Chapter 3
1352 Words
Talia awoke before dawn, as she always did.
Years of living in a household where sleeping late invited punishment had trained her body to rise quietly and silently, like a shadow. She slipped out of the small guest room assigned to her and padded softly toward the kitchen.
The penthouse was breathtaking in the early morning darkness from the floor-to-ceiling windows glowing faint blue, the city humming below like a living thing. She paused, letting the beauty settle over her chest.
This was her new life.
A safer one.
A cleaner one.
A life where no one yelled her awake or threw dishes when dinner was too cold.
She exhaled and started her routine.
Kitchen, Laundry, tidying the living room, and checking the guest towels.
Life here was structured, predictable, and peaceful.
At least… she hoped so.
She was wiping the marble counters when she felt something...a presence behind her.
Talia went rigid.
Slow footsteps.
A low breath.
Someone woke far too early.
She turned slowly..
And froze.
Ethan Rossi stood there in sweatpants and a black T-shirt, hair damp from a shower, eyes half-lidded with sleep. His presence filled the kitchen like he owned the whole world casually, accidentally, without even trying.
He blinked at her.
She blinked back.
“Morning,” he said, voice roughened by sleep.
Her heart knocked against her ribs. She bowed awkwardly. “G-good morning, sir.”
Ethan lifted an eyebrow. The “sir” made him feel eighty. “It’s Ethan.”
“I can’t call you that,” she said immediately.
“Why not?”
“Because you’re my employer,” she whispered.
He opened the fridge slowly, still watching her. “And employers don’t have names?”
“I… I didn’t say that. I meant”.
“You’re nervous,” he said plainly.
“No, I’m just—working.”
“Right, Scrubbing a counter that’s already clean.”
Talia looked down. She had indeed wiped the same corner seven times.
She stepped aside, embarrassed. “I’ll finish later.”
But as she tried to walk past him, Ethan shifted without thinking..just an inch and suddenly they were too close.
Not touching.
But close enough that she felt the warmth radiating from his skin.
Her breath hitched.
Ethan’s throat bobbed.
Why the hell was it suddenly hard to breathe?
He stepped back first. “Go ahead.”
She hurried past him, cheeks burning, nearly bumping into the doorframe.
Ethan watched her flee.
And he didn’t like the strange tug in his chest.
It was the same tug he felt when he first saw her yesterday.
The same pull that made no sense.
He grabbed a bottle of water and muttered to himself, “Get a grip.”
She was a housekeeper.
He was her boss.
Nothing more.
Even if something about her…her eyes maybe, or the quiet sadness she carried like a second skin—felt annoyingly familiar.
By noon, Ethan was buried in meetings at Rossi Global. His father had dumped half the company’s problems on him, claiming he needed “real CEO experience,” and Ethan was regretting ever agreeing to take the position.
Numbers. Market reports. Expansion proposals.
His mind drifted every fifteen minutes.
Not to Caitlyn.
Not to the board.
Not to business.
But to a kiss in Paris.
A soft one. A hesitant one.
A kiss he had no business still craving.
Whenever he closed his eyes, he felt it again…a rose-petal softness, the gentle press of curious lips….
“Ethan!” Caitlyn’s voice cut through the hallway like an alarm. “Baby!”
He flinched before he could stop himself.
She stormed into his office wearing a white dress that cost as much as a small car. “You didn’t answer my texts!”
“I was in a meeting,” he said flatly.
“I needed you,” she pouted, sitting on his lap without permission.
He peeled her off instantly. “Don’t.”
“What’s wrong?” she snapped.
“You,” he said bluntly.
Her eyes narrowed. “You’re still in that cold phase. I thought Paris would fix your mood.”
“It didn’t.”
“It should’ve,” she said sharply. “You went to the most romantic city in the world.”
“That wasn’t the point of the trip.”
Caitlyn stood, pacing. “You’re distant, Ethan. And I hate it. Marriage is supposed to be romantic!”
“We’re not married.”
“Yet,” she corrected.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Caitlyn…”
“No.” She crossed her arms. “I’m coming over tonight. I’ll stay at your penthouse all weekend. That should help.”
“No,” Ethan said instantly.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want you there.”
Caitlyn froze.
Her voice dropped dangerously. “Is there someone else?”
“No.”
“Then why..”.
“Because I want space.”
Her nostrils flared. “Fine. But I’m still coming. You can’t keep pushing me away.”
“Yes, I can.”
She stormed out before he could finish, slamming the door so hard the wall shook.
Marco poked his head in two seconds later. “Is she gone?”
“Yes.”
Marco stepped inside. “We heard the door shake. Did she try to perform an exorcism on you?”
“Worse,” Ethan muttered. “She tried to sit on my lap.”
Marco fake-gagged. “Gross. Are you calling pest control or should I?”
Ethan didn’t laugh.
He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples.
Everything felt wrong.
Except…that damn kiss.
Why did that feel like the only right thing in months?
That evening, Talia was finishing laundry when she heard heels sharp, angry, expensive clicking down the hallway.
She looked up just in time to see a tall blonde woman storm toward her.
“You,” the woman snapped.
Talia blinked. “Me?”
“Yes, you. The new maid.”
Talia nodded slowly. “I…yes, I’m…”
“Don’t talk unless you’re asked, don’t stare at Ethan, and don’t think you’re special because you work here. Women like you always try something.”
Talia’s heart dropped. “I… I don’t understand.”
“That’s the problem.” The blonde smirked cruelly. “You don’t need to.”
She shoved past Talia, knocking the laundry basket from her arms.
Clothes were scattered everywhere.
Talia knelt, trembling, gathering them quietly.
The blonde’s voice called from down the hall: “Tell Ethan I’m waiting in his room. And I’m not leaving.”
Talia’s breath hitched.
That must be Caitlyn.
Ethan’s girlfriend.
His fiancée-to-be.
Her chest tightened painfully, why it did..she didn’t know. She had no claim on him, no place in his world, and no reason to feel anything.
But she still felt it.
A hollow, sinking ache.
She stayed on the floor, hugging the laundry for a moment, whispering to herself, “Don’t feel. You’re just here to work. Nothing else.”
As she rose, she didn’t notice Ethan behind her.
He had seen everything.
He stepped forward slowly. “Are you okay?”
Talia stiffened, startled. “I’m fine.”
“You’re lying.”
She looked down. “I don’t want trouble.”
“You didn’t cause it.”
She swallowed. “Please don’t fire me.”
Ethan frowned. “Why would I fire you?”
“…I don’t know,” she whispered.
He took the basket gently from her hands. “Go take a break. I’ll handle Caitlyn.”
Talia blinked up at him, surprised by his softness.
Something in her chest fluttered.
Something she couldn’t name.
He gave her a small nod before heading upstairs.
Talia leaned against the wall, breathing shakily.
Why did being near him feel like a memory she couldn’t reach?
And upstairs, Ethan stormed toward his bedroom, jaw tight.
If Caitlyn thought she could treat Talia like a disposable object….
Then she didn’t know him at all.
The lines between boss and employee…
Between stranger and something more…
Had just begun to blur.
- Writer
