The next morning, EC Games was buzzing louder than the coffee machine in the break room.
"Did you hear?"
"I saw it with my own eyes! Ethan—our CEO—crashed Elena's dinner!"
"With her ex! The drama! The tension!"
Zoya, sitting at her desk, casually sipped her iced latte like a queen watching her empire gossip.
"I told y'all. Our CEO is not just hot and rich, he's spicy too."
Elena walked into the office like a soldier going into battle. She could feel the stares, the hushed whispers, and worst—Zoya's giant grin.
"You okay?" Zoya whispered, practically vibrating with gossip energy.
"I am fine," Elena said through a tight smile. "Nothing happened. Nothing weird. No romance. No sparks. No jealousy."
Zoya arched a brow. "Sure. Totally believable. And I'm secretly dating a vampire."
Just then, a delivery man entered the office.
"Delivery for Ms. Elena?"
Everyone turned.
A giant bouquet of white lilies and peach roses sat in a crystal vase. A little card hung from the side. Elena blinked in disbelief as she took it.
She opened the card.
> "Just a reminder: you're still my wife.
And next time, we're picking the restaurant together.
– Ethan"
The entire office ERUPTED.
"HE SENT FLOWERS!"
"LOOK AT THAT CARD!"
"Is this a rom-com? Are we living inside a K-drama?!"
Elena's cheeks were fire. She looked up—and locked eyes with Ethan, who was standing in the hallway, casually watching her reaction from the glass wall of his office.
He gave her a small smile and a two-finger salute.
Zoya squealed. "Okay, I'm convinced. You're either madly in love or being blackmailed. There's no in-between."
Elena shook her head, trying to calm her racing heart.
"This was not in the contract…"
But what scared her the most wasn't the flowers, or the attention…
…it was the flutter she felt in her chest.
Like something real was blooming.