“Sorry. I seriously could have,” she said, breathless from laughter. “I’m really, really ticklish.”
“That doesn’t sound right.” He ran his hand up the back of her legs. “I’ve touched you everywhere and you haven’t reacted like this before.”
“Just on my feet. I’m only ticklish there.”
“Thank goodness. Otherwise, I’ll get a good beating every time we make love.”
“Aw, poor Colin. Did I scare you? We could take a break tonight if you want.”
“Not on your life,” he growled, pouncing on her. “I already don’t get to have you often enough. I wouldn’t stay away from you even if you were covered in sharp needles.”
She giggled and pretended to push him off her, but he made quick work of trapping her arms above her head. “Can we at least go to your bedroom tonight? I feel like we rarely make it that far before we rip each other’s clothes off.”
“As you wish.”
He stood from the couch, lifted her into his arms and carried her into his room. After laying her down on the bed, he unbuttoned and shrugged out of his shirt as Jihae watched with rapt attention. As he unclasped his belt, a familiar ringtone sounded from his back pocket. Garrett. And all his trepidation from earlier in the evening rushed back to him.
“God, I’m sorry,” he said, pulling out his phone. “I need to take this.”
“Go right ahead. I’m not going anywhere.”
Colin left the bedroom and walked into his study, making sure to close the door behind him.
“Garrett.”
“Hey, little cousin. What are you up to? You sound a bit out of breath. Did I interrupt your workout?”
“In a manner of speaking, yes. So, what’s going on? Any news on the lead?” Colin deliberately exhaled when he noticed that he was holding his breath.
“As a matter of fact, there is, but I thought we might exchange some social niceties like normal people first.”
“Since when do the Songs engage in small talk over the phone?”
“I guess you have a point.” Garrett chuckled on the other end.
“So tell me. Was there any movement from Yami Corporation?”
“Yes. Yami’s CFO, Sylvia Taylor, finally met with Jihae Park at a coffee shop this afternoon.”
Colin’s heart drummed against his ribs. “Did we have ears on them?”
“Our PI had someone planted a couple tables away.”
“What—what did they talk about?” he asked, both eager and afraid to hear the answer.
“The conversation was convoluted and brief. Taylor asked Jihae Park about how her father was doing and whether Rotelle was running smoothly. Park effectively shut her down and asked for the reason she wanted an introduction to NAM.”
“Then what?”
“Taylor said her father owed her, and Park should just do as she was told.”
Colin almost laughed. Jihae would not have liked that. “What happened next?”
“She told Taylor in no uncertain terms that there will be no introductions to the talent agency unless there were legitimate reasons for it.”
Atta girl. “So, did Taylor succumb and tell her everything?”
“Basically, but nothing of use to us. She wanted Park to pressure executives at NAM to have their big-name stars endorse Yami Corporation’s apparel. Be seen wearing it and share how much they love it on social media. All for free.”
“That’s ridiculous. Jihae would never ask for something like that from NAM. She values them as colleagues.”
“I guess Taylor thought NAM would rather do Park’s bidding than lose Rotelle Entertainment’s goodwill.”
“That may very well be true, but Taylor wanted to take advantage of NAM. It’s far from a fair deal. Jihae would never stand for that.”
There was a short pause. “You sound pretty confident about that.”
“I am.” Colin clenched his fists, ready to defend Jihae if his cousin questioned her integrity.
But all Garrett said was “Huh.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means huh. Why does it have to mean anything?” There was a smile in his cousin’s voice. Was Colin that obvious about his feelings for Jihae? “Anyway, the only information that we gleaned from their meeting was that Sylvia Taylor believes Chairman Park owes her. Just more circumstantial evidence.”
“So how did the meeting end?”
“Park told Taylor to go pound sand, and Taylor left in a huff, threatening that her father won’t be happy about this. Maybe Taylor has something on Chairman Park and is pressuring him for favors. But could she be so foolish as to anger the chairman? If she was, then she was playing with fire. The bastard might humor her for now, but he will bury her for daring to pressure him.” Garrett’s sigh communicated his frustration across the line. “But again, it’s all speculation and conjecture. We got nothing, which means we’re back to square one.”
“We did get something. This meeting proves that Jihae Park is innocent. She obviously doesn’t know what Rotelle Corporation’s connection to Yami is about. She was forced to play the middleman, but she walked away.”
“Again, it’s all just conjecture at this point, and it isn’t Park’s innocence that we’re trying to prove but Rotelle’s guilt.”
But it wasn’t conjecture. Jihae could’ve inadvertently been pulled into the espionage scheme, but she’d distanced herself from the situation. She was innocent but the situation reeked of her father’s guilt.
“So what’s next?” Colin dragged his fingers through his hair, pacing his office.
“We need to continue keeping an eye on Sylvia Taylor and Jihae Park.”
“On Jihae? She’s not a part of this.”
“We don’t know that for sure. She may even be the key to solving this case.”
Colin blew out a frustrated breath, not liking the idea of Jihae being watched. It could also reveal their relationship, but he would deal with that later. He needed to protect Jihae from being under the PI’s surveillance.
“Look, Garrett. I’m sure Grandmother has relayed to you that I’m working with Rotelle Entertainment while keeping an eye on Jihae Park. From everything I’ve seen so far, I believe her innocence. But if she ever diverges from that, I’ll be there to see it. Jihae is already under casual surveillance by her father’s people. Following her would only risk the PI’s cover and expose our investigation.”