Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Solenn
Walking into the office felt like stepping onto a stage right before the curtains lifted, with a full audience waiting to see what I’d do next. The difference? I hadn’t rehearsed for this performance.
I had spent the entire cab ride psyching myself up, reminding myself that nothing had changed.
I was still Maverick Spencer’s assistant, and whatever had happened last night—the **kiss at the gala, the heated moments in his penthouse, the way he had completely unraveled me with his hands, his mouth, his body—**that had been a one-time lapse in judgment.
And now, I just had to act normal.
Except, the second I stepped through the office doors, it became painfully obvious that normal was no longer an option.
A wave of silence rolled through the floor like a domino effect, conversations abruptly halting as heads turned in my direction.
It wasn’t subtle. It wasn’t even remotely casual.
Every single employee in the room was either staring at me, whispering about me, or pretending to work while very obviously eavesdropping.
I gripped my coffee tighter, lifted my chin, and kept walking, forcing every single nerve in my body to act unbothered.
This was fine.
This was fine.
I could feel the tension in the air, the barely concealed buzz of curiosity and scandal.
My heels clicked against the polished floors, the sound far too loud in the otherwise quiet office, and just when I thought I might make it to my desk without confrontation, a very familiar voice broke through the tension.
Lillian.
Of course.
She was already leaning against my desk, grinning like a cat who had just devoured an entire flock of canaries. Arms crossed, eyes gleaming with pure, unfiltered mischief.
"So…" she started, dragging the word out like she was savoring it. "Should we start calling you Mrs. Spencer now, or do we wait for the official engagement announcement?"
I blinked.
For a solid three seconds, my brain short-circuited, refusing to process the words.
"What?"
Lillian tilted her head, looking positively delighted with my reaction. "Oh, sweetie. You haven’t checked your phone yet, have you?"
A terrible sense of dread curled in my stomach.
Before I could even ask, a voice from somewhere behind me not-so-helpfully added, "The kiss was on the news."
I froze.
"Excuse me?"
More murmurs. More poorly hidden smirks. Someone even let out a low whistle.
Another coworker, who I barely even spoke to, snickered from the other side of the room. “More like all over social media. You guys were trending this morning.”
Oh.
Oh, shit.
I yanked my phone out of my purse, hands shaking slightly, my heart hammering as I opened the news app.
And there it was.
A very, very public photo of me and Maverick at the gala.
Correction—a photo of me gripping his tie, pulling him into a kiss, with his hand firmly wrapped around my waist like he had no plans of letting go.
The headline?
“SPENCER & CO. CEO LOCKS LIPS WITH HIS ASSISTANT—A NEW OFFICE ROMANCE?”
My stomach plummeted.
Oh, this was bad.
This was so, so bad.
I scrolled down frantically, but it only got worse.
More pictures. Videos.
Comments dissecting every possible angle of what happened.
That’s not just a kiss, that’s a man claiming what’s his.
Who is she? Where did she come from?
Am I the only one seeing the way he’s looking at her? That’s not casual.
Maverick Spencer is officially off the market, ladies. Time to cry.
I squeezed my eyes shut, willing the ground to swallow me whole.
Lillian, clearly enjoying this way too much, rested a hip against my desk, her smirk practically blinding. "I mean, I knew you two had some tension, but wow."
I slammed my phone face-down on my desk and exhaled sharply. "It wasn’t supposed to happen."
Lillian smirked, her eyes glinting with amusement. "Yeah? Tell that to the way he looked at you."
A few people snickered nearby, and I groaned, dragging a hand down my face.
"It was just a moment. A stupid, heat-of-the-moment thing. That’s all."
Lillian tilted her head, unconvinced. "Mmm-hmm."
I gave her a flat look. "Go away, Lillian."
She laughed, but thankfully, she wandered off, leaving me to drown in my disaster.
I sat down at my desk, staring blankly at my screen, knowing damn well I wouldn’t get anything done today.
Because this wasn’t just a private mistake anymore.
This wasn’t something I could just pretend never happened.
The entire company was talking about it.
The media was talking about it.
Hell, for all I knew, Maverick’s investors were talking about it.
I inhaled deeply, trying to steady myself, but my pulse wouldn’t stop kicking up a notch.
Because now, there was only one question left.
What the hell was Maverick thinking right now?
I exhaled slowly, my gaze flickering toward his office door.
There was no way in hell he hadn’t seen this by now.
And whatever awaited me in that office?
I had a feeling I wasn’t ready for it.