Not Suitable For Work

An Awkward Reunion

Chapter two

Ava stood frozen in the doorway.

Her mind refused to process what her eyes were seeing.

No.

No.

No.

This couldn't be happening.

Of all the companies in the city.

Of all the CEOs in the world.

It had to be him.

The arrogant man from the nightclub.

The same man she'd spilled champagne on.

The same man who'd looked at her like she was the most annoying person he'd ever met.

The same man she'd spent the entire weekend complaining about.

Ethan Blackwood.

Her boss.

Ava's stomach dropped.

The silence stretched between them.

For a moment, Ethan simply stared at her.

His expression unreadable.

Then one dark eyebrow slowly rose.

Recognition flashed in his eyes.

"You."

The single word felt like an accusation.

Ava swallowed.

"You remember me."

"Unfortunately."

Heat rushed to her cheeks.

Great.

Apparently she was unforgettable for all the wrong reasons.

The HR representative looked between them.

Confused.

"You two know each other?"

"No."

"Yes."

Both answers came at the same time.

Ava wanted the floor to open and swallow her whole.

Ethan leaned back in his chair.

His sharp gaze never leaving her.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

The nervous waitress from the club was standing in his office.

Wearing a white blouse.

Clutching a notebook.

Looking like she'd rather be anywhere else.

He should have found the situation annoying.

Instead, he found himself oddly amused.

"Miss Williams and I have met before."

Ava wished he hadn't said that.

The HR representative smiled.

"Well, that's wonderful. Then introductions won't be necessary."

Wonderful?

There was absolutely nothing wonderful about this.

The woman excused herself, leaving Ava alone with Ethan.

The moment the door closed, the atmosphere changed.

The office suddenly felt smaller.

Quieter.

Dangerous.

Ava forced herself to stand straight.

"I'm sorry about the other night."

Ethan's expression remained blank.

"Which part?"

Her eyes widened.

"The champagne."

"The collision outside the restroom."

"The fact that you nearly ruined a five-thousand-dollar suit."

Ava nearly choked.

Five thousand dollars?

That suit cost more than her yearly rent.

"I'm really sorry."

Ethan studied her for several seconds.

Then he stood.

Ava instantly became aware of how tall he was.

How intimidating he was.

How unfairly handsome he was.

He walked around the desk and stopped in front of her.

Close enough for her pulse to misbehave.

"Can you do your job, Miss Williams?"

The question caught her off guard.

"Excuse me?"

"Your resume is impressive."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"But resumes don't tell me much."

Ava straightened.

This was her chance.

"I can do my job."

"Confident."

"I worked hard for this opportunity."

For the first time, something flickered in Ethan's eyes.

Respect.

Just for a second.

Then it disappeared.

"Good."

He returned to his desk.

"Because I don't tolerate incompetence."

Ava clenched her notebook.

"I understand."

"Do you?"

His gaze met hers.

Cold.

Sharp.

Demanding.

"I expect punctuality. Efficiency. Professionalism."

He paused.

"And most importantly..."

Ava held her breath.

"No spilling drinks."

The corner of his mouth twitched.

Ava's jaw dropped.

Was he making fun of her?

The man actually looked pleased with himself.

She couldn't believe it.

A tiny laugh escaped him.

Just one.

But it completely transformed his face.

And for one terrifying moment—

Ava forgot why she disliked him.

"Welcome to Sterling Insurance, Miss Williams."

His expression returned to normal.

"Try not to create any disasters today."

Ava narrowed her eyes.

"I'll do my best, Mr. Blackwood."

Ethan nodded.

"See that you do."

As she turned to leave, his voice stopped her.

"Miss Williams."

She looked back.

"Yes?"

His gaze lingered for a second too long.

Then he said quietly,

"You look different when you're not carrying a tray."

Ava's breath caught.

Before she could respond, Ethan lowered his eyes to a document.

The conversation was over.

But as she left the office, one thought refused to leave her mind.

This job was going to be much harder than she expected.

And not because of the work.

The moment Ava stepped out of Ethan's office, she released the breath she'd been holding.

Her legs felt weak.

Her heart was still racing.

This was a nightmare.

