The CEO's Price Tag
“Representative?”
A low chuckle escaped the man as his gaze dropped to Yu Yeong-a’s lips. Realizing his mistake a half-second too late, she quickly pressed her lips together.
“It’s my first time seeing you, yet you already know I’m the representative? I haven’t even uploaded my face to the corporate directory yet.”
Yu Yeong-a secretly turned her eyes away. Lying was a mortal sin.
“Th-that… I read the article.”
“Ah, the Sahan Group’s divorce scandal? But there wasn’t even one photo of my face in there. Did I miss something?”
This time Yu Yeong-a felt a jolt of a different kind.
“That’s right! It was that bastard. The article was like that? He really does earn his face.”
“Though there had to be at least one leaked photo somewhere, right? I never read it, but the article was packed with details.”
Fortunately the man nodded.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
He turned to go quickly, but the man called her name again.
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
In one swift motion he closed the distance between them. Yu Yeong-a startled and stopped walking, but he kept coming.
And one step, then another…
Until her back pressed against the whiteboard mounted on the opposite wall. Feeling trapped, she squeezed her eyes shut. There was a sharp click as the whiteboard marker’s cap opened.
“What are you—?”
Yu Yeong-a opened her eyes in surprise. The moment she did, the man’s hand rose to hover near her glasses.
Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat. Splat.
His movements were completely unrefined, lightning-fast, and utterly insane. He began scribbling on her glasses lenses before she could even lift a finger. Yu Yeong-a’s vision went pitch black in an instant.
“It’s you, isn’t it? You pathetic rag.”
“B-but—!”
Yu Yeong-a tried to protest but quickly shut her mouth. This wasn’t the time or place for that.
For some reason the man’s eyes flashed with even sharper intensity. He stared at her narrowed gaze for a moment, then stretched his lips in a long line.
“Exactly. Yeah. That.”
With a mysterious smile he commanded,
“Follow me.”
“Where to?”
“Are you really that blunt?”
“……”
It seemed she had no choice.
Wherever he led her, it turned out to be the CEO’s private office at Sahan Electronics. The heavy door creaked open, and the man chuckled.
“Come to think of it, today’s the day my brother’s next step in life comes through me.”
He quickly explained the situation. Even though he hadn’t been listed on the corporate directory yet, he’d come to the headquarters because of his brother’s promise. He’d even taken the afternoon off in place of his brother for the recruitment fair.
Yu Yeong-a had taken the final interview for Sahan Hotel at the Sahan Group headquarters building. While the various subsidiaries—Sahan Hotel, Sahan Electronics, Sahan Materials—each had their own separate buildings, the main departments and the representatives’ offices were all located in the main headquarters. That was where the Chairman and Vice Chairman kept their offices.
The door opened shortly after. Sa Jaeyong’s face looked extremely displeased.
“You knew I was thirty minutes late, right?”
“Before that, could I use the waiting room? I’m a new employee, and I needed a one-on-one interview.”
The moment Sa Jaeyong’s glare turned to Yu Yeong-a’s face, the CEO’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Nice to meet you.”
Despite the awkwardness, Yu Yeong-a greeted him as politely as she could. But what returned was a very loud, exaggerated sigh.
“Hurry it up.”
“Y-yes.”
His dry reply did nothing to soften the blow as he shoved her into the waiting room.
Yu Yeong-a sat on the sofa he had assigned. Through the blacked-out lenses of her glasses she scanned the luxurious interior. The dark vision before her felt like it was already whispering about her future.
“You said this was a one-on-one interview. What did you want to say?”
The moment the waiting-room door closed, Yu Yeong-a opened her mouth. The sooner she escaped, the better.
The man laughed softly and dropped onto the sofa opposite hers with a loud thud.
“You should have something to say first, right?”
He placed a tablet in front of her. On the screen was a photo of her lying on top of him.
Recalling the moment she had lost her first kiss so unexpectedly, Yu Yeong-a felt fresh injustice well up inside her.
“But you pulled me down, remember? That’s why I kissed you.”
