Chapter 4: There’s No Place for You

I picked up the business card that had fallen to the floor.

On it, stamped in sharp black letters, was a name: Seo Jae-Ha—a name belonging to the eldest son of Hojin Group.

Seo Jae-Ha…?

Seo Ji-Han’s half-brother. The real heir to Hojin Group.

When did he even come here?

Throughout my entire marriage, I had barely seen him—perhaps less than ten times.

He was the kind of man who didn’t concern himself with anything that wasn’t his business.

And yet, he had placed a jacket over me as I slept?

Even stranger—Jae-Ha was supposed to be in the U.S. on long-term assignment. He wasn’t supposed to return until two years from now.

So… it really was him who left that jacket on me?

Why?

His actions made no sense. Question marks filled my head.

Did he feel sorry for an old ex-fiancée?

That thought brought a small, bitter smile to my lips.

The heir to Hojin Group was never supposed to be Seo Ji-Han.

The marriage between Hojin’s successor and the granddaughter of W Group had been arranged the year I was born.

And the original groom in that arrangement… had been Seo Jae-Ha.

I never imagined I’d end up marrying Ji-Han…

I remembered it vividly—like a scene from a dream.

“I won’t marry her.”

“What?! Do you have any idea what you’re saying?!”

“Yes. I don’t plan to marry—ever. Not Yoon Yeo-Jin. Not anyone.”

“Then you’ll forfeit your right to inherit Hojin Group.”

I could still see Chairman Seo Mu-Jin’s seething glare as he confronted Jae-Ha.

But Jae-Ha didn’t back down. He had stared right back and said, Then so be it. I won’t inherit it.”

He had turned his back not on some small inheritance, but on a sprawling conglomerate.

And just like that, he left Korea for the U.S.

Years later, without warning, he returned—not to take his place in Hojin, but as the major shareholder of H Media Holdings, which controlled KBC, one of Korea’s top broadcasting networks.

No one had expected it.

But Jae-Ha quickly made waves, even taking KBC public.

With that momentum, it looked like he might devour Hojin itself.

“Ma’am?”

The housekeeper’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

I recalled how Jae-Ha later declared his independence from the family. I remembered his barely veiled hatred for Hojin—for his stepmother, his half-brother, and the father who sided with them.

All of that resentment had been channeled toward the company they loved most.

Why didn’t I think of him sooner?

My hand tightened around the jacket.

A sliver of hope sparked within me, and my heart began to pound.

If Seo Jae-Ha had really returned, then I had to see him.

“I’m stepping out for a moment.”

“Now? At this hour?”

The housekeeper blinked in surprise. It was nearly 2 a.m.

Still, I grabbed the jacket and stood up.

He might’ve left already. But the faint scent still lingered, which meant he couldn’t have been gone long.

I passed through the empty hospital lobby. Outside, the early morning air stung against my cheeks.

“He’s probably gone…”

I ran a hand down my face in frustration.

Fine. I’ll call him first thing in the morning. There’s still time.

Just as I turned to leave, I heard footsteps—slow, steady—coming up from the lower steps.

And then, in the blink of an eye, our eyes met.

“You’re awake. It’s been a while.”

Seo Jae-Ha.

The man I had so desperately wanted to find was standing right in front of me.

After all these years, he looked just as dazzling as I remembered.

I stood frozen, words caught in my throat.

A breeze passed gently between us, brushing my skin and ruffling his hair.

As he drew closer, the scent of his cologne—deep and citrusy—wrapped around me.

“When did you arrive?”

“Yesterday.”

“Then why did you leave without saying anything?”

His voice had been casual until that last question—when his eyes briefly darkened.

“Because I didn’t want anyone to know I was here.”

“…”

“You left that jacket behind on purpose, didn’t you? Though I guess the passport gave you away.”

He nodded toward the passport in my hand.

Clearly, he had heard everything from the media.

I handed it back to him without comment.

“Are you okay?”

He flipped the passport open and examined it—then looked at me.

“What?”

No one had asked me that.

Not once during the entire day, as I endured the endless stream of mourners.

Everyone only cared about W Group’s future—not me.

“I asked if you’re okay. You look exhausted.”

“…I… I’m fine.”

His simple question brought a lump to my throat.

I bit my lip hard to keep the tears from spilling.

Seeing that I couldn’t answer, he simply nodded—and turned away.