A carefully tailored, expensive, billionaire nightmare.

She had finally landed her dream job only to discover her boss was the same arrogant man she'd embarrassed herself in front of two nights ago.

"Everything okay?"

A cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts.

Ava turned to find a young woman smiling at her.

"I'm Sophie."

"Ava."

Sophie pointed to an empty desk outside Ethan's office.

"That's yours."

Ava stared.

"My desk?"

Sophie nodded.

"Executive Assistant desk."

Ava nearly groaned.

Of course.

She wasn't just working for Ethan.

She was working right outside his office.

Eight hours a day.

Five days a week.

Maybe more.

Fantastic.

Absolutely fantastic.

By noon, Ava was convinced Ethan Blackwood wasn't human.

Nobody should be able to work this much.

Meeting after meeting.

Phone call after phone call.

Emails.

Reports.

Presentations.

Contracts.

The man never seemed to stop.

Every few minutes, his office door opened.

Every few minutes, he gave her another task.

"Schedule a conference call."

"Reschedule the London meeting."

"Review these files."

"Print this report."

"Contact legal."

"Email finance."

Ava's fingers flew across her keyboard.

She barely had time to breathe.

At one point, Sophie walked past carrying coffee.

"How are you surviving?"

"I'm not."

Sophie laughed.

"Welcome to Ethan Blackwood's world."

Ava wasn't sure whether that was encouragement or a warning.

Around lunch time, Ava finally decided to grab something to eat.

She was starving.

She entered the company cafeteria and joined the queue.

That's when she heard the whispers.

"That's the new assistant."

"She's pretty."

"Poor thing."

"How long do you think she'll last?"

Ava pretended not to hear.

But every word reached her ears.

Apparently Ethan had gone through three assistants in less than a year.

One resigned.

One transferred.

One simply quit.

Without notice.

Ava suddenly lost her appetite.

Then another conversation caught her attention.

"Did you see Mr. Blackwood at the club this weekend?"

"With Vanessa?"

"Of course."

"They look perfect together."

Vanessa.

The blonde woman from the nightclub.

Ava immediately remembered her.

Elegant.

Beautiful.

Confident.

The kind of woman who looked like she belonged beside a billionaire.

A strange feeling twisted inside her stomach.

She ignored it.

Why would she care who Ethan dated?

The man drove her crazy.

Still...

For some reason, the thought stayed with her.

By six o'clock, most of the employees had already gone home.

The once-busy office had become unusually quiet.

The sound of keyboards clicking and phones ringing had faded, replaced by silence.

Ava stretched her arms and glanced at the clock on her computer screen.

6:17 PM.

She should have left thirty minutes ago.

Instead, she was still staring at a mountain of reports.

Her first day had been overwhelming.

Every task Ethan assigned seemed more complicated than the last.

She could still hear his voice in her head.

"Review the client files."

"Double-check the figures."

"Don't make assumptions, Miss Williams. Verify everything."

The man was exhausting.

Ava sighed and rubbed her tired eyes.

Still, she wasn't about to complain.

She had worked too hard to get this job.

She wasn't going to lose it on her first day.

Not because of a few extra hours.

Her stomach suddenly growled.

Loudly.

She looked down at it.

"Traitor."

The cafeteria had closed hours ago.

She hadn't even eaten lunch properly.

The gossip about Ethan and Vanessa had ruined her appetite.

Not that she cared.

Why would she care?

Ethan Blackwood could date whoever he wanted.

The thought irritated her more than it should have.

Shaking her head, she focused on the report in front of her.

A few minutes later, the door behind her opened.

Ava didn't look up immediately.

She assumed it was a cleaner.

"Almost done," she muttered.

No response came.

Frowning, she turned around.

Her heart skipped.

Ethan stood in the doorway of his office.

His suit jacket was gone.

The sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up to his forearms.

His tie hung loose around his neck.

For the first time all day, he looked less like a ruthless CEO and more like a normal man.

A very handsome normal man.

Ava quickly looked away.

Dangerous thought.

Very dangerous.

"You haven't left."

His deep voice echoed through the nearly empty floor.

"I'm finishing the reports."

