Page 71 of Signed, I'm Yours!
Kevin notices me staring.
“Mr. Sinister’s orders. He wants people to know I work for him when we’re in public,” he explains. “And as for the party, it’s simple. I found the best catering and party companies and created a backlog of contracts and paperwork that made them think they had forgotten about their most prestigious event of the year. Grass even sent some of their staff to cater because they felt so guilty.”
“Grass? My friends have been trying to get a reservation there for months. How the heck did you do that?”
Kevin shrugs. “You’d be surprised how much people are willing to do when they feel guilty. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that they’ve found themselves with contracts that could get them sued for not delivering.”
I smile at him, but it doesn’t feel quite as warm as most of my smiles. This is wrong. On so many levels. Right? But if I know Seojun—and after five days of being inseparable from him, I feel like I do know him—he will find a way to compensate these people for their work. Will it be with stolen billionaire money? Very likely. I know it doesn’t make it entirely okay, but well, these people won’t miss their insurmountable wealth. Besides, only bad people get so much money, so in a way, the Sinister Seomyeong is a superhero. A modern-day Robin Hood.
“Jack!” someone behind me says, and I turn to find Annie, Lily, and the rest of the gang dressed in their usual casual clothes, sticking out like sore thumbs amid all the tuxedos and dresses.
“Guys! You came!” I put my drink down and go over to them to embrace them all one by one.
“I thought this was a nothing party,” Annie says when I hug her last.
I look at them and bite the inside of my cheek.
“It is.” I chuckle.
“It doesn’t look like a nothing party,” Lily says, and Zeke snaps his fingers in agreement.
“I know, but…” I startle when Bob and his wife enter. “See? Bob is here, and he’s not overdressed.”
Bob stops and looks down at his casual, jacket-less suit and frowns.
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”
“Nothing. That’s exactly what I’m saying.” I pat his shoulder before I turn to greet his wife, Martha.
“How are you, sweetie?”
I kiss her on the cheek and turn to look at the room.
“Quite the turnout,” Bob comments and picks up a glass of wine from a roaming server.
I nod and inspect the faces.
I find a few familiar ones from the office, including Karen and Mortie and other SPAM agents I’ve dealt with in the past.
How did Kevin find these people? Even I don’t have their contact details. I could use the database to find it, but I wouldn’t abuse the system like that, especially for a party that isn’t even real.
“That guy looks familiar, but I can’t place him.” Bob points to one of the men in a black suit standing by the champagne fountain and throwing daggers at everyone around him.
“He does look familiar,” I answer.
“Well, I, for one, don’t know who anyone is,” Zeke says.
“Yeah, it’s like Jack has more friends he hasn’t told us about,” Brandon cries, and I bite the inside of my cheek again.
I hate doing this to them. I hate that I even had to get them involved in this or that I can’t tell them it really means nothing. I don’t even know why we’re throwing this thing. It seems only Bob cared about missing it. I could have told him we moved the date to give us more time. But no, for some strange reason, I went with Seojun’s terrible plan of trying to wine and dine my colleagues so he can find his missing family.
What if this signature never ends? What if I’m tied to him for the rest of my life? Does that mean I can never tell my friends and colleagues this isn’t real? Will I have to marry Seojun next? This charade has gone far enough. I know he didn’t mean any harm when he said we’re engaged. It was more like a slip of the tongue, but it’s still hurting my friends.
He’s not a bad guy. I know he isn’t. Every day I spend with him is further proof of that. He’s kinder than he lets on and sweeter than he allows people to see. Even when he thinks he’s being devious or cunning, I can see right through him. I can see everything he’s been through, everything that’s shaped him,made him believe he had to be ruthless to succeed, to be cruel to be heard, to be bad to be good.
But even good people make bad decisions, and this has been a terrible one. Maybe I can talk to Seojun. Maybe he can do something about it. Especially if this signature bonding thing doesn’t go away like he’s convinced it will.
Yeah. That sounds like the best path forward.
