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Chapter – 05
The Six – Month Project
“Then bring her here, that woman. Bring her before us.”
Do-kyung, who had been smiling leisurely at Ha-kyung’s furrowed brow, slowly rose from the sofa.
“I’ll bring her soon, just as you said, hyung. I was going to wait a little longer before telling you, but seeing Grandfather so ill, I can’t put it off any longer.”
“Good. I’ll be waiting.”
With a silent bow in place of an answer, Do-kyung quickly left the mansion.
With a faint smile lingering at the corners of his mouth throughout, he slowly walked through the garden, got into the back seat of his car parked in front of the main gate, and immediately loosened his tie with a deep sigh.
His entire life, he had been pushed aside by Ha-kyung simply because he was the younger brother.
Throughout his school years, in grades, athletic ability, and every other field, it was Do-kyung who had stood out. Despite that track record, the person their grandfather always chose was his older brother, Ha-kyung.
Furthermore, perhaps concerned that Do-kyung might outshine him within the group, Seok-yong had not wanted him to remain in Korea.
So, following his grandfather’s orders, he went to the United States for university, and even after graduating, he was forced to stay at the American branch for nearly seven years.
He had finally persuaded his father to let him return to Korea.
Yet Seok-yong still seemed unwilling to let him surpass Ha-kyung. The very fact that he had staked his entire stake on such an absurd condition proved it.
‘He must have thought I’d never bring anyone to marry, since I’ve always insisted on staying single.’
Whether a fiancée or a true love—as long as Ha-kyung brought someone, he intended to pass down all the shares.
Not a single penny was meant to go to Do-kyung.
‘I can’t let that happen.’
As he slowly closed his eyes and then opened them, Do-kyung’s irises glowed darkly.
Monday came.
The moment she received a summons from the CEO’s office at nine in the morning, Winter couldn’t hide her fluster.
Ever since the day Do-kyung had called her in, supposedly to thank her, she had been spending relatively peaceful days.
Although the new team leader of Development Team 2, who had been specially scouted by the executives, was a workaholic perfectionist, he never unfairly scolded or criticized his team members.
Compared to before, the workload had increased, but the stress caused by people had almost disappeared.
She had been happy to be able to focus solely on work—but that happiness was short-lived.
Meeting Do-kyung face-to-face again after just one week, Winter’s mind had gone completely blank, having given up trying to process things. It was all because of what Do-kyung had just said.
“Let’s have a contract relationship. Just for six months.”
“Excuse me? What do you mean…?”
“I mean I want you to be my fake fiancée.”
The out-of-context proposal made her jaw drop.
“I… if you spring something like that on me without any explanation, I’m afraid I can only give you a negative answer.”
“You said you’d do anything to get your stolen idea back.”
“You said you didn’t want anything.”
“I do now.”
“Hah…”
A hollow laugh escaped her at his brazen change of tune, but it was short-lived.
Deciding to at least hear him out, Winter took a deep breath. This was a moment she needed to be more clear-headed than ever.
“So, what you’re saying is, what you need right now is a fake fiancée? And you want me to play that role?”
“That’s right.”
“Why me, of all people?”
At Winter’s question, Do-kyung began counting off on his fingers, explaining exactly why it had to be her.
“First, Cha Winter has an obligation to grant me one wish. Second, since we work at the same company, it’s easy to fabricate an alibi for how we met.”
“Ob-obligation?”
Wait, how did that promise from the other day suddenly become an ‘obligation’?
Obligation—by its dictionary definition, ‘something one is morally or legally bound to do.’
Why on earth would playing the role of the CEO’s fake fiancée be something she was morally bound to do? It was absurd.
Ignoring her as she pressed her fingers against her throbbing temples, Do-kyung brought up another reason.
In fact, this was the decisive factor that had led him to propose the fake fiancée role to Winter.
“Third, my parents found out that you climbed into my car completely drunk, and they misunderstood that we were dating.”
“…Haah.”
Winter dropped her head and buried her face in her hands. That day’s unauthorized ride was entirely, 100% her fault, so there was no room for argument.
And the fact that they were now misunderstanding their relationship because of it was nothing short of a disaster she had brought upon herself.
After a deep sigh, she lifted her head and spoke in a placating tone.
“Couldn’t we just clear up that misunderstanding?”
“Why would I?”
“Pardon?”
“From my perspective, I need a fiancée right now, so having them misunderstand that is actually helpful, isn’t it?”
