Chapter 13

• “Don’t tell me you’ve never had midnight ramyeon before?” Ivy slid a steaming bowl across the table toward Josh. It was topped with a soft-boiled egg and roughly chopped scallions.
• The household staff had already gone home—at least, Ivy assumed so. She hadn’t asked Josh for details.
• Josh sat at the dining table; his hair still damps from a recent shower. He’d changed into a dark T-shirt and casual pants, looking far more relaxed than he had earlier in her room.
• “I have,” he said nonchalantly, accepting the bowl. “But never one cooked by a woman who just refused medical treatment for what were clearly serious injuries.”
• Ivy scoffed. “At least my opponent ended up worse than I did. I’m pretty sure that damn woman won’t sleep soundly with all those bruises.”
• The image made her grin.
• “Have you thought about the consequences?” Josh asked, lifting the bowl to his lips for a taste of the broth. “If Clara presses charges, what are you going to do?” He took a sip, then nodded approvingly. “Mmm… smells amazing. Let’s see if it tastes as good.”
• Ivy narrowed her eyes. “If you get addicted to my ramyeon, I’m charging a premium per bowl.”
• Josh chuckled. He took a generous bite, then another. Damn—she was right. It was addictive. His chopsticks barely paused between mouthfuls, and Ivy couldn’t help but watch him. For some reason, the way he ate, the little praises he slipped in between bites, warmed something inside her she didn’t expect.
• “So…” she finally said, her voice calm as she waited until he was nearly done eating. “Who are you, really?”
• Silence followed. Josh leaned back in his chair, set his chopsticks down, and looked her straight in the eyes.
• “I’m Joshua Miller.”
• Ivy’s brow furrowed. “What?”
• “Joshua Miller,” Josh repeated, his voice calm. “Second son of the owner of MaC Corporation, headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany.”
• Ivy froze, staring at him like she was seeing someone else entirely. Someone she hadn’t met before. “You’re joking.”
• “Unfortunately, I’m not.”
• Josh leaned his elbows on the table. “My older brother, Jackson Miller, was supposed to oversee the Korean branch. But he’s been too busy handling the expansion in Canada, so I stepped in. This isn’t my first time in Korea, but I did have to put my job in Sydney on hold for now.”
• Ivy swallowed hard. “Why didn’t you tell me this from the start?”
• “I had my reasons,” he said softly. “But since I promised to tell you the truth tonight, I’ll keep it simple.” Josh sat up straighter. The relaxed gleam usually in his eyes was gone—now, he was watching her with unsettling seriousness. “There’s a reason I was assigned to handle the Korea branch. I’m investigating an internal embezzlement case. The amount missing isn’t small. And as I dug deeper, two names surfaced—Clara Jung and her father.”
• Ivy blinked, stunned. “Clara?”
• “And your ex-husband, Ricardo Dallas,” Josh added without hesitation. “He has business ties to Clara’s father, Mr. Jaeyoon Jung. That promotion Rico received. It wasn’t just a shiny new title to flaunt around. There’s strong indication of a covert collaboration I haven’t fully unraveled yet.”
• Her head spun.
• “My trusted contact found traces of a fake merger—something likely used for money laundering. If that sounds complicated, here’s the simple version: your ex and Clara Jung’s family are working together to sabotage MaC from the inside. It might’ve started last year. But I won’t let it continue.”
• Ivy stayed quiet, trying her best to process every word.
• “When I found out you were Rico’s ex-wife...” Josh hesitated. “I saw it as a strange stroke of luck.”
• Ivy slowly set down her chopsticks. “Wait. Are you saying you got close to me because of that?”
• Josh let out a short laugh. “Have you forgotten how we met at Pamalove Bar? We didn’t even know each other’s names. Hell, I thought you were a paid escort.”
• Ivy groaned. Just remembering that night made her want to slap something. Preferably him.
• “But I’m not going to lie to you, Ivy,” he said, his tone flattening into something sincere. “That night—something about it told me we were a good match. Partners, somehow. And if you don’t mind hearing what Dr. Lee has to say about my condition tomorrow, I won’t stop you. He’ll be giving an updated report on my medical records—the same thing I mentioned when we first made our deal.”
• How could Ivy forget? That was the foundation of everything between them—their arrangement, the house Rico was still living in... and maybe, just maybe, something more tangled than she ever expected.
• “Taking your ex-husband’s house would be too easy,” Josh said with a sly smile. “But like I told you before—if there’s a more devious way to bruise Rico’s ego, wouldn’t that be so much more satisfying?”
• Ivy had to admit, he had a point.
• “When I found out who you really were,” Josh continued, “I thought... why not pull you in a little deeper?”
• Her eyes narrowed. “What do you mean by that? If you’re planning to use me to get close to Clara, make me act like some desperate woman in front of Rico just to get information—”
• “I never said that,” Josh cut in with a burst of laughter. It was so genuine, so unguarded, his eyes even welled with tears. “I honestly can’t picture you doing that, Ivy.”
• “Then what exactly do you want from me?”
• “I want to bait them into showing their true colors.” His tone dropped, gaze locking on hers. Suddenly, all the amusement vanished—this was the heart of the conversation.
• Ivy’s brows knitted. “You’ve lost me.”
• “Everything that happened recently only made Clara hate you more. I’m sure they’ll try to escalate things, maybe even press serious charges against you. But what if I backed you? Quietly. From the shadows. You’d show up to every MaC event by my side—as someone important, someone no one dares question. No one would know who’s backing you, but the power behind you would rattle them. Push them. Make them desperate enough to show their fangs. And when they do... I’ll be watching. Ready to expose everything they’ve buried.”
• Ivy rubbed her temple. “Josh, this... this is insane.”
• “It is,” Josh agreed, grinning. “But every move has its purpose. I don’t take kindly to people messing around inside MaC. My father built that company with everything he had. As his son, I won’t let anyone tear it down.”
• Silence fell between them, heavy and contemplative. Ivy especially seemed caught in her own thoughts.
• “If this is what you want,” she said eventually, “then fine. I want Rico to pay. I want him to regret everything he did to me. Taking back that house when he’s already struggling... it would be poetic justice.”
• Josh laughed. “If you give up on that house, I can give you this apartment instead. I don’t mind.”
• “I’ve told you why that house matters to me.”
• “Then consider this apartment a reward for helping me.”
• Ivy stared at him hard. “Don’t say ridiculous things, Josh.”
• “Me? Ridiculous?” Josh huffed. “Tomorrow, I’ll have Dylan start the paperwork for the apartment transfer.”
• Ivy’s eyes went wide. “You’re... serious?”
• Josh raised a brow. “Do I look like I’m joking?”
• Before Ivy could get a word out, Josh spoke again. “This place is yours now. You can have it.”
• His voice was low, certainly. And then he added with a teasing edge, “But you must take care of me, Ivy. Because when I’m with you, I can focus. And come on, no one in their right mind could resist my charm. Who wouldn’t want to be Joshua Miller’s companion?”
• “…What?” Ivy blinked, still trying to wrap her head around what he was saying.
• Josh let out a groan of frustration. “Unbelievable. Where’s that sharp brain of yours gone, huh?”