Chapter 2 Enter Erica

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Chapter Two: Enter Erica

Erica Moore's heels clicked nervously across the marble floor of Blake Enterprises. She clutched her bag tighter as the receptionist directed her toward the elevator. This was her first real corporate job since graduating. She wasn't sure what to expect-but the internet had plenty to say about Adrian Blake.

"They call him the Ice King," her friend Tasha had warned. "Don't smile too much. Don't breathe too loud."

Erica had laughed at the time. But standing outside his office now, she felt her throat dry up. She checked her reflection in the black screen of her phone-lipstick intact, bun neat. Her hands shook slightly as she knocked.

"Come in," came the voice-deep, uninterested.

She stepped inside. The room was large, modern, and intimidating. Floor-to-ceiling windows. Bookshelves. A massive desk. And behind it, a man who barely looked up.

"You're Erica Moore?" he asked, eyes still on his laptop.

"Yes, sir."

"You're ten minutes early," he said.

"I thought that would be a good thing."

He finally looked up. Sharp jaw. Sharp eyes. Everything about him felt... calculated. "Punctuality is expected. Not praised."

She straightened slightly. "Understood."

He gestured to a chair. "You'll handle all internal scheduling, email filters, and prep for my meetings. No mistakes. I don't repeat myself."

"I won't need you to," she said.

Something flickered in his eyes-maybe surprise, maybe amusement-but it disappeared quickly. He looked back at his screen. "You can start now."

She sat, trying to steady her breathing. So this was Adrian Blake. Cold, focused, unreadable.

But Erica had faced worse. She just didn't know that one day, she'd be the one to change him.