“Uh… what kind of situation requires you to have a fiancée, exactly?”
In Winter’s life, there had never been a situation that absolutely required a fake fiancé.
And wondering why on earth he suddenly needed one now, just a week after the last time they met, she asked—and Do-kyung’s expression instantly darkened.
Unlike before, he looked somewhat sorrowful as he let out a short sigh and spoke.
“…My grandfather is very ill. He has terminal pancreatic cancer, and the cancer has metastasized everywhere. They say there’s nothing more that can be done.”
“G-grandfather… I see.”
Caught off guard by the unexpected reason, Winter bit her lower lip hard. If it was his grandfather, it must be Kim Seok-yong, the founder of Hanju Group.
Even after passing the chairmanship to his eldest son, Kim Ji-geon, he still often appeared at official events like the founding anniversary. He had seemed so vigorous as recently as last year’s anniversary ceremony—she couldn’t believe it was terminal cancer.
As she fell silent, unable to find the words, Do-kyung continued in an even more subdued voice.
“He says his dying wish is to see his grandchild’s bride. He says he doesn’t even need to see the wedding—he just wants to see his grandson happy with his partner…”
With a sorrowful expression, he slightly lowered his head and trailed off, subtly glancing at Winter’s face.
Whether moved by the unexpected story or not, Winter sat with her hands clasped together, looking at a loss.
To weaken her heart even further, Do-kyung let out a deep sigh, playing the part of the devoted grandson.
“It’s his last wish, so I wanted to grant it if possible. And then it just so happened that my parents misunderstood my relationship with Cha Winter, so I thought it was actually convenient.”
“I see…”
Finally understanding the reason behind his sudden proposal, she nodded slightly with a contemplative expression.
Do-kyung observed her downcast eyebrows and slightly subdued expression, then turned his head slightly to avert his gaze.
Strangely, his conscience—which had been perfectly fine until the moment he confirmed to his family that Winter was his lover—began to prick at him.
‘Is it because I’m deceiving and dragging in someone completely unrelated? Or is it just that innocent look on her face that’s bothering me?’
Now, Winter’s face was clearly filled with worry and pity.
He guessed the cause was this almost irritatingly naïve trustfulness, believing his words completely, and let out a short sigh.
Do-kyung had a reason he absolutely had to succeed in this.
Deciding he would provide ample compensation regardless of success or failure to ease his conscience, Do-kyung spoke in a slightly lighter tone.
“Think of it simply as a kind of project. A fake fiancée project that runs for six months.”
“But still, that’s lying…”
“I’m not asking you to do it for free. I’ll compensate you for all the time and effort you put into playing the fiancée role. And I’ll also promise you a raise and a promotion.”
“…A promotion?”
A glimmer of interest flickered in Winter’s eyes at the mention of compensation.
But even as she fidgeted, as if ready to accept right away, a hint of distrust remained on her face. Do-kyung assured her.
“Even becoming the youngest assistant manager might be possible. We’ll draw up a contract and specify it in there.”
At his voice, which seemed to carry extra weight to inspire trust, Winter bit her lower lip lightly.
The compensation he offered was tempting enough, but the fact that she would have to deceive someone held her back.
However, her hesitation was brief. Succumbing to her desire for a promotion, Winter carefully spoke up.
“What exactly does the fiancée role involve?”
‘Got her.’
A smirk crept across Do-kyung’s lips.
He was certain Winter was halfway—no, more than 80%—on board. At the same time, it was a smile born from the satisfaction of having correctly assessed his counterpart.
He hadn’t known Winter for long. Their first meeting was when she had climbed into his car at the company dinner, and only a little over a month had passed since then.
However, having already read through the data on her hard drive, her resume, and her cover letter, he could judge her with objective eyes.
Hardworking, perfectionist, and driven by ambition.
All of these were traits hidden within Winter.
Before she ever presented her idea, without being told to, she had worked on realizing those concepts alone at home—for six months, until she succeeded.
Only after verifying it numerous times and producing near-perfect results did she submit her proposal to the company.
After pouring sleepless nights into that carefully crafted idea only to have it stolen, no wonder she had even written her resignation letter.
Moreover, when she had drunkenly poured out her grievances, Winter had muttered words like ‘raise’ and ‘promotion’ in a voice barely intelligible.
Synthesizing all of this, Do-kyung deduced what Winter wanted most and offered it as compensation.
Just as expected, Winter seemed quite pleased with his proposal.
