“Are you feeling hungry at all?”
“No, I’m fine. …How about you, sir?”
“I grabbed a quick bite while you were sleeping.”
“That’s good to hear. Did you eat something nice?”
Yeon Yiseo’s response made Alexander chuckle as if he found it amusing. When Yiseo looked at him in confusion, Alexander spoke again with the smile still lingering on his face.
“You’re kind of quirky in your own way.”
“Me?”
Hearing that kind of evaluation for the first time, Yeon Yiseo’s eyes widened. As Alexander stifled his laughter, Yiseo grew increasingly flustered.
“I don’t know how others see you, but that’s how I feel.”
“…Oh. Okay…”
Not knowing how else to respond, Yiseo simply gave that answer.
Just then, his phone buzzed with a message notification. After asking Alexander for a moment, Yeon Yiseo pulled it out to check. The sender was Natalie.
[Looks like talking to you brought me luck! The picky prince finally signed the contract with us :)]
It sounded like she was talking about Hugo. As promised, it seemed he’d signed the contract with Dymine. Yiseo’s fingers danced over the screen as he typed.
[That’s really great news! Congrats. Hopefully you’ll get a bit of rest today.]
As Yeon Yiseo quickly texted back and forth, Alexander, sitting next to him, asked,
“Who are you texting with that has you smiling like that?”
“A former coworker.”
Just as Yiseo was putting his phone away, Alexander reached out and gently stopped him.
“I wasn’t trying to pressure you—I really was just curious. Go ahead, don’t mind me.”
As Alexander spoke with a smile, another message came in from Natalie.
[When one job ends, a new one always begins, right? Same as always. But I won’t deny I got a breather today. I felt bad for complaining too much last time, so I just wanted to check in. We need to catch up soon.]
“Go ahead and reply.”
“I’ll be quick.”
Even though Alexander had told him not to worry, Yiseo still felt a little self-conscious. He gave that answer and quickly tapped out a reply.
[Sure. I’ll work around your schedule, so let me know when you’re free.]
[Sounds good. I’ll be in touch soon.]
Once the conversation was wrapped up, Yiseo looked at Alexander and thanked him.
“You’re really fast at typing. How do your fingers move so quickly? Don’t you make typos?”
“I do make them sometimes… but I’m not sure if I’m particularly fast.”
He’d never really thought about the speed of his hands. As Yiseo glanced down at his own fingers, Alexander suddenly reached over, covering Yiseo’s hand with his own, startling him.
“Looking at it now, I guess my hand’s bigger, so I probably hit other buttons by accident.”
He pressed his hand against Yiseo’s as if comparing sizes. Yiseo clamped his mouth shut. It reminded him of the female students at a part-time job he once had in school—how they used to scoff and joke about guys who initiated physical contact like this as some kind of flirt tactic.
Of course, he didn’t really believe Alexander was using some blatant move like that. As long as he didn’t read too much into it, it would be fine.
“That’s true. Your hand is bigger than mine…”
“It’s annoying when I make typos and have to rewrite everything.”
Alexander pressed gently on each of Yiseo’s fingers, starting with the index.
“…Sir?”
“Your fingers are so soft.”
Yiseo had never once thought of them that way. The comment itself flustered him, but what unsettled him even more was that Alexander kept holding his hand like it was the most natural thing in the world. He had no idea how to react.
“Is that so? I always thought they were… average.”
Even as Yiseo spoke, Alexander continued lightly pressing his fingertips as if checking something.
This kind of contact wouldn’t normally be acceptable between a subordinate and a superior. But the two of them had already slept together, so it wasn’t exactly a normal situation. He wasn’t sure if he should just let it go or not.
Maybe it was because he’d just come to terms with his feelings—gauging the proper distance between them wasn’t easy. He could be overthinking something that didn’t really matter.
Lost in thought as he stared down at Alexander’s hand, Yiseo snapped out of it when the man finally let go. Clearly, it didn’t mean much. What had changed was Yiseo himself—he was now hyper-aware of everything Alexander did.
Clearing his throat softly, Yiseo turned his gaze toward the window. The car had pulled into the Ritz-Carlton’s parking lot. Since it was a relatively new hotel, the interior looked sleek and pristine.
