"Ye Jin ssi, I've reached the cafe. Are you there yet?"
"I'm inside."
"Okay. I'll be there in a minute."
Gary disconnected the call and removed the bluetooth from his ear. He had a meeting with a client to finalise the design concept of her house. Since it was scheduled at the last minute, he arranged to meet at a cafe somewhere near his house. He parked his car at the roadside and went inside the cafe.
"Ye Jin ssi," he walked towards her table and greeted.
"Have a seat." She replied.
"This is the design sketch," he took out a sketch pad, flipped over to a page and pass it to her. "and this is the digital image for you to visualise and see if there's any changes." He hand her a file with three sheets of paper in it.
She reached her hand out but instead of taking the file, she sneak her hand up to Gary's hand and held it. Startled, he let go of the file and drew his hand back.
"Please take a look," he regained his composure and said.
"Can't we get to know each other before we carry on with the discussion?" Ye Jin asked as she purposely move in to get closer to him. By now, it was clear to him that she didn't call him out just to discuss about the design. She had other intention in mind.
Feeling uncomfortable, Gary moved away slightly then picked up the materials on the table and carried on with the discussion.
"Ye Jin ssi, we need to finalize the design by today, otherwise we won't be able to start the renovation." He told her.
"The design will be as what you suggested previously," she paused and looked at him, "should we go for a drink after this?" She leaned forward and whispered in a seductive tone. His body shivered as she rested her hand on his thigh, and twirled her index finger on his thigh in small circles.
"Ye Jin ssi, thanks for your offer but I need to get back home. My wife is waiting for me." He remove her hand away from his thigh to the table, and noticed a change in her gaze.
"Oh.. So you're married." She said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.
"Yes, I am." He said firmly, hoping that she will get the idea and stop crossing the boundaries.
She flashed him a small smirk. "Then you can look for me any time if you're bored," she said.
Just as they were speaking, Jihyo entered the cafe with the intention of getting herself a cup of coffee. She didn't know that Gary was in there until she pushed the door opened and witnessed a lady pressing her lips against Gary's cheek. It all happened right in front of her eyes.
"Oppa." She mumbled in shock.
Gary looked towards the direction of the familiar voice and his eyes widened. "Jihyo," He called out but she had already turned her back to him and walked out of the café.
"Is that your wife?" Ye Jin asked, her hands still resting on his shoulders as she looked at him.
He took her hands off him and took a few steps back away from her. No matter how frustrated he was with her, he had to control his emotions as losing a client not only affect him but also the company.
"Ye Jin ssi, I'm sorry but I have to leave now. There's an emergency. Regarding the design and renovation of your house, I'll send a copy of the concept to my colleague and he will take over from there. It has been a joy working with you."
She let out a half-smile. "Loyalty doesn't bring you anywhere," she stood close to him and whispered. "I felt happy working with you too. And like what I said, feel free to look for me if you're bored." She lifted her gaze to his eyes and extend her hand out for a handshake.
Gary looked at her extended hand and then back at Ye Jin. "Sorry, I've to go." He said and hurried out of the café. He took out his phone from his bag and saw the amount of calls that he received from Jihyo. He tried calling her but she wasn't answering. He got into his car and immediately drove back home.
When he reached home, Jihyo wasn't back yet. He sat down on the sofa, with his elbows propped up on his legs and rested his forehead on his clasped hands.
It took awhile before he finally heard the sound of the door clicked open. He stood up quickly and turned around to face her. Their eyes met for a brief moment before she looked away and walked off.
Gary went around the sofa to get to her, grabbed her hand and pulled her back. "Yeobo, give me a chance to explain."
She yanked her hand away from him. Her eyebrows drew together, tears of anger in her eyes. "What is there to explain? I saw it with my own eyes. Was that why you didn't answer my calls or reply my texts?" Jihyo yelled as she threw a cushion on the floor and headed towards their bedroom.
"I really didn't mean to ignore you. My phone was in silent mood and I couldn't check it." He followed closely behind her and said.
She stopped walking abruptly and turned to him. Her eyes narrowed at him and a huff of frustration escaped her lips. "You couldn't or you didn't want to?"
"I was working. My client and I were discussing about the design concept and I can't answer calls in the middle of a meeting." He said defensively.
"Then what about that?" She pointed at his cheek. "What sort of meeting were you having that require you to be kissed?"
Gary rubbed his cheek with the back of his hand and saw the pinkish-red stain. He flicked his gaze back up quickly and anxiously tried to explain to her. "Yeobo, she did kissed me but it really isn't-"
She grabbed one of the pillow on the bed and threw it in his direction. He managed to dodge in time and it hit the wall behind him. He opened his mouth to speak but before he could even do so, she slammed the door shut and locked it.
"Yeobo! Jihyo-yah!" Gary banged at the door and shouted but receive no response from her. He heard the light switch flicked and looked down at the door. He no longer see the light that was shining through the gap between the door and the floor a few seconds ago.
He let out a sigh as he bent over to pick up the pillow, and slowly walked over to the sofa. He grabbed the packet of wet wipes on the table and pulled out a piece and wipe off the lipstick mark on his cheek.
He tossed the dirty wet wipe on the table and lay down on the sofa. Staring at the ceiling, he let out another sigh.
He reached for his phone on the table and tap Jihyo's name in the contact list. "Mianhae." He send her a message and held his phone against his chest.
