She tried to convince herself that it was her lady parts doing the thinking. That if she’d wanted a chance to be with Colin Song, she shouldn’t have partnered Rotelle Entertainment with CS Productions. But it was no good. She wanted the partnership and Colin.
It was a relief to finally admit to herself that she wanted Colin Song. And she was going to win him over. No man had ever made her feel the way he did, and maybe no other man ever would. She needed to take this chance to explore her attraction to him.
But would a personal relationship with him impact their working relationship? She and Colin were mature adults and professionals. They would be able to keep their personal life separate from their work. Besides, how different could it be from their current situation? She already thought of him constantly and discreetly ogled him when he was around. She just had to remember not to make her infatuation obvious to everyone around them.
She was a smart woman. She knew how to be careful and neutralize risks. Even her father had never found out about her other lovers. Well, there were only two of them, but she had chosen men who hadn’t come from money, men her father wouldn’t have approved of. Men she respected. If her father had known, he wouldn’t have looked the other way. There was no reason she couldn’t keep her personal interactions with Colin a secret. But what if you want something lasting with him? Something real?
The thought came unbidden, and she had no answers. As far as she knew, he didn’t come from a well-known, wealthy family. Her father would frown on such “lack of pedigree.” Was she willing to oppose her father to be with a man her family wouldn’t accept? Would she be willing to give up Rotelle Entertainment for Colin? Never mind all that. She would cross that road if she ever got to it.
“I wasn’t allowed to be juvenile even when I was a child. I’m not going to start acting like a child as a grown woman,” Jihae announced to a startled June, who thought she’d had the last word.
“Okay, then. Are you going to call him?”
“Nope.”
“For God’s sake—”
Jihae cut her off before she could resume her nagging. “I’m going to see him in person.”
“Right on,” June said, raising her palm in the air.
She high-fived her friend and stood up. “Right now.”
Her decision made, Jihae felt bold and determined. She rushed to the parking structure and pulled out onto the street before voice-dialing Colin.
“Hello, Jihae.” He picked up the phone just as she was about to hang up, and his tone was oh-so-casual.
“Hi.” Had he been busy or was he contemplating not answering her call? “Are you working late tonight?”
“Yes, but not for CS Productions. I’m catching up on business at Pendulum.”
Bingo. “Were you able to make things official with Charity Banning?”
“I was planning to email you about that tomorrow. We reached an oral agreement, and Ethan will be communicating with June to draw up a formal contract.”
“Excellent news. I’m glad I got to hear it tonight.”
There was slight hesitation on his end. “Is that why you called?”
“That was part of it.”
“And the other part?” he asked in a low, coaxing voice.
Was he flirting with her? If he was going to be like this, why hadn’t he just called? He was the one who had rudely cut short their kissing session. Her indignation suddenly rose again. She wasn’t going to make this easy for him.
“I actually can’t recall the other part. It must not have been very important,” she said archly. “Good night, Colin. Congratulations on Charity Banning.”
“But—”
She hung up, cutting off his protest. That felt good. Hanging up on him gave her some immature satisfaction. Now she was going to invade his home turf and show him exactly what the other part was about.
Traffic was moderate and she made good time to Pendulum. She checked her reflection in the rearview mirror. Her eyes were bright and her color heightened. Adrenaline. Pure, natural makeup. She was wearing a white sleeveless mock neck and a pair of wide-legged white slacks. She wasn’t exactly dressed for a nightclub, but she wore her hair down and a swipe of clear lip gloss made her adequately presentable.
Jihae got past the bouncers without a hitch and approached the host. “Hi, I’m here to see Mr. Song.”
“Is he expecting you, miss?” the gentleman asked, giving her a perfunctory once-over. She seemed to meet his approval.
“We spoke on the phone only a few minutes ago.”
“Then let me escort you to his office.”
“I don’t want to disrupt your duties. Pointing me in the right direction is all I need.”
“Very well. Go down that hallway and turn left. You’ll see one door marked Employees Only and an unmarked door across from it. That’s his office.”
“Thank you so much, Mr....”
“Tucker. Just Tucker is fine,” he said with a smile.
“Thank you, Tucker. I’m Jihae.”
“Nice to meet you, Jihae.”
With a wave, she strode toward Colin’s office. But once she got there, her nerves faltered for a moment. Then, with an impatient shake of her head, she knocked smartly on the door.
“Come in.”
His voice was clear but he sounded a bit distracted. He was probably immersed in his work. But when she stepped inside, he was staring down at his phone, his thumbs at rest.
“I remembered the other reason I called,” she said softly.
Colin’s head shot up and the intensity of his gaze stole her breath. He pushed back from his desk, making his chair spin wildly, and took three long strides to come stand in front of her. Her heart pounded bruisingly against her ribs, and all her confident resolve seemed to melt.
“Care to share what it is?” he said in a low growl.
She swallowed and gathered her wits about her. “Your urgent business at the zoo that day? Were you able to take care of it satisfactorily?”
“Satisfactorily? No. Far from it,” he said, his eyes dropping to her lips. “All I managed to do was feed the fire.”
“Kiss me.” Her breaths came in short puffs.
“No.”
“No?” Her shock overshadowed her hurt at his rejection. He was trembling in front of her, his eyes near manic. He wanted her as much as she wanted him. “Why ever not?”
“We work together. You have built up this image of yourself as the untouchable ice queen. If word gets out that we’ve slept together, it could taint your image. This industry is brutal. They would use any weakness to undermine you.”