Watching her raise her voice, he gave a contemptuous snort.
“Then what about after? If it hadn’t dragged on so long, that scandal article wouldn’t have been written. You shouldn’t even think about mentioning the fact that you passed out with your neck stiff.” There was no escape hole, not even the width of a needle. Her soft shoulders slumped. Yu Yeong-a had no choice but to spill everything.
“The truth is… at that time my crush was standing next to me with my friend. Oh, I found out it was a misunderstanding later. But anyway, so I couldn’t speak up and—…”
Yu Yeong-a explained with all her heart how much she loved Soo-ho and why she couldn’t speak up, but the man only laughed bitterly.
“So you weren’t satisfied with just rubbing your lips together—you even sucked on my neck?”
Yu Yeong-a’s face flushed scarlet in an instant.
“Huh? Wh-what, even… I mean, you don’t like me either, right? I was a complete first-timer!”
Recalling that utterly wasted first kiss left her strangely melancholic. But the man’s voice grew even harsher.
“My lips are just a rag?”
“I didn’t mean it like that…”
Watching her stammer, he waved his hand irritably.
“Enough. How are you going to take responsibility?”
“What responsibility do I have for a little kiss? You’re not my first either…”
Yu Yeong-a had never been one to hold back her words. But she knew when to hold them. The man in front of her definitely deserved an apology. At least half the fault was hers.
Yet somehow, her words came out easier here than they had in front of Soo-ho. Maybe it was because of his warm scent, which felt oddly familiar despite his stern expression.
“You’ve done this rag treatment a lot, haven’t you? Besides that, you read the divorce scandal article, right? How much damage has that caused you?”
Since neither of them was willing to stay silent, it was a draw. Yu Yeong-a honestly laid out the situation.
“The truth is…”
Just the word “Sahan” made her shudder, and Yu Yeong-a admitted she hadn’t clicked on a single scandal article since that day. At this point she felt genuinely wronged.
“So long as I’m not the one in trouble…”
Sa Hwigyeom pulled the tablet closer and found an article, then held it up in front of Yu Yeong-a again.
[Sahan Group: How much loss has the divorce caused?]
The figure had been wildly inflated, but since she was the debtor, it didn’t matter. Yu Yeong-a could barely read it, her eyes trembling until she finally turned her head away.
A slender woman’s neckline stretched long. Blue veins stood out against her skin so white it looked almost transparent. Watching the neck that was too shallow to show a pulse made her own heart beat in sync.
Was it because she was staring at the jugular of a prey animal about to be devoured by a predator?
“Where did this whole thing start?”
A sly smile unconsciously curved Sa Hwigyeom’s lips as he asked. Yu Yeong-a clasped her trembling hands tightly and lifted her chin with a determined expression.
“I can… pay you back. How much would it take?”
In truth, Sa Hwigyeom couldn’t stop laughing.
The cliché lines rich men used to throw at poor women, he was about to hear them from his own mouth.
“Then how much can I give you?”
Sa Hwigyeom laughed bitterly and asked.
“Not much right now, but I’m going to find a job soon, so I’ll pay you back in installments.”
“How many years is your lifespan? With a salary as a regular employee, it’ll probably take that long.”
Sa Hwigyeom scrolled down to the exact amount written on the tablet and placed it back on Yu Yeong-a’s lap. She immediately threw her glasses off.
“One… ten… one hundred…!”
Her doe-eyed eyes, framed by long eyelashes, flew open wide. Every time her lashes fluttered, her little nose twitched.
Watching her, Sa Hwigyeom felt an odd itch deep inside his chest. It was the feeling of a predator staring at its meal.
Suddenly the tie around his neck tightened. He loosened the knot roughly, and Yu Yeong-a spoke in a small, subdued voice.
“I was too hasty. If you want me to come to you every day until your heart softens, I’ll do that. I’ll become your hands and feet no matter what…”
Sa Hwigyeom cut her off sharply.
“If you don’t have money, pay with your body. Didn’t you watch a lot of dramas?”