Beneath His Suit
Emma Lewis had always been the model assistant. Calm, collected, and efficient, she navigated the world of corporate chaos with ease—especially when it came to Alex Cole, the CEO of the company. On the outside, Alex was a force. Powerful, commanding, with eyes that seemed to pierce right through you. He was a man everyone respected but never dared to approach. He had built the company from the ground up, and no one questioned his decisions.
No one, except Emma.
She’d worked by his side for two years, and while she admired his intellect and ambition, she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to him than the cold exterior he projected. The moments when he let his guard slip, even for a second, were what kept her coming back every day.
One evening, as the office emptied out, Emma stayed late to finish a report for a major meeting the next day. The silence in the office was thick, only broken by the sound of the occasional phone ringing. She entered Alex’s office to drop off the file, but stopped in her tracks when she saw him.
He was sitting at his desk, looking out the window with a faraway expression. His usual sharp, polished demeanor was gone—he seemed… vulnerable. She had never seen him like this. He looked tired, worn down, like the weight of the world rested on his shoulders.
“Everything alright?” she asked quietly, her voice breaking the silence.
Alex turned, surprised. There was a flicker of something in his eyes—something she couldn’t quite place. He stood, walking over to where she stood frozen in the doorway.
“I’m fine,” he said, but Emma didn’t buy it. She knew him well enough to see that this was the side of him no one ever saw—the man who carried the burden of running a multi-billion-dollar empire, and the pain of a past that no one knew about.
For a moment, the distance between them felt smaller. The world outside seemed to blur into the background as they locked eyes, and the tension thickened. Emma’s heart pounded in her chest, but she stayed still. The professional barrier that had always kept them apart seemed to crack in that moment.
“I don’t have time for distractions,” he said, his voice soft, as if he was talking to himself as much as to her. “But… I don’t know why I’m telling you this.”
She took a step forward, gently placing the report on his desk. “Because you trust me,” she replied softly.
Alex’s breath hitched, and in that brief moment, everything shifted. The distance between them, once professional and impenetrable, collapsed. He stepped closer, his gaze never leaving hers, and she felt her pulse quicken.
“I can’t,” he whispered, his voice strained. “You’re my assistant. This can’t happen.”
Emma swallowed, her own heart racing. She had always been aware of the unspoken tension between them, but the reality of it—this closeness, this pull—was undeniable. “But it’s happening,” she said, almost breathlessly.
Before either could stop themselves, Alex reached for her, his hand gently cupping her cheek. He was always in control, always the one pulling the strings, but with Emma, something in him unraveled. Something about her had softened him, made him yearn for the connection he had long denied himself.
“I’ve never been good at letting anyone in,” he murmured, his thumb tracing her jawline.
“I’m not asking for all of you,” Emma whispered back, her voice full of emotion. “Just… this.”
And then, their lips met.
It was a kiss that changed everything. Slow, tentative at first, as though they were both testing the waters of something they hadn’t dared to acknowledge before. But soon, it deepened, filled with the intensity of months—years—of unsaid words, unacknowledged feelings.
When they finally pulled away, breathless, Alex rested his forehead against hers.
“I don’t know what this means,” he confessed, his voice low and raw.
“Neither do I,” Emma replied, her heart racing with a mix of fear and exhilaration. “But maybe we’ll figure it out together.”
For the first time, Alex felt something he hadn’t allowed himself to feel in years: hope.
