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Chapter 18: Twelve Floors of Distance
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2025-11-15 01:05:51Lena didn’t remember walking out of the Boardroom.
“Miss Carter will be reassigned to the 12th floor.”
Reassigned.
Separated.
She barely heard the hum of voices in the hallway, the click of heels, the printer humming nearby. Everything around her felt muted, blurred, distant.
Alexander walked beside her, but neither of them spoke until they reached the far corner of the hallway, away from curious eyes.
“Lena…” His voice cracked. Alexander Knight — the man who commanded entire rooms — sounded… shaken.
She forced herself to meet his gaze.
“It’s fine,” she said, even though her voice trembled. “It’s just a floor away.”
His jaw tightened. “It’s not fine. They did this to punish us.”
“Punish you,” she corrected softly. “I’m just collateral damage.”
He flinched. “Don’t call yourself that.”
A wave of emotion hit her — a mix of longing, fear, and a painful understanding that she had stepped into a world she didn’t fully understand. A world where power wasn’t just about money or authority… but secrets, manipulation, and leverage.
Alexander’s eyes searched hers. “Lena, if this is too much—”
“Don’t,” she whispered. “Don’t finish that sentence.”
He fell silent.
In the distance, someone coughed, and they both stepped away instinctively — a reminder that even standing too close could be used against them.
“I’ll fix this,” Alexander said firmly.
“No,” she said gently. “Don’t make it worse. Not for me.”
His jaw clenched in frustration. “I won’t lose you to them.”
She felt her chest twist painfully. “You’re not losing me. I’m still here.”
“Not near me,” he said quietly. “Not where I can protect you.”
Lena looked down. “Maybe distance is what we need. Just for now.”
His next breath sounded like it physically hurt him.
By the afternoon, HR sent her a formal email.
Your new workstation is assigned on Floor 12 – Finance Department.
Report tomorrow at 9:00 AM.
No apology.
Just a relocation order — cold, immaculate, final.
She packed her things in silence:
When she lifted the plant, a small slip of paper fluttered out from beneath it.
Her heart stopped.
It was another message.
This time handwritten.
“Moving floors won’t save you.”
Her hands shook violently.
No signature.
But the handwriting was deliberate — slow strokes, sharp edges, like someone wanted her to feel each letter.
Her breath hitched. “No… no, no.”
She shoved the note into her pocket before anyone walked by.
Just then, the office door opened.
Alexander stepped out — and his eyes fell immediately on her half-packed desk.
For a moment, he forgot to breathe.
He walked toward her slowly, as if approaching something fragile that might break.
“I hate this,” he murmured.
She bit her lip. “It’s only a floor.”
“It’s too far.”
Lena glanced around. People were watching.
“We shouldn’t talk now,” she whispered. “Not here.”
His eyes softened in a way that made her knees weak. “Meet me tonight.”
She shook her head quickly. “Alex, no. That will only give them more ammunition.”
His frustration cracked through his mask. “Then what do you want from me? To stand still and watch them drag you away?”
Lena swallowed hard. “I want you to let this calm down. For both of us.”
He stared at her, hurt and conflict battling behind his eyes.
“And what about this?” he whispered. “What do we do about… us?”
Her heart slammed painfully.
She wanted to say she’d wait.
That the kiss still burned in her memory.
But before she could speak, someone called from across the office:
“Mr. Knight! Board meeting follow-up in five minutes!”
Alexander’s expression hardened instantly.
Duty tugged him away.
He leaned in, voice barely audible. “This isn’t over.”
“I know,” she whispered.
As he walked away, she felt the distance grow with every step.
At 5:57 PM, Lena stepped into the elevator going up for the last time.
She looked through the glass walls at Alexander’s office.
He was standing there, behind the glass… staring down at her.
Their eyes locked.
The doors slid shut between them.
Twelve floors of distance — and the beginning of something neither of them could control.
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