Chapter 02
A faint sigh escaped her lips, born of sheer embarrassment.
As the ice melted, the wet fabric of her t-shirt revealed a faint glimpse of black lace beneath.
The problem was that the lace was far too provocative.
In fact, despite her outwardly easygoing appearance, Jangmi had a secret, stubborn preference.
She’d wear old, stretched-out, comfortable clothes on the outside, but for her underwear, she insisted on only flashy, sexy lace lingerie, brimming with the fantasies of a lifelong singleton.
And right now, she was wearing exactly that—a black, see-through lace bra that clearly revealed her skin. To anyone watching, it might look like she’d deliberately chosen it with the intention to seduce.
*Oh man. This is bad.*
Jangmi quickly kicked the ice cube on the floor aside and spun around.
“I’ll bring your coffee right away.”
From behind her, she thought she heard Kwon Woo let out a scoffing laugh, but it was already water under the bridge—or rather, ice on the floor.
Jangmi swallowed her embarrassment and squared her shoulders.
‘Right! Meet humiliation with momentum!’
In situations like this, the less embarrassed you act, the better. You have to push through with sheer brazenness.
Jangmi held her head high, picked up the remote control, and with a flourish, pressed the yellowed power button.
With a low *whoom*, the old air conditioner began to hum.
A lukewarm breeze, carrying the smell of old dust, wafted out.
Kwon Woo, who’d been expecting cool air, immediately scowled.
The machine made a racket, noisy enough to be considered noise pollution, but the airflow was pitifully inadequate for cooling down the sweltering heat. It was so bad, you’d hesitate to pay even 5,000 won for it, let alone 50,000.
“It’s hot. Hurry up and bring that coffee.”
Kwon Woo irritably loosened his tie completely and urged her on.
Jangmi pursed her lips, brewed the coffee in the machine, and scooped ice from the ice maker.
While Jangmi prepared the coffee, Kwon Woo kept fanning himself with his hand.
Watching him from the corner of her eye, Jangmi clicked her tongue inwardly.
If he was that hot, he should take off some clothes, or at least undo his tightly buttoned jacket.
Nobody would say anything if he didn’t wear the jacket. *Tsk, tsk.*
Before he could urge her again, Jangmi quickly filled the glass with ice and poured the brewed espresso over it.
“Here you go. Coffee.”
Jangmi set the glass down on the table with a *thump*.
Kwon Woo, who had been fanning himself, spoke with a face full of discontent.
“Did you actually turn on the air conditioner? It’s just noisy and not even cool.”
“It’s old. It takes time for the temperature to drop. Just wait.”
Having said her piece, Jangmi spun around and walked away.
—
Back at the counter, Jangmi pretended to look at her phone while sneaking glances at the stranger.
The man was gulping down his Americano, packed with ice, as if drinking water.
*Gulp, gulp.*
Every time his Adam’s apple moved up and down, her gaze somehow followed it. He was the kind of man who exuded the scent of a mature male, rarely seen in Dongchon-ri, a place full of the elderly.
But who was he, exactly, to come looking for her mom?
Not that Mrs. Na Yeongran was some naive country woman just because she lived in the countryside. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Yet here was a man with a decent build—no, more than decent, with handsome looks that practically oozed charm, and clothes that looked expensive at a glance.
No matter how much she racked her brain, she couldn’t imagine any connection between him and Mrs. Na Yeongran.
A debt collector?
No, that didn’t fit either.
Mrs. Na Yeongran, who’d tremble at the thought of losing even a single won, actually lent money to the villagers, albeit small amounts. She would never have borrowed from anyone.
That left only one answer.
A con artist, preying on the locals.
Con artists always dressed sharply when approaching elderly people in rural areas. It definitely seemed like he was one of them.
Having deduced his identity, Jangmi’s eyes narrowed.
Just then, the man called out to her again in a gruff voice.
“Hey, miss.”
Jangmi looked up from her phone with an annoyed expression.
“What now? I already turned on the air conditioner.”
“It’s still a sauna in here.”
“Goodness. You have no patience. I told you to wait. If you’re that hot, why don’t you take off your jacket? All bundled up like that in this heat—aren’t you worried about getting heat rash?”
