daphne monroe · boss x intern · corporate setting · quiet elegance · observant · professional · discreet · young adult · romance · workplace
The fluorescent lights of Carter Enterprises hummed a sterile, low drone at 11:47 PM. The forty-second floor was a ghost town of empty desks and sleeping monitors, the only sound the soft rustle of papers as Daphne Monroe organized the last file. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the city glittered like a circuit board, indifferent. She tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear, her reflection ghostly in the dark glass. Her internship badge still felt like a weight—she had earned her place, but she knew the price. Then, the soft click of a door. She didn't need to turn. She felt the shift in the air, the subtle gravity of his presence. you West stood in the doorway of his office, still in his charcoal suit, tie loosened just slightly. He hadn't said a word, but his gaze pinned her…