Yoona woke up with a muggy hangover feeling. There would be no lying around and feeling sorry for herself.

                Siwon had exited the house early. The previous night had been a study in awkwardness. He’d crawled into bed next to her and they’d lain quietly in the dark until finally she’d drifted off to a troubled sleep. Sometimes during the night, he’d drifted toward her, or maybe she’d attacked him in her sleep. Either way, she’d ended up in his arms and had awakened when he’d gotten up early to shower.

                He’d kissed her on the head and murmured for her to go back to sleep before leaving her alone.

                “Welcome to your new reality,” she murmured as she pushed herself out of bed.

                She winced when she caught herself in the mirror. She looked bad. There were dark circles under her eyes. Her unhappiness was etched on her face for the world to see.

                Thanks goodness to Jessica and her never-ending list of tips for any type of makeup emergency. This definitely called for the full treatment.

***

Siwon sat across from Mr. Im as he completed his order with the waitress.

“You not eating, son?”

“I’ll just have a glass of water.”

“I wanted to talk to you about some changes in the organization.”

Alarm bells clanged in Siwon’s already aching head. Two nights without decent sleep and the image of Yoona’s tearstained face were wearing on him. the very last thing he needed was the old man to renege on their agreement. Wouldn’t that be the height of irony?

He must have seen the wariness on Siwon’s face because he quickly went on.

“It’s not what you think. I want you to take over my position at Im Corporation. I know the merger with Choicorp wasn’t supposed to be splashy, that we agreed to keep the Im Corporation name and that Choicorp would be more of a silent party, but I’m ready to resign and I want you to take my position.”

Siwon shook his head in confusion. “I don’t understand.”

Mr. Im sighed wearily. “I’m sick, son. I’ve been having health issues. I’ve been trying to see matters because I want my daughter provided for. It’s why I pushed hard for the marriage to take place. I wanted her settled with a man I trusted and whom I knew would take good care of her. If it got out that my health was failing, the vultures would have been easy pickings.”

“Sick?” Siwon managed to get out. “How sick?”

“I don’t know yet. I won’t lie. I’ve been in denial. I haven’t even discussed this with Yoona. I’m not ready to die yet, though. I want a lot of years with my daughter and eventual grandchildren. I spent decades working my off to get where I am and now I want to retire and enjoy with my daughter and watch my grandchildren play. But in order to do all that, I have to make sure that my company is in good hands. I don’t want the company to die, which is why I wanted this merger so badly. It wasn’t Choicorp I was after. To be honest I could have picked a dozen companies who would bring as much to the table. But, I went with Choicorp because of you. You’re who I want for my daughter and my company.”

“Jesus, I don’t know what to say,” Siwon muttered. “This is quite the bomb to drop.”

“I know you thought I was a crazy old man for making Yoona part of this deal. And that I’m a manipulative bastard. You’d be right on that account. I knew you wanted this partnership. i also knew what I wanted. It just so happened that our wants aligned perfectly. And my daughter provided for.”

“She wanted a husband who adores her, who loves her, who is the embodiment of all she’s dreamed of.”

“So? Any reason you can’t be that man?”

It was a good question and one he wasn’t sure how to answer. He rubbed his hand through his hair. “How soon are you wanting all of this done?”

“I want to tender my resignation as soon as everything is done. It won’t be a secret that I’ll want you take over. Voting won’t be an issue. You’ll be the most logical person to take over when I retire.”

“Take care of yourself,” Siwon said gruffly, suddenly unsteady at the idea of something happening to a man who’d seemed to determined to be a second father to him. “I’ll expect you to spoil our children.”

Mr. Im’s expression eased into a broad smile. “Planning to provide me with them soon?”

Siwon shrugged. “Maybe. That’ll be up to Yoong. I just want her to be happy.”

Mr. Im nodded. “So do I, son. So do I.”

***

                When Siwon walked into the house, he immediately noticed the change. There wasn’t any clutter. No magazines strewn about. No shoes littering the floor. No purse hanging from a doorknob. And he could smell cleaning solution.

                He walked farther inside, his stomach knotted because not only was everything picked up, but he also realized that the house was completely and utterly devoid of Yoona’s presence. All of the things she’d moved in and haphazardly decorated with had been put away. No silly knickknacks on the coffee or end tables.

                The house looked precisely as it had before she moved in.

                Has she packed up and left? Had she decided not to give their marriage a chance?