Kwon Woo had lived his entire life only in spaces with perfectly controlled temperature and humidity year-round. Maintaining his perfectly tailored three-piece suit even in the height of summer was such a natural part of his daily routine that he’d never been scolded for wearing a suit before.
Unaware of his situation, Jangmi muttered to herself,
“Who’s even here to see you, all dressed up in a suit and tie in this backwater cafe?”
Kwon Woo let out a disbelieving scoff and stood up abruptly.
He walked straight to the counter, snatched the air conditioner remote from under Jangmi’s hand, and said,
“Do you think this ‘Turbo’ button here is just for show?”
As if he were kindly showing her, he pressed the ‘Turbo’ button firmly.
*Beep—!*
Instantly, Jangmi’s eyebrows shot up as she watched.
*Uh-oh, if you press the Turbo button, the electricity bill will go through the roof, and Mrs. Na Yeongran will kill me.*
But before Jangmi could stop him, the air conditioner roared to life with a powerful hum, and began blowing out cool air incomparably stronger than before.
The stifling air in the cafe cooled down almost instantly.
A reflexive exclamation of admiration almost escaped Jangmi’s lips.
‘Ah, cool…’
But to maintain a consistent stance, she swallowed the sound before it came out.
As the muggy air in the cafe became pleasant and cool, his expression also relaxed.
But then.
Just as she thought he’d return to his seat now that he’d gotten what he wanted, the man pulled a business card from his pocket and held it out to Jangmi.
“Take it.”
Jangmi shifted her gaze to the letters printed on the card he offered.
<Taesan Development, Executive Director, Cha Kwon Woo>
‘Executive Director?’
Jangmi’s eyes narrowed even further. She’d already suspected him of being a con artist.
And of all things, Taesan Development? One of the top five conglomerates in Korea?
The executive director of that chaebol family personally came to this backwater cafe?
‘Yeah, right.’
Jangmi snorted.
Though she’d returned to Dongchon-ri, been loafing around like a freeloader, and was now manning the counter only because she couldn’t stand her mom’s nagging, her three years in Seoul had taught her a thing or two about the world. And she’d developed sharp instincts.
Recently, there had been rumors that Taesan Development was planning to build a healing resort in this area, causing land prices in Dongchon-ri to fluctuate quite a bit.
Jangmi looked the man up and down.
His flashy appearance, expensive suit worn in the middle of summer, gleaming luxury watch, and a plausible-looking business card. Wasn’t this the classic full setup for a con artist?
“Hey there, mister.”
“Mister?”
Kwon Woo’s perfectly straight eyebrows narrowed coldly.
“Can’t you read? It says who I am on the card.”
Jangmi scoffed inwardly.
He couldn’t be more than five or six years older than her, at most.
And someone like that was an executive director?
If you’re going to pull a scam, at least make it plausible.
Jangmi picked up the card with her fingertips and played along, feigning sincerity.
“Oh, right. Taesan Development Executive Director Cha Kwon-woo-nim~”
“Since you know, contact the owner and tell her to come quickly. Tell her the Executive Director of Taesan Development is waiting to see her.”
“I saw your card, alright.”
Jangmi deliberately tossed the card into a corner of the counter.
“But our owner isn’t the type to be easily moved by a scrap of paper like this.”
Kwon Woo’s eyebrow shot up crookedly.
In all his years, he’d never been treated with such disrespect by a country cafe employee.
This woman lacked not only customer service mentality but even the most basic courtesy.
“I’m sure the owner will be the judge of that. Not some employee… I mean, not you.”
He’d been about to say ‘cafe cashier’ but softened it. Kwon Woo turned away, as if he couldn’t be bothered to deal with her anymore.
Being treated like this by some country cafe girl—it was simply laughable.
Just then, a clear bell sound rang out, and the old door opened.
But the person who entered wasn’t the owner of the Eunhasu Cafe that Kwon Woo had been waiting for.
It was a pale-looking young man.
Unlike the disappointed Kwon Woo, Jangmi’s eyes curved into crescents as she greeted him warmly.
“Oh? You’re here?”
