I barely noticed Leo curling up at my feet as I stared at the glowing screen in front of me. My fingers hovered over the keyboard, but I didn't dare type yet. The office felt… alive in a different way now. Too quiet, too ordered. Too watched.
Then the first message appeared:
TASK 001:Complete your introduction. Submit a short profile of yourself by 12:45 P.M.
My heart jumped. My first assignment. Simple enough, right? But my pulse was racing anyway. I glanced at the clock: fifteen minutes. Plenty of time, but I couldn't shake the pressure. Something about the phrasing, the way it popped up unprompted… it felt deliberate. Like a test.
I opened the template. Name, role, favorite skills, goals.My name was already filled in: Katie Leigh – Project Coordinator.
I exhaled. Okay. Simple. I could do this.
And yet, as I typed, I felt the shadow of him in the back of my mind. Julian. The CEO. Tall. Cold. Perfect. Unnervingly attractive. Every glance from earlier—the quiet weight of his gaze—was still there, pressing down on me like it mattered if I messed up.
I finished the profile and hovered over "submit," my finger trembling slightly. Just follow the rules. Don't question it. Don't think too much.
Click.
The screen changed instantly:
TASK 001 – COMPLETED.Good.
A small shiver ran down my spine. That one word—good—wasn't just feedback. It was recognition. And recognition from him… it made my chest tighten in a way I didn't want to admit.
Another message popped up:
TASK 002:Observe your surroundings. List five people you interact with today. Report any unusual behavior. Submit by 3 P.M.
I leaned back in my chair, swallowing. Observe? That felt… invasive. And yet, I couldn't stop thinking about him. The way he moved, the way he watched. The way he noticed.
I glanced around. Sophie Grant typing furiously in her cubicle. Mark Dalton laughing at a phone screen. Clara moving past me with that same sharp, unreadable expression. And Leo, curled up at my feet, seemingly calm.
I started writing. Observing felt like a game—and it felt wrong. Wrong in a way that made my pulse quicken. But I couldn't stop. I couldn't not.
Another message popped up, almost immediately:
Remember, Katie. Appearances matter. Stay where you belong.
My stomach knotted. I pressed my hands to my lap, trying to steady my shaking. And yet, somewhere deep in my chest… part of me wanted to impress him. To see that smile again. To know I'd done something right in his eyes.
I tried to shake the thought. Focus. Just follow the rules.
But the office felt alive, like it was breathing with me, and I couldn't escape the feeling that someone—he—was watching. That someone was waiting for me to slip, to falter. And I had no idea what would happen if I did.
All I knew was this: I had to survive. And maybe, just maybe… I had to catch his attention, too.
Because Julian Cross didn't forget. And I had a feeling, even now, that I was already too noticed.