Off Limits Attraction (The Heirs of Hansol #3) - Jayci Lee Page 0,58

to fire her from her position for disobeying him, but he wasn’t going to risk the financial success he stood to gain from Best Placed Bets. Her guess was he would push her out of Rotelle Entertainment as soon as the project was over. Jihae huffed a humorless laugh. Too bad she was leaving before he could have the satisfaction of firing her. She’d stuck with Rotelle Entertainment to see this film through, but she had plans to start her own production company.

The moment she entered the party, she was surrounded by people, so she didn’t get a chance to see if Colin was there. It was for the best since she didn’t want to spend the whole evening wondering if and when she would bump in to him.

Everyone in the grand hall was in high spirits. From the direction to the acting, everything had been superbly done in the film. They were filled with confidence that it would really be something to behold once the editing was finished. In her years in the industry, Jihae had never quite seen anything like it.

While she held herself to rigid standards, working on Best Placed Bets had been an absolute pleasure. They’d all worked together as a team through the rare minor hitches, but most of the production process had fallen into place like well-carved puzzle pieces. It was an uncommon but satisfying experience. And being part of it all had truly been an honor.

“Jihae,” Ethan said, coming up to her with Kimberly beside him. “Congratulations. It has been an absolute pleasure to work with you.”

“Ditto.” Kimberly leaned in to hug her, and Jihae embraced her warmly.

“You guys did such wonderful jobs,” Jihae said. “I can’t tell you how proud I am, and how grateful I am that I had a chance to work with you both.”

“Thank you, Jihae,” Kimberly said with a watery smile. Then she cleared her throat. “Colin said he had a meeting, but he should be here any minute now.”

“Oh?” Jihae couldn’t think of anything to say beyond that.

The three of them weren’t able to continue their conversation much longer as Jihae got pulled this way and that. When she was able to disentangle herself from the throngs of happy, celebrating colleagues, she made for the bar like a woman on a mission. Despite her mental preparations and determination, she was a nervous wreck at the prospect of seeing Colin.

“Dirty martini. Extra olives, please,” she said to the bartender as she took an empty seat.

The others sitting at the bar seemed like the introverts of their group, seeking some alone time, which was perfect for her. She wanted to be alone with her beautiful martini for a few minutes. She took a sip of the bitter, briny cocktail and bit into the flesh of a salty olive. Her eyes closed shut. It was heavenly.

“Hennessy straight,” said a voice she recognized from her dreams.

Why had he approached her? She’d expected an awkward hello, but she hadn’t prepared herself to actually talk to Colin. She wasn’t ready, so she kept her eyes closed and silently chewed her olive.

“Jihae.”

Oh, God. She hated his beautiful voice. She hated the reflexive shiver that ran down her spine. She hated the thump of her broken heart. Get a grip, Princess. You can do this. She opened her eyes and slowly turned around. Colin was standing a few feet away, leaning against the bar.

“Congratulations on the wrap.” She forced her words through stiff lips. He had worked hard and deserved the compliment.

“Thank you. Congratulations to you, too.”

“Sure.” She took a significant gulp of her martini.

Meanwhile, she was trying very hard not to notice anything about him. How striking he looked in his slim, black suit and open-necked dress shirt. How elegant his long fingers looked wrapped around his glass. He’d lost weight. His boyishly handsome face was now sharp and edgy. The face of a man who had known pain and survived. She tried to notice none of it. He wasn’t hers anymore. Was never hers to begin with.

But she had something to relay to him, so she calmed her churning emotions.

“I want you to know that I’ve found some evidence connecting Rotelle Corporation to Yami. There were some suspicious activities in an overseas account belonging to one of Rotelle’s shell companies. My father hid his tracks well, but some forensics showed the money being transferred to an account here. It isn’t enough to put my father away, but it’ll be enough to keep him