Chapter 3
830 Words
Something She Couldn’t
Sophia’s POV
The first thing Sophia noticed about the company was how intimidating everything felt.
Not in a bad way exactly just… polished. Expensive. Serious.
Everyone walked fast, spoke professionally, and somehow always looked like they had their entire life together. Meanwhile, she was trying not to spill coffee on herself before eight in the morning.
She adjusted the strap of her bag nervously as she walked through the veterinary division halls, silently reminding herself why she was here.
Final internship.
Good grades.
Focus.
Nothing else mattered.
Not distractions.
Not attractive men.
And definitely not the unsettling feeling she got every single time she remembered her boss’s face.
Sophia exhaled softly and pushed those thoughts aside.
It was ridiculous anyway.
She barely knew Ethan.
Technically, he wasn’t even directly supervising her. He was the CEO. The owner. The kind of man people straightened their posture around without realizing they were doing it.
And yet…
The moment she saw him in that conference room yesterday, something strange had happened.
It wasn’t just that he was handsome because honestly, that word felt too small for him. Ethan had one of those faces that made people instinctively pause. Sharp jawline. Dark eyes that looked like they noticed too much. A voice so calm it somehow made everyone else quieter and his lips that makes me wonder what they feel like on mine.
But it was more than appearance.
It was the feeling.
Like the air had shifted around him.
Like her body had reacted before her mind had time to catch up.
Sophia frowned at herself as she entered the animal recovery ward.
Stop thinking about him.
Seriously.
This internship could shape her future career. One mistake, one bad evaluation, and everything she had worked for during the last few years could collapse.
She couldn’t afford distractions.
Especially not one wrapped in an expensive black suit with eyes that made her nervous for absolutely no reason.
“Morning, Sophia.”
She looked up quickly. “Morning, Dr. Hale.”
The older veterinarian smiled slightly. “Ready for your first full day?”
“Very ready,” she replied immediately, perhaps too fast.
Dr. Hale chuckled. “Good. We’ve got a rescued German shepherd with a leg injury arriving in ten minutes.”
Finally.
Something she understood.
Animals were easier than people. Animals made sense.
They were honest with pain, honest with fear, honest with affection.
Humans complicated everything.
An hour later, Sophia was kneeling beside the injured dog, carefully calming it while Dr. Hale checked the leg.
“You’re good with them,” he observed.
Sophia smiled softly as the dog relaxed against her touch. “I’ve always loved animals.”
“That much is obvious.”
The praise warmed her chest slightly.
This mattered to her. More than anything.
Which was exactly why she almost groaned internally when she suddenly became aware of a familiar presence nearby.
Before she even turned around, she knew.
Ethan.
Her body recognized him first.
That strange awareness swept through her instantly warmth rushing low in her stomach, heartbeat suddenly uneven.
What was wrong with her?
She slowly looked up.
And there he was.
Standing behind the observation glass with another man beside him, dressed in a dark suit that probably cost more than her entire semester fees.
His expression remained unreadable.
But his eyes
His eyes were directly on her.
Sophia’s breath caught stupidly for half a second.
Then she immediately looked away.
Absolutely not.
No.
She refused to become one of those girls who lost focus because some rich, attractive boss looked in their direction.
She returned her attention to the dog quickly, pretending she hadn’t noticed him.
But somehow, she could still feel him there.
Watching.
The sensation crawled over her skin in a way she couldn’t explain.
Not fear.
Definitely not fear.
Something worse.
Interest.
And that terrified her far more.
Later that afternoon, Sophia finally escaped to the break room with a tired sigh, dropping into a chair with a bottle of water.
“You’re the new intern, right?”
Sophia looked up to see a tall woman leaning against the doorway.
Beautiful.
Perfectly dressed.
And smiling in a way that somehow didn’t feel warm at all.
“Yes,” Sophia replied politely. “I’m Sophia.”
The woman stepped closer.
Margaret.
“I’ve heard about you,” Margaret said smoothly.
Sophia blinked. “You have?”
Margaret’s smile widened slightly, but it never reached her eyes.
“Ethan doesn’t usually pay attention to interns.”
Something about the statement made Sophia tense immediately.
“I think you misunderstood,” she said carefully. “I’m only here for my internship.”
“Mm.”
Margaret tilted her head, studying her like she was trying to figure something out.
“Well,” she said softly, “for your sake… I hope that remains true.”
Then she walked away.
Leaving Sophia sitting there confused, unsettled and suddenly no longer hungry.
- Writer
