They Keep It Cool in Public, But in Private... Chloe always knew how to keep things professional. In public, she and her boss, Fred, maintained a safe distance-no flirting, no kissing, no asking personal questions. Just a purely physical arrangement behind closed doors. But then, an intern showed up at the company, and suddenly, things started to feel... off.
Chapter 1 She was single, but...
Mid-December, the temperature hit its lowest of the year. Snowflakes drifted down onto the streets, coating the bare branches in a layer of pure white.
At Race Corporation's annual party, the place was packed. Employees from every department were dressed to the nines, their faces lit up with relaxed, joyful smiles. After a year of hard work, this was the one night they could finally let loose and unwind.
Chloe, like everyone else, was relieved to catch a breather from the heavy workload in the marketing department.
Too bad she couldn't drink tonight.
"Chloe, not getting anything to drink?" Anna asked as she passed by.
Anna was one of Chloe's teammates.
Chloe leaned against the wall and shook her head. "Nah, just took some meds."
"You okay? Want me to help you sit down or something?" Anna asked, concerned.
"I'm fine, just an old issue. Don't worry about me-go have fun." Chloe smiled. "I'll just hang out here."
Anna hesitated but, hearing the certainty in Chloe's voice, didn't push further. "Alright, take care."
Watching everyone enjoy themselves, Chloe couldn't help but feel a little bummed. She'd had a sudden stomach ache around noon, and while the meds helped, the lingering dull pain was still there.
She had considered skipping the party, but since her whole team was attending-and as the marketing manager, she didn't want to kill the mood-she figured she'd show up, make an appearance, and leave early.
The party had only just started. Everyone was holding champagne glasses, chatting away, when the room suddenly quieted down.
Chloe looked up.
A tall figure was making his way to the stage.
Gasps spread through the crowd, followed by excited squeals laced with admiration and giddy excitement.
"HOLY SHIT, our boss is fine as hell!"
"NO KIDDING! I literally came to this party just to see him up close."
"That face is UNREAL-right up my alley."
"Forget the face, I wanna know what that BODY feels like."
"GOD, just thinking about it is sending me."
Chloe overheard the hushed, breathless exchanges between a few colleagues nearby. A couple of drinks in, they clearly didn't feel the need to hold back, openly discussing their thoughts on the man on stage-complete with starry-eyed stares.
The tall man stopped at the center of the stage, cleared his throat lightly, and began his speech.
"Thank you all for your contributions this past year. Our performance has improved compared to last year..."
His voice was deep, steady, magnetic.
Not only was he good-looking, but he also had the kind of voice that drew people in. No wonder the younger employees were completely smitten.
From where she stood, Chloe watched as the lights illuminated his towering figure. Even in a crowd, his presence was striking.
She didn't bother hiding the way she was looking at him.
This was one of the rare moments she could openly stare at Fred in public.
Only when lost in a sea of people could she gaze up at the brightest light on stage without drawing any suspicion.
To everyone else, Fred was just the company's CEO, and she was just the marketing manager. A typical boss-subordinate relationship. In the office, they barely interacted.
The speech lasted a few minutes before Fred stepped down, and the night's entertainment officially kicked off with performances and party games.
Chloe glanced at her watch.
With everyone's attention on the dancers on stage and the energy in the room heating up, she slipped away unnoticed. She made her way to the coat check, retrieved her coat, and pulled out her phone to call a cab.
It was a Friday night, and traffic was crazy. Still, she got lucky-only had to wait ten minutes before a ride showed up.
Stepping outside, her heels crunched against the freshly fallen snow. She walked carefully, not wanting to take an embarrassing tumble.
Her nose was already red from the cold by the time she reached the car.
She climbed in quickly, sighing in relief as the heater began to thaw her frozen fingers. Snowflakes tapped gently against the window, twirling for a fleeting moment before melting away.
Once she could feel her hands again, she pulled out her phone to check the notifications she'd been ignoring.
She dialed back, and as soon as the call connected, Teresa's excited voice burst through.
"So? Have you thought about it? My friend's little brother is seriously good-looking!"
Ah.
Right. The matchmaking thing.
Teresa had been trying to set her up for a while now. Chloe had already brushed it off once, but Teresa was persistent-especially since she was personally close to the guy.
"What do you think? I sent you his picture just now," Teresa pressed.
Chloe hadn't even had the chance to look at it yet. She hummed vaguely. "Seems alright."
"KNEW IT! Totally your type, isn't he?" Teresa's voice shot up with excitement. "When do you wanna meet him?"
"Uh... maybe sometime later."
"Oh, don't give me that 'I'm too busy' excuse! It's the end of the year-your company doesn't have any major projects left!" Teresa was practically jumping through the phone.
"He saw your photo and got totally hooked-he really wants to meet you."
"...Ugh." Chloe pinched the bridge of her nose, already regretting answering the call.
"COME ON, you're single! What's the harm in giving it a shot?" Teresa encouraged, then added with a suggestive tone, "He's an athlete, by the way. Stamina's top-notch... you know what I mean."
Chloe definitely knew.
Teresa had a habit of preaching about the importance of a fulfilling "personal life."
If that was the reason she should agree to this... well, Chloe wasn't sure how to respond.
Yeah, she was single, but it wasn't like she was that deprived.
Not nearly as much as Teresa seemed to think.
Still, with Teresa nagging her ear off, Chloe finally caved. It was just a meetup, after all. No big deal.
"Fine. I'm free next week."
"YES! It's a done deal!" Teresa practically squealed. "I'll tell him right now!"
After hanging up, Chloe noticed an unread message on her screen, received ten minutes ago.
"Where are you? Don't see you."
Her stomach flipped.
No name. Just a string of numbers.
But she knew it by heart.
She quickly typed back. "On my way home."
The reply came almost instantly.
"I'll be there in twenty minutes."
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