Clara sighed as she struggled to not fall back in the packed subway train. It was already the third week since she started working at SONGHWA Hotel, and yet, she was still not used to the morning rush. Should I just buy a car?, she thought with a grimace as she felt herself lurch forward as people shoved her from behind. After the arduous twenty-minute train ride, Clara staggered into the building.

She stretched her arms as she walked to the elevators, yawning. She and her informants had been in constant contact for the past week, looking into SONGHWA Hotel’s upcoming projects, trying to decipher if they too, were planning on asking for Mrs. Tan’s investment. Her informant had been unable to find any information on Kim Woo-hyuk, confirming, that it was highly likely Woo-hyuk was SONGHWA Hotel’s CEO.

Clara had already suspected as such when she had seen his 'fiancé’s' face plastered on her whiteboard. She shook her head—how could she not recognize her half-sister? Clara had studied that vile family’s pictures for ten years straight, though, her sister did change quite a bit from the time the photo had been taken... She sighed. Despite her suspicions that Woo-hyuk was the new CEO, Clara hoped that she was wrong. Over the past two weeks, she had grown attached to the handsome and aloof man. He had, after all, had been the only one who never participated in spreading rumors about her.

Clara and her informants were also trying to get in touch with the detective who was now, supposedly, going to reopen her mother’s cold case from 20 years ago. However, no matter how many times they called and left voicemails, they had yet to receive a call back. Clara groaned. There were too many hurdles and she hadn’t even attempted to begin her revenge. She walked the long hallway to her office, greeting her co-workers as she entered the department.

The rookie employee sighed yet again as she plopped onto her seat. In a daze, she gazed at the pile of documents in front of her when she noticed a small package on her desk. Looking around the room, to see if it was anyone else’s, she saw that it was addressed to her and had a small memo on top of the box. It was a thank you/ apology gift the Sales Department had sent her after she had called them out on their negligence before the event started last Saturday. She smirked as she shoved the box aside, the look on the deputy manager had been priceless. Glancing up, Clara saw that Woo-hyuk was not at work—again. She sighed, shaking her head. Just when was he planning on announcing his true identity?

A loud bang from the door erupted, as one of her co-workers came running into the office out of breath. Everyone stared at him, annoyed and surprised by the loud noise. He panted and drank a glass of water before he whipped around to face them. With a gulp, he shouted out that the new CEO would be officially starting his first day at the company today and would be personally coming in to say hello to each team/ department. Team Leader Park dropped the cookie he was eating before he scrambled to pick it up, ordering everyone to start cleaning. In a frenzy, everyone started to rush around the office, picking up scraps of paper while another took out a mop and began to wipe the floor. Clara quickly sat up and also started helping to clean the office, with a wide smile on her face. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for!

The office anxiously waited for two hours, wondering when the new CEO would show up. The entire time, everyone was on edge, peeking through the windows and listening for the ding of the elevator. Clara thought it was ridiculous, but she understood their sentiment—they wanted to make a good impression on their new employer. There was a ding of the elevator, with a shuffle of feet that everyone in the office heard. 

The deputy manager signaled to the Team Leader to come out as the team members all stood up from their seats, anxious to meet the new CEO. Clara also stood up as the door to their office opened. Clara looked around the office, everyone had a huge grin on their face, but soon after, turned to a look of astonishment. Clara let out a deep breath as she looked up to see Woo-hyuk smiling at the team. Well, damnit, I was hoping I was wrong..., she thought as she stared at him. Everyone froze, forgetting to introduce themselves as they just stared at him in silence. Woo-hyuk chuckled and turned to his group of directors who also laughed along with him.

“Hello, my name is Kim Joo-hyuk, and I am the new CEO of SONGHWA Hotel. It’s nice to see you all again.” he said with a dashing smile.

“I-I-I… I mean—We look forward to working with you!!!!” Team Leader Park shouted, clearly flustered, as he bowed to Joo-hyuk out of respect. Everyone followed suit, all except for Clara who just stood there with a frown.

Clara had figured that Woo-hyuk, was the CEO, but she had prayed to be wrong. Thanks to him, she had met her sister—the one she had been hoping to become friends with to gain insider knowledge of GK Group… Now that plan was down the drain. Clara groaned inwardly as she just stared at Woo-, no, Joo-hyuk with a blank face, unamused by the turn of events.

