by Jayci Lee
Jihae was up for the challenge. So, yes. She’d made the right decision for Rotelle Entertainment and herself. All she could do was hope for their attraction to fizzle out. And soon. Keeping herself in check was only going to get harder the more time she spent with Colin.
* * *
Jihae wore a white jumpsuit with elegant silver embroidery across the bodice and on the hem of her pants. Colin stood at her side in a sharp, blue suit with a slim white tie as they smiled and posed for the cameras. They were at an awards ceremony to support Charity Banning’s nomination for best adapted screenplay for Never Again Maybe, as well as utilize the ceremony to publicize Rotelle Entertainment and CS Productions’s partnership.
It was Jihae’s first time attending this casual, laid-back awards ceremony held on a beautiful stretch of Santa Monica beach. This was one of the things she liked about working in the United States. It wasn’t all about glamour and glitz, but sometimes about down-to-earth fun where the celebrities connected with their fans in a closer, more intimate setting.
After smiling until their cheeks cramped, Jihae and Colin retreated to the huge tent where the ceremonies were being held. She was acquainted with many of the beautiful people, but there were plenty she hadn’t been introduced to. It would be unbecoming of Princess Jihae to fangirl over her favorite actors and actresses, but that didn’t mean Jihae wasn’t sorely tempted to.
“This isn’t the kind of awards ceremony that you’re used to, right?” Colin asked, leaning close so he could be heard in the crowded venue.
“Everyone seems so much more approachable and relaxed. I feel like I could walk up to just about anyone and talk to them.”
“Then do it.”
“Don’t be silly,” Jihae said with a small smile. “We’ll say hello to the people we need to and possibly make some advantageous connections as necessary. Remember, I’m the great Chairman Park’s daughter. I’m not allowed to gush over stars. That would be undignified.”
“That must suck sometimes.” Colin looked steadily at her. “Including nights like this.”
“It’s hardly an inconvenience. I’m quite used to it.”
Jihae was surprised and grateful for his empathy, but she didn’t let it show on her face. She refused to act the part of the poor little rich girl. “But feel free to mingle. Don’t hold back on my account.”
“I won’t,” he said, but he made no move to leave her side.
She was embarrassed at how glad she was that he stayed with her. She needed to stop acting like a fool. Jihae reminded herself that he might be involved with someone else.
“Is Sandy Lim attending tonight?” she asked.
“Sandy?” Colin cocked his head, wearing a quizzical frown. “I have no idea.”
“Oh?” Her heart skipped to a happy beat against her will. She didn’t care whether he was with Sandy Lim or not. “I saw some speculations about you being her new boyfriend.”
“Oh...that.” Colin scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile. “She’s a good friend. She needed help keeping her real boyfriend—well, actually her fiancé now—a secret until they were ready to make their engagement public. I was what you would call her decoy arm candy.”
“Decoy arm candy?” Jihae laughed. “Well, congratulations on your performance. You obviously did a good job of distracting the public. How long will she need you to play the part?”
“Well, she just walked in with her forever arm candy on her arm, so I guess I’m free of my decoy duties.”
“They must be making things public tonight.” Jihae turned around to see the beautiful actress walking into the tent with a handsome, glowing man beside her. “They look so happy together.”
“Yeah, he’s a great guy,” Colin said. “They deserve each other.”
He almost sounded wistful, as though he was envious of their happiness. Just as she was. Jihae really needed to get herself under control before she built a fairy-tale story for her and Colin.
* * *
He didn’t have to stay beside Jihae like her bodyguard. It was obvious she was perfectly comfortable in her environment. She greeted her acquaintances with grace and warmth, and introduced herself to new people with poise and confidence. It wasn’t because she needed him, but because Colin wanted to stay by her side. It was as though he was caught in her gravitational pull.
Just as at the movies, he found himself spending more time watching her than the awards ceremony. In the darkened theater, he’d been able to enjoy all her changing emotions without effort. Tonight, out in the open, her serene face hardly changed at all. But he could see the subtle differences in the light of her eyes and the curve of her lips. The ever-changing, dynamic current under the calm surface of her demeanor held him captive.
“Charity Banning.”
He heard the presenter intone as though from far away, but when he saw Jihae bounce ever so slightly in her seat, he realized what had just happened.
“Yeah, Charity,” he yelled, clapping furiously for the talented screenwriter.
Jihae clapped beside him, her face as placid as ever, but he knew she was as excited as he was for Charity because she was sitting on the very edge of her seat. When the crowd quieted down, she leaned toward him and whispered, “So well-deserved.”
“Yes, and imagine what she can do for Best Placed Bets.”
“I know. I so hope she will decide to work with us.”
“We’re close,” he assured her.
Colin’s blood hummed with excitement. Charity Banning was a gem, and she was going to transform a beautifully told story into an addictively entertaining script. His and Jihae’s partnership was already proving to be an amazing match. And he was dying to pull her into his arms in a bear hug, but he didn’t think he could handle it.
The rest of the ceremony passed in fast-forward mode as many films received the recognition they deserved and others were passed over. Colin’s high remained until the end, and he couldn’t wait to brainstorm with Jihae about their joint project.
