Because the sun was setting and it was a huge red ball, Sora paid off the cab two blocks from Jungsoo’s apartment building in Apgujeong-dong.  She wanted some time to think about a phone call she’d received about Young Jae, her brother’s child.

Poor little guy, she thought. So vulnerable, so grown-up.  She wondered how much longer it would be before the courts decided his fate.  Because she wanted him with her so badly, Sora refused to believe anything else would happen.  Her brother’s son, so suddenly orphaned, so miserably unhappy with his maternal grandparents.

They didn’t want him, she reflected.  Not really.  There was such a world of difference between love and duty.  Once everything was arranged, she’d be able to give him the kind of easy, unfettered childhood she’d had.

She wouldn’t think of complications now.  To think of them would make her start doubting the outcome, and she couldn’t bear it.  She and her lawyers were taking all the possible steps.

Because she wanted no publicity to touch her nephew, Sora had kept the entire matter to herself. Perhaps because she had no one to speak to about it, she worried.  Every day she told herself Young Jae would be with her permanently before the end of summer.  As long as she kept telling herself, she was able to believe it.  Now it was evening, and there was no more she could do.

It was only a little past seven o’clock when she pushed the button of the elevator for Park Jungsoo’s floor in the sleek building.  She’d already set aside that one flash of nerves she felt about him and had decided to enjoy the evening.  The idea that he’d been able to make her nervous at all was intriguing enough.

She liked men, the basic personality differences between them and women.  Some of her friends were men, in and out of business.  The keyword remained friends – she was very cautious about lovers.  She ran on emotion, and knowing it, had always been careful of physical relationships.

She was a romantic, unashamedly.  Sora had never doubted that there was one great love waiting for everyone.  She had no intention of settling for less – with hearts and flowers and skyrockets included.  When she found the right man, she’d know.  Whether it was tomorrow or twenty years from tomorrow didn’t matter, as long as she found him.  In the meantime, she filled her life with work, her friends, and her nephew.  Kang Sora simply didn’t believe in boredom.

She approved of the quiet, carpeted hallway as she strolled down to Jungsoo’s apartment.  It was wainscoted and elegant.  But as she lifted her hand to press the button on his door, she felt that odd flutter of nerves again.

Inside, Jungsoo was standing by the high wide window that looked out over Han River.  He was thinking of her, had been thinking of her for most of the day.  And he didn’t care for it.

Twice, he’d nearly called to cancel the dinner, telling himself he had work to do.  Telling himself he didn’t have the time or the inclination to spend an evening with an actress he hardly knew.  But he hadn’t cancelled because he could still see the way her eyes warmed, the way her whole face moved when she smiled.

A professional trick. Yuri had had a bagful of them, and unless his perception was very, very wrong, this woman was as skilled an actress as Kwon Yuri.  That’s what he told himself, and yet… And yet he hadn’t cancelled.

When the buzzer rang, Jungsoo looked over his shoulder at the closed door.  It was simply an evening, he decided.  A few hours out of the day in which he could study the woman being considered for a major part in an important film.  He had little doubt that she would make a pitch for the part before the night was over.  With a shrug, Jungsoo walked to the door.  That was the business, and she was entitled.

Then, when he opened the door, she smiled at him.  He realized he wanted her with an intensity he hadn’t felt in years.  “Hi. You look nice,” she said.

The struggle with desire only made him more remote, made his voice more scrupulously polite.  “Come in.”

Sora walked through the door then studied the room with open curiosity.  Neat.  Her first impression was one of meticulous order.  Style.  Who could fault a gleaming mix of Chippendale and Hepplewhite?  She could smell neither dust nor polish.  It was as though the room was perpetually clean and rarely lived in.

Though she felt no sense of welcome, she could appreciate the rather stationary beauty and respect the organized taste.

“A very fastidious man,” she murmured, then walked over to study his view of the city.

