Side Story 5
Hah, haah.
Suhyeon looked down at Jeonghan, breathing heavily.
Her vision swam with the intoxicating sight of him stimulating her exposed body.
“Ah, ahhnn…”
As Jeonghan’s lips moved lower, Suhyeon felt strength leaving her entire body.
She knew she should suggest going inside…
Though aware they were in an exposed place, she kept surrendering to the pleasure Jeonghan was giving her.
Jeonghan lifted his head again after removing his lips, meeting her gaze.
He saw her flushed face and hazy eyes.
Seeing her expression, he curled his lips in satisfaction.
“Beautiful.”
“…hnnn.”
Jeonghan’s hands traced up from Suhyeon’s knees as she sat on top of him. Her white thighs were revealed as the dress rode up.
“Ah, wait…”
“I told you, only I can see.”
Jeonghan said in a husky voice as he lowered his gaze.
“Ahhnn!”
A sharp moan escaped her lips.
“No one can see here.”
“No, don’t…! Ah, ahhh!”
Suhyeon’s moans grew more urgent.
The sunset-stained sky above her began to sway with their intense movements.
* * *
“We’ve narrowed the attendees to around 100 people. We plan to keep it a private ceremony but allow select media outlets to release staged coverage from the private jet to the ceremony.”
Jeonghan nodded as he listened to Chief Joo’s report in his office.
“Do that. We should establish guidelines.”
Since they had decided to reveal Suhyeon to the public starting with this wedding, the secretariat’s involvement was deemed necessary.
“Before departing today, you’ll meet with the journalists invited to the wedding. The dress shop appointment is at 2 o’clock.”
“Alright.”
Jeonghan replied while checking his wristwatch.
“Also, Chairman Jackson has expressed his intention to attend the wedding. He says he’ll come with his wife for a vacation.”
Jeonghan’s gaze lifted from his watch. His puzzled expression quickly turned into a brief smile.
“That’s quite far, even within America. But I’m grateful. Alright. Have a good trip to America, Chief Joo.”
As Jeonghan was about to return to work, Chief Joo spoke up.
“May I ask a personal question?”
Jeonghan looked back at Chief Joo.
Seeing his permissive gaze, Chief Joo continued.
“How did you persuade Chairman Jackson when the contract was about to fall through?”
It hadn’t even been long. Their private meeting lasted less than 30 minutes. At that time, Do Jeonghan had secured approval for the final contract that had been completely overturned.
Chief Joo still couldn’t understand it.
“Ah, that.”
Jeonghan smiled lightly. Leaning back in his chair, he said with a smile.
“I begged.”
“…Pardon?”
Chief Joo’s normally composed expression cracked.
He couldn’t imagine Do Jeonghan begging anyone.
“I told him honestly that how could I come to make a contract when my woman had run away abroad, and I asked for forgiveness.”
“That…”
Chief Joo’s brow furrowed as he closed his mouth.
That worked? On the fastidious, trust-oriented Chairman Jackson?
The man who had demanded countless revisions right up until the final contract and wouldn’t give a definitive answer until the very end, truly living up to his nickname of ‘cranky old man’?
Chief Joo made no effort to hide his disbelief as he looked at Jeonghan.
“You can’t understand it, can you?”
“…I apologize.”
Chief Joo honestly admitted and apologized.
“With people like that, convoluted excuses don’t work. Neither do self-serving proposals offering more if they renew the contract. The best approach is to state the facts exactly as they are, nothing more, nothing less.”
“I see.”
Though he still didn’t fully understand, Chief Joo nodded, thinking it could be possible. After all, it had worked.
“And there was one point where I thought it might work.”
Chief Joo pushed up his glasses at Jeonghan’s words.
“What was that?”
Jeonghan curled his lips and asked while looking at Chief Joo.
“Did you know that Chairman Jackson had a very sensational wedding decades ago?”
“Ah, was that so?”
Chief Joo tried to recall, but it was the first he’d heard of it.
“His devotion is remarkable. He managed to get a ‘yes’ from a woman who rejected him nearly 100 times. That’s probably why they’re still so close.”
Chief Joo remembered that Chairman Jackson always attended dinners with his wife.
“They certainly seemed affectionate… but there are so many couples who just put on a show that I didn’t pay much attention.”
Jeonghan smiled at Chief Joo’s honest response and sat up straight again.
“Well, I was like that too.”
After all, in his first marriage, he had only played the role of a loving husband without real love.
“But you eventually learn to recognize it.”
“Recognize what?”
Chief Joo asked with a puzzled expression.
Jeonghan stared quietly at his monitor before responding.
“…A man who has loved someone to the point of death recognizes that look in others. No matter how old you get, what’s etched in your eyes never fades, like an imprint.”
“…”
Chief Joo silently observed Jeonghan.
A man crazy in love recognizes another man crazy in love – as someone who had never fallen in love, Chief Joo couldn’t fully comprehend this.
“So that’s why that approach worked. Impressive.”
Jeonghan shrugged.
“It was still fifty-fifty. It was all I could do at the time.”
Still impressive, Chief Joo thought, admiring once again Jeonghan’s gambler’s instinct to bet everything on those odds.
“Then I’ll be going.”
“Yes. Good work.”
Chief Joo bowed in response to the brief farewell and left.
It was a day when a long-held curiosity was finally satisfied.
* * * * *
Suhyeon checked herself one final time in the mirror, wearing a neat two-piece outfit. She tied her ebony-black hair into a loose ponytail on one side.
Her slender neck was visible beneath the loosely tied hair.
‘It’s probably better to keep my hair tied up when trying on dresses.’
Suhyeon thought as she looked at herself in the mirror.
Today was the day she and Jeonghan would look at wedding dresses.
After checking her wristwatch, she hurriedly left the dressing room.
When she took the elevator down to the underground parking lot, Jeonghan was standing in front of the car.
Her eyes widened at the sight of him.
“Where’s Chief Joo?”
“In America, preparing for the wedding.”
Jeonghan smiled softly as he answered, opening the passenger door for her.
“Chief Joo must be working so hard. Because of me.”
Suhyeon felt guilty, wondering if they should have chosen America. The travel time alone made everything more complicated than having it domestically.
“Don’t worry about that. Please get in first.”
“Ah, yes. We’ll be late.”
Snapping out of her guilt at his words, Suhyeon got into the car. After gently closing her door, he walked around the hood to the driver’s seat.
The car carrying the couple soon departed.
When they arrived at the ornate building, the boutique manager came out personally to greet them.
“Welcome. Sincere congratulations on your wedding.”
The manager bowed deeply in greeting.
Though everyone knew about their widely publicized story and that this was their second wedding, she didn’t mention it – showing her professional discretion.
“We’ve prepared refreshments while you look through the catalogs. Please, this way.”
The manager led Jeonghan and Suhyeon to the VIP room.
Following her, Suhyeon briefly glanced at Jeonghan walking beside her before lowering her gaze.
“…”
Her lowered gaze fell on her hand held in his large one.
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