Karen sat in the break lounge with a bottle of water, still shaken by her earlier encounter with Alex. She couldn't figure him out. One moment, he was cold and dismissive. The next he was asking about her perfume like it meant something.
Her thoughts were interrupted when Luca strolled in with that easy charm he carried like a second skin. He smiled the moment he saw her.
"There's the mystery girl," he said, grabbing a drink from the fridge.
Karen smiled despite herself. "Mystery?"
"You show up one day, cause a stir on the top floor, and now you're the only junior staff who gets summoned personally by the Ice King."
Karen laughed nervously. "That's not true."
"Oh, it is." Luca leaned against the counter, watching her.
"You made an impression karen, whether he admits it or not."
She looked down at her water bottle, unsure how to respond.
"I think it's refreshing," Luca added. "Someone who doesn't kiss his ass for once."
She giggled, and that soft genuine sound floated out into the hallway where Alex had just walked past intending to head to a meeting.
He stopped mid-step.
The sound of her laugh, that laugh froze him in place.
He turned slightly, catching a glimpse through the half-open lounge door. Luca. And her. Smiling. Close.
Alex's jaw tightened. Something unfamiliar twisted in his chest. He couldn't hear what they were saying anymore, but it didn't matter.
Karen shouldn't be laughing like that with another man. She shouldn't be looking at anyone else like that.
Without thinking, he turned and walked away in the opposite direction.
The meeting could wait.
Later that afternoon, Karen was called into Alex's office again this time by Dami.
"You need me again?" she asked, standing at the threshold.
Alex didn't look up from his desk. "Yes. Sit."
She obeyed, uneasy under the silence.
"You'll no longer report to the general floor assistant manager. Starting tomorrow, you work under me directly"He said.
Karen blinked. "But… why?"
He finally looked up, his eyes unreadable.
"Because I don't like my staff being distracted."
Karen frowned. "I'm not..."
"That wasn't a discussion," he interrupted.
She swallowed and nodded.
As she stood to leave, he added quietly, "Don't let Luca get too comfortable."
She froze.
He didn't look up again.
He didn't need to.