“Let’s go,” he said.
He tugged Jihae to her feet, hoping he could convince her to have dinner with him. Her hand felt so right in his that he held on to it for a second too long.
Jihae gave him a soft smile, gently freeing herself. “I feel like I could talk the whole night away.”
His eyes shot to hers. He wanted to kiss her so much in that moment that he couldn’t breathe. But more than that, he wanted to share his ideas and excitement for Best Placed Bets with her. He wanted to know what she was thinking and hoping for. He wanted to know her.
“You want to grab some food?” he asked in a voice much huskier than the question warranted.
“Yes, please,” she said, and glanced at her watch. “We need to find someplace that stays open late.”
“You’ve been to Pink’s, right?” he said as he got into his car.
“Nope. I’ve never been.” Jihae grinned at him from the passenger seat. “And I don’t want you to pass out or anything, but I’ve never even heard of them.”
“Seriously?” Colin shot her a sideways glance, his eyebrows hovering near his hairline. “How long have you been in LA?”
“Eight months or so.”
“You’ve been missing out. Pink’s is a Los Angeles institution and you can’t call yourself a true Angeleno until you’ve had a hot dog there.”
“Well, we can’t have that. Let’s go get some dawgs.”
They lucked out and snagged a parking spot right outside the hot-dog stand. He’d deliberately chosen the least romantic place he knew—he needed help to keep himself in check—but he didn’t want to make Jihae walk for miles in her heels.
“Oh, wow! Is that the line?” Her jaw dropped when she saw the line of people down the street and around the corner. “Must be some hot dog.”
Colin grinned at her wide-eyed wonder, proud he was re
sponsible for it. Her excitement didn’t cease even after the forty-five-minute wait.
“Ready to order?” the cashier asked when they finally got to the counter. She gave them a friendly smile despite the never-ending line.
Colin turned toward Jihae, who waved him on to order first. Even after studying the menu for nearly an hour, she wasn’t ready to decide on her first Pink’s Hot Dogs experience.
“Two Planet Hollywood dogs, onion rings and an Orange Crush.” Then he turned to her with a raised eyebrow.
“A Martha Stewart dog and a root beer,” she ordered in a rush as though she was afraid she might change her mind if she didn’t hurry.
“Good choice,” he said.
“I hope so.” She still sounded nervous about her decision.
“You really can’t go wrong with them.”
They sat down at one of the white plastic tables with aluminum fold-up chairs and waited for their order. His mouth watered as he watched the other patrons devouring their dinners. It was an elbows-on-the-table, talk-with-your-mouth-full kind of place. He hadn’t been sure if Jihae would appreciate a restaurant like this, but there was no doubt she was thrilled to be here. A genuine smile danced in her eyes, the shuttered look of her business persona nowhere to be seen. God, she was breathtaking.
Their dinner arrived and her eyes widened at the sheer size of their hot dogs.
“That’s a lot of food.” She sounded more delighted than worried.
Without further delay, they dug in. Damn. It was heavenly.
“So? What do you think?” Colin waited expectantly for her response.
But she’d just taken an enormous bite—her cheeks expanded like a chipmunk’s—and could only nod enthusiastically. After swallowing, Jihae grinned dreamily at him. “Oh, my goodness. The last twenty-seven years of my life have been a total waste. What was I doing when there was food like this to inhale?”
She continued to surprise and enchant him. She took another bite of her loaded hot dog, leaving behind a dollop of sour cream on the corner of her lips. Without thinking, Colin reached across the table and grasped her chin. To his great pleasure, her lips parted on a soft sigh as he gently brushed the pad of his thumb at the corner of her mouth, and her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings. He quickly withdrew his hand and leaned back in his seat as though he’d touched fire.
“Sour cream,” he choked out.
“Oh.” Jihae flushed a bright pink as she grabbed her napkin and scrubbed at her lips. “Thanks.”
“No problem,” he said with forced nonchalance.
Jihae recovered from her brief embarrassment, and he managed to drive out his lusty thoughts. Barely. They ate in amicable silence, and quickly cleaned off their plates. She ate like she meant it. He liked that.
“Best Placed Bets is going to be amazing. I can feel it,” she said as soon as they’d cleared the table.
“Charity is going to do an incredible job with Jeannie’s beautiful story.”
“I know.” Jihae sighed happily, then asked in a slightly hushed voice, “Who do you think should play our heroine? I think Sandy Lim is a good candidate.”
“Sandy’s great, but I think finding someone new and fresh might be the way to go.”
“I hear what you’re saying, but there are some risks involved there.”
“There are risks to everything,” he countered with a shrug. He was grinning broadly because he even enjoyed disagreeing with her. The slight tension and the anticipation of how she would respond made adrenaline rush through his veins.
“Of course there are, and taking the right kind of risks is essential to good filmmaking.” She smiled back at him, seeming to enjoy herself as much as he was. “But maybe we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Our future director might have something to say about the matter, too.”
“True, and I want us to be closely involved in the location scouting,” he said. “There are some scenes in my head that I see so clearly that anything different will feel off.”
“I hope our visions are aligned because I have several scenes that are dear to my heart, as well.”
