Chapter 4 - The Offer on the Table
The office grew quiet again, broken only by the low rumble of traffic crossing the bridge outside.
Olivia stood by the leather sofa, her hands trembling as she reached out. “Mr. Park... please. Give him back. I don't know what kind of game you’re playing, but I can't lose this job. If I lose my paycheck, we’re on the street by Saturday.”
Jae looked up from the baby. He didn't hand Noah over immediately. Instead, he sat down on the sofa, gently shifting the sleeping infant so he remained comfortable against his chest, and gestured to the plush armchair opposite him.
“Sit down, Olivia,” he said.
She hesitated, then slowly sat on the edge of the armchair, her posture rigid, ready to bolt if she had to.
“I don't play games with children,” Jae said, his voice steady and unyielding. “And I certainly don't fire competent staff over desperate circumstances. But your current arrangement is unsustainable. A mother working double shifts on her feet while hiding an infant in a storage room is a disaster waiting to happen.”
“I’ll find another babysitter,” Olivia said defensively, a spark of her old spirit flaring up. “I’ll figure something out. I always figure something out.”
“By relying on cracked screens and flaky neighbors?” Jae raised an eyebrow, a faint, sardonic smile touching the corner of his lips. “You are an accountant by degree, aren't you, Miss Mason?”
Olivia’s jaw dropped. “How do you—?”
“I told you. I read the payroll files. Your resume listed a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Illinois, topped with three years of corporate auditing before you took a break.” Jae leaned forward slightly, resting his free hand on his knee. “And yet, you’re carrying trays of smoked salmon for minimum wage plus tips because your car broke down and your credit score is wrecked.”
“Life happens,” Olivia whispered bitterly, looking down at her scuffed black shoes.
“It does,” Jae agreed. “Which is why I am offering you a position.”
Olivia looked up, her eyes wide with suspicion. “A position? Doing what? Waitressing?”
“No,” Jae said smoothly. “My private holding company, Park Global Logistics, has been auditing its supply chain acquisitions for the past two quarters. My current head of internal accounting is retiring at the end of the month, and I need someone sharp, desperate enough to work hard, and honest enough not to steal from me.”
Olivia stared at him as if he were speaking a foreign language. “You want me to... to be your accountant? Corporate?”
“I want you off the restaurant floor, out of the storage room, and behind a desk where your brain can actually be used,” Jae corrected. “The salary will be triple what you make here. Full health benefits. And—since I am well aware that you have childcare limitations—there is a private nursery suite on the thirty-second floor of this building, staffed by certified professionals, funded entirely by my corporate accounts.”
Olivia felt the room tilt.
Triple her salary? Health benefits? A private nursery in the very building where she worked?
It sounded like a fairy tale designed by someone who didn't understand how cruel the real world was.
“Why?” she asked, her voice cracking. “Why would you do that? You don't even know me.”
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Jae looked down at Noah, who stirred slightly, letting out a soft yawn and stretching his tiny arms against the billionaire’s expensive suit jacket.
“I know a fighter when I see one,” Jae said quietly, lifting his gaze back to hers. “And I know that when a man holds a child who trusts him implicitly, he remembers what matters.”
