Maya

"Yeah, Kim Taehyung. The interview was conducted on the 24th," I speak over the phone to Jae-Eun, the HR manager of Arctic Healthcare, leaning back in my swivel chair and scrolling through Taehyung's profile that had been uploaded earlier in the recruitments database.

"Oh, right! I remember, Miss. Harris. He was shortlisted along with Miss. Kwon..." he exhales sharply. "But she was selected," he adds remorsefully.

"And why was Mr. Kim rejected? May I know the reasons?" I demand quite sternly since the entire talent acquisition team of the two companies—Azure Insurance which is the company that I work for, and Arctic Healthcare which is the recently acquired Healthcare partner company—report to me. Although I am not expected to keep track of all the interviews and recruitments, the team is answerable when I demand explanations about their activities.

"Miss. Harris," he breathes out, his voice lowering. "Miss. Kwon is our senior process manager's daughter, and there was a lot of pressure on me to get her placed in this job. But, in all honesty, Mr. Kim was definitely the better candidate, and he would have easily swept this off if not for her. I'm extremely sorry about what has happened," his tone is laced with regret.

"This is unacceptable, Jae-Eun. You can't just say that he could have got the job if not for her, when, in all honesty, he really was the better candidate. I am sure to escalate this issue at a higher management level. Who is this senior process manager?" The tone of my voice is strict, strong with anger and frustration.

"Mrs. Kwon Ye-Byeol. Please do not mention that I was involved in this. I really didn't do it for any personal benefits. It was just that she was constantly breathing down on my neck and irritating me beyond my limits," he speaks in a tense tone, evidently showing his nervousness and fear of being exposed.

"Do you want me to believe that?" I roll my eyes, laughing sarcastically as I drag my chair closer to my desk and open up my e-mail.

There's a short pause on the line after which he speaks again.

"Miss. Harris, let's make a deal and keep it internal. I can do something about Mr. Kim's placement," the way he speaks confidently, clearly says that he already has a plan sorted out, and I want to give it a try and see what he has in mind.

"Meet me at my office in ten minutes," I end the call, knowing fully well that there is always a possibility of the security team tapping into random internal calls, and I would definitely not want to ruin my hard-earned reputation by allowing them to overhear me discussing a recruitment deal with the HR team.

In exactly five minutes, Jae-Eun, the HR manager of Arctic Healthcare, enters my office, carefully closing the door behind him.

"Sit down," I point to the chair at the other end of the desk from me and lean forward resting my elbows on the table, my hands linked together.

"Miss. Harris, I'm terribly sorry about the mishap. But there is something we can do internally," he arrives straight at the point of discussion and speaks in an enthusiastic manner.

"Explain"

"There was a resignation this morning, and it was totally unexpected. It is a crtical vacancy for the post of senior healthcare claims assessment manager, the same one that Mr. Kim had applied for and got rejected. We haven't yet posted an interview call for this post, and I can make arrangements to take in Mr. Kim for this vacancy," Jae-Eun sounds eager to cover up his mistake with this offer.

"His profile has been rejected. How do you think you will explain it if he's selected now out of nowhere?" I lean back in my seat and quirk a brow at him, twirling a bunch of hair between my fingers.

Since he is relatively new here, he isn't fully aware of the way things work, and I am trying to test his capability to handle this sticky situation.

"I- uhm.. I will check with the others in the te-"

I wave my hand at him to stop talking because he just made it obvious that he has no idea how to deal with this situation on his own.

"Use the internal employee referral option and submit Mr. Kim's profile using my referral link. That way his profile would still be an active one, and there is also no need to conduct an interview since it's already done. Do you get what I'm saying? I will handle the management level explanations, if anything is needed." I push my glasses up my nose bridge and wait for his response.

"Oh, that sounds perfect. I'll do it right away, Miss. Harris," he bows his head a little to express his gratitude.

"You don't need to thank me, Jae-Eun. Next time, please don't give into such pressure. It is shameful that such a good profile was rejected. Make sure this doesn't repeat," I inform him with a little smile, and he nods vigorously.

"Thank you, I will get working on this today," he rises from his seat and gets ready to leave my office.

"Oh, and please bcc me in all the e-mails related to this profile and opening, and don't e-mail the candidate giving him any false hopes. Do it only when his confirmation letter is ready. Thank you, in advance," I place a solid request, and Jae-Eun agrees with a smile.

In about thirty minutes, I start receiving a thread of internal e-mails circulated with regards to Taehyung's profile being uploaded through the internal employee referral program with my employee code and other things related to the new job opening.

