so juicy… I want to bite them."
The memory struck him again, and his chest tightened. His ears rang with her voice, and before he could stop it, heat flushed through him.
It was absurd. Impossible.
Anna, who spoke of divorce with such finality, had dreamed of him. Dreamed of his kiss. Dreamed of wanting him.
Daniel's hand twitched against the desk, curling into a fist. His jaw clenched. He couldn't make sense of it.
He had never been this unsettled before—not by anyone.
"Ahem-hm."
The sound pulled him back, and he blinked, realizing belatedly that he wasn't alone. Henry was standing across from him, his brow furrowed with concern.
"Boss, are you sure you're fine?" Henry asked again.
It was the same question he had asked in the car. And again when they walked through the building. And once more the second they'd entered the office.
A broken record.
Only Daniel knew why. He had practically fled the mansion that morning before Anna could see the color in his cheeks, before she could hear the hammering of his pulse. His body had been on fire, as if fevered, and his heart wouldn't calm no matter how hard he tried.
It never happened before…
But how was he supposed to explain that to his assistant? The man who hovered over him like a hawk—no, like a babysitter who never let him out of sight.
"No. Everything is fine," Daniel repeated evenly, the same words he'd said in the car.
Henry's frown deepened. He didn't look convinced. His sharp eyes lingered on Daniel's face for a moment, then slid lower—
"But, Boss… your ears—"
Daniel's head snapped up. "What about them?"
Henry hesitated, then awkwardly raised a finger and pointed. "They're… red."
A pause.
Daniel frowned, confused, then quickly pulled his phone from his pocket and flipped the camera to check his reflection.
The sight made his composure crack.
His ears—flushed pink.
Embarrassment washed over him, swift and unwelcome.
Henry could tell something was bothering his boss.
Was it his health? The workload? Or… his wife?
The thought struck him suddenly, and his eyes widened. Yesterday, Daniel had asked him to order takeout for Madam Anna—calm as ever at first. But later that afternoon, during the meeting, he'd flared up at the team, tearing through the agenda with the ferocity of a storm.
That only ever happened when his mood was soured.
Or when someone had soured it.
And it didn't take a genius to guess who.
Henry knew the circumstances of Daniel's marriage—how Anna had replaced her sister, how the union was forced. Yet Henry had never thought his boss would be this… affected by her.
Slowly, the corner of Henry's lips curved upward.
Daniel, still watching him, narrowed his eyes. His assistant looked like he was zoning out—only to suddenly start grinning.
Creepy.
"Did I say something funny?" Daniel's voice cut sharp through the air, suspicious.
Henry snapped out of his thoughts and quickly straightened, shaking his head. "No, Boss. Nothing at all." A beat passed. Then, with a knowing look, he added lightly, "It's just… wives can be hard to deal with sometimes. But trust me—they're often softer than we expect."
Daniel stiffened. "…W-what do you mean by that?"
Henry suppressed a smirk. He'd been married long enough to recognize the signs. His boss, usually so unshakable, was blushing.
Leaning in slightly, he said in a low, confident tone, "I know you're trying to impress your wife, Boss. But from the looks of it… I'd say she's the one who impressed you instead."
Daniel's lips parted, but no words came. For once, the Clafford heir—the man who dominated every room he walked into—was speechless.
"I think you're tired of your position, Henry."
The words landed like a blade, slicing through Henry's foolish grin in an instant.
His face drained of color, lips parting in alarm. "N-No, Boss, I didn't mean—"
Daniel didn't bother replying. He didn't need to.
The weight of his stare alone—cold, cutting, merciless—was enough to silence Henry completely.
Henry shut his mouth, accepted the signed file, and all but fled the office.
Daniel was left alone again, anger simmering beneath his skin. And yet Henry's words still echoed, taunting him.
'Are wives really that hard to understand?'
***
[Anklet Studio – Audition Hall]
Anna booked a cab and soon arrived at Anklet Studio, her heart pounding with a mix of nerves and excitement.
At the reception, she collected the audition slip—only to nearly drop it in disbelief.
"A dead body? Seriously?"
Her jaw slackened. She had come all this way… to audition for a corpse.
Her excitement deflated like a punctured balloon. "No wonder they didn't specify anything about weight," she muttered bitterly, staring at the paper.
She had wanted to start small. She knew she was inexperienced. But this? Was fate mocking her?
Still… money was money. And she needed every bit of it to hire a detective to track Kathrine.
Her wallet balance flashed in her mind. Pathetic. Asking her father was out of the question—he would interrogate her until the truth slipped.
"Haa… I don't have much choice." She clenched her jaw. "Fine. Let's do it. Even if it's a dead body role."
Decision made, she moved toward the queue, but one look at the long line made her pause. Better fix myself up first.
She asked a guard for directions and headed to the restroom.
Just as her hand reached for the handle—
"Help!"
Anna froze.
Another cry followed, panicked, desperate. "Help, someone! Please—leave me!"
Adrenaline surged. She slammed the door open.
Inside, a man had a young woman pinned, his hands gripping her shoulders with sickening force.
Anna's eyes blazed.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Mister?"
Her voice cracked through the air like a whip.
The man jerked, startled. Panic flared in his eyes as he released the girl. But before he could flee, Anna's leg shot out.
Crack!
Her kick connected hard with his shin, and he collapsed forward onto the tiled floor with a grunt.
"Not so fast," Anna muttered coldly.
The girl caught Anna's signal and pounced, her fists raining down in furious blows.
"Pervert! Bastard! Try that again, I dare you!"
The man yelped, squirming helplessly. "S-Stop! Please, stop—I'll never do it again! I swear!"
Only when his voice cracked into pathetic sobs did Anna step forward, tugging the girl back—not before snatching his phone straight from his hand.
Her fingers flew over the screen. Delete. Toss.
The phone clattered at his feet.
"Now get lost," she spat.
He scrambled like a rat, clutching his phone as he bolted out of the restroom.
"Phew, that was intense." Anna exhaled, wincing slightly as her ankle protested the kick.
The girl's eyes shone with awe. "You were amazing, Big Sis. Thank you so much!"
Anna studied her properly now. The staff uniform gave her away. "You're a crew member here?"
The girl nodded quickly. "Yes."
"And that man—he was one of them too?"
The girl bit her lip, shame in her eyes, and nodded. "Yes. He's been chasing me for a while. When I rejected him, he followed me… today he tried to record me in the cubicle. When I caught him and demanded he delete it, he—" Her voice wavered. "He tried to force himself on me."
Anna's jaw clenched. She forced a slow breath and laid a steady hand on the girl's shoulder. "You're safe now. But be careful next time."
She turned to the mirror, adjusting her hair. "Not much to fix," she murmured.
Behind her, the girl—Betty—smiled brightly. "Big Sis, are you here for the audition?"
Anna hesitated, then hummed in agreement.
Betty's eyes lit up, her hands clapping together in excitement. "Then please let me repay you—by getting you the role."
Anna blinked. "…Huh?"
But before she could press further, a voice echoed from outside the restroom:
"Next audition—Anna Bennett!"