Dinner arrived in quiet courses, roasted lamb in rosemary glaze, soft bread brushed with olive oil, wine that glowed deep red under candlelight.
Conversation came easier than either expected. Nara found herself laughing like really laughing, at Keigh's dry humor, the kind that came in short, clever bursts when he was relaxed. He wasn't the serious, perfectly-composed man she'd known in the office. He was warmer, freer.
And she, in turn, surprised him. He had expected her to be polite, careful with her words, maybe even guarded. But once she started talking about her work and how she'd become a hard working employee, the way she found beauty in details others overlooked, he couldn't look away.
He listened as if every word she said was a melody he didn't want to end.
When the plates were cleared, Nara leaned back, sipping her wine, her eyes catching the dim gold light. "I have to admit, I didn't see this coming. You, me, dinner in a hidden restaurant you secretly own… it sounds like something out of a movie."
Keigh's lips curved slightly. "And what kind of movie would that be?"
She tilted her head. "Probably the kind that ends in a plot twist."
He chuckled softly, swirling his glass. "Maybe. Or maybe it's the start of something."
Her smile faltered just a little, not from discomfort, but from the way his tone shifted. It was softer now, more deliberate.
He set his glass down. "Nara… I've tried to make sense of this."
She blinked. "Of what?"
He looked at her then, really looked, the kind of look that made the rest of the room blur out of existence. "You."
Her breath caught.
He leaned forward, elbows resting on the table, voice quiet but steady. "From the first day you walked into that club, you've been in my head. And I told myself it was just curiosity, the kind that fades once you understand it. But it didn't fade."
"Keigh…" she began softly, but he shook his head.
"I'm not saying this to pressure you. I know what it looks like, me, saying this, when I have no business feeling the way I do. But I can't keep pretending I don't."
Silence wrapped around them, heavy but intimate. The soft music, the flicker of candlelight, everything felt suspended.
Nara's heart thudded painfully in her chest. She'd seen him in boardrooms, at events, surrounded by people who worshipped the ground he walked on. But never like this. Never so unmasked.
Finally, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. "You're… the most unexpected thing that's happened to me in a long time."
He smiled faintly. "I'll take that as a good thing."
"It's…" she exhaled slowly. "It's complicated."
"I know," he said. "But I'm not asking you for an answer tonight. I just needed you to know. Whatever this is, whatever we are, I want to see where it goes."
For a moment, she could only stare at him. The calm in his tone, the quiet sincerity behind every word. It wasn't a game, or a chase. It was real.
And it terrified her.
But then he smiled again, small, patient, warm. The kind that made her pulse skip before she could stop it.
"Keigh…" she said softly, almost to herself. "You have no idea what you're getting into."
He chuckled. "Maybe not. But I've never been one to back down from a challenge."
Her lips curved, unable to fight the pull of his confidence.
When the waiter returned to ask if they wanted dessert, Nara surprised herself by saying yes.
And as they shared a slice of tiramisu, laughing at something small and ordinary, the tension between them softened into something almost peaceful, the kind of peace that only happens when two people stop resisting what's been there all along.