“Starlight isn’t on the market for acquisition. I tried to make that clear from the start,” Julia said.
“We’re not offering to buy right now anyways. I’ve heard you loud and clear. It’s impossible not to take you seriously, Julia. You are an impressive business leader.”
Julia begged her neck not to turn red at the compliment.
“Thank you. That’s appreciated,” she said.
“Look, I’ll be completely honest here. Hansuk Holdings wants you, Julia. We want you working for us. We want your mind helping us expand, infusing new energy into what we’re trying to do in the market. It’s not about Starlight in the long run.”
Julia straightened her back a little further and let out a quick breath. It was incredibly flattering. She didn’t know how to even wrap her head around what Andrew was saying. She wasthe one they wanted. This was Julia’s playground, where she could feel the most confident. And she was desirable here.
She might be undateable in her personal life, but in her professional one, she was the prize.
“Of course, it would require you to relocate to Korea at some point soon,” Andrew added.
“I’m sorry?” Had she heard it right? Korea?
“You’ve mentioned how you wanted the Korean market. You need to understand it first. You need to live it. Otherwise, how authentic would it actually be?” The reality of what Andrew was saying, and the matter-of-factness with how he said it, hit Julia. Hard. He was right. How authentic could it be without having ever lived it, without knowing the market? Julia’s mind was being blown. “And we, in turn, want some of your expertise in the Korean American market. It’s a really new frontier for us. Focusing specifically on a diaspora consumer.”
Julia was trying to keep up with everything Andrew was saying. Had she been wrong all along? Maybe she didn’t need Korea. She had the diaspora consumer base. Maybe what she was doing had been the right path all along.
Julia was torn.
She’d be a fool to pass up the massive opportunity that was being offered her. A huge job at an industry-leading company... in Korea. Leaving her family and friends behind. The thought pained her, if she were honest with herself.
Or... staying here, continuing as is, family, Starlight... the possibility of running into Tae.
But maybe she needed to find a new start where that wouldn’t be the case.
It might not be what she wanted, but Julia couldn’t help but wonder if Korea could be exactly what she needed right now.
28
Gunbae
Tae
Tae had just returned from the Korean grocery store, bringing all the bags in from his car, when he heard the clatter of a dropped spoon. He rushed into the kitchen to find his mom gingerly bending over to pick it up.
“Aigoo,” she moaned as she held her healing ribs.
“Mom, are you okay?” Tae ran up to her to help her stand. “Come sit down.”
“No, no, I’m okay. I have no time to sit,” she said, brushing his hands away.
Tae looked around the kitchen. All the burners were turned on with pots and pans ready to be filled. An onion and garlic cloves sat on the cutting board.
“Umma, what are you doing?” Tae didn’t want to be furious at his mother. But his fuse had been short the last few days, and he couldn’t help but snap at her. No matter how many times he told her to rest and recover, she just wouldn’t listen. Neither would his father.
“I’m making lunch. Did you get everything I asked from the store?”
“I got whatever was on the list. If you didn’t put it on the list—” he shook the paper itemizing the one thousand things his mother wrote down in her terrible Hangul penmanship “—then, I didn’t get it.” Why it mattered whether he got firm tofu or extra firm tofu, bean sprouts or mung bean sprouts, he couldn’t figure out. Was it just the world’s cruel form of punishment, roaming around a Korean market for the right ingredients?
“Taehyung-ah, why are you yelling at me?”
Tae closed his eyes and let his head fall back on his shoulders. God, give him strength.
Tae needed some air. He needed to take a breath and calm down. “I’m sorry, Mom. But you’re supposed to be resting. And you never listen.” He shook his head. “I’m going out back. Umma, listen to me. Do not put away the groceries. I will do that when I come back in. Okay?”
