The scent didn't fade.
If anything...
It deepened.
Adrian's fingers pressed harder against the table, the muscle in his jaw tightening as he forced himself to stay still.
Something was wrong.
Not externally.
Internally.
His body wasn't responding the way it should.
"…and if we finalize the numbers—"
"Stop."
The word came out sharper than intended.
The room fell silent instantly.
Adrian inhaled slowly.
Bad idea.
The scent wrapped around him again—closer this time, warmer, almost suffocating in its softness.
His chest rose, then stilled.
Control.
He needed control.
"Meeting adjourned," he said abruptly, already standing.
Confusion flickered across a few faces.
"Sir, we haven't—"
"I said it's over."
No one argued after that.
Chairs shifted.
Papers gathered.
Voices lowered.
The room emptied faster than it had filled.
Lina didn't move at first.
Her fingers were still pressed lightly against the edge of the document, her breathing shallow, careful.
She didn't look up.
Not once.
But she felt it.
The shift.
The sudden end.
And something else...
Something she didn't want to understand.
By the time she finally stood, Adrian was already gone.
His office door shut harder than necessary.
The silence inside felt different.
Contained.
Controlled.
But only barely.
Adrian loosened his tie in one sharp motion, exhaling as he walked further into the room.
The scent was still there.
Fainter now.
But not gone.
"What the hell…"
His voice was low, strained.
He dragged a hand through his hair, pacing once, twice—then stopping abruptly near his desk.
This wasn't normal.
Nothing about this was normal.
He braced his hands against the edge of the desk, head lowering slightly as he forced a slow breath.
Focus.
Think.
But his thoughts kept slipping.
Distracted.
Pulled back to that same thing...
That scent.
His grip tightened.
He unbuttoned his shirt.
Exposing his perfect body built like a greek
God.
As he moured opening his pants.
He begins to fumble his private part.
He moured even more that he covered his mouth with his hand.
Biting his palms.
He masturbate as he reaches climax.
Cums on the floor.
Breathing out a long sigh of relief.
Soon on.
Annoyance flashed across his face.
At himself.
At this.
At whatever this was doing to him.
He straightened abruptly, turning away from the desk like distance would fix it.
It didn't.
For a moment, he just stood there.
Still.
Silent.
Trying to force his body back into something familiar.
Something controlled.
It took longer than it should have.
Much longer.
By the time his breathing finally evened out, his expression had hardened completely.
Cold.
Sharp.
Untouchable.
But something had shifted.
He knew that.
Without question.
This wasn't over.
Across the office floor, Lina sat back down slowly, her fingers still trembling slightly as she reached for her pen.
Her eyes stayed on the paper.
But her mind...
Wasn't there.
She didn't understand what just happened.
Not fully.
But she felt it.
That invisible thread.
Tightening.
And somewhere, deep down...
She knew.
This was only the beginning