~Elias~

The rest of the workday passes in a haze of heightened awareness. Every time Alice enters the conference room, every time she hands me a revised budget ledger, the air between us feels thick, charged with the lingering heat of the morning. The untouchable executive partner who sat across from me in the afternoon briefing is the same woman who clung to my neck in the dark of my office, her breath hot against my mouth.

I can barely focus on the documents in front of me. My mind keeps ...