Kang Hye-rin had barely set her bag down when her email pinged with three urgent messages all marked "priority."
She groaned. Han Dae-shik. Again.
Every line of his messages dripped with unnecessary red ink: comments about her "inexperience," notes that implied she didn't belong, and a demand that she revise her entire draft by the end of the day.
Her hands curled into fists. He wasn't just giving feedback. He was trying to break her.
Before she could respond, her desk phone rang. Startled, she picked up.
"Miss Kang. My office. Now."
Her pulse stuttered at the sound of that deep, steady voice.
When she entered, Lee Joon-hyuk didn't look up from his papers. "Sit."
She obeyed silently, gripping her notebook.
He finally raised his gaze, sharp as ever. "Manager Han has been… persistent with you."
Her mouth went dry. "I—I can handle it."
"Can you?" His tone was flat, unreadable. "Or are you letting yourself be used as his entertainment?"
Her cheeks burned. "It's not like that."
"Then prove it," Joon-hyuk said, sliding a folder across the desk. "Your proposal. I want it finalized by tomorrow morning. Without interference."
Hye-rin blinked. "Tomorrow? That's—"
"Impossible?" He arched an eyebrow.
She pressed her lips together. He was testing her. Again.
"…I'll do it," she said firmly.
Something flickered in his eyes approval, maybe but it was gone in an instant. He leaned back, dismissing her with a single word.
"Good."
She left his office with her heart hammering. She hated him. She really did. But why did every challenge he threw at her make her want to prove him wrong even more?