AURELIA'S POVThe moment I stepped into the office, I could feel the buzz in the air. People were rushing around, papers in hand, phones pressed to ears—it was chaos. It didn’t take long before I was pulled into it.“Morning, Aurelia,” one of my coworkers said, handing me a folder. “You’re prepping the presentation for Mr. Wellington’s meeting with the investors today, right?”I nodded, still half-asleep. “Yeah, I got the files last night. I’ll double-check everything now.”“And you’re attending the meeting too,”Noah's secretary added casually, like it wasn’t a big deal.Wait, what?I swallowed hard, trying to look calm. "Got it," I said, even though I felt a knot tighten in my stomach. Attending a high-stakes investor meeting with Noah Wellington himself? No pressure.For the next hour, I buried myself in my work. I made sure every slide was perfect, every number double-checked. But somewhere along the way—probably during my second coffee break—I must’ve grabbed the wrong file from m
Aurelia's POVThe news of our deal's success hit the office before we even got back. When we walked in, it was like someone flipped a switch—everyone was grinning, even Ms. Anderson, Noah’s secretary. Now, let me tell you, I thought I’d see a real-life elf before I’d see Ms. Anderson smile. But there she was, showing her teeth like it was a damn holiday. Guess today was just full of miracles.The excitement buzzed around the office, people congratulating each other and patting themselves on the back. I could see it in their faces—they were relieved their last-minute efforts to pull this off hadn’t been wasted. It felt good to be part of that, knowing I’d helped, even if I had to sweat my way through a near disaster.But celebrations didn’t last long here. Not in this office. There was still work to do, and if they thought they had a truckload of it, mine was a freaking freight train.I dove into my tasks, barely looking up from my screen. Emails, reports, updates—it was like the whole
Aurelia’s POV You know that weird feeling you get when someone’s eyes are on you? Yeah, that. It crept over me like a cold shiver. I froze mid-typing, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. Slowly, I glanced toward Noah’s office, and sure enough, the blinds were up, and the glass panel was see-through. There he was, Mr. Wellington himself, sitting at his desk, head bowed, totally absorbed in whatever important CEO stuff he was doing on his MacBook. I frowned, wondering why the hell he was still here. Didn’t he have a penthouse or a girlfriend or something to go to? From my angle, I could see him clearly, but I wasn’t sure he could see me. Still, I didn’t like the idea of being watched, so I focused back on my work. The awkwardness was already creeping up my neck, though. I tried to shake it off and concentrated on finishing my task. Thirty minutes later, I was done—finally. I yawned so loud I thought I’d wake the security guards downstairs. My eyes felt heavy, and my shoulders ach
AURELIA'S POVThe only thing I said to Noah as I got into the car was my address. Not a “thanks” or a “good evening.” Just my damn address, well politely. The GPS did the rest of the work while the silence between us stretched into something heavy and awkward.The guy didn’t even try to make small talk. He just gripped the wheel, staring straight ahead like I wasn’t sitting right there. Fine by me, though. I wasn’t exactly dying to have a heart-to-heart with Mr. Ice King.The drive was dragging—like, 20 minutes felt like 20 hours. I kept glancing at my phone just to have something to do. Every click of the turn signal sounded ten times louder than it needed to, and I was about ready to scream just to break the silence.And then it happened.We were going down some empty stretch of road when a group of drunk-ass teenagers came out of nowhere, swerving all over the place like they were auditioning for Fast & Furious. Noah muttered something under his breath—probably something along the
After the incident with me riding in Noah’s car, he had gone back to being what he had always been—strict, sharp, and professional. Nothing changed on his end. George, however, had brought up more excuses to ask me out. A coffee here, a dinner there—anything to get me to say yes. I turned them all down politely, but it seemed he just wasn’t getting the hint.Days turned into weeks, and now here we were—the entire administration department of Lumina Industries—preparing to spend a whole week on a cruise ship. Seven of us in total, including our boss, Noah Wellington. Apparently, meeting the deadline for the massive project we’d been working on for a whole month now called for some celebration.We’d just wrapped up a three-day-long meeting to finalize and close out the project, which had been a massive success. So Noah, in what seemed like an uncharacteristically generous move, decided to treat us all. A whole fucking week off work. No emails, no calls, no spreadsheets—just food, drink
AURELIA'S POV George caught me by the hallway just as I was heading back to my desk. He had that overly confident look on his face that already made me want to turn around.“Hey, Aurelia,” he said, stepping in front of me. “I was thinking, there’s this great place downtown. Fancy, quiet—perfect for dinner. How about we go there tonight? Just the two of us.”I forced a polite smile, even though I was already over this. “Thanks, George, but I can’t. I have other plans tonight.”I tried to move past him, not wanting to make this any more awkward than it already was, but then I felt his hand on my arm. Firm. A little too firm.“Come on, Aurelia,” he said, almost in a coaxing tone, but there was something controlling in the way he held me back.I turned to face him, pulling my arm free. “Don’t do that again,” I said, my tone sharp enough to make my point clear.He blinked, like he hadn’t expected me to push back, and for a few long seconds, we just stared at each other. His face was neutr
