Chapter 10

“Executive Director! W-Wait for me!”

I shouted toward his retreating back.

Whether he heard me or not, he stepped into the elevator without even looking back.

No!

I saw his indifferent face through the gap in the closing elevator doors.

I squeezed out every last bit of strength and ran down the hallway.

“Wait… huff, huff!”

By the time I reached the elevator, gasping for breath, I saw that the doors, which should have already closed, were wide open.

He had one hand casually tucked into his trouser pocket while pressing the open-door button with the other.

“Get in.”

Seo-jun gestured with his chin.

He had been waiting for me instead of leaving.

“Ah… thank you.”

Ding.

The elevator began smoothly descending.

The only sounds in the silence were my rough breathing and the faint hum of the machinery.

The expensive scent of his cologne and the cheap smell of the sandwich in my hand mixed strangely inside the small enclosed space, almost like a reflection of the difference between the two of us.

“Is that good?”

He casually asked while staring straight ahead.

“Huh?”

“The sandwich.”

I instinctively looked down at the sandwich in my hand.

“Oh, this? Yes. It’s basically the soul food of people who work overtime. The combination of the sauce and vegetables is amazing.”

I looked up at him with wide eyes.

“Have you… never eaten one?”

Come to think of it, that made sense.

There was no way a third-generation chaebol heir would have eaten a cheap, ordinary franchise sandwich like this.

I carefully opened the wrapper and held it toward his mouth.

“Would you like one bite? It’s really good.”

His gaze landed on the sandwich and then moved away.

The clear bite mark on it suddenly made me self-conscious.

He shook his head calmly.

“No. I ate not long ago.”

“Oh, okay…”

I awkwardly started to pull my hand back.

But then he carefully added,

“I was just asking for market research purposes.”

“Huh? Market research?”

“If employee satisfaction is really that high, I was thinking of ordering them in bulk as afternoon snacks later. As part of the employee benefits.”

His expression was so calm that it was almost shameless, as if his question had been entirely about collecting data for management efficiency and employee welfare.

Wow… he’s really thorough.

I was amazed.

A regular employee like me just ate because I was hungry.

But Executive Director Kang could even look at a sandwich and think about employee satisfaction and benefits.

“As expected… you’re a businessman to the core.”

My admiration made his eyebrow twitch slightly.

He cleared his throat and turned his gaze toward the elevator display.

“Well, I’m glad you said it’s good.”

For some reason, the tips of his ears looked slightly red.

He had bought it for me, but was pretending it was someone else’s idea.

And he was even pretending it was for the company’s employee benefits.

He’s annoying, but somehow I don’t dislike it.

Ding.

We arrived at the first-floor lobby.

He walked out first with long strides.

I adjusted my heavy laptop bag and followed him.

After working overtime, my body was exhausted.

With the laptop and stacks of documents added to the weight, every step felt incredibly heavy.

My shoulders were throbbing as if they were about to break.

Perhaps he noticed me struggling with my things because Seo-jun suddenly stopped.

“Executive Director?”

His gaze fell on the heavy bag strap digging into my shoulder.

“Give it to me.”

“What?”

Instead of answering, he reached out and snatched the bag from me.

My body instantly felt lighter.

“Ah, no! I’ll carry it. If you carry something like this…”

If employees saw this, they would probably faint.

The heir to Daeyoung Group carrying the belongings of an ordinary assistant manager?

But he was firm.

“I can’t stand watching you walk like a tortoise.”

“But still…”

“Getting home and resting quickly will help your work efficiency tomorrow. So we’re doing it this way.”

He completely cut off my excuses and headed toward the revolving door.

He walked as easily as if he were carrying an empty paper bag.

I stared blankly at his broad back.

I’d always thought he was cold and annoying.

But he’s actually pretty dependable.

It was a strange feeling.

How long had it been since someone carried my things for me?

I had always considered it normal to carry everything myself and endure everything alone.

I felt my nose sting for no reason and hurried after him, taking small steps.

The car was quiet.

