When love wasn't the plan

Chapter Seven

Noah's Pov

Monday morning, and I’m stepping into the office feeling refreshed,ready for a challenge. Today’s the day of the big project presentation, and I’m eager to see how our collaboration unfolds. While I’m running through some calculations and double-checking the finer details, I overhear Rodney talking about team assignments.

He says something about switching Nathan with a lady from the finance team. Immediately, I thought, "No, he can’t switch Nathan". Nathan is my go-to guy—next to him, my workload is lighter, the process smoother. Without him, things could get bulky.

“What's going on?” I call out, my tone a mix of curiosity and mild irritation.

Rodney explains, "We need to even out our teams. Our finance side is overflowing, and the tech team needs more members. We’re short on tech staff, so balancing the groups makes sense."

I glance over and catch a glimpse of a familiar set of eyes,the girl from the coffee shop . Oh, she works here. Even though I’d been uneasy about losing Nathan, a few murmurs in the room reveal that, in the shuffle, Nathan is switched back to my group, and she ends up in her original team. Not before noticing the glimpse of embarrassment on her face,but then, as the presentation begins, everything shifts.

The girl from the coffee shop takes the stage. Her delivery is confident and clear; every calculation she presents underscores just how sharp she is. As I watch her speak, my admiration grows. Later, while chatting with Nathan about the presentation, he whispers that some team members thought I was a bit harsh and partial about the incident .

"Really?" I mutter, facepalming inwardly. "That wasn’t even the case. I need to apologize to her. Jeez, thanks, Nathan."

The project proposal turned out to be a massive success,a true turning point that marks the dawn of significant expansion for both K and K Corporation and our tech team. As the session wraps up, I catch sight of the girl ..Ivy that's her name i saw it on her name tag hurriedly leaving the room, before I could say a word to her, Mr. Danes, the CEO of our tech company calls out, "Noah! Congratulations, this is huge for both companies!" He gestures me over. "I have a few markers to show you; please come with me."

As I follow him, my thoughts keep returning to the girl from earlier,I guess I'll catch up with her later

It had been over two hours since the presentation wrapped up, and I was finally done with Mr. Danes. As I stepped out of the elevator, I spotted her—on the move, focused, unaware of me until I called out.

"Hey, excuse me," I said, catching up to her.

She turned, looking slightly surprised but composed. "Hey," she responded, clearly wondering why I was here.

“Ivy, right? How's it going?" I asked, keeping my tone casual-easy, like I wasn’t thinking too hard about this.

"Not bad," she answered, glancing at me briefly.Okay, Noah, speak before you scare the girl off.

"Listen," I quickly added, "I'm really sorry about earlier—I didn’t mean to cut in or make things awkward. We needed an extra analyst, and I just… well, I got caught up in the shuffle."

She paused, like she wasn’t expecting me to apologize. Then, a small smile tugged at her lips. "Oh no, it's no problem. I totally get it—it's fine."

"Really?" I asked, watching her closely.

"Yeah, really," she reassured.

Before I could say anything else, one of her colleagues passed by.

"Hey Ivy, great job today! Your calculations and analysis were so impressive,it made everything easy to understand."

Wait—what?

"You’re the one who did the analysis?" I asked, taken aback.

She looked at me, slightly surprised by my reaction. "Yeah, I am."

Huh. What are the odds?

My eyes flickered with admiration. I’d wanted to know who was behind that level of precision, and now I had my answer.

"That’s impressive," I said, then,before I could think twice—I added, "Can I have your contact? I’ve always wanted your contact."

WHAT THE HELL DID I JUST SAY? Face-palming myself inwardly.

She smiled, a little shy but clearly amused. "Are you blushing?"

"Should I be?" she teased.

Okay, Noah. Real smooth.

"Guess not," I replied, matching her energy.

"Alright, Ivy," I said, shifting back to composed confidence. "It was really nice meeting you properly. I’ll text you later, okay?"

"Alright, Noah," she responded with a genuine smile as I walked away.

As I walked away, I glanced at her number on my phone, a small smirk forming. Ivy. She seemed sharp, confident, and clearly knew her stuff. I liked that.

I wasn’t exactly sure why I’d asked for her contact,I told myself it was just because I respected her work. That was it. Nothing more.

No harm in a little conversation.