The First Building Won! (Part 3)
Amy Moore let out a hearty laugh.
“Ah ha ha. Long time no see, Alex. I’ve come today as the young lady’s assistant.”
“Young lady? Then you must be…”
Alex’s gaze locked onto Amy Moore, and the moment he remembered she had participated in the auction, he leaned close to whisper in my ear.
Lucas was the landowner’s representative, so Amy must be Liam Moore’s granddaughter.
‘The landowner planned to buy the entire building and operate it. But why did they back out? I didn’t inflate the price that much…’
I recalled the words Amy had spoken yesterday.
‘Our client is incredibly strict.’
Was the grandfather not on good terms with her?
No, that couldn’t be it.
The building was still unfinished.
It was likely that while they would dump all the hassle onto someone else, once completion arrived they would acquire it cheaply.
‘Hmm. They literally told me themselves that buying it from me would be far more profitable. That second reason is far more believable.’
I had been the one who first requested the lease plan proposal, so I had to hear the details.
I never imagined they would submit a report in just one day.
Amy flipped through the cover of her report with a prim expression and began the briefing.
“You already know Vista Realty Partners joined the Douglas Building sale auction yesterday. This proposal is an updated version of the five-year plan we were preparing to implement once we acquired Douglas Building.”
Her voice was smooth yet razor-sharp.
Her briefing was concise and crystal clear, every point lodging itself perfectly in my ears.
The impression that they had prepared thoroughly for the purchase was overwhelming.
The only concern was that their projected income was nearly triple what we had originally anticipated.
Even with Vista’s substantial fee rate, it far exceeded the existing profitability.
What exactly was their secret? I was dying to know.
“Weren’t you worried about inflating the projected income too high? I heard vacancy rates have risen sharply in this area lately.”
“Ah, I see. That was all orchestrated.”
“Really?”
“Do you remember the person who started an argument with Mr. Zeroes yesterday?”
“Prime Group’s representative?”
“Yes. That man conspired with the building owners and real estate agents around here to artificially create temporary vacancies.”
“Isn’t that bid-rigging and collusion?”
“Exactly. But who would suspect? The facts are clear—there is indeed a surplus of vacancies in Manhattan buildings, and the overall economy is sluggish.”
“Ah…”
Even if they had temporarily inflated vacancies through collusion, it was impossible for businesses to suddenly flood in and rent offices afterward.
Amy quickly realized what I was worried about and explained.
“Starting six months from now, we plan to consolidate all our LM Energy-related companies into one location—right here.”
Amy smiled slyly and added.
“If the building manager is Vista Realty Partners, that is.”
While listening quietly, Alex’s eyes widened until they were almost popping, and he whispered to me.
LM Energy is the company run by the American oil tycoon Liam Moore, and he is the landowner.
He probably agreed to move his group companies here to support his granddaughter’s venture.
In other words…
It also meant that if I handed over the building’s leasing rights to Amy, I could reliably earn enormous profits.
‘With these projected returns, even after factoring in the construction costs, we could recover the capital within five years?’
We had already estimated that smart-system upgrades in Xeros Building would nearly double the original construction budget.
Considering long-term recession and additional cost increases, we had planned to extend capital recovery to as much as fifteen years.
If we accepted Vista’s proposal, that timeline would be dramatically shortened.
Approaching me to buy the building after completion was not necessarily bad.
A fully occupied building could also command a higher valuation.
The current value of Xeros Building was already more than seventy percent below comparable buildings in the area.
If we sold it to Vista in a state with zero vacancies in five years, we could not only recover the capital but also profit from a seventy-percent price increase.
‘With that kind of money, buying cheap land in a new city and building a headquarters wouldn’t be a bad idea.’
I drove the final nail home in my own thought.
Amy had come up with the only offer I could not refuse—handing me the building.
“Once construction is finished and eighty percent of the offices are filled, we will not charge any ground rent.”
“Pardon?”
“Really? That’s impossible,” Alex and I asked simultaneously in shock.
The reason for our disbelief was that the monthly ground rent I would have to pay was a staggering four hundred thousand dollars—over five hundred million in Korean won.
Considering the formal corporate move-in in six months and the eighty-percent office occupancy in one year, that meant they would be forgiving sixty-eight billion won.
“However, there is one condition.”
Amy stared at me with piercing blue eyes and drew a meaningful smile.
*
That evening.
Guided by Amy, we arrived at a luxurious restaurant.
Despite its vast size, the overall dim lighting created the strange feeling that we were the only two people in the space.
The terms Amy had offered in her contract were twelve months during which I would hand over twelve full hours every month to her alone.
At fourteen million four hundred hours, that meant saving sixty-eight billion won and reducing the time to recover the building investment costs to one-third.
I had no reason to refuse.
We sliced thick steaks while I asked.
“Why did you impose such absurd conditions?”
Of course I had no issue with it.
Amy had nothing to gain, did she?
“You said you were interested in me. I told you that if we didn’t do it this way, you might avoid seeing me.”
“Mm.”
Was that really all?
When the other person kept circling around the subject,
the only option was to probe slowly.
I slid a plate of sliced steak toward her.
“Why are you giving this to me?”
“Ah… if you don’t want it.”
“No, thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
Was it because dining alone with a woman was such a rare experience that an old habit surfaced?
While cutting the steak on Amy’s plate in silence, she asked.
“You know what? You’re the first man who’s sat across from me alone without once glancing at my body.”
“I consider sending overt glances at women rude. It’s just a cultural difference—I wasn’t ignoring you.”
“Ah~ I see. So you think I’m pretty?”
She tilted her head with wide eyes.
The blue eyes demanded the truth.
“If we’re speaking subjectively… yes, you’re beautiful.”
