This is the fourth story in the Undone series.
This is Jung Hoseok's time to shine.
He is taking control of a new project at Stellar Design, and he has decided it's time to take control of his love life as well. He is weary of being alone, and he...
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Izzy Walker stood on shaking knees and willed the hot blush to fade from her face. She could tell she had already made a fool of herself. Olivia had probably been counting on it.
The thought of Olivia Fitzgerald made her furious. Had she known Hoseok was at this firm? Was this her idea to find him and disrupt his life - again? Or was this all serendipity?
She could not think. She moved to sit, the whiskey in her hand more than needed now. Was it too early to drink here? Hell, she had no idea what time it was and decided she did not care.
She sipped the potent liquor then pushed it away. That was not what she needed right now after all. Right now she needed to find a dark corner in a silent room and several hours to decipher how in the hell she ended up flying half way around the world to walk into the same room as Jung Hoseok.
Then she needed several more to decide what she was going to do about it.
She shifted in her seat, folding and unfolding her legs under the table, shuffling papers and doing anything she could to distract her from the man striding to the front of the room. He commanded attention with his confidence. She allowed herself to look at him closely and knew at once it was a mistake.
He had filled out since the last time she saw him. He was taller, his shoulders broader. In contrast it seemed his features were even sharper, more mature. She stared at his jawline as he stood in profile to refer to the projected image on the wall.
His skin was flawless, honey colored and smooth. She was watching his hands as he gestured at the chart on the screen, elegant and strong even in that. But then he turned and smiled and she could not catch her breath.
His eyes danced with an inner spark that had always fascinated her. His mouth curved in a wide smile and without looking she knew the whole room had fallen under his spell. Then he laughed and she felt her heart jolt in a way it had not in years.
If you had asked, she would have sworn she had forgotten that sound, that it had been deleted from her memory like some trivial detail from a novel, discarded years ago as unimportant.
But the hard thump of her heart called her a liar and she had no defense.
She remembered. She remembered it all.
She glanced down at the report in front of her, pretending to study the information it contained. She took a deep breath and noticed one of her designers taking detailed notes in the margins of her report. She took that as permission to mentally check out.
This was too much, that laugh, his voice. Damn it! She could even smell him, the scent of cologne dragging back a flood of memories and emotions.
Her intent was to escape from the suffocating memories crowding around her. Instead she plunged heart first into the past.
The sight of Hoseok striding to the front of the room reminded her immediately of the first time she saw him.
She was a freshman at College, fresh from the shelter of her family into the rarified air of Boston. She had met her roommate over the summer at a series of parties and country club outings. Her family was wealthy, but Olivia Fitzgerald was from East Coast old money. They were in another league all together.
Luckily the girls hit it off, but more importantly the families did, with Mrs. Fitzgerald giving her approval for Isabelle to room with her darling Liv. Izzy did not realize until much later what a big deal that actually was.
She had come to campus a week ahead of Livi who was on a private island on the family yacht stealing the last days of summer.
The campus was slowly filling up, with new students unloading into dorms and apartments daily.
Early the week before the official start of classes, Izzy struck out on her own to explore the campus. It was a beautiful day, so when she found a small flower garden she plopped down and stretched out to rest.
The garden was near the fine arts building and she could already see a steady stream of theater kids meeting on the steps. The art majors were obvious from the sketch pads or paint splattered clothes.
A steady thump of music sounded from the building. Shouts of encouragement could be heard as someone shoved open an ancient window which creaked in protest.
She leaned back in the shade of a tree that was just beginning to flirt with autumn with it's subtle turn of crimson leaves.
There they were, the dancers. She smiled as the sounds changed and became more boisterous. She imagined the group as they improvised and traded challenges and insults. She missed it so much.
She had danced in a prestigious academy until she was 15. She lived for dance until her parents pulled her aside one day and explained it was fine for a child, but now she needed to begin to prepare for a career. She was devastated, but there was no moving her parents. She would not make a living as a dancer, she must chose a real career path.
She eventually discovered she had a gift for design and that became her focus. Her parents approved and pushed until she was accepted into one of the top schools in the country. She had not yet told her parents, but she was already juggling her schedule to include a modern dance class next semester.
The music stopped and she felt a sadness drift over her. For a brief moment she had been free from her worries, her body moved by the music. She was surprised at how deeply she missed it.
She stood slowly, noticing the sun had begun to set and the air was beginning to cool.
Before she could leave her hidden spot the door burst open and a small group spilled out into the late afternoon sun.
Then she saw him. His shirt was soaked in sweat and clung to his body, showing a chiseled chest and hard ridges of abdominal muscles. The sleeves had been ripped away and the sinewy strength of his arms was evident. He had that lithe dancer's body that was honed from hours of work. Shorts revealed muscular thighs and calves that flexed as he stood while doing cool down stretches.
Her eyes traveled up his body and noted the jet black hair damp and curling with sweat. His skin was tawny, the shade most every girl she knew would kill for.
Then she saw his face. He was talking and she could hear the low rumble of his voice, but what he was saying did not matter in the least. Something about him captivated her. She could not look away. It seemed strange at first, but soon she knew with certainty that he was a man you could trust, with your ideas, with your secrets, with your heart.
