Chapter 003

Some mornings feel like they’re sent to test one’s patience. This one was crueler than most for Sophia.

Sophia stood outside the glass doors, her breath still stopping in her throat as she stared at the building towering above her. It was pristine, cold, and quiet, and she loved it.

Nothing like the chaotic offices she’d been to apply for before, the ones that rejected her, yes. She found herself being glad that they had rejected her.

This place was quieter, more polished,like something out of a dream.

“This is it, Nara.” She said,

“You’re already late.” Nara sounded pissed. “Get moving before we lose the only job we’ve got!”

“Yeah, yeah, thanks for the reminder.” Sophia muttered, adjusting the strap of her bag.

Getting here has been a whole mess. The directions she was given yesterday had led her to the general company office, not this separate private tower that was situated deep in a much quieter part of the city. Her cab had taken a wrong turn, and her phone's GPS had decided today was the perfect day to glitch.

Great. Just great.

She almost ran in through the doors, hoping her hells wouldn’t fail her. The receptionist barely looked up from her screen when Sophia got there.

“Excuse me.” Sophia said, panting slightly. “I’m supposed to start today. Secretary to... Sean something? I’m so sorry I’m late— I was told to come to the main office and—”

“Take the elevator to the top floor.” The woman said, looking mildly irritated. “He’s been waiting for you for over an hour.”

Sophia swallowed. Hard. Waiting? Not exactly the warm welcome she’d hoped for.

“This is bad.” Nara whispered. “He’s going to fire you before you even get your ID badge.”

Sophia pressed her lips together and got into the elevator, pressing the button for the top floor. The elevator chimed, and the doors slid open to a hallway lined with glass offices and a massive door at the end. She stopped in front of it, taking the time to breathe.

“Okay.” She whispered, smoothing her blouse. “First impressions matter, just smile.”

She knocked twice and then opened the door.

The man stood with his back to her, phone pressed to his ear, facing the massive windows behind his desk. The sunlight poured in, casting a kind of golden outline around him. His voice was commanding.

“No, that is not acceptable. I told them if they didn’t deliver by Friday, we’d cut the contract. Handle it now.”

Then he turned back to her, and their eyes met.

Sophia froze.

It was him.

The man she’d bumped into yesterday at the other branch. The one with the stormy eyes, the commanding presence, and the body that looked carved from—

Sean’s eyes widened slightly just for a second. Then they narrowed.

“I’ll call you back.” He said into the phone, then dropped it onto his desk.

They stood there in silence, and Sophia’s heart beat erratically in her chest. Her mouth opened, but no words came out.

“You’re late.” Sean said coldly, walking around his desk, arms crossed.

“I—I know, I’m so sorry.” She said. “See, there was a mix-up with the location. I went to the main office and—”

“That wasn’t what I expected from a new hire.” He interrupted, his eyes still locked on hers.

She frowned.

“I mean, yesterday... we bumped into each other.”

“Yes, we did.”

Sophia felt hot, and very uncomfortable. What was she rambling about now? Nara had the same question.

Sophia took a step forward.

“So... you’re my boss?”

Sean didn’t respond immediately. He was studying her.

“You don’t remember me.” He said quietly, more to himself than to her.

Sophia blinked.

“Remember you? I just told you I saw you yesterday, of course I remember.”

Zac, Sean’s wolf, scoffed.

“She should remember. That’s her for sure.”

Sean didn’t answer, he just looked at her for a bit. She had blossomed to become more beautiful, and at least she could look him in the eye now.

Sean walked to his desk and gestured to the chair across from it.

“Sit.”

She obeyed quickly, placing her bag beside her chair.

“I’ll let this slide. You’ll start with reviewing documents and handling my schedule. My last assistant was sloppy, I hope you’re not.”

Sophia straightened.

“I’m not sloppy, I’ll do my best here, sir.”

“It’s Sean.”

She nodded, trying to ignore the goosebumps that rose on her arms as he moved to stand in front of her, reaching out.

Then he handed her a stack of papers.

“Go through these and start making appointments for next week. Be efficient, and be quick.”

Sophia took the papers, nodding. She didn’t trust herself to speak again.

Sean sat down, still watching her. She kept her eyes on the documents, pretending to read, but her mind was all over the place.

He was her boss.

The same man she had bumped into like a klutz. Talking about first impressions like she hadn’t basically introduced herself as clumsy.

All that aside, he looked so familiar, but she couldn’t exactly tell how. She wondered if he thought the same too, that she looked familiar.

A few hours passed quietly. The tension eased a bit, and soon, she was buried in paperwork. She didn’t notice him watching her as she worked.

“She really doesn’t know.” Zac sounded amazed.

“Or she’s a good liar, maybe.” Sean replied. “Either way, she’s still weird, working on my couch when her office is out there.”

When lunch came, Sean stood.

“Take a break and be back in thirty minutes. Your office is the one on the left, immediately after mine.”

Sophia felt like an idiot.

“I didn’t know that.”

“Well, now you do.” Sean replied, brushing past her.

Sophia nodded, and her eyes went to his wrist. The watch he was wearing had the design of a crescent moon wrapped around a sword etched on the side of the gold band.

Suddenly, she saw lights, dancing, and people. But as soon as she saw it, it disappeared from her eyes in a second.

She stumbled, barely catching herself and shaking her head.

“What is the matter?” Sean asked, stopping.

That symbol.

“Sorry, I’m just dizzy.”

“Then be careful.” He said, stepping aside.

Sophia nodded and hurried out of the room. In the hallway, she leaned against the wall.

“Did you see that?”

“It looks familiar… I can’t remember.” Nara responded.

“Why did it make me feel like that?”

“Because we’ve seen it before, Sophia. That’s a memory.”

Back in the office, Sean turned his wrist and looked at the same symbol. He had seen the way her face changed when her eyes dropped to his watch.

He knew it! She knew something. She had to be pretending that she didn’t for some reason.

Not like it even mattered, he would find out himself. He picked up his phone and placed a call.

“Eren. I might you to run a check on someone, but for now, do a quick background scoop.” Sean said.

“Okay sir, I’ll see what I can do. What’s her name?” The voice over the phone asked.

“Sophia. Sophia Anderson.”