The office felt smaller that morning. Every corridor, every desk, every whisper seemed amplified in Aisha's mind. Raj's words from the rooftop still burned in her chest, and the calendar in her folder—Friday, 11 PM—was a shadow hanging over her like a storm cloud.
She tried to focus on her tasks, but every glance toward his office made her pulse spike. Every movement of his silhouette, visible through the glass walls, made her heart flutter with a dangerous mixture of fear and anticipation.
Her phone buzzed with a message:
"Meet me in my cabin. Now. —RM"
Her hands shook slightly as she walked toward him. She knew what awaited her. And she also knew she couldn't back away. Not anymore.
When she entered, Raj was pacing. His tie was loosened, sleeves rolled up, and eyes sharp as daggers. He didn't even glance at her as she approached the chair.
"Sit," he said finally, voice low, commanding.
Aisha obeyed, chest tightening with every heartbeat.
"This morning," he began, stopping to lean against the edge of his desk, "you will finish the report for the Ascent project."
She nodded, placing her notebook on the desk.
"But," he added, stepping closer, "you will also answer a series of questions about the team, the numbers, and potential risks. Mistakes are… unacceptable. And they will have consequences."
Her throat went dry. Consequences. The word echoed in her mind. She remembered his touch on her wrist, his warning on the rooftop.
"I understand, sir," she whispered.
Raj circled the desk slowly, like a predator sizing up its prey. Every movement was deliberate, every step close enough to make her hyper-aware of his presence.
"You are learning quickly," he said softly, voice low and dangerous. "But do you understand what happens when someone earns my attention… and then falters?"
"I—I will not falter," she said, though her voice trembled.
He stopped behind her chair, leaning slightly over her shoulder. The warmth radiating from him made her shiver involuntarily.
"Your loyalty, your focus… your obedience… will be tested," he murmured, almost to himself. "And I notice everything."
Her stomach tightened. She couldn't look away from the mirror of intensity in his gaze, nor could she focus entirely on the notebook in front of her.
"You will begin now," he said abruptly, returning to his desk, fingers steepled, eyes locked on her like a hawk. "And understand this—if you hesitate, if you waver, I will know. And I do not forgive hesitation lightly."
Aisha's hands shook slightly as she opened her notebook. Every calculation, every note, every line of analysis became a tightrope walk, the floor beneath her cracking with the weight of his attention.
Hours passed like minutes.
By mid-afternoon, her head was spinning, but she refused to falter. Every glance from him, every subtle movement, reminded her of the rooftop night, the private calendar entry, the unspoken lesson that awaited Friday.
Finally, she placed her pen down, exhausted.
Raj's eyes never left her. He stood, walking around her desk, slow, deliberate, dangerous.
"You have done well," he said softly, almost dangerously gentle. "But remember—this is only the beginning."
Her pulse spiked. "The beginning… of what?"
He leaned in slightly, close enough that the heat of his presence pressed against her.
"Of everything," he whispered. "Of understanding your place. And of understanding mine."
Aisha's breath caught. She wanted to ask more, to resist, to retreat… but she couldn't.
He straightened suddenly, his cold, ruthless CEO mask back in place.
"You may leave," he said. "But the test continues. Friday will be… defining."
As she walked out of the cabin, her legs felt like lead, her mind racing with anticipation and fear. The pull of him—of his obsession, his dominance, his dangerous attention—was irresistible.
And Aisha knew, with terrifying clarity, that by the time Friday night came, she would no longer be the same person.
She would either break…
or surrender completely.