Chapter 8 Kiss of Death #2
is my pleasure,” Tae said to lay down the law.
Julia rolled her eyes. “We’ll see about that,” she said under her breath.
Tae was ready to battle Julia if he had to. But first . . . “So, Julia, are you ready?” he asked, changing the subject.
“For what?” Julia looked very skeptical.
“To hear the news.”
Her smile disappeared.
“Oh God.” She put her hand over her eyes as if it might keep her in the dark.
“Forget it. Let’s not talk about it.” Tae immediately regretted saying anything. They were doing so well.
Julia let out a huge sigh. “No, no, let’s get it over with.” Julia straightened her back, which Tae was beginning to realize
was her sign that she was bracing herself, putting on her CEO Julia armor. “Lay it on me. What do you know?”
“So yesterday while I was waiting for Mrs. Ko at the hair salon—”
“I’m sorry, you were doing what, where?” Julia asked.
“Mr. Ko threw out his back, and Mrs. Ko hasn’t renewed her license, and . . . you know what? Long story. Short version was
I played chauffeur yesterday, and you may or may not know that the last Saturday of the month is when everyone goes to get
their hair colored and permed.”
Julia opened her mouth but didn’t say a word. Tae had rendered her speechless.
“In any case, your mom was there, and she told all the ladies how she had put out the call.”
“The call? What, like the Bat-Signal or something? Oh my God, did they post it in the Korean newspaper?”
Tae could see that Julia was joking, but he couldn’t actually tell her that it wasn’t something they were planning on doing.
Because it just might be.
“From what I’ve heard, they’ve been asking around pretty broadly for smart, successful, and, um, tall men eligible to set
up with their daughter.”
“No,” she gasped. “I thought they’d just look in the church or the community center. How broadly are we talking?” Julia’s
eyes were wide as saucers.
“Well, for starters my mom was going to offer up Min.”
“Your brother? Didn’t I hear that Min was engaged?”
“Yeah, he is, but she’s not Korean.”
“Oh my God, that is awful. Why would that matter? These mothers are willing to break up perfectly happy relationships for
a setup? With me?”
“Um, it gets worse.”
Julia groaned. “Tell me really fast so it will just shock me, and maybe I’ll pass out and not feel the rest of the pain.”
“They said they’d be willing to pay for plane tickets for anyone willing to meet you if the man was suitable. Plane tickets
for both the man . . . and his mother.”
“How is this my life?” Julia whined, dropping her head into her hands.
“I know it sounds awful,” he said, and truthfully Tae had seen a lot of crazy things Korean parents were willing to do to
set up their kids for marriage, but this was a lot. “But it’s kinda nice that they’re trying to find you someone amazing,
ya know? There will be no settling. Like there’s clearly no one good enough in their small bubble, so why not put out the
call for eligible bachelors far and wide? Assuming they’re smart, successful, and tall.” Tae added the extra emphasis on the final word while trying to hide his smile.
“Please, stop reminding me of those three words. So cringey. God, who came up with these parameters? Oh yeah, me and my family.
We sound like such assholes.”
“So you don’t want smart, successful, and tall?” Tae was having too much fun.
“Please dispose of my body in the Venice canals where no one will find me.”
Tae laughed. He couldn’t help himself.
“I actually don’t know what I want,” Julia confessed. “Obviously.”
It was comforting knowing that he wasn’t the only one. That even successful-on-paper CEOs could be a little lost too.
“It’s okay, Julia. There’s no way you’re gonna get any losers in this group. Your parents see this as their one and only shot to set you up. You’ll get three amazing men to go out with.”
Julia’s head shot up. “Tae, I run a successful, reputable company. I’m about to be in O magazine. And now I’m being ruined by a call to all Korean men within flying distance, which is basically worldwide, offered
up to the most impressive option only to fully disappoint him and everyone else by a mismatch. Matchmaking by résumé won’t
work. I’m sure of it. It won’t make me suddenly charming and not abrasive. And I’m supposed to win him over and marry him
on the off chance that my grandma dies?”
Tae was glad Julia was looking at it as an off chance at this point and wasn’t back in her any-day-now mode.
“You keep talking about it like it’s just the guy’s decision. What about you? You have to fall in love with him too. Don’t
you forget that.”
“Great. Way to drive home that this is going to be impossible. I don’t like anyone, Tae. Take me out of the equation.”
“No can do. This is a relationship, and hopefully a marriage, we’re talking about. You matter as much as he does.”
“Let’s just focus on the him of it all first. Then we can see if there’s anything left to salvage from the wreckage,” Julia whined.
“Well, that’s where I come in. I won’t let this fail. Look, I’m sorry to have dropped this bomb on you, but I wanted you to
know that whatever you find out about your grandmother, it’s likely too late to back out of the setups. But, honestly, Julia,
what have you got to lose? You’ll have some fun, maybe meet some good guys—”
“And maybe find the love of my life?”
Tae shrugged. “It could happen.” Maybe he was more of a romantic than he gave himself credit for.
“Or I will be the embarrassment of the entire Korean community and die an old shrew with four hundred cats.”
“Well, that’s grim. You don’t like cats.”
“What am I going to do?” Julia dropped her head into her arms on the table.
Tae reached over and patted her on the head.
“There, there, Julia. Leave it to me. I’ll take care of everything.”