She wore a dress with yards of skirt and whirls of color.  Jungsoo wondered if that was why he suddenly felt life jump into the room.  He preferred the quiet, the settled, even the isolated.  Yet somehow, for the first time, he felt appeal of having warmth in his home.

“I was right about this,” Sora said and put her hands into the deep pockets of her skirt.  “It’s lovely.  Where do you work?”

“I have an office set up in another room.”

“I’d probably have put my desk right here.”  Laughing she turned to him so that the mix of colors in her dress seemed to vibrate.  “Then again, I wouldn’t get much work done.”  His eyes were very dark and very steady – his face so expressionless he might have been thinking of anything or nothing.  “Do you stare at everyone that way?”

“I suppose I do.  Would you like a drink?”

“Yes, some dry vermouth if you have it.”  She wandered over mahogany breakfront and studied his collection of Waterford.  No one chose something so lovely, or so capable of catching light and fire if they lacked warmth.  Where was his, she wondered.  Buried so deep that he’d forgotten it, or simply dormant from lack of use.

Jungsoo paused beside her and offered a glass.  “You like crystal?”

“I like beautiful things.”

What woman didn’t? He thought bitterly.  A Russian lynx, a pear-shaped diamond.  Yes, women liked beautiful things, particularly when someone else was providing them.  He’d already done more than his share of that.

“I watched your show today,” Jungsoo began, deciding to give her the opening for her pitch and see what she did with it.  “You come across very well as the competent psychiatrist.”

“I like Kim Yejin ssi.” Sora sipped her vermouth. “She’s a very stable woman with little hints of vulnerability and passion.  I like seeing how subtle I can make them without hiding them completely.  What did you think of the show?”

“A mass of complication and intrigue.  I was surprised that the bulk of the plots didn’t concern fatal diseases and bed hopping.”

“You’re out of step.”  She smiled over the rim.  “Of course, every drama has some of those elements, but we’ve done a lot of expanding.  We do quite a bit of location shooting now in the race for ratings. Last year we shot in Japan.  Baek Seungjo and Kim Yejin had a lover’s rendezvous that was sabotaged.  You must have noticed Eunsoo ssi – she plays my sister Soyoung.”

“The barracuda.”  Jungsoo nodded.  “I recognized the type.”

“Oh, Soyoung’s that all right.  Plotting, scheming, being generally nasty.  Eunsoo ssi has a marvellous time with her.Soyoung had a dozen affairs, broken up three marriages.  Just last month she pawned our mother’s emerald brooch to pay off gambling debts.”  With a sigh, Sora drank again.  “She has all the fun.”

Jungsoo’s grin flashed, lingering in his eyes as they met Sora’s.  “Are you talking about Eunsoo ssi or Soyoung.”

“Both, I suppose.  I wondered if I’d be able to do that.”

“What?”

“Make you smile.  You don’t very often, you know.”

“No?”

“No.”  She felt the tug again, sharp and very physical.  Indulging herself, she let her gaze lower briefly to his mouth and enjoyed the sensation it brought to her own.  “I guess you’re too busy picking up parts of people and filing them away.”

Finishing off his drink, he set the glass aside.  “Is that what I do?”

“Always.  It’s natural, I suppose, in your line of work, but I decided I was going to pull one out of you before the evening was over.”  He was still watching her, and though the smile was only a hint now, it was still lurking.  It suited him, she thought, that trace of amusement – a cautious, even reluctant amusement.  And again, she felt the tug of attraction.  With her brows slightly drawn together, she stepped closer.  It wasn’t something she could or would walk away from.

“Aren’t you curious?”  She asked quietly, then went on when he didn’t answer.  “The thing is, I’m not certain I can go through the evening wondering what it would be like.”

She put one hand on his shoulder and leaned forward just until their lips touched.  There was no pressure, no demand on either side, and yet she felt that slightest of contacts through her whole system.  There was a twinge deep inside her, a soft rushing sound in her ears.  The mouth against hers was warmer than she’d expected and it tasted more potent.  Their bodies weren’t touching, and the kiss remained a mere meeting of lips.  Sora felt herself open and was mildly surprised.  Then, she felt her knees tremble and was stunned.

