"Negotiation means getting the best of your opponent."

— Marvin Gaye

For the second time in less than three hours since arriving at The Lux, Byun Baekhyun entered his office with thoughts consumed by things other than work—a sensation foreign to him from 7:30 AM to the time he leaves for the day.

Having previously etched in his mind that his wife was the pinnacle of naïveté, and that her life narrative wasn't worth looking into, he had subconsciously ignored all possibilities that her professional background was beyond impressive.

After glancing her resume, and making a brief call to a colleague from Hotel Azure, he learned that Seo Ara earned both her Bachelor's and Master's in Hospitality Management from a prestigious institution, that she graduated with high honors, had multiple job related recognitions, and that she was a favorite of many repeated clients. Moreover, and definitely more interesting, was that she received an offer for a Senior Director of Catering position before she moved to The Lux.

"Now why pass over such a promising promotion?" Baekhyun wondered aloud, his eyes pinned on the 2"x2" photo submitted with her resume.

But just as he thought of the most logical reason, his confirmation waltzed through the doors with dignified strides.

Of course. Lux's GM thought as he watched the old man enter his office, unannounced and uninvited.

"Just the person I was thinking of. What are you doing here, harabeoji?" he inquired, not at all surprised to see his closest kin.

"Can't a loving grandfather pop in to visit his one and only grandson?" the old man replied informally. He was too preoccupied with examining the collection of awards to meet their owner's eyes.

Baekhyun smirked and held his tongue. He knew too well that his grandfather's response was light years away from the truth.

Grandpa Byun glanced at him and grinned as if reading the thoughts in his head. "Then how about a chairman wanting to check up on his appointed GM and the new catering director?" the old man countered, offering an answer that was closer to being true.

"That's more like it," the young executive replied as he got up from his seat and made his way around the wide desk. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, Baekhyun leaned back against the length of the white table. "Turns out the lovely Seo Ara isn't what she initially appeared to be," he started with a casual tone and waited for his grandfather's reaction.

Byun Won Sul turned to him once more with an exaggerated surprised expression worthy of a D-list actor's performance. "She is not?" he asked mockingly, "Whatever do you mean?"

"Harabeoji…" Baekhyun warned without effect.

"So Ara has finally shed her mask," his grandfather commented, composed as ever, "That took longer than I expected."

"So you knew?" The Lux's GM clarified with a sharp gaze.

Breaking from his grandson's cold eyes, the old man shifted his attention to the sofa across the large office desk and made his way over. "Of course I did. In fact, I was the one who personally asked her to agree to the marriage," he confessed calmly and sat himself on the armchair.

The younger Byun straightened up with his almond eyes slightly wider and brows a little furrowed. "What?" he asked surprised.

For Byun Won Sul to stop relyin