“Alright then. I’ll go now.”

As he turned, the wind caught his black hair, tossing it gently.

“Oh, and one more thing.”

I took a step forward, unable to let him leave just yet.

But he turned before I could say another word.

“…?”

“Seo Ji-Han.”

He said it so quietly—but the name echoed loudly between us.

He stepped closer, his gaze sharpening.

“Don’t trust that bastard too much.”

“…What?”

What does he mean by that?

His words tangled in my head, stirring confusion and anxiety.

I searched his eyes for meaning, but just then, my phone buzzed in my pocket.

[Urgent: Shareholders are moving. Call ASAP. -Attorney Hyeon-Ik]
[Vice President Kim Young-Min is in motion. -Attorney Hyeon-Ik]

My eyes froze on the name: Kim Young-Min.

It had begun.

The shareholders were moving, which meant Ji-Han had made his move too.

I looked up and met Jae-Ha’s gaze again.

His eyes, previously calm, flickered with a new, subtle intensity.

I have to stop the shareholder meeting.

In my past life, Ji-Han stood in for me and took the chairman’s seat.

With Kim Young-Min’s support, the merger between W Group and Hojin was passed unanimously.

“So… should I start calling you ‘sister-in-law’ now?”

Jae-Ha grinned faintly as he prepared to leave.

My hand, gripping my phone, began to tremble.

How can I get this man on my side?

“I’m sorry about your family… But time heals.”

Was that wisdom from experience?

In that moment, I saw a shadow flicker in his eyes—deeper than anything I had seen before.

Jae-Ha was the perfect opponent for Seo Ji-Han.

A man who could take down Hojin itself.

Maybe… just maybe… Meeting him like this, in this life, wasn’t a coincidence—it was destiny.

A chance to change this wretched fate.

“Seo Jae-Ha.”

He stopped at the sound of my voice.

“Can we talk? Somewhere quiet—just the two of us.”

The wind stirred again, curling between us.

His eyes widened in brief surprise—then settled, amused.

A sly smile tugged at his lips.

“Just the two of us? And what would we have to talk about?”

“Not as your brother’s fiancée—but as Yoon Yeo-Jin, the granddaughter of W Group’s founder.”

“…”

For the first time since we met again, his eyes glimmered with interest.

“You won’t regret the meeting.”

His smile slowly faded.

* * *

I stayed awake all night after that encounter.

Between the sudden shareholder meeting and Jae-Ha’s unexpected return, my mind was spinning.

Morning came before I knew it.

Just like in the past, Ji-Han returned only after my grandfather’s funeral had ended.

“I’m sorry. I should’ve been with you.”

He had the nerve to apologize—wearing the exact same suit from the day before.

He pulled me into a hug.

The moment I smelled the cologne on him—her scent—I shoved him away.

I remember it now. I had smelled that scent on Seo-Rin.

The man I was supposed to marry was late to my grandfather’s funeral because he’d been with my best friend.

You bastard.

“Enough. Let go.”

This time, I couldn’t even pretend to hide my disgust.

Just then, Attorney Hyeon-Ik returned from a brief phone call.

After meeting with the shareholders, Hyeon-Ik came just in time for the funeral to end.

“They’re both critical, you said?”

“I can’t believe it… Chairman Yoon is gone, and if Ji-Young goes too, then W Group…”

Chairman Seo, my grandfather’s closest friend, looked devastated. Even the vice chairman stood silent, his expression grave.

“Miss Yoon. You need to decide. We can’t let the shareholders push this through unchecked.”

His voice was firm.

At first, the shareholders hadn’t reacted to my grandfather’s death.

But when news spread that my parents were also in critical condition, they started to move.

It was obvious.

A 29-year-old girl, now completely alone, must’ve seemed like easy prey.

“I’ll go in your place.”

Ji-Han gently wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

“She’s going to be my wife. This concerns Hojin too—W Group is her family. We’re one household now.”

He smiled softly, but his eyes burned with ambition.

It took everything in me not to scoff in his face.

You think we’re family?

You killed me. My family. My future.

“No.”

I smiled bitterly and pulled his arm off my shoulder.

“I’ll attend the meeting myself.”

“You won’t even understand the inner workings of the company. I should—”

“Ji-Han.”

I am the heir.

Watch closely.

There’s no place for you—not by my side and not in W Group.

“And besides… we’re not even legally married, are we?”