"So you two met while looking for me." Rinko rubbed her head lightly as she looked at the two people in front of her.
Shido nodded and said, "Well, that's what happened. Since I was already on my way to see you, I brought her with me."
Kanzaki, who was sitting beside Shido, huffed softly with her arms crossed over her modest chest. She shot Rinko a slightly annoyed look and said, "Hmph! In the first place, I wouldn't have gotten lost if you had called or messaged me where you were."
Hearing Kanzaki's words, Rinko felt a bit awkward and gave a wry smile. It was her fault as she had completely forgotten about Kanzaki because her mind had been preoccupied with Shido. "I'm really sorry about that."
Seeing how sincerely Rinko apologized, Kanzaki felt a little guilty. She wasn't actually angry, just irritated that Rinko forgot to tell her where the office was. So she said, "...Apology accepted. But don't do that again, okay? I would've been completely lost if not for Shido."
"Oh?"
When Kanzaki mentioned Shido's name, Rinko raised an eyebrow, then glanced at him. Shido, who was calmly sipping the tea Rinko had prepared, noticed her stare. As if she were silently questioning him, he lifted his eyes and said, "What?"
"You're already calling each other by your first names?" Rinko asked, a bit surprised.
"Well, I don't see anything wrong with that. We also call each other by our first names, right, Rinko~?" Shido replied with a teasing tone.
Hearing his words, Rinko couldn't help but blush. Being teased by her boss, who was younger than her always made her flustered. Still, even though she looked embarrassed, she didn't dislike it at all. In fact, she found it… nice.
The two of them seemed to be flirting without even realizing it, completely forgetting that someone else was in the room. Kanzaki watched them, confusion written all over her face. Even though Rinko was much older than Shido, his maturity made them look unexpectedly compatible.
In the end, Kanzaki couldn't help but interject, "Say, are you two really just relatives? Because you look more like lovers lost in your own little world, flirting."
Hearing Kanzaki's words, Shido's expression barely changed; he simply continued sipping his tea as if nothing had happened. Rinko, however, reacted very differently. As a high-ranking executive of one of the biggest conglomerates in Japan, showing such an embarrassing expression in front of her own employee was mortifying. Her face turned even redder.
But Kanzaki's follow-up comment only confused her more. Rinko blinked and looked at Kanzaki with a puzzled expression.
"Relatives?"
Seeing Rinko's confusion, Kanzaki continued, "Aren't you two relatives? Shido told me that earlier."
Hearing Kanzaki's words, Rinko finally understood why she had mistaken them for relatives. She turned to look at Shido, only to see him glance back at her with a calm smile. That simple smile made her heart skip a beat, and her cheeks flushed a soft pink.
'Dammit! That smile is just too unfair!'
Rinko grit her teeth internally, silently scolding Shido. His smile was far too dangerous… far too tempting.
Still, as a professional secretary, she managed to steady herself in just a few seconds. After taking a quiet breath, she returned her expression to normal.
Then she looked at Kanzaki, who was waiting expectantly. At that moment, Rinko realized Kanzaki had no idea that Shido was the founder of the Flugel Conglomerate, her boss.
Rinko cleared her throat lightly and said, "No, we're not relatives."
"Eh? But-"
"He's my boss."
Before Kanzaki could continue, Rinko cut her off, and the words stunned Kanzaki. She froze for a moment, then slowly turned to look at Shido. He gave her a wry smile, and Kanzaki could practically hear him saying, "You're the one who assumed that, and I didn't really get the chance to explain…"
Kanzaki was truly shocked. The handsome young man sitting beside her was actually her boss. Realizing this, she felt as if she had been played with, causing her lips to twitch in irritation. It didn't help that she knew Shido probably already recognized her as a famous singer from the start yet he never mentioned it at all.
Then, seeing Rinko looking amused at her reaction, Kanzaki felt she had to at least get back at her a little, after all, this whole misunderstanding started because of Rinko. And since Kanzaki could clearly tell that Rinko had special feelings for Shido despite him being her boss, she wanted to see that same flustered expression appear on Rinko's beautiful face.
Noticing the sly smile creeping onto Kanzaki's lips, Rinko felt a faint sense of unease, but she didn't think too much of it.
"Shido—no, Boss, I…"
"What are you suddenly being so formal about, Elsa?" Just like Rinko, Shido could tell Kanzaki was planning something, but he knew it wasn't anything harmful. So he waited, an amused smile forming in his heart as he watched her.
But Kanzaki's next action stunned Rinko, making her wear the exact same bewildered expression Kanzaki had shown earlier. Even Shido was surprised, though he didn't move to avoid her at all.
Kanzaki set down the teacup in her hand, then suddenly wrapped her arms around Shido's neck. Rinko's eyes widened instantly, her mouth opening as if to say something, but—
"You—"
Rinko only managed to say one word before Kanzaki suddenly leaned forward and pressed her small lips against Shido's while closing her eyes. Not stopping there, she deepened the kiss by inserting her tongue, causing faint, wet lewd sounds to echo in the quiet office.
Rinko, who saw this, was stunned and couldn't say anything. Her face was red, though it was unclear whether it was from embarrassment or anger. One thing was certain, Rinko was jealous, as could be seen in her eyes.
"Hehe, that reaction is even better than I expected." Kanzaki thought inwardly, gloating silently as she watched Rinko's stunned expression, on the verge of tears.
Still, Kanzaki found it incredibly pleasant to kiss Shido like this, especially since he didn't resist at all. It made her even happier and prouder that her charm worked on her boss. Though the redness on her own cheeks became more evident as she grew a little dizzy from kissing Shido.
As for Shido, he didn't resist Kanzaki's advances at all and even cooperated when she inserted her tongue in his mouth, their tongues intertwining as they exchanged saliva. The scene was so obscene that, despite Rinko's shame, anger, and envy, she couldn't look away.
'This girl is quite bold, isn't she? Well… since I'm helpless, I can only let myself be taken advantage of by Elsa. Sorry, Rinko, Lisbeth, but Kanzaki forced herself on me', Shido thought as he kissed her back
The kiss lasted for about two minutes before their lips finally parted, a silver thread of saliva stretching between them before breaking.
Opening her misty eyes and staring at the man in front of her, Kanzaki's face was quite red, despite her usually shameless demeanor. Still, a smug look remained on her face as she shifted her attention to Rinko. "You asked me to come here because of my future concerts, right, Rinko? You really didn't need to make me come all this way just to say it, you could have just messaged me next time."
Kanzaki paused for a moment before continuing, "Well, since I've already heard what you wanted to say, I'll head back first. You seem to have something to discuss with the boss, right?"
After saying that, Kanzaki stood up and adjusted her dress before adding, "Then, I'll go first. See you later, Rinko… boss~"
She winked at Shido before finally exiting Rinko's office, leaving both Shido and Rinko speechless.
Yet, Shido was also helpless since Kanzaki left him with another problem. Looking at the woman before him, whose expression was a mix of emotions, he couldn't help but smile wryly. "That… would you believe me if I said I was caught off guard?"