Chapter 5 Crush on billionaire chapter 5

Chapter Five: Damage Control

By the time Amara made it back to her desk, her legs felt like jelly.

She dropped into her chair and buried her face in her hands.

Her first day, and she'd already been called out in front of the entire boardroom.

Her phone buzzed again.

Another message from Damian:

"Meet me at the executive lounge. Ten minutes."

Her heart skipped.

The executive lounge? She didn't even know where that was.

Frantically, she grabbed her office map from the welcome binder Eric had given her earlier and traced her finger over the labeled floors.

Executive Lounge... 27th floor.

Without wasting a second, she grabbed her ID badge and rushed toward the elevators.

---

The 27th floor was quiet.

It looked nothing like the busy operations floor or the cold glass conference rooms.

Here... everything was softer. Warmer lighting, rich mahogany wood, leather chairs, and floor-to-ceiling windows showing off the city skyline.

Damian sat near the window at a small round table, scrolling through his phone with a glass of whiskey beside him.

He didn't look up as she approached.

Amara cleared her throat nervously. "You... asked to see me?"

"Sit," he said without looking at her.

She obeyed quickly, sitting on the edge of the chair across from him.

The silence dragged on.

Amara fought the urge to fidget.

Finally, he spoke. "You made two mistakes today."

Her heart stopped. "Two?"

Damian set his phone down and fixed his gaze on her.

"First, the wrong folder," he said. "Second... letting the entire office see how shaken you were after it."

Amara blinked in confusion. "Wait... I thought-"

"You work for me now," he cut in smoothly. "Which means people will watch you. Closely. Waiting for you to slip up... hoping you'll fail."

His words hit harder than she expected.

"If you look weak... you make me look weak," he added, voice low and steady. "I don't tolerate that."

Amara swallowed hard. "I didn't mean to-"

"I don't care what you meant," he interrupted. "I care about results."

The air between them tightened.

For a long second, neither of them spoke.

Then Damian's tone shifted-still cold, but less sharp.

"That said..." He reached for a small file beside him and slid it across the table toward her.

Amara stared down at it.

Inside was a detailed breakdown of her new responsibilities: call schedules, meeting summaries, client profiles, and a list titled: "Knight's Personal Rules".

"You'll memorize every word of that before tomorrow morning," Damian said. "And from now on... you'll come prepared."

Her eyes widened. "All this... by tomorrow?"

"Yes."

Amara hesitated... but then nodded. "Okay. I'll do it."

A small, approving smile flickered at the corner of his mouth. Barely there... but it was real.

"Good."

He picked up his phone again, signaling the conversation was over.

As she stood to leave, he added without looking up, "Oh, and Miss Rivera..."

She paused. "Yes?"

"You survived your first day. Barely... but you survived."

Amara couldn't help the tiny smile that pulled at her lips as she stepped back toward the elevator.

Maybe... just maybe... she could survive tomorrow too.

Amara gripped the file tightly as she stepped back into the elevator, her heart still racing.

The doors closed, and she finally let out a long breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

"I survived... barely."

His words kept repeating in her head.

But there was something else... something she couldn't deny anymore...

For a man as cold and sharp as Damian Knight... there was something addictive about the way he looked at her. Like he was testing her limits on purpose.

Back at her desk, she opened the file.

Her eyes widened at the sheer amount of information.

Page after page of client names, meeting protocols, internal communication styles, and the strict set of personal rules Damian had for his assistant.

---

Knight's Personal Rules:

1. Always arrive 15 minutes before me.

2. Never answer my phone unless I instruct you.

3. Keep my schedule free from interruptions unless it's an emergency.

4. Don't speak for me. Ever.

5. Learn to anticipate my needs before I say them.

6. Personal emotions? Leave them at the door.

Amara's throat went dry as she read them.

Anticipate his needs? Before he says them? What am I? Psychic?

Still... she grabbed a pen and started jotting notes, determined to memorize every line.

