Attraction is only intense when mystery is involved.

My phone alarm sounded at 6:15 a.m. and I groaned out loud. I slept late last night because Bom, Junsu and I celebrated hard about my job acceptance at Club JYJ. I had 3 drinks in total which was way over my limit since I’d never been one to drink alcohol before. My head felt heavy and foggy and my mouth felt coated and fuzzy. Even my body hurt.

Ugh! Never again, Dara. Never again.

I forced myself to get up and walked straight to the bathroom. I stripped off my clothes and took a long cold shower to wake me up. After I did my business in the bathroom, I felt like a human being again but I still wanted to climb back to bed. If not for the job, I probably did.

I dressed my usual attire since I remembered that Mr. Devilishly Sinful said I should dress comfortably. And wearing my usual – a pair of jeans and shirt – were about as comfortable as it got. After that, I locked up my apartment and made my way down to the parking lot. I drove silently to Club JYJ

I reached the place 15 minutes before 8 in the morning. I wasn’t sure if I should wait outside until 8 or if I should be early. I was still a nervous wreck.

Jae had been clear about his apprehension in hiring me and I didn’t want to strengthen his fears in any way. I needed the job and he knew it. I’d laid all my cards on the table for him last night – if he chose to send me packing I would have nothing up my sleeve to throw at him to possibly change his decision again.

After a long sigh, I turned off the ignition and slid out from my car. I walked toward the back door and knocked as hard as I could. I highly doubted he would hear me knocking with this huge door so I tried again and gave it a good pounding as my heart beat frantically.

I waited for several minutes but nothing happened, no one came.

When I was certain I was stood up and was moments from turning back to my car, the door opened and the warmth of the club blasted against my cold skin.

I sighed in relief.

“You’re here.”

Jae didn’t even flinch at my obvious relief.

“I told you I would be last night.”

I nodded, feeling a bit awkward. “I know.”

“So why would you think I wouldn’t be here?” he asked as his head cocked to the side.

I shrugged. “I knocked a couple of times and then I waited for like 5 minutes. I just thought you’re…”

“You’re early,” he said, cutting me off. His tine was chilling and it made me shiver. “I said to be here at 8 a.m.”

Was he serious? He was pissed that I was early?

“I thought arriving 15 minutes before shift was a customary expectation,” I sputtered. I was becoming increasingly tense and annoyed with his “I Rule The World’ attitude. It was so uncalled for.

I huffed and shivered from the weather.

“Are you going to let me in, or what? It’s really cold out here,” I said.

His eyes twinkled and he held the door open but not big enough for me to just pass by him. He didn’t move out of the doorway. I wasn’t sure if he expected me to squeeze around him because he didn’t bother to move out of the way.

With a deep breath, I took a step forward and slipped beneath the length of his arm, the one holding the door with, like I was limbo rocking my way inside.

Grrr! Dara, you need the job. You need the job. You need the job.

As soon as I was inside, Jae let the door fall closed behind me. It slammed shut with a loud bang which made me jump. The club was strangely different – almost spooky in the morning. It was so quiet compared from last night’s crowd and it had a ghostly quality to it that made me slightly uncomfortable and jumpy.

Oh God, I hope there’s no Sadako or Kayako in this place.

“Are you hungry?” Jae asked suddenly behind me and it startled me again. He then walked past me. I followed him.

“Uh, I’m good. Thank you.”

He shrugged. “Well I bought breakfast on my way here today for us. I’d like you to eat with me.”

I frowned. “I’m really not that hungry.”

Jae turned around to face me and I stopped walking immediately to avoid bumping into him. I couldn’t help but remember our first encounter at Eulji University parking lot. My skin shivered as I remembered his strong arm around me.

“Did you eat this morning, Dara?”

I thought about lying but something told me that I should be honest with him.

“Uh, well, no, I haven’t.”

“Then you’ll eat with me now,” he said as he tilted his head to the of the office hall. “In my office.”

I shrugged. “I thought I was here to work…I mean, train first.”

“You are.” He turned his back to me and started walking again. I had 2 choices – follow him or walk back the way I’d come from. But since I badly needed the job, I followed him like a puppy.

He led me through the door that said “For The Gods Only” and my heart raced. The club was so quiet I could hear our footsteps.

“Um, when do the other employees start arriving?”

“They will be here an hour before the club opens,” he replied.

“When is that exactly?” I asked.

There were 3 doors inside the ‘For Gods Only’. Jae opened the door on the right side and I brushed past him, pausing to wait for him to take the lead. He resumed walking without missing a beat and I followed him through the hallway to a staircase.

“The club opens at 9 p.m. but most regulars start arriving around 10 or 11.”

“So the employees get here at 8 in the evening.”

“Some do.”

“So when do you want me here?” I asked.

He glanced over at me. “How much do you know about liquor?”

I felt my cheeks turn red.

“Um, not too much,” I breathed out in relief when he turned his back to face the stairs.

“Well, until you know what you’re doing, you’ll work the early evenings with me,” he answered.”

“Oh great…” I said in a whisper with obvious disappointment. Then I looked up at him afraid that he heard me. By the way his shoulder’s tensed; I knew he heard it too. But thankfully he said nothing.

When we arrived at the top of floor, there were 2 doors – one on the left and the other on the right. He crossed the space, moving to the door on the right.

“This is my office,” he said.

“What’s that room?” I asked as I pointed to the other door. There was no furniture in the middle – a huge space in the middle with nothing on it. Not even a table or anything. Just an open space with 2 opposite doors that made up the whole building space.

He smirked. “Are you naturally curious?”

“I guess I am.”

Who wouldn’t be curious in this kind of building?

“That’s Daniel’s office.”

I nodded. “Your brother. How is it working so close to a sibling?”

I was hoping to make small conversation since it was so awkward to just be following him. When I looked at him, his eyes narrowed on me.

“What?” I asked.

“You know about me.” It wasn’t a question. It was a statement.

“Obviously,” I said, grinning. But it fell when he stepped closer to me. My stomach felt tight and I concentrated on standing tall as everything Bom told me about Jae came flooding back to my mind. It