AURELIA'S POV When I got to work the next day, the first thing I heard was that the boss had called for a board meeting with all the staff. Ms. Anderson was the one who broke the news, and honestly, her face looked like it could curdle milk. She was always serious, but today? That frown was something else.The vibe in the office wasn’t any better. Everyone in admin looked like they’d just been told their dog died. That’s when it hit me—whatever this meeting was about, it wasn’t good news. Layoffs? Was the company downsizing? Shit. Am I about to lose my job?The meeting started, and the boss didn’t waste time. Apparently, someone in the company was leaking confidential information to a rival. He said he wanted to get to the bottom of it before launching a full investigation.My stomach dropped. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. I glanced around. Everyone had that “not me” look on their face, but the tension was thick enough to choke on.Great. First it was “good morning
NOAH'S POV The office was so quiet you could hear every damn click of the keyboard. I leaned back in my chair, feeling the tension in my shoulders, but I wasn’t stopping. Not yet. Someone was screwing us over, and I wasn’t letting it slide.Aurelia sat next to me, hunched over her own screen. Her brows were knitted together, She’d been like this for hours—focused, silent, and just annoying enough to keep me on edge.And then, something.“Wait a second,” I muttered, my eyes catching a fragment of text in the system.“What is it?” Aurelia asked, leaning over so quickly her chair squeaked.I didn’t answer right away, too busy opening the file. The email was a mess—half-deleted, scrambled in parts, but the subject line jumped out at me: ‘Info on Expansion Plans.’ My jaw tightened.“This is it,” I said. “The project that got leaked.”Aurelia’s head tilted, and I could feel her studying the screen with me. “Where did you find it?”“Buried in the system. Looks like someone tried to wipe it
NOAH'S POV The office was so quiet you could hear every damn click of the keyboard. I leaned back in my chair, feeling the tension in my shoulders, but I wasn’t stopping. Not yet. Someone was screwing us over, and I wasn’t letting it slide.Aurelia sat next to me, hunched over her own screen. Her brows were knitted together, She’d been like this for hours—focused, silent, and just annoying enough to keep me on edge.And then, something.“Wait a second,” I muttered, my eyes catching a fragment of text in the system.“What is it?” Aurelia asked, leaning over so quickly her chair squeaked.I didn’t answer right away, too busy opening the file. The email was a mess—half-deleted, scrambled in parts, but the subject line jumped out at me: ‘Info on Expansion Plans.’ My jaw tightened.“This is it,” I said. “The project that got leaked.”Aurelia’s head tilted, and I could feel her studying the screen with me. “Where did you find it?”“Buried in the system. Looks like someone tried to wipe it
AURELIA'S POV When I got to work the next day, the first thing I heard was that the boss had called for a board meeting with all the staff. Ms. Anderson was the one who broke the news, and honestly, her face looked like it could curdle milk. She was always serious, but today? That frown was something else.The vibe in the office wasn’t any better. Everyone in admin looked like they’d just been told their dog died. That’s when it hit me—whatever this meeting was about, it wasn’t good news. Layoffs? Was the company downsizing? Shit. Am I about to lose my job?The meeting started, and the boss didn’t waste time. Apparently, someone in the company was leaking confidential information to a rival. He said he wanted to get to the bottom of it before launching a full investigation.My stomach dropped. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. I glanced around. Everyone had that “not me” look on their face, but the tension was thick enough to choke on.Great. First it was “good morning
AURELIA'S POV George caught me by the hallway just as I was heading back to my desk. He had that overly confident look on his face that already made me want to turn around.“Hey, Aurelia,” he said, stepping in front of me. “I was thinking, there’s this great place downtown. Fancy, quiet—perfect for dinner. How about we go there tonight? Just the two of us.”I forced a polite smile, even though I was already over this. “Thanks, George, but I can’t. I have other plans tonight.”I tried to move past him, not wanting to make this any more awkward than it already was, but then I felt his hand on my arm. Firm. A little too firm.“Come on, Aurelia,” he said, almost in a coaxing tone, but there was something controlling in the way he held me back.I turned to face him, pulling my arm free. “Don’t do that again,” I said, my tone sharp enough to make my point clear.He blinked, like he hadn’t expected me to push back, and for a few long seconds, we just stared at each other. His face was neutr
