Forced Proximity

ONE MONTH LATER

The job at Voss Group was supposed to be safe.

I told myself that every single day for four weeks. I sat in my small cubicle on the fourteenth floor, worked on data, kept my head down, and never looked up when the big executives walked past.

I stayed quiet. Invisible. Careful.

But today... everything changes.

My supervisor calls me into her office.

“You’re being reassigned,” she says. No greeting. No warning.

My chest tightens. “What?”

“Ms. Reyes from HR asked for you. They need extra staff on the executive floor.” She shrugs like it is nothing. “It’s temporary. Just one week. You’ll organize files for the merger.”

My heart starts beating too fast.

“I can’t work on the executive floor.”

She looks at me like I just said something foolish. “You can... and you will. Unless you want to explain to HR why you are refusing a promotion.”

Promotion...

It doesn’t feel like one.

She slides a new badge across the desk.

“Twenty third floor. Eight in the morning. Don’t be late.”

I pick up the badge with shaking hands.

---

That night... I can’t sit still.

I walk around my small apartment again and again while Martha watches me.

“It’s just a coincidence,” she says softly. “He doesn’t even know you work there.”

“What if he finds out?” I ask. My voice sounds weak.

“He won’t,” she says. “There are hundreds of employees. You are just one of them. You will go, do your work, and leave. After one week, you go back to your floor.”

I nod... but the fear stays inside me. It doesn’t go away.

---

The next morning...

I step into the elevator and press twenty three.

The ride feels too long.

When the doors open, it feels like I walked into another world.

The floor is bright and clean. Marble everywhere. Quiet voices. People walking fast like they have important things to do.

Everyone looks confident. Like they belong here.

I don’t.

I find the small desk they gave me in a corner. Files are stacked high on it.

Good...

Hidden.

I sit down and start working. I keep my head down. I don’t look around.

I tell myself one thing again and again...

Stay invisible.

---

For three days... it works.

No problems. No surprises.

No him.

---

On the fourth day...

The elevator doors open...

And he walks out.

Adrian.

My body freezes.

He looks the same... maybe even more dangerous. Dark suit. Tie slightly loose. His face is calm... but cold.

A woman walks beside him. Blonde. Beautiful. Covered in expensive jewelry. She talks fast, her voice sharp as she speaks about business.

I don’t think so.

I move quickly and hide behind a filing cabinet.

My heart is beating so hard it hurts.

Please... don’t see me...

He walks past.

His voice is low as he answers the woman. Calm. Controlled.

Then they enter his office. The door closes.

Only then... I breathe.

“You okay?”

I jump.

I turn around and see a man looking at me. He seems confused.

“Fine,” I say quickly. “I just... dropped something.”

He nods and walks away.

---

The rest of the day... I avoid the main hallway.

I use the stairs instead of the elevator.

My body feels heavy. My back hurts.

I place a hand on my stomach for a moment.

Three months...

Just three more days...

Then I go back.

Back to being invisible.

---

But on the fifth day...

Everything goes wrong.

I carry a stack of files to the copy room. My arms are full. I can barely see where I am going.

I turn the corner...

And crash into someone.

The files fall. Papers scatter everywhere.

“I’m so sorry...”

I look up...

And my world stops.

Adrian Voss is standing in front of me.

His gray eyes lock onto mine.

For a moment... he says nothing.

He just looks at me. My face... the papers... then my hand as it moves to my stomach without thinking.

“You...” he says slowly.

I can’t breathe.

“I know you.” His voice is quiet... but dangerous. “From somewhere.”

I shake my head quickly and kneel down to gather the papers.

“I’m new here. You are mistaken.”

“No.”

He bends down in front of me. Too close.

“I will never forget a face.”

Our eyes meet... just for a second.

Then I look away and keep picking the papers. My hands are shaking.

“I need to take these to the copy room,” I say softly.

He grabs my wrist.

Not painful... but strong. I can’t pull away.

“What is your name?”

“Elena...”

The name slips out before I can stop it.

His eyes change.

He remembers.

“Elena...” he repeats slowly. “From the bar.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You are lying.”

He lets go of my wrist... but he doesn’t step back.

“You disappeared. I looked for you.”

My heart skips. “Why would you look for me?”

He doesn’t answer.

His eyes move down... to my stomach.

Only for a second...

But it is enough.

Cold fear spreads through me.

“You work for me now,” he says. His voice is calm... but something is hidden inside it. “Interesting.”

“It’s just a coincidence. I didn’t know this was your company when I applied.”

“And I should believe that?”

I stand up and hold the files tightly against my chest.

“I don’t care what you believe. I am here to work.”

He stands too. He is so tall I have to lift my head to look at him.

“You are hiding something.”

I swallow. “Everyone hides something... Mr. Voss.”

His face changes slightly when I say that.

“It was Adrian... three months ago.”

I shake my head. “Three months ago... was a mistake.”

Silence.

He studies me carefully. Like he is trying to see through me.

Then he speaks again.

“You are working on merging files?”

“Temporarily.”

“Not anymore.”

Before I can react, he takes the files from my hands.

“You will move to my office. I want to watch you.”

My eyes widened. “You can’t do that.”

“I am the CEO.” His voice turns cold. Final. “I can do anything.”

My chest feels tight.

“You start tomorrow. Don’t be late.”

And just like that...

He walks away.

No hesitation. No looking back.

---

I stand there in the hallway... shaking.

My hand slowly moves to my stomach.

The secret I tried so hard to hide...

Is now closer to him than ever before.

And if he finds out...

Everything will break.