Chapter 2 – The Unspoken Challenge

The first week should have been simple—answering calls, scheduling meetings, sorting documents. Nothing Selena couldn’t handle. And yet, nothing about working for Ethan Carter felt simple.

From the moment she stepped into his office each morning, she could feel his eyes on her. Not constantly, but enough. Enough to make her pulse quicken when he passed too close, enough to heat her skin when his gaze lingered a beat longer than necessary.

He never said anything inappropriate, never crossed a line—but his presence was consuming.

By Thursday, she had memorized his habits. The way he always loosened his tie after his third meeting of the day. The way he tapped his pen against the desk when he was thinking. The way his jaw flexed when he was irritated. She noticed everything, maybe too much.

That afternoon, she stood by his desk, handing over a stack of reports. He took them, flipping through the pages with effortless focus.

“These figures are incomplete,” he said without looking up.

Selena frowned. “I double-checked them.”

“Check again.”

Her lips parted, ready to argue, but his eyes flicked up—sharp, commanding. Her words died in her throat.

“Yes, Mr. Carter,” she said softly, collecting the papers again.

As she turned, she caught the faintest curve of his mouth. A smirk. He knew exactly how much power he had in these moments.

Back at her desk, she exhaled sharply. Why did he get under her skin so easily? She wasn’t inexperienced, and she wasn’t naïve. But something about him unsettled her, challenged her, pulled her into a dangerous game she wasn’t prepared to play.

Hours later, the office was empty. The sun had dipped low, painting the skyline in gold and crimson. Selena gathered her things, relieved the day was over, when his voice cut through the silence.

“Selena.”

She froze, glancing toward his office. He was standing by the window, hands in his pockets, staring out at the city lights. The view was breathtaking, but it was him that caught her attention—the silhouette of strength and control framed by glass and fire.

“Yes, sir?”

“Come here.”

Her heels clicked against the floor as she approached, heart hammering. She stopped a few steps away, but he turned, closing the space between them without hesitation.

“You’ve done well this week,” he said, voice low, calm.

She blinked, surprised. “Thank you.”

His gaze held hers, steady and unreadable. “But you’re distracted.”

Her throat tightened. “I’m not—”

“Yes, you are.” He leaned closer, not enough to touch, but enough that she could feel the heat radiating from him. His eyes searched hers, intense and unrelenting. “Tell me… is it the work that distracts you? Or is it me?”

Selena’s breath caught, her mind spinning. The question hung in the air, heavy, dangerous, impossible to answer.

For a moment, neither of them moved. The tension was electric, alive, a current sparking between them. She wanted to step back, to break free from the pull—but her feet wouldn’t move.

Then, just as quickly, he straightened, slipping his hands back into his pockets, expression unreadable once more.

“Go home,” he said simply, turning back to the window.

The dismissal was final, yet his words lingered in her chest, echoing long after she walked out the door.

And Selena knew one thing for certain—this month was spiraling into something she could no longer control.

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