For the next three hours, she barely moved from her chair.

Eric passed by once, dropping off a coffee. "Surviving, I see," he said with a knowing smile.

Amara gave a weak laugh. "Barely."

By the time the office started to empty for the day, she was still typing, flipping pages, highlighting Damian's schedule.

Her head ached. Her eyes burned. But she refused to stop.

At exactly 7 PM, her phone buzzed again.

A new message from Damian:

"One last thing. Bring me tomorrow's revised meeting agenda before 8 AM. No mistakes."

Amara groaned softly but smiled to herself.

Her first day was nearly over... but tomorrow was already waiting for her.

Grabbing her bag, she stood and took one last look at the skyline outside the glass windows.

The city lights blinked like stars.

She whispered under her breath: "Day one... done."

And with tired legs but a determined heart, she walked out of Knight Tower, ready for whatever day two would bring.---

The next morning came faster than Amara expected.

Her alarm blared at 5:30 AM, and she groaned into her pillow.

Her body screamed for more sleep, but Damian Knight's message from last night replayed in her head like a warning bell:

"Tomorrow's revised meeting agenda... before 8 AM... No mistakes."

Dragging herself out of bed, she quickly showered, pulled on her most professional (and only) blazer, and grabbed a granola bar on her way out.

By 7:10 AM, she was already at her desk on the operations floor, reviewing the agenda one more time, making sure there were no typos, wrong dates, or scheduling conflicts.

Her hands trembled slightly as she stapled the pages together.

At exactly 7:45 AM, she marched up to the top floor and knocked on Damian's office door.

"Come in," came his deep voice.

Amara stepped inside, her heart pounding.

He sat behind his desk, already dressed sharply in a dark gray suit, his eyes fixed on his laptop.

Without looking up, he said, "Leave it on the corner of the desk."

Amara placed the papers down carefully, fighting the urge to explain how much effort she put into it.

But before she could turn away, Damian's gaze lifted, sharp and assessing.

"Sit."

Her stomach twisted. She lowered herself into the chair across from him.

Damian picked up the agenda, flipped through the pages slowly, scanning each line with that cold, focused expression that always made her nervous.

For a moment, she thought she saw his eyebrow twitch slightly.

Was that... approval?

But as quickly as it appeared, it was gone.

"You didn't miss any appointments," he said flatly. "Good. At least you can follow instructions when properly motivated."

Amara's shoulders sagged in quiet relief.

"Thank you, Mr. Knight," she said softly.

He closed the file. "You'll start shadowing me today."

Her eyes widened. "Shadowing? As in... following you around all day?"

"Exactly."

He stood, buttoned his jacket, and grabbed his phone.

"Stay two steps behind me at all times. Don't interrupt. Don't speak unless I tell you to. And bring your notepad."

Amara scrambled to her feet, grabbing her notepad and pen as she rushed after him.

---

For the rest of the morning, she followed him through one intense meeting after another.

Boardroom discussions... conference calls... site inspection plans...

At one point, she barely managed to scribble everything down fast enough.

Her heels ached. Her head spun.

But she pushed through, determined not to make another mistake.

By lunchtime, her stomach growled, but Damian didn't slow down. He simply grabbed a protein bar from his office drawer and kept working.

Amara's own granola bar from earlier suddenly didn't feel like enough fuel for this job.

But she didn't dare complain.

---

By late afternoon, Damian finally glanced at her notepad.

"Show me your notes from today."

Amara quickly handed him the pages.

He scanned them for a few seconds... then placed the notepad back on her desk without a word.

Was that... another silent pass?

Her heart lifted, even if just a little.

But just as she allowed herself to breathe, Damian's voice pulled her back to reality:

"Tomorrow... we start earlier."

Amara's eyes widened. "Earlier? Earlier than 7 AM?"

Damian didn't answer. He just smirked faintly... and walked away.

Leaving her staring after him... exhausted... but oddly excited for whatever came next.