But is it a Miracle?

Chapter 2- Magnetic

Jin-Yeon POV

I was happy with my little bubble of existence. Uncomplicated, just me and my single brother living in a nice big apartment over our bar, Sanguinity. We had money because I knew how to invest and save it. As a result, we were a pair of bachelor billionaires that somehow managed to fly under the radar. Maybe it was that while we had a nice apartment, new and well-appointed cars, and excellent wardrobes, we lived subtly.

One could assume looking at us that we were well-off, but we didn't flaunt it. Most of what we had was either kept in savings or reinvested, and never too much in one place. All that jazz about not keeping all your eggs in one basket. My younger brother, Tae-Yeon had insisted I come down to the bar tonight just to remind the staff who the owner was, and keep their noses clean.

He was not pleased with the amount of flirting that Mike was doing to get tips.

We all understood it, of course, but it made a very unprofessional impression on customers, or gave them the idea that they had some kind of special permissions in our establishment. One thing we insisted on, was every guest is treated the same way. Meet the dress code, follow our code of conduct (posted right next to the bouncer that gave them their entry bracelet and paid their cover), and pay the same for their food and drinks regardless of status.

It was exclusive, but we wanted regular people to have a chance to enjoy the finer things.

I would rather have done things my brother thought was boring, like watch documentaries on Netflix and eat Thai food. Or maybe play one of my online games. I had a few RPGs I liked, though if I'm honest, my favorite is the PS2 version of Warriors Orochi 2. I like the co-op 2 player mode. Sometimes I could get Tae-Yeon to play as well, but most of the time he just asked why I liked such old-school s**t.

Vintage, people. Not old, vintage.

I walked to my room after giving our 70" flat screen and buttery soft leather sectional (with a bloody comfortable chaise!) a longing glance. I sighed deeply, pulling out a pair of smooth black dress pants and a silky sateen deep red button-up. I toed on my black leather shoes, adding a black leather belt and some fancy-ass watch my brother thought I could not live without, rolling my sleeves to my elbows and leaving a couple buttons undone at my neck. No way was I in the mood for a tie.

We were from South Korea, and Christmas isn't as important there as in other more heavily Christian or Catholic places. Sure, it was still used as a clever marketing device, more for couples generally, much like Japan. Koreans aren't that excited to be compared to the Japanese, but it is what it is. We do have some similar cultural influences, if you look at it from a neutral point of view. Doesn't make it any easier to accept, but facts are facts.

My own family followed more traditional Korean beliefs and worship, so I was even less excited about going to my bar full of drunk Americans on Christmas Eve. Not that I didn't like Americans, I definitely did. I appreciated the opportunity to restart my life on a completely different continent, away from everything my brother and I left behind.

To say we are not welcomed there would be an understatement.

Our family would probably hire someone to trap or kill us the moment they thought we had returned. In all likelihood, there was a bounty on us somewhere. I wasn't about to go snooping around to find out. I just kept myself and my brother as far under the radar as I could. Which was why my presence in the bar didn't help, even if I did know that it was necessary. Human beings must be watched by someone in order to behave. It's just our nature a good portion of the time.

Good people exist, obviously, just totally mixed in with everyone else, so trusting was something that required great caution.

I spritzed myself with Happy by Clinique for men, always pleased with the scent. It was light and masculine without being suffocating. I was very sensitive to smell, and a lot of what people wore gave me a damn headache. I roughly finger-combed my smooth black hair, cut in rough layers, the top to my cheekbones, the last at my neck with a slightly left part, for a little texture. Not that I was trying to garner attention from women, flattering as it was.

I was quite happily single, and not looking for physical gratification.

I had one time in my life and the entire experience had been awkward and kind of gross. Maybe it was just the woman herself, since I'd been only twenty at the time, and a recently widowed neighbor had offered her body. She was lonely, and I figured it would help both of us out. I was so wrong. She was pleased, and harassed me to do it again. I, on the other hand, hadn't liked anything about it but somehow managed to achieve the expected orgasm.

These days, I get much better results with my imagination and my right hand.

I walked down the stairs and entered the VIP section of the bar from a hidden door, watching the upper-level bartender do her job as expected. Crystal Cantrell was the twin sister of the bar manager, Heather Cantrell. I knew Crystal had eyes for Tae-Yeon while Heather had eyes for me, but they also both knew better than to try. We'd made it clear we were not interested in them that way. Didn't even bother to soften it by saying we wouldn't date coworkers, no... we straight up told them they were not our type. Simple and easy, but it didn't stop the women from having feelings.

