Chapter 142
“But if that happens, there would be no reason for me to work under Director Kwon, who reports to Vice Chairman Kwon Jae-sung…”
“There will be plenty of reason. Do you really think Vice Chairman Kwon Jae-sung will keep Executive Director Yoon by his side if he becomes chairman? He’s already met with Executive Director Kim Jun-il from Haeshin.”
“W-what? Kim Jun-il? How could he meet with that bastard…!”
“Hand over the files you have to me. Then most of the business currently under Kwon Jae-sung will transfer to Executive Director Yoon.”
The meeting dragged on like a marathon.
Everyone concealed their true intentions while trying to maximize their share, going in circles, then returning to square one to restart their careful maneuvering.
During the lengthy meeting, there was exactly one break.
Several senior executives complained that sitting for so long would aggravate their chronic conditions.
Normally, he wouldn’t have allowed it.
When the body is tired, the mind doesn’t function properly. The desire for comfort strongly demands escape from complicated power games for rest.
By pushing through that discomfort, one could eventually obtain the desired answer.
This was a frequent strategy of Si-heon, whose physical stamina far exceeded others.
That same stamina that had served him well even during his bouts of insomnia.
After marrying Ga-eun, his insomnia had vanished, making his stamina unmatched.
Though the sleeplessness had returned during these past few days in the guest room.
But mere days without sleep weren’t enough to affect Si-heon’s condition.
Even though they slept apart, Ga-eun was still in the house, after all.
However…
Si-heon, unusually, took a break.
Just five minutes.
He didn’t know then.
That those five minutes would be his only chance to hold onto Ga-eun.
[Wife]
That’s how he’d saved her name in his phone, for others to see.
To quell those vicious rumors.
But now…
His chest tightened at the fact that the contact saved as “wife” was Ga-eun.
Because it was her, and no one else.
“…”
He called her impulsively.
Ga-eun didn’t answer.
She’d mentioned a charity bazaar at the Royal Hotel.
By now, they’d be deep into the after-party. That was the main event, after all.
He knew this well.
Still, Si-heon called her again.
But once more, Ga-eun didn’t answer.
Si-heon exhaled emptily.
Should a mere unanswered call affect him this way?
It felt exactly like being rejected by Ga-eun.
“…Strange.”
He furrowed his brow.
Even among others, there was no need to act out this role – the husband feeling anxious because his wife wouldn’t answer his calls.
It wasn’t about suppressing rumors anymore; he simply wanted to hear her voice.
As if her voice alone could wash away all the unpleasantness and tension accumulated during these tedious hours.
He just… missed her.
As he acknowledged this unwanted truth, his emotions for Ga-eun flooded through him like a broken dam, drenching him in their intensity.
“When you return.”
“Pardon?”
“Let’s go to dinner at Hotel Hwanhee. To try Chef Park Chung-il’s cuisine.”
“Would that… be alright?”
His chest ached as he remembered how Ga-eun’s face had brightened like a blooming flower.
After the weekend, they were supposed to go to dinner together, as promised.
He wanted to watch her enjoy her favorite foods.
While watching her, he wanted to tell her.
That divorce wasn’t an option.
That such a thing would never exist between them, not now, not ever.
“I want to separate. From you, Mr. Kwon Si-heon.”
“Let’s stop living together.”
“Let’s get divorced, Mr. Kwon Si-heon.”
Si-heon furrowed his brow as Ga-eun’s words from the past few days echoed in his mind.
Just as he was about to press “call” again while staring at the word [Wife] on his screen—
“Director, it’s time to resume the meeting.”
At Noh Man-su’s words, he slipped the phone into his jacket’s inner pocket.
He would tell her when he got home.
That separation wasn’t an option.
That she should stay by his side.
That he had… come to hold her in his heart.
“Let’s begin.”
And thus, Si-heon lost his wife.
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