The morning sun slanted through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the executive suite, but Claire barely noticed the view of the city skyline. She sat in her small side office, her fingers flying across her laptop as she struggled to finalize a slide deck for the hybrid fashion event. Every click felt like a heartbeat; she was obsessed with ensuring the event went flawlessly, her risk-mitigation plan bulletproof.
The heavy oak door to the main office swung open with a sudden, authoritative thud. Claire continued to type away without looking up.
“Alex? You’re early,” she called out, a hopeful smile tugging at her lips. She finished her edit before shifting her eyes, expecting to see his athletic build and deep brown eyes.
Her smile died instantly. It wasn't Alex. Instead, CEO Jaewon Kang strode into the suite with a cold authority that lowered the room's temperature. Claire tried to ignore the shiver climbing up her spine while Jaewon looked first toward Alex’s desk, then shifted toward her. He advanced into Claire’s suddenly cramped office space, his emotionless gaze scanning her workstation.
“Mr. Kang, good morning,” Claire hurriedly stood to greet him as his presence loomed through her doorway.
“Miss Moss,” Jaewon began, his voice flat and unnervingly calm. “I was looking for Alex, but perhaps a moment of your time is more pertinent. I am curious about how this working relationship you’ve cultivated with Mr. Lee is developing.”
She clearly heard the slight change in cadence as he said ‘working relationship.’ The all-too-familiar feeling of heat rising at the back of her neck threatened to expose her nervous guilt.
“I’m not sure I understand your inquiry, sir. Would you like me to update you on the progress of the fashion event planning?” Claire, hid the slight tremble in her hands by gesturing toward her laptop. “I’m happy to preview the presentation for today’s meeting with you.” She flashed a polite smile.
With a disgruntled huff, Jaewon moved around her desk, forcing Claire to push her chair against the wall in order to move aside. “Ah, allow me to walk you through the slides,” she quietly began summarizing the presentation.
His silence through the overview unnerved Claire, but she powered through it, determined not to let his overwhelming presence get the better of her. If she couldn’t handle an informal meeting, how would she handle a true presentation in front of the company’s most influential decision-makers?
Jaewon looked up from her screen with an expression of icy scrutiny. “He speaks of your instrumental contributions with such conviction. It is rare for Alex to show such subjective judgment for an untested employee.” He shifts his body to face her squarely. “Your presentation has merit, I see the meticulous effort placed in it,” he leaned forward slightly, his voice dropping. “However, I find myself wondering if the 'focus' he claims you possess was really present during your late-night dinner last night.”
Claire’s heart hammered against her ribs; her palm rested on the desk more to hold up her weakening knees. Had he noticed they weren’t actually working during dinner?
As she opened her mouth to defend her professional integrity, movement near her hand caught her eye. A large, mottled-brown spider skittered across her desk, almost perfectly camouflaged against the wood grain, heading directly for her keyboard.
Instead of a defense, a garbled cry of surprise shot out of her mouth as she snatched her hand away from the desk so forcefully, she lost her balance and tripped on the chair behind her. In an unexpected moment of chivalry, Jaewon reached forward to steady her from falling backward, but overcompensated in pulling her forward. Claire’s cheek landed with a thud onto Jaewon’s chest.
The CEO’s chest.
“Oh, my goodness! I am so sorry—” her apology was cut short. Her face was pointed in the direction of her desk, and the spider had skimmed over her keyboard, vaulted off the mouse, and threatened to skydive from the desk closest to where she stood. Claire practically jumped further into his arms, moving to position the man as a shield between her and the long-legged offender.
It was at this moment Alex walked casually through the door, two coffees and a paper bag in his hands. His easy smile quickly melted into a confused frown as he took in the odd scene of what appeared to be his secret uncle and his Communications Manager desperately in each other’s arms before him.
“Mr. Kang? What brings you here?” Alex walked steadily to the doorway separating Claire’s office. He quickly set the coffees and bag on her desk, his posture defensive as he caught her eye.
“Miss Moss had an unexpected visitor while we were conversing,” Jaewon said dryly, gesturing to the spider perched at the edge of the desk, but now turned to face the newcomer.
“As mortified and embarrassed as I am, could one of you please get rid of that thing?” Claire could barely hang on to the thin thread of dignity she had left. She loosened her grip from Jaewon’s suit jacket and instead crossed her arms in front of her chest like an invisible wall while she was laser focused on the intruder.
“I’ll take care of it,” Alex said firmly, his eyes shifting to Claire with an apologetic expression as he emptied the paper bag and corralled the spider into it. He hurried out the door to evict the uninvited guest.
Claire was about to heave a huge sigh of relief when she glanced at the CEO and saw an unreadable expression of his own. Shifting uncomfortably, she addressed him.
“Sir, I apologize for my behavior. I should not have such a reaction to something so small.” She gestured toward the laptop. “Would you like to continue with our discussion regarding the presentation?”
Jaewon cleared his throat. “Yes, I would like to know how much of this was actually discussed over dinner.”
Claire tried hard to keep the flush of embarrassment from reaching her cheeks. She couldn’t lie to the CEO, but she knew that if he considered their dinner as “dating,” he could fire her on the spot for not complying with the non-fraternizing clause. She was about to come up with an excuse when Alex returned.
“You’re still here, sir. Is there something else you have questions about?” Alex put himself between Claire and Jaewon.
“I was asking how much of this presentation was discussed during your dinner,” he repeated pointedly.
“Hm,” Alex huffed. “To be honest, not much, just a few minor comments. The presentation is flawless, as I’m sure you noticed from the overview I assume she gave you. The dinner was a well-earned thank you for putting so much effort into making this upcoming event a success.” Alex turned the laptop towards Jaewon. “Unless you see issues with her work?”
After an uncomfortable pause, Jaewon nods his head. “It is satisfactory. I look forward to the full presentation during the meeting.”
“Great,” Alex closes the laptop. “We’ll see you again in a couple of hours.”
Without another word, Jaewon leaves the office, leaving Claire to let out her breath that she didn’t realize she was holding in.
Alex turned to her. “You did great, and I got your back, okay?” He cradled her cheek in one hand, and brushed the stray strands of hair behind her ear with the other.
Claire just nodded, thankful she survived two unexpected visits; one predator so small yet so fearful, another predator large and intimidating and powerful enough to eat her alive.
