Leo, Ava, and Jae-wook were gathered around the dining room table, each with a steaming cup of cocoa and sandwiches arranged like edible masterpieces. The room buzzed with a casual warmth, though something unspoken lingered beneath the chatter. Then Leo's gaze caught movement at the far end of the room, and his grin lit up like morning sun.
"Carrie!" he called, waving enthusiastically. "Where are you sneaking off to? Come have breakfast with us."
Carrie froze mid-step like a deer caught in headlights. She shut her eyes briefly, inhaled as though summoning courage from the soles of her feet, and made her way toward the table with reluctant grace.
"Who's sneaking?" she said lightly, sliding into the seat between Leo and Ava, her tone casual but her eyes guarded.
Ava's brows furrowed. She glanced between Carrie and Jae-wook like a detective decoding a puzzle. "Did you two fight?"
Leo leaned in with a mischievous glint. "Nah, this isn't fight tension… this is weird tension. Which one of you had the sex dream?"
Carrie choked on her cocoa. "Are you insane?" she said, delivering a solid smack to Leo's arm.
"Ow!" he yelped, rubbing the spot. "It was a spicy question, granted, but valid."
"Well," Ava interjected, her voice losing its teasing edge, "Leo and I leave tomorrow for the business trip."
Carrie's brows lifted. "Seriously? That sucks."
"Tell me about it," Ava muttered. "We're reporters, not ad clowns. I don't know why they keep pushing this merger."
Leo groaned. "It's that vulture again. Trying to squeeze every ounce of value from the money she lost."
"She's not even broke," Carrie muttered, stirring her cocoa. "Ten billion is just glitter dust to her."
"She's not hurting," Jae-wook said quietly, eyes fixed on Carrie. "She's scared. And when powerful people get scared, they start burning bridges they might still need."
Leo nodded. "Classic emotional arson. Gotta love it."
Jae-wook glanced at his watch. "We should go. We've got a storm of nonsense waiting at the office."
Carrie gave a small nod, eyes never rising to meet his. "Yeah. Let's head out."
---
Outside, the morning air was crisp and biting. Carrie stepped into it with purpose, but her eyes locked with Jae-wook's almost immediately. The moment stretched between them like a taut thread. She masked the shiver down her spine with a sharp breath.
"Mr. Jin not driving today?" she asked, voice steady.
"He's tied up," Jae-wook said, offering a small smile. "So I figured I'd play chauffeur."
Carrie raised a brow. "Not happening. I'm your bodyguard, remember?."
Jae-wook chuckled, stepping aside like he enjoyed being bossed around. "smart counter."
She paused, then tried, "And about yesterday—"
Before she could finish, Jae-wook reached out, pressing a gentle finger against her lips. Her words dissolved like sugar in tea.
"You've said it before, you don't need to say it again " he said softly, his eyes locked onto hers with a quiet intensity. "just don't feel uncomfortable around me, it's suffocating "
His sincerity wrapped around her like a velvet rope. And then—out of nowhere—Carrie hiccupped.
Jae-wook blinked. "Are you... okay?"
Before she could respond, a shrill voice cut through the air like a blade.
"Well, isn't this cozy!"
They turned just in time to see Ms. Kim striding toward them, her heels clicking like a countdown.
"I swear, if I didn't know better, I'd say you two were dating," she said with a wide, sarcastic smile. "What a headline! 'MapleSeoul's Ice Prince falls for his hot male bodyguard—also, he's gay now!' Fabulous twist."
Her grin vanished. "Be careful. Eyes are everywhere."
"Thanks for the TED Talk," Jae-wook muttered. "Now, why are you here?"
"Urgency," she said, snapping her fingers. "Keys, please."
"Where exactly are we going?" Carrie asked, narrowing her eyes.
"To a place called 'wait until we get there,'" Ms. Kim said coolly, holding out her hand again.
Jae-wook sighed, considered arguing, then tossed her the keys. "Make it quick. We're already late."
"Oh, I'll be quick," she said, sliding into the driver's seat. "But don't blame me if you regret this."
---
They ended up in a chic little café tucked into a narrow alley—too aesthetic for urgency, too bright for secrets. Ms. Kim sipped her coffee like she had all the time in the world. Carrie and Jae-wook, seated across from her, were visibly vibrating with curiosity.
"You dragged us here just to watch you sip coffee?" Jae-wook said flatly.
"Hm. That's no way to talk to your elder sister," she mused. "But fine. Let's talk money. Na-eun's missing ten billion."
"She didn't lose it," Jae-wook said dryly. "She miscalculated her greed."
Ms. Kim tsked. "That's why you need more carrots. They're good for the brain."
"That's for the eyes," he shot back.
Carrie clapped her hands. "Okay! People, wrap it up. Ms. Kim, spill."
Ms. Kim leaned forward, her voice dropping. "Na-eun's been acting off. My agent's been tailing her. She's jumpy, irrational, making employees sweat blood. This isn't just about money, something else is different brewing up."
"Maybe she's on her period," Carrie offered, then winced. "I shouldn't have said that. It sounded smart in my head."
Ms. Kim ignored her. "What if... she's being threatened?"
Carrie straightened. "A threat?"
"And what's that got to do with us?" Jae-wook asked.
"Because if someone's found a way to rattle Na-eun, then what they're holding is huge. Career-killing. Maybe life-destroying. And if she's hiding something that big—something that dangerous—then we've got a ticking time bomb in our possession."
A heavy silence fell over the table.
Carrie tapped her chin slowly. "Now that you put it that way... yeah. That does make disturbing sense."
Ms. Kim beamed. "I know right. I should've been a detective."
Jae-wook leaned back, arms folded. "So what now? What do you plan to do with all this?"
Ms. Kim took a final sip of her coffee and stood.
"I've done my part. The torch is yours now." She smirked. "So, Mr. Chang and Agent Hamilton, what's your next move?"