The grand ballroom of the Imperial Hotel shimmered like something out of a dream.
Crystal chandeliers spilled light onto marble floors. Gold and black banners lined the towering walls. Waiters in white gloves floated past with silver trays, and laughter rose like perfume into the vaulted ceilings.
Mira stepped into the sea of wealth and ambition, her black gown gliding like smoke around her legs. The silk hugged her body without being revealing, elegant but strong a deliberate choice.
Every detail tonight mattered.
Every step was a move on the chessboard.
The dress was delivered earlier that day, wrapped in ivory tissue paper, a simple note tucked inside:"Wear this. – A.H."It had come via a company driver, no explanation, no conversation.
Mira almost refused.
Almost.
But instinct told her this was another test and she would never fail it.
The dress fit like a second skin, the deep midnight blue colour making her eyes look colder, sharper. Powerful.
She thought of the memory still fresh in her mind:Two days ago, at the luxury mall downtown, she had caught a glimpse of Ares Han and Jae Min during a company outing a subtle business meeting disguised as shopping.
She remembered how Ares had stopped, gaze lingering for a heartbeat longer than usual, on this exact dress displayed in a boutique window.
Jae Min had noticed too, a flicker of something strange crossing his face.
And now, tonight, when Jae Min caught sight of her.... he froze.
Recognition flared in his eyes.
Not just at how beautiful she looked.
But at the knowledge knowledge he wasn't supposed to have that Ares had chosen it.
She moved toward him, unaware of the war igniting behind his easy smile.
"You clean up well," Jae Min said, offering his arm with a slight bow. "Dance with me?"
Their dance spun across the glittering floor, a waltz of secrets.
But no matter how lightly she laughed or how easily she moved, she could feel Ares's gaze anchoring her in place.
Watching.
Claiming.
Judging.
The night wore on, and the power games sharpened.
Near the end of the evening, as Mira stepped away from the dance floor toward the refreshment table, it happened.
A splash of red wine.
The glass "slipped" from Ares's hand just as she passed by.
It splattered across the bodice of her perfect dress, staining the deep blue into something wounded.
The room stilled.
Whispers rose like smoke.
Mira froze, humiliation burning beneath her skin.
Before she could react, Jae Min was already reaching for his coat, ready to wrap it around her.
But Ares beat him by a breath.
In one smooth, almost cold movement, Ares slipped his own black suit jacket over Mira's shoulders.
"An accident," Ares said, voice low. "Allow me."
It wasn't kindness.
It was dominance.
Ownership.
Jae Min's jaw tightened, his hands curling into fists at his sides.
Mira said nothing. She couldn't. Her throat felt thick with rage and something else she refused to name.
The party dissolved around them after that, polite smiles masking sharper judgments.
Later, in the shadowed underground parking lot, the real confrontation happened.
Jae Min caught Ares near his black car, the tension between them crackling like a live wire.
"You crossed a line tonight," Jae Min said quietly, dangerously."Stay away from her."
Ares just smiled faintly. "Since when do you tell me what lines I can cross?"
"This isn't business," Jae Min growled. "This is personal."
Ares's smile sharpened into something almost cruel."Everything is business, cousin. Remember that."
Without waiting for a response, Ares slid into his car and drove off, his taillights bleeding into the night.
But Jae Min stayed.
And when he turned back toward the exit ramp, his heart twisted.
Mira stood at the curb, the ruined dress clinging to her, shivering in the cool night air as she tried and failed to hail a taxi.
He didn't even hesitate.
Jae Min pulled up beside her, rolling down the window.
"Get in," he said gently.
She hesitated, pride warring with exhaustion.
Then she slid into the passenger seat, clutching Ares's jacket tighter around her shoulders.
Neither spoke much during the drive.
The silence wasn't uncomfortable.
It was heavy.
Weighted.
When they reached Jae Min's apartment sleek, modern, overlooking the river he led her inside without asking questions.
"You can stay here tonight," he said, voice rougher than usual. "I'll get you something to wear."
Mira looked up at him, tired and beautiful and furious all at once.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Jae Min swallowed hard.
Outside, parked across the street in the darkness, Ares Han sat in his car.
Watching.
Absorbing every moment.
Saying nothing.
But inside his chest, something burned hotter than jealousy.
Something far more dangerous.
Possession.
And Mira, unknowingly, had just placed herself at the centre of a storm none of them would be able to escape.