Joo-hyuk cocked his head to the side, as he wondered what Clara was thinking about. Why was she the only one unfazed by this revelation? He finally caught her eye and smiled, nodding at her. She blinked before she hastily bowed to him as well. The new head of SONGHWA Hotel felt unsettled. He had been expecting to see something amusing, yet Clara just seemed as if she had known all along… He and the Board of Directors were about to leave when he stopped and turned back to look at Clara again. Baffled, Clara looked around her, not sure if he was staring at her or not. Joo-hyuk smirked before he cleared his throat, announcing to everyone in the office of a promotion. He stared straight at Clara while he spoke.

“I forgot to mention… There will be a person in this team who will be promoted. Clara? Congratulations, you’ve been chosen to be our company’s new Legal Director. I look forward to working with you. Would you mind coming with me back to my office?” he asked with a smile.

Everyone turned their heads towards her. Clara stared back at them, unable to form words at the sudden turn of events. All she could manage to do was slowly nod and follow him out of the office and into the elevator, with the Board of Directors bowing to Joo-hyuk. Clara stayed mum, not knowing what to say or think. She just stared at the floor; her knees felt weak as they ascended to the 30th floor. Joo-hyuk smiled in amusement, motioning for her to follow him once the elevators opened. Joo-hyuk greeted his secretaries before asking one of them to bring in some tea. The secretaries nodded and smiled at Clara, who awkwardly said hello. Joo-hyuk opened the door to his office and gestured for her to go in first. She obliged.

Clara felt numb as she gawked at his office. It was very elegant but modern with wood panels, leather sofas, and an oak L-shaped desk with a black leather office chair. There was a chandelier in the middle of the room as well as various awards placed on the bookcases around the office. It was far less extravagant than the other executive offices she had seen previously when she worked as a lawyer. She felt awkward as she just stood near the sofa, not knowing what to do. Joo-hyuk laughed and told her to sit as he plopped on the chair in the middle of the two sofas. Clara carefully sat down, unable to make eye contact with Joo-hyuk.

“… You didn’t seem to come off as a shy person around an authority figure… Are you that surprised?” he chuckled, glancing over at her.

“As if. I already knew who you were, anyway… I am surprised by this sudden promotion though.” she said as she looked up at him with annoyance.

“Wait… You knew?!”, he asked speechless. How did she know?!

“You made it a bit obvious… Especially when you refused to greet Cha Jung-hyun that day of the event… She wouldn’t be calling just any wealthy man her fiancé… There was even a news article about your potential engagement.” Clara responded with a shrug.

“… I thought I did a good job of hiding it… Haha, I should have known, you have great tact for catching on quickly.” Joo-hyuk said with another chuckle.

“Well, now that you have been promoted as the Legal Director, I have provided an office for you on this floor. There will be four other lawyers who will be part of your legal department. I look forward to working with you Director Astley.” he extended his hand for a handshake. Clara just stared at his hand before looking up at him, suspicion apparent in her eyes.

“Why did you make me the Legal Director of your company? How do you know if I’m even competent to do my job well?” she narrowed her eyes at him.

“I asked my father’s secretary to do some background check on you. Forgive me if you’re offended by that, but… I needed to know if you really were the renowned Clara Astley. It’s hard to accept that a person, with much prestige like yourself, would be working as an entry-level office worker. Was it wrong of me to appoint such a talented person as yourself to be the Legal Director?”, he raised his eyebrows. Why was she so apprehensive? 

Before Clara could answer, a knock came from the door as a secretary came in and placed some tea on the coffee table. Joo-hyuk thanked her, as she left the room and closed the door with a soft clack.

“… Thank you for giving me an opportunity to work as the Legal Director, however—”

“Now, before you decline the promotion, I need to clarify some things first. One, I am hiring you as the Legal Director because of your credibility as an international lawyer. Second, I need your help to change the toxic work culture we have here at SONGHWA Hotel. I’ve already witnessed it firsthand while we were both in the Marketing Department… I need someone who is well-versed in international law, as we have many foreign investors as well as employees in our company.” Joo-hyuk explained as he looked at Clara with a serious expression. She knew he wasn’t joking.

“…Fine. Then, what’s in it for me?”

“Well, for starters, a great salary and benefits… and I guess anything else you would like to add to your terms?” he inquired as he took a sip of his tea. Clara looked at him, contemplating her next words. She let out a deep breath and looked at him squarely in the eye.

“Really? Then… Let’s get married!”

**NOTE: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.**