Gunny sat on the chair before the new CEO’s desk, her face pale. The room was utterly silent, save for the faint hum of the air conditioner. The desk and chairs were arranged in a modern style, and stacks of documents awaiting signatures were neatly ordered.

Kawin slammed her employee file down onto the desk, then tapped his finger on the wooden surface to urge her to look up and meet his eyes.

Gunny started violently, focusing on his lips, which were parted in an annoyingly confident smirk. Kawin stared at her slender, well-defined face and clear, smooth skin for a moment before calling her name in a clipped, half-whisper.

“Kanyanee”

Gunny swallowed hard, her throat dry.

“Yes?” she managed a short reply, not daring to meet his gaze for long.

“What was your nickname again?” Kawin asked in a casual voice, yet his scrutinizing eyes suggested he was trying to catch her out.

“Gunny.”

“Ah,” he acknowledged, raising an eyebrow high. “I distinctly remember your face yesterday, along with that cunning girl.” He opened the conversation exactly as she had feared.

The accountant lifted her eyes and raised a hand to her chest.

“If you are going to fire me because of this, I will fight for justice. I have done nothing wrong regarding my work. I have been fully dedicated to my job; my score from the Human Resources department is 10,000 points toward promotion consideration. I have never been late or absent and have always been completely committed. You shouldn’t lose an employee who works this diligently. I absolutely cannot lose my job because of... because... I simply cannot afford to be unemployed!”

She spoke rapidly in a long burst, without pausing, trying to use every reason she had to fight the situation, which clearly seemed stacked against her. Although her face betrayed her anxiety, her determined eyes still shone with unyielding resolve.

Kawin raised an eyebrow, leaned back in his massive office chair, and crossed his hands at chest level, watching her with a glint in his eyes that resembled amusement.

“You’re clever to try and negotiate with me using reasons that sound suspiciously like bragging, aren’t you?” he asked, his tone laced with sarcasm.

Gunny pressed her lips tightly into a straight line.

“But I never intended to fire you,” he continued. “I just wanted to clear the air about what happened yesterday. Why did that cunning girl do that to me?”

He stared at her without blinking, his voice not harsh, but subtly urging her to reveal the truth.

Gunny instantly froze, stammering, unsure how to answer the question.

“Actually, my friend isn’t really at fault. The one at fault is me,” she said, defending her friend, as everything had started from her own account.

The CEO slightly narrowed his eyes. “Why is that?”

“I held a grudge against you,” Gunny said, lifting her gaze to meet his questioning eyes.

Kawin swept his gaze over her from head to toe in an evaluative manner. He paused, observing her cute face and simple attire, before chuckling softly in his throat and asking, “Did I accidentally flirt with you without realizing it?” It was a question that clearly implied there was no way he would have been so drunk or oblivious as to hit on a woman who wasn’t his type.

“No,” Gunny countered. “But yesterday, you ran into me and sprained my ankle. So, my friends decided to teach you a lesson.” Gunny confessed straightforwardly.

Kawin rested his chin on his hand, a pensive look on his face. “When was that?” He furrowed his brow, trying to recall all the events of yesterday, but with so many things happening, he couldn't remember anything at all.

“It was yesterday evening, right after work. You ran into me and sent me tumbling face-first. Where were you rushing off to?” Gunny retorted, throwing a final jab.

Kawin raised an eyebrow, observing her fair face contrasting with her large, sparkling eyes. “Ah…” He recalled the urgency of that evening—a rush caused by the news of his impending takeover. He remembered having to sprint against the flow of employees streaming out of the company. It was highly likely the incident had occurred then.

“But I’m just an ordinary employee,” Gunny added softly. “I know it’s impossible to expect an apology from someone in the highest position.”

“I apologize,” Kawin said immediately, catching Gunny completely off guard.

Ganny mouth fell open, and she could only blink repeatedly, stunned to suddenly receive a sincere apology from a high-ranking executive.

“I was in a tremendous hurry yesterday because of having to take on this position, which led me to behave so rudely to you. It’s a good thing I ran into you today, so I could apologize,” he admitted his fault without hesitation.

Gunny froze mid-air, suddenly feeling overwhelmingly guilty for having used that elaborate scheme to get revenge on him.

He tilted his head slightly, meeting her gaze steadily. "I'm not apologizing out of mere courtesy, but from my heart. I apologize for causing you pain." He said, bowing his head slightly as if to clearly demonstrate his sincerity.

"I also apologize on behalf of my friend," she replied. "For humiliating you and for acting so rashly that you lost face." She realized she had profoundly misjudged him. At the very least, he didn't cling to his status more than what was right, and an unexpected apology had come from his lips.

"But the person who truly hurt my feelings was that woman. I am deeply resentful of your friend. Be sure to tell her that," he said, giving her a pointed wink.

Gunny instantly rushed to her friend's defense.

"Please don't hold a grudge against my friend, Khun Kawin. If you want revenge, you can take it out on me. But please exclude firing me," she pleaded in a soft voice.

Kawin sighed, then pointed a finger at her. "Fine! I'll hold a grudge against you instead. Do you want to redeem yourself to me?" he asked cunningly.

"Redeem myself?" she repeated, surprised.

"Yes. I apologized to you, so we are even. But for what your friend did to me, we are not even yet."

"And what would you like me to do?" Gunny asked cautiously.

Kawin gave a mischievous smile, stood up, and walked around to the back of her chair.

“If you ask me now, I still haven't figured out how I want to get revenge. But if we are going to call it even, as you suggested, then you must agree to do what I tell you as a trade-off.”

He leaned his face closer, causing Gunny to quickly push her chair back. She thought to herself, Is this going to be like in the dramas? Where I have to exchange my body to appease him? Womanizers and women go hand-in-hand…

“Except for being your date,” Gunny interjected urgently.

Kawin looked at her with a mixture of amusement and confusion. He felt as though she had wildly misinterpreted his intentions. Why does this woman jump to such conclusions? he thought to himself, sweeping his gaze over her from head to toe once more in a discerning look. Even if he was a flirt, it didn't mean every woman caught his eye—and Gunny was definitely not his type, not even slightly.

“There will be nothing like that, I assure you. I don’t date employees in the company,” he quickly dismissed the idea.

Gunny sighed in relief. “In that case, whenever you figure out what you want, you can tell me anytime.”

“You can go back to work now. Your boss will be terribly worried,” Kawin said, seeing the anxious expression on the Chief Accountant’s face, which told him the woman he had summoned was likely a good employee.

Gunny hurriedly scrambled to her feet and bowed slightly.

“Thank you for giving me this opportunity. Please excuse me,” Gunny said, giving him a look of resolute determination, before quickly turning back toward the exit.

The CEO returned to his desk and began sorting through the countless documents piled before him. He paused, glancing over the employee file of the young accountant girl, and rolled his eyes, considering the plan he was about to set in motion.

This company held secrets, and the fact that his father had been declared incapacitated and mentally unstable meant he had to uncover the hidden truth. And she—the employee with such exceptional evaluation scores demonstrating her commitment—made him want her on his team for this critical investigation.

The young man picked up the phone and dialed the Accounting Department without hesitation.

“Chulee, I need to see you immediately.”