“Ah~ That’s good to hear.”
Amy speared a piece of steak with her fork and ate it with a cheerful expression.
“Oh! By the way, the person who was with you at the auction—was she your girlfriend?”
“She’s my sister.”
“I see. Then, is there a girlfriend?”
“I don’t have one. And I’m not planning to get one anytime soon.”
“Really?” Amy’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Could it be… you like men?”
For just a moment.
The playful side of me stirred.
But I could not be rude to a key business partner.
I set the knife down and replied in the calmest tone possible.
“I was betrayed by a woman I loved with all my heart. She preferred money more than me.”
“Ho ho ho. So you plan to become rich and get revenge? Then I’ll have to work hard. This sounds fun.”
Amy clapped her hands and laughed playfully.
The blue eyes sparkled as though casting a spell.
It was getting too personal, so I changed the subject.
“So why did you choose me out of all those people? Is it because I’m not American?”
Amy’s expression hardened instantly.
“You have a sharp eye.”
“I’ve heard similar comments before.”
Amy wiped her lips with a napkin and proposed with seductive eyes.
“Promise to spend the night with me tonight, and I’ll answer your question.”
It wasn’t that hard.
“Overnight shifts pay double, right? I’m claiming the first month’s worth of hours.”
Amy burst out laughing at my reply.
“Wow! You’re so scheming!”
“You can be scheming and still calculate everything properly.”
After finishing our meal, we moved to a nearby hotel.
There was no better private space to share secrets.
It was only when the first bottle of wine had run dry that she finally opened up.
“Why do you think I dye my hair blonde and dress so flamboyantly?”
“Well… it suits you.”
On a woman with snow-white skin and striking blue eyes, golden-blond hair looked especially perfect.
Amy’s eyes curved into crescent moons as she answered.
“Ho ho. That’s true. But it’s not the whole story.”
After a moment of silence, Amy continued.
“Blondes who fuss over their appearance are stereotyped as stupid around here. That’s exactly why they ignore me.”
“Those women?”
“My relatives. They’re all after Grandfather’s fortune.”
Amy bit her lip as if the words had become painful to speak.
There seemed to be more she could not say, but I did not ask.
We had not yet built enough closeness to share private matters.
She took a deep breath and met my gaze directly.
“I needed a proxy. A man to secretly expand my business in my place. Ideally someone no one here would ever suspect. Someone like you.”
I nodded in understanding.
“You want to expand the company without anyone around noticing?”
“Exactly.”
A competent partner is always welcome.
Especially one with solid capital.
I had no reason to refuse.
“From that standpoint, you certainly picked well.”
“My eye for people is excellent.”
As the night deepened, our conversation grew deeper.
Our backgrounds and values differed greatly, yet precisely because of that we learned much from each other and found much comfort.
“So you’re not going to have a girlfriend anymore? Because you failed in love once?”
“I don’t know.”
The atmosphere was so peaceful.
Amy’s blue eyes, fixed solely on me, felt like a crystal-clear lake.
The desire to dive naked into that blue lake stirred within me.
Probably.
It was the alcohol talking.
At that exact moment.
Amy’s hand pulled me to her neck.
Without a word, we melted into each other.
*
A cloudless, pleasant day.
Early November in Seoul was chilly.
But Miami felt like spring in Korea—bright and sunny.
We stood before a massive white cruise ship that dwarfed everything in contrast to the blue sky.
The sheer scale left my family speechless for a while as they stared in awe.
“You should come with us too.”
“I’ll go another time. When business really starts, I’ll be flying back and forth often. Don’t worry about me—go have fun with Father.”
“Ho ho. All right.”
Father could not tear his eyes away from the ship; he looked ready to board at any second.
“Does it really excite you that much?”
“Ah ha. Maybe it’s because it’s been a while? It feels thrilling.”
“The deep-sea trawler is very different. Don’t drink too much because it’s free.”
“Ah ha. Okay.”
“Take care of your parents.”
“Okay. Don’t worry.”
We waved as the family boarded the ship, then rushed to the flight to Korea.
We arrived in Korea on Monday night.
Having spent the previous night in excitement, I was naturally tired—but strangely filled with energy.
Was it the lingering confidence I had forgotten thanks to Amy?
I bid her farewell coolly.
When the sun rose the next morning, Amy had already drawn a firm line.
It was psychological treatment to restore my confidence, she said.
I was actually grateful she had told me.
After all, alcohol and atmosphere had caused me to lose my reason and unleash my desires.
Staring out the window, waiting for takeoff, the stewardess approached.
“Sir, may I bring you a blanket?”
“Ah, yes. Thank you. Eh? Yoonseo? What are you doing here?”
I blurted out a foolish question in my surprise.
It was obvious she was working just from her uniform.
“Ah ha. You’re working.”
“Ho ho. Yes.”
“I didn’t know you were on the Miami flight.”
“We only moved here recently. Here, the blanket.”
Only then did I remember I had filed the after-trip application without booking the schedule.
My sister, always sensitive to my clumsiness, must have pre-arranged it.
Feeling guilty, I asked quickly.
“Do you have time after your shift? I can drive you home.”
Yoonseo covered her mouth with her fist and giggled.
“Sure. I’ll contact you.”
My sister had parked her car in the airport lot so I could take her home easily.
I never imagined she would arrange a surprise like this.
‘She can’t plan dates at all, but she has endless energy.’
Remembering my sister’s excitement when she had arranged my schedule alone, I found myself smiling.
Yes, she had prepared this spot thinking of her brother—I had to make the most of it.
‘Hold on! So when I asked her yesterday morning where she had been all night, that’s what she was asking about?’
A sudden chill ran down my spine.
Amy, Min-hyeok, and I should not meet again for a while.
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