I really hope things work out in his favor, and he gets this job which he truly deserves.

***

As I relax in my bath after a hectic day at work, my mind keeps drifting to Taehyung and his beautiful eyes that seemed so tormented when he came here on Saturday night. Although it has been two whole days already, my mind still can't think of anything else except him.

In fact, he has been on my mind ever since we met at the reunion almost ten days ago.

I had absolutely no idea that he was interested in me, and not even once had I guessed that the pink rose bouquets and those little hand-written notes could have been from him. I was so caught up in leaving sticky notes, letters and little gifts for Taehyung that I didn't bother to dig into the mystery sender—which happened to be him!

How ironic!

I laugh a little to myself as my fingers play with the bubbles in my bath, my mind and heart residing in two different worlds—the past and the present—yet both revolving around Taehyung.

Picking up my glass of wine that I had placed earlier at the side of the bathtub, I bring it to my lips and take a big sip, letting out a sigh and tilting my head back thereafter.

The relaxing music playing on my phone along with the aroma of the hot bath, the mild effects of the rich wine and the dim lighting in my bathroom are all making it hard for my eyes to stay open.

I wish Taehyung was here with me, right here, right now, talking to me, laughing with me, looking at me with his alluring eyes...smothering me with his wet kisses...

As my mind drifts away to our first kiss, I could feel my breathing growing heavier, my eyes refusing to open, my hand moving over my fully awake nipples and reaching between my thighs.

My fingers open up my lips and glide along the warm and wet folds, my toes curling and eyebrows furrowing at the pleasurable sensation.

Taehyung steps into the bath—naked, aroused and irresistible—and he lets his body sink into the warm water, the bubbles slowly kissing his skin and enveloping him. He leans towards me with his powerful stare that is making my thighs clench with desire, and he straddles me, bending down to kiss my neck.

"Maya, you're so beautiful," he whispers in his deep and velvety voice that flows through my ears like the finest chocolate.

He then delicately trails his lips down my neck; my chest now heaving and my breathing much shallower. Taehyung's hand gently traces the curve of my breast as he fondles the softness in his large hand and guides it to his mouth, his lips touching the tip of my erect nipple in a tender kiss, and then his tongue slowly swipes over it, making my lips part and a sound similar to a moan falls from my lips.

He uses his tongue and fingers to pleasure both my breasts while letting his erection rub against my core. My hands, desperately wanting to hold on to something, reach for his thick hair...

My phone rings loudly, breaking me out of my state of delirium and causing the music that's playing on it to come to an abrupt halt—along with my heart that stops beating for a while.

The loud noise startles me, and I scramble out of the tub to grab my phone that's on the sink counter. The call is from Jae-Eun, and I answer it at once.

"Jae-Eun, yeah?" I pick up a towel while switching over the call to loudspeaker.

"Miss. Harris, the confirmation letter for Mr. Kim's position in the claims team would be ready tomorrow, and we will e-mail it to him, and bcc you," he speaks in full zeal.

My eyes widen in happiness and surprise, and the towel drops to the floor, as does my jaw.

"Wow, Jae-Eun! This is amazing and really fast too. Thank you so much for this great news. I really appreciate your hard work!" I fail to conceal the excitement in my voice.

"It's not a problem at all, Miss. Harris. I did wrong, and this was my only chance to correct that mistake. I'm happy that it worked out too. You will also receive your referral bonus in a month," he adds enthusiastically.

I smile big as I wipe off a little bit of the condensation fog on the mirror to look at myself.

"This means a lot," my voice softens. "So will he receive the confirmation letter tomorrow? Say, by 7 pm?" I ask him as my mind begins planning out how to reveal this great news to Taehyung.

"Yeah, or earlier if it's ready"

"Okay. That sounds perfect," I answer happily before we say goodbye to each other and end the call.

The moment I end the call, the song resumes playing, and my smile grows wider.

This job meant so much to Taehyung, and I really want to see his face glow with happiness when he knows that he has in fact earned the job and not missed it.

After thinking about it for a while, I decide how to reveal it to him tomorrow. Hopefully, he shouldn't know it himself before I tell him about it. That would deflate my spirits.

Drying myself, I finish drinking my glass of wine and drain out the bathtub before wearing Taehyung's T-shirt and getting into bed, comforting myself against a few soft pillows.

Woohoo! Taehyung got the job!! Who else is celebrating with me?
🍾🥳🥂

Double update today because I'm in the mood for it.
😏

Stop this man!
🥶

Published on : 05/04/2022