“Are you out of your mind? Do you think I’d let you tag along with me just because you want to?” Hyun Joong squared his shoulders and looked at Bom with unbridled determination. Bom just decided to pop up in his office and announced that she wants to tag along with his trip to Busan to persuade an old couple in selling an artifact of their ancestors.

Bom didn’t take heed of Hyun Joong’s icy treatment. She pouted her lips and looked up at him with determination in her eyes.

“But I want to come with you to Busan.” Bom answered defiantly. Hyun Joong was becoming more and more frustrated with her childish acts. She is supposed to be older than him but she acts as if he’s twice her age. He’s never been so crossed with a woman before. Bom broke all his gentleman and ice cold golden rule.

“Tagging along on my business deals is not part of our deal. I never agreed to that. I can’t have you compromising my business transactions.” Hyun Joong answered, deep steady breaths in between, trying to calm himself down. He never had to extend his patience to any of his friends nor his ual liaisons. He turned away from her and poured himself a whiskey.

Bom inched closer to him and slowly tugged on the sleeves of his coat, for his attention. For a few seconds, Hyun Joong stilled and reveled in hearing Bom moan, pleading, coaxing him to give in. Surprisingly, he liked the sound of her moans in his ears. He looked at her face, she was batting her eyelashes, her eyes like that of Puss N Boots in the movie Shrek. Her lips were puckered almost looking ready and waiting to be kissed.

He felt this sudden tug in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want to admit that he felt the need to kiss her lips right then and there. He could not ever want to kiss her. She isn’t his type. He doesn’t want to taste her luscious lips…he doesn’t want to hear her moan his name…

Hyun Joong immediately shook himself off of his unwarranted thoughts and immediately downed the glass of whiskey he poured for himself. The strong bitter taste of alcohol seared his throat, waking him up from his unthinkable thoughts of Bom.

“Give me one good reason why I should let you come with me.” Hyun Joong sighed in frustration. This girl doesn’t give up at all.

“Because…” Bom mumbled, she bit her lower lip, hesitant in expressing her feelings.

“What!!!?” Hyun Joong startled her, making her gasped in surprise.

“Because I missed you.”

Her words lingered in the air. A moment of silence covered the room. Hyun Joong looked at Bom’s sincere eyes…somewhere deep inside her secrets hides the truthfulness of her emotion. Although he didn’t want to believe her, but he could tell from her eyes that she did miss him.

“It had been days since we last saw each other. I know I’m being a clingy girlfriend. I know you don’t like clingy women…I know that you’ll hate me more if I keep on being clingy but I can’t help it. We haven’t got much time left…I want to spend as much time with you if I could.” Bom’s voice was quivering. She sounded like she was trying her best not to cry. She knows Hyun Joong doesn’t like it when she cries.

Hyun Joong slowly placed the empty glass of whiskey in the counter and looked at Bom’s face again. He couldn’t force himself to say no to her after hearing her answer.

Instead of openly acknowledging his assent, he just picked up his mobile phone from his desk and dialed speed dial number 6 on his phone.

“Is the helicopter ready? Good. We’ll be in the rooftop in five minutes.” Hyun Joong disconnected the call and headed towards the door. He paused for a moment after realizing that Bom wasn’t trailing behind him. He looked over his shoulder and noticed that Bom was still standing where he left her earlier. Her eyes were pleading, almost watery, lips shaking. She looked like a five year old kid being left by her parents because they need to go to work.

“What are you still doing there? Hurry up, my helicopter doesn’t have all day.” Hyun Joong uttered coldly and turned away from her.

Bom was taken aback. She couldn’t be mistaken. She just saw Hyun Joong smiled right before he turned away from her.

She just saw Hyun Joong smile. He smiled because of her. She made him smile.

“If you’re late even for a second, I won’t be waiting for you.” Hyun Joong called out. Bom jolted, waking up from her state of ecstasy and scrambled to get her purse and coat and ran to catch up with Hyun Joong.

“Geesh. Be careful. Don’t you have any grace?” Hyun Joong scolded her after she bumped into a chair. He absentmindedly checked to see if she had any bruise and then he immediately held Bom’s elbow so she could walk beside her.

His secretary just smiled inwardly, taking note of his boss’s unguarded sweet gesture and giving Bom a playful wink seeing the latter blush.

*****

They arrived in Busan just right on time. They were dropped off in the hotel owned by Jaejoong and they drove to the outskirts of Busan to visit oldest traditional house in Busan where the old couple lived.

The house was modest and homey. No one would’ve thought that an artifact worth millions of dollars was hidden in the old house.  Hyun Joong knocked on the door three times before an old frail lady opened the door.

“Hi Mrs. Lee I’m Kim Hyun Joong from The Kim Museum, I would like to talk to you about purchasing your ancestor’s sword. I assure you…” Before Hyun Joong could finish his practiced introduction, the door was shut on his face.

Bom, who was standing a few feet away, was surprised with the way the old lady treated Hyun Joong.

Hyun Joong straightened his shoulders and then knocked once again. He forced himself to don his trademark diplomati