Slowly, she backed up, unaware that her eyes were wide with shock.  Desire had ripped through him at the taste of , but Jungsoo knew how to conceal his emotions.  He wanted her – in the part of Hyori and in his bed.  To his thinking it wouldn’t be long before she offered him one to ensure the other.  He’d been much younger when Yuri had lured him into bed for a part.  He was older now and knew the game.  And somehow, he felt Sora would be more honest in her playing.

“Well…” Sora let out a long breath while her mind raced.  She wished she had five minutes alone to think this through.  Somehow she’d always expected she’d fall in love in the blink of an eye, but wasn’t idealistic enough to believe it would be handed back to her.  She needed to work out her next move.  “And now that the pressure’s off - ” She set her glass aside. “- why don’t we go eat?”

Before he could step away, Jungsoo took her arm,   If they were going to play out the scene, he wanted to do it then and there.  “What do you want?”

“There was none of the quiet warmth in his voice that she’d felt in the kiss.  Sora looked into his eyes and saw nothing but a reflection of herself.  An unwise man to love, she thought.  And, of course, she should have expected that was what would happen to her when the time came.  “To go to dinner,” she told him.

“I’ve given you the opportunity to mention the part, you haven’t. Why?”

“That’s business.  This isn’t.”

He gave a quick laugh.  “In this business, it’s all business,” he countered. “You want to play Shin Hyori.”

“I wouldn’t have read for it if I didn’t want it.   And once I finish the next reading I’ll have it.”  It frustrated her that she couldn’t read him.   “Jungsoo ssi, why don’t you tell me what you’re getting at?  It would be easier for both of us.”

He inclined his head, and with his hand on her arm, drew her an inch closer.  “Just how much are you willing to do for it?”

His meaning was like a slap in the face.  Outrage didn’t come, but a piercing hurt that made her face pale and her eyes darken.  “I’m willing to give the very best performance I’m capable of.”  Jerking out of his hold, she started for the door.

“Sora..”  He hadn’t expected to call her back, but the look in her eyes had made him feel foul.  When she didn’t pause, he was going across the room before he could stop himself.  “Sora ssi.”  Taking her arm again, he turned her around.

The hurt radiating from her was so sharp and real he couldn’t convince himself not to believe it.  The strength of the need to draw her against him was almost painful.  “I’ll apologize for that.”

She stared at him, wishing it was in her to tell him to go to hell.  “I’ll accept it,” she said instead, “since I’m sure you don’t make a habit of apologizing for anything.  She took a few pieces out of you, didn’t she?”

His hand dropped away from her arm.  “I don’t discuss my private life.”

“Maybe that’s part of the problem.  Is it women in general, or just actresses you detest?”

His eyes narrowed so that she could only see a glint of the anger.  It wasn’t necessary to see what you could feel.  “Don’t push me.”

“I doubt anyone could.”  Though she felt the anger was a promising sign, Sora didn’t feel capable of dealing with it, or her own feelings at the moment.  “It’s a pity,” she continued as she turned for the door again.  “When whatever’s frozen inside you thaws, I think you’ll be a remarkable man.  In the meantime, I’ll stay out of your way.”  She opened the door, then turned back.  “About the part, Jungsoo ssi, please deal with my agent.”  Quietly, she closed the door behind her. 

* * * * *

Hi everyone!

It took me one week to update.. Kkkk~ I was busy fangirling over Kris Wu! He is just.. Gaaaaahh~ ♥ I'm really grateful to the people who take time to give me their thoughts. ^__^ And kyaaaaa~ Finally.  There was a fan account saying she saw PJS at Kona Beans. Waaahh~ I really really miss him. At the same time Sora eonni posted something on Twitter. Hihihi~ Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Love lots ♥ I will love you more if you comment though ^_^