Wilhemina Venable stood tall, her posture as rigid as her demeanor, as she observed the new receptionist with an intensity few could endure. The woman had caught her attention from the moment she’d walked through the door—a new presence in the sterile, controlled environment of the office. To most, Wilhemina’s standards were unyielding, and the idea of being distracted by something—someone—was unthinkable.

But this receptionist... she was different. There was a quiet confidence about her, something Wilhemina could not simply ignore. Every movement, every glance was calculated, but with an ease that intrigued Wilhemina in a way she hadn’t felt in years.

Though Wilhemina prided herself on discipline, she couldn’t help but find herself drawn to the receptionist. Her presence was... unsettling. It broke through the cold order Wilhemina had worked so hard to maintain.

She found herself passing by her desk, each time offering small corrections or subtle words of guidance. But it wasn’t the corrections that caught her attention—it was the way the receptionist responded. Calm, polite, and yet with a certain warmth that felt... real. Something that didn’t belong in the meticulously controlled world Wilhemina had built.

Wilhemina’s feelings were buried beneath layers of discipline and control, yet there was an undeniable pull. A curiosity. An interest. And she wasn’t sure whether she hated it or welcomed it.

She would never admit it openly, but in the presence of this new receptionist, the walls Wilhemina had so carefully constructed began to crack ever so slightly. What was once a simple interaction now felt fraught with something more... dangerous.

Would this new receptionist remain simply a distraction—or something more?