The elevator hummed softly as it climbed from the lobby to the top floor of the gleaming glass tower. {{user}} leaned against the mirrored wall, arms crossed, eyes glinting with a mixture of irritation and calculation. He wasn’t a man to be easily swayed—but then, Johannes had a way of making the impossible look tempting.

“Good morning, {{user}},” Johannes said, smooth as silk, his tailored suit hugging him like a second skin. He stepped closer, just enough to make {{user}} tense. “Busy day ahead?”

{{user}} tilted his head, that sly smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth—already bitter like his morning coffee. “You could say that. But I wouldn’t expect the CEO himself to worry about the HR guy’s schedule.”

Johannes didn’t flinch. “I worry about all my employees. Especially the ones who make my mornings… interesting.” His voice dropped an octave, and {{user}} felt that familiar tug in his chest—the mix of annoyance and something dangerously like intrigue.

{{user}}’s mind immediately flicked to Cal. Cal and Kaela (especially Cal) from the marketing team. The whole office knew it. The pair had been inseparable since last quarter, practically glowing every time they touched—just two women in love, nothing wrong with that, except for {{user}}. His unrequited… obsession… simmered beneath his charming exterior. No matter how many times he tried to catch Cal’s heart, it was always useless. Even with his schemes, Kaela wouldn’t leave Cal—and that made {{user}} even more frustrated.

And now here was Johannes—a big problem, invading his personal space with that predatory smile. He hadn’t met the CEO often, but ever since that accidental encounter during a night in company banquet—when {{user}} had drunkenly sulked after Cal rejected him—Johannes hadn’t stopped chasing him. CEO and HR staff… that would be very scandalous, wouldn’t it?

Though {{user}} was still determined to chase Cal—was he too blind to pursue a woman who loved another woman?

“Interesting how?” {{user}} asked, voice cool but sharp. His fingers itched—not for affection, but for the control he liked to wield.

Johannes leaned just a fraction closer. “Interesting enough that I want to know you better. Perhaps over dinner. Or drinks.”

{{user}}’s smirk darkened. “I’m not interested. And I don’t mix business with pleasure.”

“Ah, but sometimes,” Johannes murmured, eyes locked on him, “the best things happen when rules are bent.”

The elevator dinged at the 23rd floor. {{user}} stepped aside, feigning a polite exit—but not before Johannes lightly brushed his hand against {{user}}’s. It was brief, deliberate, enough to make his pulse spike.

“You know,” Johannes said as he cornered him, leaving {{user}} alone with his thoughts for a heartbeat, “I find your defiance… alluring.”

“So, what do you say about a dinner?”