Ethan glanced at her desk.

"You could finish them tomorrow."

Ava blinked.

Was that concern?

No.

Definitely not.

"I wanted everything organized before I left."

Something unreadable crossed his face.

Most people looked for excuses to leave work early.

She was voluntarily staying late.

Interesting.

Ethan found himself watching her longer than necessary.

She looked exhausted.

A few strands of hair had escaped her neat style.

Her shoulders were slightly slumped.

Yet she was still working.

Still trying.

Still refusing to give up.

Most people tried to impress him.

Ava seemed more interested in proving something to herself.

And for some reason, he respected that.

"When was the last time you ate?"

The question surprised her.

"What?"

"When."

Ava hesitated.

"Breakfast."

Ethan stared at her.

"You skipped lunch?"

"I was busy."

His jaw tightened.

"That's stupid."

Ava's eyes widened.

"Excuse me?"

"You can't work properly if you're starving."

She folded her arms.

"I didn't realize my eating habits were part of my job description."

For a second, Ethan looked annoyed.

Then unexpectedly...

He laughed.

A real laugh.

Not the small amused smirk from earlier.

A genuine laugh.

Ava stared.

She almost didn't recognize him.

The sound transformed his entire face.

The coldness softened.

His eyes warmed.

And suddenly he looked years younger.

The moment passed quickly.

Too quickly.

His expression returned to normal.

"Come with me."

Ava frowned.

"Where?"

"Food."

"I'm fine."

Her stomach chose that exact moment to growl again.

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

"Clearly."

Heat flooded her cheeks.

Wonderful.

Now her stomach was embarrassing her too.

A few minutes later, they found themselves in the executive lounge.

A private area reserved for senior management.

Ava felt wildly out of place.

Ethan opened a refrigerator and pulled out several containers.

"You keep food here?"

"I practically live in this building."

She laughed softly.

That sounded surprisingly believable.

He handed her a sandwich.

Ava accepted it reluctantly.

"Thank you."

For a few moments, silence settled between them.

Comfortable silence.

Unexpected silence.

The kind neither of them knew what to do with.

"So," Ethan said eventually.

"You graduated recently."

Ava nodded.

"A few months ago."

"Business Administration."

"Yes."

"Top of your class."

She blinked.

"You read my file."

"I read everyone's file."

Something told her that wasn't entirely true.

Ethan leaned back against the counter.

"What made you choose insurance?"

Ava smiled.

"No one's ever asked me that."

"I'm asking now."

For the first time since entering his office earlier, Ava relaxed.

"My parents believed in planning for the future."

Her smile faded slightly.

"They taught me that unexpected things happen."

Ethan noticed the sadness in her eyes.

"What happened to them?"

The question slipped out before he could stop himself.

Ava lowered her gaze.

"I lost them."

Silence filled the room.

Ethan immediately regretted asking.

"I'm sorry."

The words sounded unfamiliar coming from him.

Ava looked up.

Surprised.

For some reason, she hadn't expected sympathy from Ethan Blackwood.

"Thank you."

Their eyes met.

For a moment, neither looked away.

Neither spoke.

The atmosphere shifted.

Subtle.

Dangerous.

Something neither wanted to acknowledge.

Then Ethan's phone rang.

The spell broke instantly.

He glanced at the screen.

His expression hardened.

Ava noticed immediately.

Whatever warmth had been there disappeared.

"Ethan Blackwood."

He answered coldly.

The person on the other end spoke rapidly.

Ethan's jaw tightened.

"What do you mean he's back?"

Ava froze.

The anger in his voice was impossible to miss.

"I told him not to come here."

Silence.

Then Ethan pushed a hand through his hair.

The frustration radiating from him was almost tangible.

"No."

A long pause.

His eyes darkened.

"Keep him away from the company until I get there."

The call ended.

Ava stared.

Whoever had called had completely changed his mood.

The approachable version of Ethan vanished.

The ruthless CEO was back.

Ethan slipped the phone into his pocket.

His face unreadable.

But one thing was clear.

Something was very wrong.

And for the first time, Ava realized Ethan Blackwood might be carrying burdens much heavier than he let anyone see.