They grew silent as they gazed at each other, and their smiles waned. She felt it, too. The electricity hummed between them. This was merely the start of their partnership, and they were going to spend much more time together. They couldn’t let every lull in their conversation become charged with desire. But how do you stop something this instinctive and fierce?
He coughed into his hand and broke the silence. “We have a lot of work to do tomorrow.”
“Yes,” she said emphatically, her business face back in place. “Why don’t we call it a night? We’re going to need all our energy to get this project off to a proper start.”
And they were going to spend half that energy just to resist each other. Colin prayed fervently that their attraction was a fleeting thing...not believing for a moment that it was.
Five
With an impatient sigh, Jihae scrolled through her never-ending emails. It was close to six o’clock, the new close-of-business she’d promised June. She had cheated a bit by starting her day at seven, but her friend didn’t need to know that.
She pushed away her mouse and leaned back in her chair, drumming her fingers on her thighs. There was no use trying to concentrate with only five minutes left until quitting time. She logged off and stood from her desk. Unsure of what to do next, she paced her office in an agitated to-and-fro. She couldn’t understand her peculiar mood. It wasn’t only her disquiet at how much of a distraction Colin Song was promising to be, but for the first time, work hadn’t been enough to fill her day.
Jihae was discontented and restless. That was why she felt so off. She’d gotten a taste of freedom through her “business meetings” with Colin, and remembered how much she used to long for it—to lead a normal life outside the range of her parents’ censuring eyes.
She would indulge in just one more adventure to get the restlessness out of her system. What was something she’d never done before? There were so many things she’d missed out on... What could she do? Then one bright idea lit up in her head.
“June.” Jihae peeked out of her office, and motioned for June to come inside. “Psst, psst.”
“Quiet. You’re making a ruckus,” June said, deadpan, not looking up from her computer. Her friend didn’t stand from her desk until she’d typed a quick succession of words on her keyboard. Then, and only then, did she stride into Jihae’s office. “Now, tell me. Why are you flagging me down like a crazy woman?”
She burst out laughing. June loved teasing her about her reserved manner at work. But her friend would be surprised to know that Jihae felt far from reserved right now. She was craving fun and excitement.
“I want to go to a nightclub.”
“You set up a meeting at a nightclub? Why would you do that? Don’t those sleazeball businessmen usually take other men to those places to have ‘hostesses’ sidle up to them and pour their drinks? Ew.”
“I never said I had a meeting. I want you to go clubbing with me,” Jihae said rather clumsily. She’d never uttered the words go clubbing before. “Not to a Koreanized club. That’ll be too risky. More people are likely to recognize me there. I want to go to a hot, American nightclub.”
“You—you want to go to an American nightclub? A ‘hot’ one?” It took June a couple seconds to close her gaping mouth. “Who are you, charlatan, and what have you done with my bestie?”
“Oh, shut up.” Jihae blushed, regretting her impulsive request. This was so unlike her. “Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
“Oh, no, you don’t. You can’t back out now.” June rushed to her and wrapped her in her arms. “I can’t believe you waited until you’re close to thirty to rebel against your father a little.”
“Hey, I’m only twenty-seven. Besides, I’m not rebelling...” Wasn’t she
? Was she captivated by a newfound hunger for adventure, or was she lashing out against the punishing rigidity of the life that her father forced on her? No. She had found peace with her life, and she counted herself lucky to have a job she loved. “Really, I’m not. I think I’m bored of working nonstop. Of work being the only thing in my life.”
“You’re finally talking sense. Work should never be your everything. You need to let your hair down and get a bit sloppy once in a while. Where is the fun in being so flawless all the time?” Her friend stood back and studied Jihae from head to toe. “I know the perfect place for tonight. All the staff went clubbing a couple weeks ago—it was your treat, of course—and we had such a great time. I think you’ll love it, too. Alas, I can’t let you just walk into a club looking like Princess Jihae.”
“But all my clothes look like these. Or there are the floor-length dresses. I don’t want to draw attention to myself, especially not as a weirdo wearing a white ball gown to a nightclub. My other alternatives are purple, pink or baby blue sweat suits. Even I know that I won’t get past the bouncers in those.”
“Are you forgetting how filthy rich you are? Your stylist isn’t here, but you don’t need her. Instead, you’ll have your best friend pick you the hottest, tiniest dress you’ve ever worn. Rodeo Drive is only twenty minutes away.”
They rushed to the parking structure and hopped into Jihae’s flashy sports car. As soon as her seat belt was secured, June scrolled through her phone until “Oh, Pretty Woman” blared from the speakers.
“You’re like Julia Roberts except you don’t need a man to pay for your clothes,” June shouted over the music.
“Girl power. Woo-hoo,” Jihae hooted, and sped toward Rodeo Drive. Everything around her looked sharper and even the air tasted fresher. It was the taste of freedom.
As the theme song of Pretty Woman played in a loop in Jihae’s head, she tried on every outrageously seductive dress that June piled onto the salesperson’s loaded arms. She felt like she was living a different person’s life, and it felt wonderful. But distress niggled at the back of her mind. If she loved someone else’s life so much, what did that say about her own?