After the incident with me riding in Noah’s car, he had gone back to being what he had always been—strict, sharp, and professional. Nothing changed on his end. George, however, had brought up more excuses to ask me out. A coffee here, a dinner there—anything to get me to say yes. I turned them all down politely, but it seemed he just wasn’t getting the hint.Days turned into weeks, and now here we were—the entire administration department of Lumina Industries—preparing to spend a whole week on a cruise ship. Seven of us in total, including our boss, Noah Wellington. Apparently, meeting the deadline for the massive project we’d been working on for a whole month now called for some celebration.We’d just wrapped up a three-day-long meeting to finalize and close out the project, which had been a massive success. So Noah, in what seemed like an uncharacteristically generous move, decided to treat us all. A whole fucking week off work. No emails, no calls, no spreadsheets—just food, drink
AURELIA'S POVThe only thing I said to Noah as I got into the car was my address. Not a “thanks” or a “good evening.” Just my damn address, well politely. The GPS did the rest of the work while the silence between us stretched into something heavy and awkward.The guy didn’t even try to make small talk. He just gripped the wheel, staring straight ahead like I wasn’t sitting right there. Fine by me, though. I wasn’t exactly dying to have a heart-to-heart with Mr. Ice King.The drive was dragging—like, 20 minutes felt like 20 hours. I kept glancing at my phone just to have something to do. Every click of the turn signal sounded ten times louder than it needed to, and I was about ready to scream just to break the silence.And then it happened.We were going down some empty stretch of road when a group of drunk-ass teenagers came out of nowhere, swerving all over the place like they were auditioning for Fast & Furious. Noah muttered something under his breath—probably something along the
Aurelia’s POV You know that weird feeling you get when someone’s eyes are on you? Yeah, that. It crept over me like a cold shiver. I froze mid-typing, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. Slowly, I glanced toward Noah’s office, and sure enough, the blinds were up, and the glass panel was see-through. There he was, Mr. Wellington himself, sitting at his desk, head bowed, totally absorbed in whatever important CEO stuff he was doing on his MacBook. I frowned, wondering why the hell he was still here. Didn’t he have a penthouse or a girlfriend or something to go to? From my angle, I could see him clearly, but I wasn’t sure he could see me. Still, I didn’t like the idea of being watched, so I focused back on my work. The awkwardness was already creeping up my neck, though. I tried to shake it off and concentrated on finishing my task. Thirty minutes later, I was done—finally. I yawned so loud I thought I’d wake the security guards downstairs. My eyes felt heavy, and my shoulders ach
Aurelia's POVThe news of our deal's success hit the office before we even got back. When we walked in, it was like someone flipped a switch—everyone was grinning, even Ms. Anderson, Noah’s secretary. Now, let me tell you, I thought I’d see a real-life elf before I’d see Ms. Anderson smile. But there she was, showing her teeth like it was a damn holiday. Guess today was just full of miracles.The excitement buzzed around the office, people congratulating each other and patting themselves on the back. I could see it in their faces—they were relieved their last-minute efforts to pull this off hadn’t been wasted. It felt good to be part of that, knowing I’d helped, even if I had to sweat my way through a near disaster.But celebrations didn’t last long here. Not in this office. There was still work to do, and if they thought they had a truckload of it, mine was a freaking freight train.I dove into my tasks, barely looking up from my screen. Emails, reports, updates—it was like the whole
AURELIA'S POVThe moment I stepped into the office, I could feel the buzz in the air. People were rushing around, papers in hand, phones pressed to ears—it was chaos. It didn’t take long before I was pulled into it.“Morning, Aurelia,” one of my coworkers said, handing me a folder. “You’re prepping the presentation for Mr. Wellington’s meeting with the investors today, right?”I nodded, still half-asleep. “Yeah, I got the files last night. I’ll double-check everything now.”“And you’re attending the meeting too,”Noah's secretary added casually, like it wasn’t a big deal.Wait, what?I swallowed hard, trying to look calm. "Got it," I said, even though I felt a knot tighten in my stomach. Attending a high-stakes investor meeting with Noah Wellington himself? No pressure.For the next hour, I buried myself in my work. I made sure every slide was perfect, every number double-checked. But somewhere along the way—probably during my second coffee break—I must’ve grabbed the wrong file from m
Aurelia's POV Two weeks. That was all it had been since I started at Lumina Industries, but it felt like two years. Not because the job was bad—I mean, the pay was great, the office was stunning, and I hadn’t even had to buy my own coffee since day one. It was the vibe. Noah Wellington was… well, let’s just say if he smiled at me once, I’d probably check the weather forecast for a blizzard. Our relationship was neutral at best, cold at worst. He wasn’t mean or anything, just distant. Polite but stiff, like he didn’t trust me or wasn’t sure I belonged here. And while I tried to keep a positive attitude, his constant indifference was starting to wear me down. So when George from HR called for an emergency meeting first thing Monday morning, I braced myself for whatever fresh hell awaited. What I didn’t expect was a literal shitstorm of a project being dropped on everyone’s lap. Turns out, Lumina Industries had just secured a massive government contract for a sustainable energy initi