The boss I was secretly in love with suddenly gave me a fountain pen.

In that instant, a stream of text scrolled across my vision, bright and intrusive like a chat feed on a live stream.

Hehe, our girl has no idea that pen is empathically linked to the male lead, does she?
This is gonna get so good! I heard the smut in this is top-tier, is that true?
Totally true. The guy's an absolute stallion. This story is a five-star read, guaranteed!

I froze on the spot, my mind reeling. I reached out and stroked the pen.

The next second, the man sitting across from memy bosslet out a sharp, muffled grunt.

1
Nobody is supposed to be in love with their boss.

Except for me.

Because he was good to me. Impossibly good.

Id been working in the Executive Office ever since I graduated, straight into the lions den of Cole Corp. My boss, Mr. Liam Cole, was a man carved from ice. He was cool, distant, and spoke only when necessary. But if someone on his team screwed up, he could dress them down with a glacial fury that left them weeping at their desks.

But with me I always felt he was different.

Its normal to be clumsy with procedures when youre fresh out of college. The other executive assistants in the office were drowning in their own work, so no one had time to mentor the new girl. It was my own fault, really. I was just dumb enough to make a colossal mistake.

The moment I was summoned to his office, the senior assistants all looked at me with the kind of pity you reserve for the condemned. My heart hammered against my ribs as I walked the green mile to his door.

But inside, Liam Coles expression was perfectly calm.

He just asked me if I was adjusting to the company, if I felt comfortable, if my colleagues were treating me well.

He never even mentioned the mistake.

When I walked back out, every head in the office snapped toward me. I quickly bowed my head, pretending to sniffle back tears. I might have been new to the corporate world, but I understood that much. Special treatment breeds jealousy. It was better to look like Id been chewed out, just like everyone else.

2

I worked at Cole Corp for over a year.

Every day, my senior colleagues were hounded and stressed, running around like their hair was on fire. I, on the other hand, had to pretend to be hounded and stressed. To deserve the quiet grace Liam Cole showed me, I threw myself into my work, becoming more meticulous, more dedicated than anyone. I couldn't betray the unspoken faith he had in me.

I could never quite figure out what it all meant. What I meant to him.

But I wanted to do everything in my power to make him see me, to impress him. I knew, in that quiet place in my heart, that his kindness toward me was unique. It wasn't overt, nothing anyone could point a finger at. Maybe it was just a hint of affection, a flicker of something more. I told myself not to overthink it. It was enough to see him every day.

I was earning a fantastic salary for a job that, for me, was surprisingly calm.

What more could I possibly ask for?

3

The company landed a massive new account.

Everyone who had worked on the deal was getting a bonus. For the Executive Office, those bonuses were handed out personally by the CEO himself.

I filed into his office with my colleagues. Liam Cole produced a stack of thick envelopes, his voice as cool and crisp as ever. "For your efforts."

As the newest hire, I was last in line. One by one, my colleagues accepted their envelopes, their faces lit with joy.

When my turn came, there was nothing left.

Liams face was unreadable. "Ellie, youve only been with the company for a little over a year. Your seniority doesn't quite qualify for this tier. I got you something else."

My colleagues craned their necks, their curiosity piqued.