unrivaled

Weeks passed with both Jin and Dae basically marking time half the world away from each other.

Jin addressed the design problems with  2 designers he hired to replace Dae.  Even with 2 of them they took weeks to discover what she would have intuitively known instantly. 

Jin was still concerned, but the project was marginally back on track. He worried as these problems were reported in negative reports to his board of directors. 

Long meetings with the chair of the board and his father became the norm.

Jin was struggling and he was facing all of this alone.

Jin had lost all track of time, days faded into weeks, winter melted into spring.  He forced himself to focus only on his work, hoping for peace, finding himself numb instead.

Every day the battle grew to keep control of the company.  Rumors and back page news story gossip were destroying his brand reputation. 

JK had worked tirelessly to find the source, but could not.  He was no closer to getting information on the leak and there was a constant fear another one could occur at any minute.

Jin was angry, tired and frustrated.  He expected every day to receive the news of a takeover bid, maybe more than one.

Dae was finding that she really liked the tiny firm she was working for.  They were making tremendous progress and she was slipping in pointers every day.

She was constantly finding ways to invest in the “kids" as she called them and the company.  Markets were beginning to open for them. 

They made her remember when she first began to design and how much she loved the whole process.  She remembered the challenges of her start at the company and helped ease them through some decisions that needed her experience.

Today she had the rare luxury of sleeping in.  Her boss had called her in yesterday and given her a week off work. 

She had awakened with the sun but had happily rolled over and drifted back to sleep.

She was in the middle of a lovely dream when she began to hear a bell ringing in the distance.  Jin was coming to pick her up, he would be at her door any second and she could not wait to leap into his arms. 

Her heart beat faster as the doorbell rang.  She rushed to open the door but something was wrong.  She struggled to make sense of the constant ringing until she realized it was her phone.

Still half asleep, she answered and groaned at Tae's chipper “wake up sleepy head!” 

Of course, it was him, no one else had this phone number.  He laughed as she cursed at him and waited for her to shake the sleep off.

“Taehyung,” she whined,” why did you call?  You ruined a good dream.”

“Spill it!” he whispered,” was it about me?”

He laughed again when she snapped “NO!”, then decided it was time to jolt her awake.

“Wake up!! Get up, get dressed and meet me in the café downstairs in 10 minutes.  Hurry! “he urged.

“Tae!  You know I could never be ready in ten minutes! Besides, this is my first day….” She trailed off as she came awake enough to realize what he had said.

“Tae… did you say you were here?  What’s wrong?? Is it…” she stumbled.

“Everything is fine.  Everyone is ok.  I just need Dae time.  Hurry up and see for yourself,” he coaxed. 

She hung up on him and flew to the shower, grabbing the outfit hanging closest to her and rushing out the door with just her phone and keys.

Dae was looking for Taehyung as soon as she opened the door. 

She saw him immediately seated at the small table in the back.  She smiled thinking how many times she had sat in that very place and wished for a long heart to heart with him. 

He was leaned back in the chair, his face lit with his beautiful smile, every woman and some men where openly staring at him. 

He was dressed in his quirky style, a beret covering his hair and his glasses perched on his nose. 

He just landed after an international flight and he looked like he was posing for a photoshoot.  Tears pricked her eyes.  Damn she had missed him.

She hurried to him and flung herself in his arms.  Tae just held her as she jabbered on about missing him. 

He was listening to what she was not saying.  She was lonely and homesick.

He stepped away from her and kissed her forehead. 

“I have missed you too.  So damn much!” he whispered.

He held her seat as she settled in, then took her hand as she told him the best dishes to order.

He had to reassure her again that everyone was well. She asked some questions about the company and her family and Tae spent the brunch filling her in.

As they finished the last dish, he pushed away from the table and demanded, “Take me shopping.  This is Paris!! I need all the newest designs!”

For the next several hours the pair wandered from funky thrift shops to the private showrooms of the most famous design houses. 

If Dae noticed that Taehyung was selecting almost an entire new wardrobe for her she did not let on. 

Along the way Tae shared about their friends.  He told her about the nights they all spent drinking, the long hours they spent working. 

He shared everything but the one thing Dae wanted most to know.

She began to grow nervous again for his reason for coming.  Was Jin truly going to marry Alex?  She could not gather the courage to ask about him.

Another fantastic meal saw them full and exhausted in the courtyard of the café.  The soft candles and lights of the small garden made it a perfect meal in the setting sun. 

Tae wandered up to the bar and had a long conversation with the pretty barkeep. 

Dae found herself jealous of the young girl, free to follow her heart, a beautiful and kind man flirting with her.

She watched as the girl blushed prettily and Taehyung handed her one of his cards. Dae had begun to question if he would be staying at her place that night when he turned and headed back to her, carrying a bottle of champagne in his hand. 

His smile warmed her heart.  He was so dear to her; she felt a huge weight lift from her knowing she had someone here.

Tae held out his hand to her and led her up to her apartment. He immediately kicked off his shoes.

“This is wonderful,” he said, looking around the apartment,” why don’t you take a quick shower and get comfy while I snoop around?”

Dae laughed at his curiosity, but agreed a hot shower was just what she needed.

As soon as Tae heard the water begin to run, he selected a comfortable outfit from the closet and quickly packed away all the purchases they had made that day.

By the time Dae came back into the room she found him sprawled on the low bed.  He groaned as his tired body stretched out.

Dae did not have the heart to scold him, so she brought candles and glasses over, lighting the small fairy lights around the room as she did.  

She went to the large window and pulled back the curtains so they could watch the last colors of the sunset fade to stars.