“Kaoru… why are you here?”
Aina Saiten’s voice was exceptionally clear in the quiet office area.
She stood frozen, still holding the document she had been discussing with her subordinate.
Her knuckles turned slightly white from the force of her grip.
Her gaze was fixed intensely on the man dressed in a black secretary suit.
It was the face she saw every morning when she first woke up, the face she thought belonged to her alone.
She had never expected to see her boyfriend at the company.
Regardless of how she looked at it, he shouldn’t have been there.
He didn’t have an access card, he had no reason to be there, and he didn’t even have a position that required him to visit.
Moreover, he was currently wearing a well-tailored black secretary suit.
The suit perfectly outlined his slender frame, making him look both unfamiliar and familiar all at once.
“Ah… Aina… I…”
Kaoru Hoshitani was clearly stunned as well.
Although he knew he couldn’t keep this from Aina forever and had planned to tell her in a few days, running into her so suddenly like this made his mind go blank.
He opened his mouth but didn’t know how to explain.
His watery doe eyes blinked frantically, carrying a hint of a plea for help as if to say, ‘Let’s talk somewhere else.’
Aina Saiten understood that look.
Ten years of knowing and staying by each other’s side allowed her to read his emotions from the slightest change in expression.
At this moment, there was panic in his eyes, guilt, and a layer of complexity she couldn’t quite decipher.
Her heart tightened suddenly, as if gripped ruthlessly by an invisible hand.
But she pressed her lips together and said nothing more, though her expression became complex and solemn.
“Oh? Didn’t Mr. Hoshitani tell you about this, Senior Aina?”
A crisp voice rang out at the perfect moment, breaking the suffocating silence between the two.
Chinatsu took half a step forward, a well-timed look of surprise and a smile on her face.
Her smile carried a hint of playfulness, as if they had merely encountered a harmless little misunderstanding.
“It seems he wanted to give you a surprise, Senior Aina,” she said with a laugh, her voice light and natural.
“You don’t need to worry, Senior. I’ll make sure to bring Mr. Hoshitani back to you safely.”
Then she turned her head toward the man beside her, who was still somewhat at a loss.
Her tone carried a hint of urgency, yet remained gentle. “Let’s go. The President is already waiting for you, Mr. Hoshitani.”
Kaoru Hoshitani nodded and looked at his girlfriend again.
There was a complicated meaning in his eyes—apology, helplessness, and an indescribable sense of reassurance, as if trying to put her at ease.
Then, he followed behind Chinatsu and continued down the long corridor.
Aina Saiten stood in place, watching the familiar back fade away until it finally disappeared into the elevator bay at the end of the hall.
The elevator doors slowly closed, cutting off her line of sight.
The gazes of the colleagues around her remained fixed on her, filled with curiosity, inquiry, and a hint of undisguised gossip.
Aina Saiten took a deep breath, forcing herself to look down and continue reading the document.
However, she found the handwriting twisting and blurring before her eyes; she couldn’t process a single word.
…
Inside the elevator, the metal walls reflected their blurry shadows.
Chinatsu stood in front, with Kaoru Hoshitani standing one step behind her.
The elevator rose steadily, and the floor numbers on the digital display jumped continuously: 12, 13, 14.
Kaoru Hoshitani kept his eyes downcast. His mind was filled with Aina’s shocked face and that complicated gaze.
His restlessness was almost overflowing, and his fingers unconsciously gripped the hem of his suit jacket.
“Mr. Hoshitani, it’s alright.”
Chinatsu’s voice came from the front, soft and steady, carrying a reassuring power.
She didn’t look back, only observing the uneasy man behind her through the reflection on the elevator wall.
“I will tell Senior Aina that you only came to work at the company to help share her burden.” She paused, a shallow smile coloring her voice.
‘Women are like that. As long as it’s for their own good, they can accept it.’
Hearing this, Kaoru Hoshitani raised his head and looked at the slender back in front of him.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and then nodded slightly.
“Yes… thank you, Miss Chinatsu.”
Just as he finished speaking, the elevator emitted a crisp ding.
The indicator for the top floor lit up, and the doors slowly slid open to both sides.
Chinatsu took the lead in exiting the elevator, and Kaoru Hoshitani followed behind her, stepping onto the top floor of the Izumisei Company.
This place was completely different from the floors he had just passed.
The corridor was wider, and the floor was paved with dark marble that was polished enough to see one’s reflection.
Several oil paintings that looked expensive hung on the walls.
Soft light spilled from the ceiling, creating a solemn and quiet atmosphere.
The air was permeated with a faint, high-grade scent of sandalwood.
Following Chinatsu, Kaoru Hoshitani crossed the corridor and arrived in front of a half-open solid wood door.
Chinatsu didn’t knock. She simply pushed the door open gently and walked in first.
Kaoru Hoshitani stood at the doorway, took a deep breath, and then stepped inside.
It was a massive office, so spacious that he almost thought he had walked into a small hall.
Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows was Tokyo’s bustling skyline, with high-rise buildings and flowing traffic gleaming in the afternoon sun.
The interior was brightly lit, and the decor was simple yet luxurious—dark solid wood furniture, heavy curtains, and a few lush green plants in the corners.
Behind a large solid wood desk sat a middle-aged woman.
‘Is this… that woman’s mother…?’
Kaoru Hoshitani carefully observed the middle-aged woman who was currently looking down and writing something.
Her hair was combed meticulously. Although some gray hair was visible, she didn’t look as old as he had imagined.
Her face bore a resemblance to Rika Kawasaki, especially those gray eyes—though those eyes lacked Rika’s sharpness and wildness, replaced by the stability and majesty of someone who had long held a high position.
“Mom, I brought him,” Chinatsu called out with a smile after tapping on the already open door, her voice carrying a sense of intimate casualness.
The middle-aged woman sitting behind the desk—Hana Kawasaki—raised her head.
The moment those gray eyes looked up, they precisely locked onto the man standing next to her younger daughter, who looked somewhat ill at ease.
Her gaze swept from top to bottom, then from bottom to top, inspecting Kaoru Hoshitani thoroughly.
‘He looks even more beautiful in person than in the photograph…’
What kind of man had Hana Kawasaki not seen?
She had spent decades drifting through the business world, and the number of handsome men and beautiful women who had come and gone around her was countless.
But at this moment, when her gaze fell upon this young man, a hint of amazement still couldn’t help but flash in her eyes.
Those exquisite features, paired with that somewhat timid and pure aura like a doe, combined to form an irresistible charm.
She instantly understood why her rebellious, unbridled eldest daughter, who didn’t care about anything, would be so obsessed with this young man.
Perhaps no woman could resist such charm.
She scrutinized the young man for a moment as he kept his eyes lowered, not daring to meet her gaze.
His eyelashes were very long, casting shallow shadows under his eyes.
His lips were slightly pursed, and his fingers were unconsciously interlaced.
That unease and tension were written plainly on his face.
A moment later, Hana Kawasaki stood up, bypassed the desk, and walked toward the two of them.
Her high heels clicked against the solid wood floor in a crisp, rhythmic sound that seemed to beat against Kaoru Hoshitani’s heart.
He felt his heartbeat getting faster and faster, and his palms began to sweat.
The footsteps stopped in front of him.
“Hello.”
A gentle but authoritative voice came from above.
Kaoru Hoshitani raised his head and saw the middle-aged woman standing before him, holding out a hand.
That hand was well-maintained, with delicate skin and slender fingers.
Her nails were trimmed neatly and painted with a low-profile nude polish.
“You must be the new secretary Chinatsu recommended to me, right?”
Hana Kawasaki looked at the young man, her tone carrying a hint of appropriate warmth as her lips curled into a shallow arc.
“Please take care of me from now on.”
“Ah… President… please, please take care of me as well!”
Kaoru Hoshitani hadn’t expected the President to be so warm toward him, and he lost his footing for a moment.
He flusteredly raised his hand and shook the one the woman had extended.
Her hand was warm and dry, completely different from Rika Kawasaki’s hand which was covered in thin calluses, yet it carried a similarly undeniable strength.
‘So soft…’
Hana Kawasaki felt the soft sensation from her hand, and her heart stirred slightly.
This young man’s hand was incredibly soft, as if it had no bones.
Holding it in her hand actually made her feel a bit reluctant to let go.
But she quickly released it, an amiable smile on her face as she said, “Haha, don’t be nervous. Regarding your job duties, there will be a specific person to teach you. They’re all very simple. Take your time to learn; it’s fine.”
As the President of a large enterprise, she certainly wasn’t lacking secretaries.
On the contrary, she currently had five or six secretaries, large and small, managing different fields and affairs.
Having one more or one less didn’t matter at all.
The reason she had agreed to let Kaoru Hoshitani be her secretary was, of course, Chinatsu’s suggestion.
The girl had said it like this at the time: “Recruit Brother-in-law to be your secretary, Mom. That way, you can observe what he’s really like, and you can help Sister keep a closer eye on him. After all, Brother-in-law is so beautiful; having him in the company is much more reassuring than leaving him outside.”
Hana Kawasaki thought that made sense.
She had already been full of curiosity and doubt regarding this man who had her daughter so entranced.
Bringing him to her side allowed her to observe his character and ability from a close distance while also helping “look after” him, lest he attract bees and butterflies outside.
It killed two birds with one stone.
So, she had originally only intended to let Kaoru Hoshitani do simple tasks like serving tea, pouring water, and organizing documents.
Looking at him now, even if he didn’t know how to do anything, it wouldn’t be bad just to have him standing nearby as eye candy every day.
‘Sigh… I’m not young anymore…’
She lamented silently in her heart. If she were twenty years younger, facing such a beauty, she might be just like her daughter—wanting to possess him at all costs without a second thought.