Elina knew something was wrong the moment the email arrived.
Subject: Immediate Reassignment
Executive Floor
Her stomach tightened as she read it again.
No explanation. No greeting. Just instructions to report to the thirty-second floor and assist with document review for a high-level meeting.
Her first instinct was panic.
Interns weren't reassigned like this, especially not after one day. She hadn't made mistakes. She'd kept her head down. She'd followed every rule.
So why her?
She closed her laptop slowly and gathered her notebook, palms damp. As she stepped into the elevator, the doors slid shut with a soft finality that made her chest feel tight.
The ride upward felt longer than before.
The air grew quieter. Heavier.
When the doors opened, Elina stepped into a different world.
The executive floor was sleek and restrained, dark wood, muted lighting, glass walls that offered privacy without warmth. Every movement felt deliberate, controlled. Power lived here, invisible but unmistakable.
A woman in a tailored suit approached her.
"Elina Hart?" she asked briskly.
"Yes."
"Follow me."
They walked past offices with frosted glass, past men and women speaking in low, urgent tones. Elina's heels clicked too loudly against the floor, announcing her presence in a place she didn't belong.
The woman stopped outside a large conference room.
"Wait here," she said before disappearing inside.
Elina swallowed and stood still, fingers tightening around her notebook.
The door opened.
A familiar voice cut through the room.
Low. Calm. Commanding.
Her blood turned cold.
She knew that voice.
The woman gestured. "Go in."
Elina stepped forward, and froze.
Alex Romanov stood at the head of the table.
For a heartbeat, neither of them moved.
Recognition hit instantly, sharp and unyielding.
His dark eyes locked onto hers, surprise flickering for just a fraction of a second before being replaced by something colder. Controlled.
Dangerous.
So this was where he existed.
Not on rain-soaked streets. Not near pedestrians and chaos.
But here, at the center of power.
Elina straightened instinctively.
This wasn't coincidence.
This was fate laughing at her.
Alex's gaze traveled over her slowly—not openly, but with an intensity that made her skin prickle. Gone was the coat, the street tension. He wore a tailored suit now, immaculate, every line precise.
He looked untouchable.
"Ms. Hart," he said evenly.
Her name on his lips felt like a challenge.
"Mr. Romanov," she replied, voice steady despite the storm raging inside her.
The executives around the table exchanged glances, sensing something they didn't understand.
Alex gestured to an empty seat. "Sit."
She did.
The meeting resumed, but Elina barely heard it. Every nerve in her body was aware of him, his presence filling the room, his authority bending the atmosphere around him.
She focused on the documents placed in front of her, forcing herself to breathe.
Numbers. Data. Logic.
That was her shield.
"Ms. Hart," Alex said suddenly.
Her head snapped up.
"Yes?"
"You reviewed the labor impact projections yesterday."
It wasn't a question.
"Yes," she said carefully.
"And you found them lacking."
Her jaw tightened. "I found inconsistencies."
A murmur rippled around the table.
Alex studied her, eyes sharp. "Explain."
Her pulse hammered.
She could stay silent. Apologize. Shrink.
She didn't.
"The model assumes workforce compliance without accounting for union resistance or media exposure," she said clearly. "In this climate, that's unrealistic."
Silence followed.
Alex leaned back slightly, fingers steepled. "You're an intern."
"I'm aware," Elina replied. "But the data doesn't change based on title."
The air crackled.
A senior executive shifted uncomfortably. "Sir.."
Alex lifted a hand, cutting him off.
His gaze never left Elina.
"You spoke to me very differently the last time we met," he said quietly.
Her chest tightened.
"That was a different situation," she said.
"Was it?" he asked softly.
She met his eyes head-on. "You almost killed me."
The room went dead still.
Alex's expression hardened.
"That is a dramatic interpretation."
"And yours was arrogance," she shot back before she could stop herself.
A collective intake of breath filled the room.
Alex rose slowly to his feet.
Every instinct screamed at her to take it back.
She didn't.
He moved closer, stopping just short of her personal space.
"This is my company," he said quietly. "You will watch how you speak to me."
Elina stood as well, refusing to be physically diminished.
"And I will not pretend you're infallible just because you're powerful."
The tension between them was tangible, hostility braided with something far more dangerous. Curiosity. Challenge. Attraction neither of them wanted to name.
Alex held her gaze for a long moment.
Then, unexpectedly, he smiled.
It wasn't warm.
It was sharp.
"Interesting," he said.
He turned back to the room. "We'll revise the projections."
The executives stared at him in shock.
Alex gathered his papers. "Meeting adjourned."
As people filed out quickly, Elina remained frozen, heart racing.
She hadn't expected that.
Hadn't expected him to listen.
Or look at her like that.
When the room finally emptied, Alex turned back to her.
"You should have been dismissed," he said calmly.
She lifted her chin. "Fire me then."
Something flickered in his eyes.
"I don't fire people for speaking the truth," he said. "I fire them for weakness."
She exhaled slowly.
"Then why am I still here?"
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "Because you don't bend."
Her breath caught.
"That makes you dangerous," he continued. "And valuable."
She scoffed lightly. "You don't get to decide what I am."
His gaze darkened. "In this building, I do."
The words should have terrified her.
Instead, they ignited something fierce in her chest.
"You don't own me," she said quietly.
A pause.
Then Alex leaned in just enough that only she could hear him.
"Not yet."
Heat surged through her, unwanted and infuriating.
She stepped back. "If that's all, I have work."
He watched her turn and walk away, her spine straight, her steps steady despite the chaos inside her.
When the door closed behind her, Alex remained still.
For the first time in years, someone had challenged him, not for power, not for gain, but because she refused to be silenced.
And he couldn't decide whether he wanted to crush that defiance..
…or protect it.
Elina reached the elevator and let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
Her hands trembled.
This was no longer just an internship.
This was war.
And the man at the center of it was as dangerous as he was impossible to ignore.