The office was already alive with movement, but Andrew Vele barely noticed it.
He sat behind his desk, a stack of files neatly arranged before him, flipping through them with practiced ease. Numbers, contracts, proposals, things that normally held his full attention. Yet today, his focus wavered. He read lines twice, sometimes three times, before realizing he had absorbed nothing.
His mind kept drifting back to the same person.
Selina Whyte.
Andrew closed one file and rested his elbow on the desk, his fingers pressing lightly against his temple. He wasn't used to distractions, especially not the kind that crept into his thoughts without permission. What had happened between them recently, those moments he hadn't planned for, had left him unsettled in a way he didn't like.
Still, he couldn't deny one thing.
He wanted to know more about her.
Reaching for the phone on his desk, Andrew pressed the intercom. His voice was calm, controlled, the way it always was.
"Send my assistant in."
A short while later, the door opened, and his assistant stepped inside, tablet in hand.
"Yes, sir?"
Andrew didn't look up immediately. "I want you to look into Selina Whyte's background," he said evenly. "Her education, work history, family ,..everything relevant."
There was a brief pause, subtle but noticeable.
"Yes, sir," the assistant replied professionally. "I'll begin immediately."
Andrew finally lifted his gaze. "I want it done quietly."
"Of course."
When the door closed behind the assistant, Andrew leaned back in his chair and exhaled slowly. He told himself this was nothing more than caution. After all, Selina worked closely with him. Knowing more about her wasn't unreasonable.
Yet deep down, he knew the truth.
This wasn't just business.
A few doors away, Selina sat at her desk, staring at her computer screen.
She had been there for several minutes, hands resting on the keyboard, her thoughts completely elsewhere. The events of the morning replayed endlessly in her mind, each memory making her heart race all over again.
She felt shy. Nervous. Afraid.
Not of the work but of facing Andrew.
The idea of standing in front of him again, of meeting his eyes after everything that had happened between them, made her chest tighten. She had always been composed, always careful. Now, she felt exposed, as though her thoughts were written plainly on her face.
Get it together, Selina, she told herself.
She straightened her posture and forced herself to start typing, but her fingers moved slowly, betraying her lack of focus.
"Selina?"
The voice beside her startled her.
She looked up quickly to see one of her colleagues standing there, concern etched on her face.
"Are you alright?" the colleague asked. "You seem… distracted."
Selina blinked, then forced a small smile. "Oh…yes. I'm fine," she said, a little too quickly. "Just thinking about work."
The colleague studied her for a second, clearly unconvinced, but nodded anyway. "Alright. Just don't stress yourself too much."
"Thank you," Selina replied softly.
As the colleague walked away, Selina let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. She pressed her lips together and looked back at her screen, her heart still pounding.
She hated how easily her emotions were slipping out of her control.
She couldn't even trust herself anymore. How was she supposed to trust her feelings?
Taking a deep breath, Selina focused on her work again, forcing herself to concentrate. Emails were sent. Documents were organized. Coffee was made and left untouched on her desk.
Yet no matter how hard she tried, the awareness lingered.
Andrew was in the same building.
So close.
And that thought alone was enough to keep her heart unsteady.