After riding the elevator to the top floor—the 50th—they arrived at the entrance marked with an orange sign: NUBELUZ. A crimson reception desk stood at the front of the bar. There were a couple of teams waiting, as well as a staff member managing reservations, but it didn’t seem like there were many people inside yet.
Looking at the info on the sign, Yiseo glanced up at Alexander.
“Sir, it looks like they’re not open yet.”
Entry started at 4 PM. They still had around ten minutes to wait.
“Ten minutes, huh. Shall we wait a bit?”
“Yes, let’s.”
They found a spot to stand nearby when a conversation between two tourists in front of them drifted over.
“My heart’s pounding. I’ve been looking forward to this place for so long.”
“When I called ten days ago, they said there were only two spots left. I thought we were super lucky.”
Hearing that, Yiseo’s eyes widened in surprise. Ten days ago? Almost instinctively, he looked up at Alexander.
It wasn’t like he’d predicted tonight would happen and made a reservation in advance. But then again, nothing was impossible. A title like “CEO of Scott Industries” could open a lot of doors—like getting a table at a fully booked venue.
He’d seen it happen plenty of times while working at Dymine. The moment someone mentioned Ethan’s name, people who were previously cold or unyielding would suddenly turn cooperative, like magic. It wasn’t hard to imagine the same thing happening now.
As he snuck another glance at Alexander, their eyes met. Alexander had a playful smirk on his face.
“Do you think I cheated?”
“No, not at all.”
The question sounded as if Alexander had read his mind. Yiseo quickly shook his head.
“I didn’t pull any strings. They had a couple of walk-in spots, so I made the reservation.”
Even so, Alexander added a small explanation, like he felt the need to clarify.
“…You made the reservation yourself?”
But that wasn’t the part Yiseo was surprised about.
“Who else would’ve done it?”
“No… it’s nothing.”
Usually, secretaries handled things like this. People like Alexander—members of the elite—typically had assistants managing even their personal dates.
But Alexander had gone through the trouble himself.
The surprise morphed into a fluttering in his chest. He reminded himself not to read into it, but that was easier said than done. At the very least, he had to keep his face from showing anything.
“I do know how to make a phone call, you know. Same as before. You’re making me sound a little too incompetent, aren’t you?”
Alexander’s joking tone made Yiseo quickly shake his head. He’d just automatically assumed someone else had handled it. But now that he thought about it, the secretarial staff was off today.
It was something he could’ve figured out with a bit more thought, but he’d been too distracted by the fact that Alexander had called and reserved the place himself.
It was just that—a small thing. He told himself not to make it into something more, though it felt like he already had.
When the bar finally opened, the people ahead of them were led inside first.
As Alexander gave his name to the receptionist, the staff’s eyes widened briefly before a wide smile spread across her face.
“We’ve been expecting you. Let me show you to your table.”
The staff led them to a window seat—a setup with two pale red cushioned lounge chairs and a round gold table in between.
The view beyond the three-meter-high windows was stunning. It was hard to believe that just hours ago it had been pouring rain—the sky was now clear and bright, offering an unobstructed panorama of the city. Empire State Building, Chrysler Building… the full New York skyline was spread out before them.
There was no way this wasn’t a reserved spot. And once again, it was the kind of thing only Alexander could pull off.
Grabbing the menu already placed at the table, Alexander asked,
“Do you mind if I order for us?”
“Please go ahead.”
“Any allergies I should know about?”
After Yiseo confirmed he had none, Alexander smoothly ordered labneh, bikini sandwiches, and jamón ibérico—like someone very familiar with the menu. Holding the menu in hand, he looked back toward Yiseo.
“I was thinking of ordering a drink. Is that alright with you?”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
Yiseo was slightly surprised at the idea of drinking, but figured it wasn’t like Alexander was pressuring him. He’d just sip a little. Honestly, it would be a waste to come to a place like this and only drink soda.
“One Nino Melon, and a glass of the Pierre Ferrand I had kept on hold, please.”
Seeming satisfied, Alexander handed the menu back to the staff.
After a short wait, the food they ordered began arriving, filling the table to the brim.