Seo-jun sat in the driver’s seat without saying anything.

As soon as I relaxed, exhaustion hit me like a tidal wave.

I began nodding off in the passenger seat.

“…Team Leader, that’s not it…”

A sleep-talking murmur escaped my mouth.

I suddenly opened my eyes.

“Gasp!”

I was mortified.

When I looked to the side, Seo-jun was tapping the steering wheel while looking at me.

“Do you work even in your dreams?”

“S-Sorry. I was just really sleepy…”

“Team Leader Park?”

His low voice made me instinctively watch his reaction.

I nodded.

“Yes. Even though I sent the report, I still feel like I’m being chased.”

“……”

“Thanks to you, it’s been resolved, but I guess I was still dealing with it in my dream. Haha.”

I tried to laugh it off awkwardly.

But his expression didn’t soften.

The traffic light changed, and the car smoothly started moving again.

But the atmosphere was much colder than before.

“Assistant Manager Lee.”

“Yes?”

“Do you know how our company’s personnel system works?”

It was a completely unexpected question.

“Well… I suppose it’s performance-based?”

He muttered with a bitter smile.

“If the work produced by grinding down a subordinate is called ‘performance,’ then the system is rotten.”

I could see his hand tightening around the steering wheel.

His grip was so strong that the leather seemed ready to crumple.

Seeing his reaction, I hesitantly said that everyone did things like this sometimes.

And since I was the person actually handling the project, perhaps it couldn’t be helped.

The truth was, I felt wronged.

But I had long since resigned myself to the idea that being an assistant manager meant getting criticized from above and pushed around from below.

“Nothing about this is normal.”

He said it firmly.

“The subordinate does all the work, the boss takes all the credit, and the subordinate is tormented so badly that it follows them into their dreams after work.”

His eyes became increasingly sharp.

“I don’t like seeing my employee, especially someone who is supposedly my wife, being treated that way.”

My employee.

And…

My wife.

Those words struck something deep inside my chest.

Perhaps he was only saying that because of our contractual relationship.

Maybe he simply disliked seeing someone legally tied to him being mistreated.

But at that moment, his usually harsh words felt warmer than any comfort could have been.

“Thank you… for saying that.”

I murmured softly and blinked my eyes.

Strangely, inside this man’s car, I felt as though I were in the safest fortress in the world.

Slowly, my heavy eyelids closed again.

This time, I couldn’t resist.

Kang Seo-jun glanced at the sleeping Da-eun.

Dark circles had formed heavily beneath her eyes as she rested her head against the window.

It was obvious what had caused them.

She had been overworked until 11 p.m., surviving on nothing but half a sandwich.

She’s such an idiot.

She couldn’t even say no.

Anger rose inside him.

But the target of that anger wasn’t the woman sleeping beside him.

It was the person who had created this situation.

Team Leader Park Cheol-su.

As if stealing someone else’s proposal wasn’t enough, he had shamelessly made her clean up the mess afterward.

Seo-jun’s eyes turned cold.

Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, he pulled out his phone with the other.

This wasn’t about personal feelings.

It was simply his official duty as a company executive to eliminate a parasite within the company.

Without hesitation, he sent messages to both the head of Human Resources and the head of the Audit Department.

[As soon as you arrive at work tomorrow, conduct a full investigation into Marketing Team 1 Team Leader Park Cheol-su’s corporate card expenses and attendance records, and report to me.]

Tap.

His fingertip pressed the send button firmly.

But that wasn’t enough.

As if driving the final nail into the coffin, he added one more line.

[Pay particular attention to expenses listed as “entertainment.” Prepare supporting documentation down to the last won. No exceptions.]

The phone screen went dark.

Silence returned to the car.

But the corner of Seo-jun’s mouth curved upward ever so slightly.

Just wait, Team Leader Park.

Tomorrow morning, you’ll learn exactly what it costs to mess with someone under my protection.

Careful not to wake the sleeping Da-eun, he gently slowed the car.

The light from the streetlamps passed over their faces.