Chapter 6 DAMAGE CONTROL

Alex's Pov

I arrived at the coffee shop fifteen minutes early, choosing a table near the window where Damien could see me from across the street. He'd texted me twice already, checking if I was okay, reminding me to signal if anything felt wrong.

The coffee shop was half-empty, the lunch rush over. I ordered a black coffee I didn't want and watched the door.

At exactly 2 PM, someone sat down across from me.

Maya.

"What-" I started, but she held up a hand.

"Don't. Just listen." She placed her phone on the table between us, showing me a photo. Damien and me, leaving his building together last night. Another photo. Us in his car. Another. Me entering his apartment.

"How long have you been following me?"

"Since you started acting weird three weeks ago." She leaned back, her expression unreadable. "You're my best friend, Alex. I know when something's wrong. And when you started lying to me about where you were, who you were with, I got worried."

"So you hired someone to stalk me?"

"I followed you myself." She tapped the phone. "And imagine my surprise when I discovered you're sleeping with our CEO."

My stomach dropped. "Maya-"

"Are you insane?" Her voice was quiet but sharp. "Do you have any idea what this could do to your career? To his company?"

"It's not what you think."

"Really? Because it looks like you're fucking the boss for a promotion."

The accusation hit like a slap. "That's not-we didn't-it started before he knew I worked for him."

She frowned. "What?"

I told her everything. The dating app, the anonymous conversations, the connection we'd built without knowing who we were talking to. The hotel room revelation. All of it.

When I finished, she was staring at me like I'd grown a second head.

"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

"I know."

"And you expect me to believe it?"

"I don't care if you believe it. It's the truth."

She was quiet for a long moment, studying my face. "You really like him."

"Yes."

"And he likes you?"

"He says he does."

"Says?" She raised an eyebrow. "You don't believe him?"

"I don't know what to believe. A month ago I was just another employee. Now suddenly I'm leading the biggest campaign of my career and sleeping with the CEO. How am I supposed to know what's real?"

Maya's expression softened slightly. "Has he given you any reason to think he's using you?"

I thought about last night. The way Damien looked at me, touched me, protected me. The vulnerability in his voice when he said he loved me.

"No," I admitted. "But that doesn't mean-"

"Alex. You're the smartest person I know. Stop second-guessing yourself." She picked up her phone. "That said, you two are being incredibly stupid."

"I know."

"No, you don't." She pulled up something on her phone and showed me. A company email from two weeks ago about new workplace relationship policies. "HR updated the entire policy last month. Relationships between employees at different levels require disclosure and reassignment. If someone finds out about you two and reports it, Damien could be forced to fire you or resign himself."

I hadn't seen that email. I'd been too distracted, too caught up in whatever was happening between us.

"What do we do?"

"First, you stop sneaking around like teenagers. It's obvious and sloppy." She counted on her fingers. "Second, you either disclose the relationship officially or end it. Third, you get yourself reassigned to a different project so it doesn't look like he's showing favoritism."

"He gave me this campaign before we were together."

"Doesn't matter. Perception is reality." She leaned forward. "People are already talking, Alex. They noticed the way he looks at you in meetings. The way you look at him. It's only a matter of time before someone else puts it together."

My phone buzzed. Damien, from across the street: "Everything okay?"

I typed back: "It's Maya. We're fine. Give us five more minutes."

"Tell him to come over," Maya said. "We need to figure this out together."

I hesitated. "You're not going to tell anyone?"

"About what? My best friend having a secret relationship with our CEO that could destroy both your careers?" She smiled grimly. "No, Alex. I'm going to help you not be idiots about it. But Damien needs to hear this too."

I texted him to join us. He was there in under a minute, sliding into the seat next to me. Up close, I could see the tension in his jaw, the worry in his eyes.

"Maya," he said carefully. "This isn't what-"

"Save it." She held up the photos. "I already know everything. And now we're going to discuss how you two are going to handle this without imploding your lives."

Damien looked at me. "You told her?"

"She already knew. She's been following me."

His expression darkened. "You've been following him?"

"Someone had to," Maya shot back. "You two are so busy staring at each other you didn't notice you were being obvious." She pulled out a notepad. "Here's what's going to happen. Alex is going to request a transfer to a different project, citing professional growth. Damien is going to approve it without question. You'll maintain professional distance at work. No lingering looks, no private meetings, nothing that could be misconstrued."

"And outside of work?" I asked.

"Outside of work you can do whatever you want. But you need to be smart about it. Different cars. Different entrances. Separate arrivals and departures." She looked at Damien. "Can you handle that?"

"Can you keep this quiet?" he countered.

"I'm not the one you need to worry about." She showed him something else on her phone-the company gossip forum, anonymous posts speculating about his love life. "People are already wondering why you've been in such a good mood lately. Why you're staying late. Why you're suddenly invested in the rebranding campaign."

I felt sick. "How many people have noticed?"

"Not many. Yet. But it's only a matter of time." She closed her phone. "You two have maybe a week before this becomes a real problem. So you either make it official and deal with the consequences, or you end it now before it gets worse."

Damien's hand found mine under the table, hidden from view. "We're not ending it."

"Then you need to make it official," Maya said. "Go to HR, disclose the relationship, accept whatever reassignments or consequences come with it. Because I promise you, if someone else finds out first and reports it, the fallout will be ten times worse."

I looked at Damien. "She's right."

"I know." His thumb traced circles on my palm. "Monday morning. We'll go to HR together."

Maya nodded. "Good. Now can someone please explain to me how you two managed to match on a dating app without knowing who each other were? Because that part still sounds fake."

Despite everything, I laughed. "You really want to know?"

"I really do."

So we told her. And for the next hour, sitting in that coffee shop, it almost felt normal. Like we were just three people figuring out a complicated situation instead of three people trying to prevent a disaster.

But when we finally left, separately, carefully, I couldn't shake the feeling that we were already too late.