Crystal and Heather were still hard-working and committed, often making comments that even if we married they would still have our backs. It was nice of them to say, but again, I don't trust easily, and at this point only Tae-Yeon really had my full faith. Not that the girls were bad or anything, I just know when feelings are involved, things can change quickly. With a nod to Crystal, I made my way down the staircase to the main floor. A DJ sat on the raised stage overlooking the dance floor where a plethora of bodies moved and writhed to the thumping house electronica.

Red and green Christmas lights had been added to the rails and tables to give the place a festive feel, and the DJ even wore a Santa hat. It looked silly, but he was so into his mixing he could have cared less. My eyes drifted to the left side of the stage. We had two long bars on either side of the dance floor to make sure people had plenty of options. Tommy West, a Latino man from South America that had changed his name, ran the bar, smiling but not too much.

Perfect.

My eyes drifted to the right side, where the other bar was manned by Mike Maxwell. Mike was a strapping and handsome black man, the one that my brother was worried about taking his flirting a bit too far. Tae-Yeon wasn't one to begrudge the man if he found a woman he really liked, the problem was that Mike seemed a little too flirty with anything female. There had a few fights recently over him, and Tae had just about had enough.

I was hoping it was an easy correction, because we all really liked Mike. Tommy was still a mystery, but Mike was an open book. Cheerful and obviously a playboy, but a kind-hearted one. It wasn't exactly against the rules to be friendly to get better tips and generally, reviews. Sadly, when patrons start to fight, it's clearly gone too far. As I watched, I noticed he was talking to a woman after bringing her a drink and an appetizer.

From where I stood, I could clearly see the woman was not impressed with his flirtatiousness.

As I took a moment to take her in, I was shocked to find that I found her immediately and immensely attractive. Her wavy honey blonde hair and golden skin seemed like it glowed. Her face was beautiful, with an oval shape, high cheekbones, and a delicate but firm jaw. Her brows were finely arched over large, heavily lashed eyes that I could not yet see the color of. Her lashes were natural, thank f**k, other than mascara. Her lips were pouty and full, practically begging for attention beneath a small, straight nose. Her ears were even small and perfect.

Just looking at her neck made me want to lick it, and that was when I noticed the rest of her gorgeous package. The deep forest green dress she wore highlighted her generous, perky breasts and tiny waist. I could not see her ass, but her legs were toned, smooth, and long. Sexy as f*****g hell. Okay Mike, I get it. This one is magical.

Every other girl in the room paled in comparison to this one woman.

I worked my way closer, ignoring the gestures from Tae, much to his frustration. I knew he wanted me to speak with Mike, but I was focused on the first woman to ever capture my interest to this degree. I was probably staring too much. I noticed her glancing surreptitiously around her, clearly feeling my eyes roving over her. She ordered a second Negroni from the looks of it, and continued to shift her eyes, looking for the source of that feeling of being watched.

Mike spotted me, and he knew immediately that something was up if I was on the main floor. He looked nervous, and I nearly laughed. All he really needed to do was dial it back a little. Starting fights was no good, but I was totally behind making sure people felt happy in our bar. I slid into the empty stool next to the mystery lady, and Mike's shoulders sagged.

As attractive as Mike was, we both knew I was hit on more often than he was. Probably an aura thing. Mike's got that whole happy thing going, where I'm more than a little brooding and aloof. Subtle dominance of the room, too. A lot of women respond well to men they feel can protect them, even the independent ones. They still want a strong partner to have their back.

The question was, what kind of woman was this entrancing lady in green?

And why the hell was she alone on Christmas Eve looking so desolate?

I flicked my hand at Mike, who immediately brought me my usual, a Manhattan. I had a high tolerance anyway, but if I wanted to speak to her, I could tell I was going to have to be cautious. She was putting off distinct f**k off vibes. And then, I caught whiff of what I supposed was her perfume. Light and classy... ruby red grapefruit with mimosa and... orchid? It was mouthwatering and for the first time in my life, I found myself wanting to sniff another person.

She turned to meet my eyes, and I finally had a chance to examine their mesmerizing depths. Deep green, just like her dress, with a golden ring in the middle, almost like a starburst. Her eyes shifted as she examined me as well, making me smirk. I was not especially experienced, by personal choice, but this woman made me want to do dirty things to her.

She unconsciously licked her lips, and I realized for all that we had eye-f****d each other, neither one had said a single word.

Time to change that.