Chapter 8 The Moment Everything Started Feeling Different

• **Lily’s POV**
• I had always believed that feelings were easier to control when you refused to name them.
• If you never admitted that something was changing, then technically nothing was changing.
• That was the logic I had been using for the past few weeks, and honestly, it was working perfectly until Adrian Cole started making it impossible for me to ignore what was happening between us.
• I kept telling myself that he was only my boss, nothing more and nothing less. I reminded myself that the only reason I noticed his smile was because I had eyes, the only reason I enjoyed our conversations was because he was surprisingly funny, and the only reason I looked forward to seeing him was because I enjoyed annoying him. It was a completely reasonable explanation. At least, that was what I kept telling myself every time my heart reacted differently around him.
• The problem was that Adrian had started becoming part of my everyday life without either of us realizing it. He was no longer just the intimidating CEO who sat behind a large desk and made everyone nervous. He was the man who remembered how I took my coffee after I complained about it once. He was the person who noticed when I was tired even when I tried to hide it. He was the person who would quietly leave important documents on my desk instead of calling me into his office just to make my day more difficult.
• Those small things were dangerous because they were the kind of things that made people feel special. And feeling special was exactly where problems started.
• I tried to focus on my work that morning, but my mind was refusing to cooperate. My computer screen was filled with numbers and reports, yet somehow I had spent the last ten minutes reading the same sentence without understanding a single word. I finally closed the document and sighed, wondering when exactly my brain had decided that thinking about Adrian Cole was more important than my actual job. It was embarrassing because I had always considered myself a focused person. I was the woman who created schedules, followed plans, and never allowed unnecessary distractions to affect my goals.
• But lately, my biggest distraction had a perfect suit, an annoying amount of confidence, and a habit of making me smile when I was trying very hard not to.
• “Lily.”
• I looked up and immediately saw Emma standing beside my desk with her arms crossed and the kind of expression that meant she already knew something I did not want her to know. That was one of the most frustrating things about my best friend. She did not need evidence. She simply looked at me for five seconds and somehow discovered every secret I was trying to hide. I quickly turned my attention back to my computer, hoping she would understand that I was busy and leave me alone. Unfortunately, Emma had never been someone who respected obvious attempts at avoidance.
• “You are thinking about him again.”
• I looked back at her.
• “I have no idea what you are talking about.”
• She smiled.
• “That answer alone tells me I am right.”
• I rolled my eyes and returned to my screen.
• “Emma, I am working.”
• She pulled a chair closer and sat beside me.
• “No, you are pretending to work while thinking about Adrian.”
• I looked at her.
• “How do you even know that?”
• “Because you have been staring at your screen with the same expression you had when you were trying to decide whether you liked your college professor or hated him.”
• I immediately frowned.
• “That comparison makes no sense.”
• “It does because you are doing the same thing. You are confused.”
• “I am not confused.”
• “Then what are you?”
• I opened my mouth.
• Nothing came out.
• And unfortunately, Emma noticed.
• “Exactly.”
• I hated when she was right.
• The truth was, I was confused. Adrian was confusing. He had this strange ability to be both frustrating and comforting at the same time. One moment, he would say something that made me want to argue with him for an entire hour. The next moment, he would do something unexpectedly kind and make me question why I had been so determined to dislike him in the first place.
• Before I could respond, my phone received a notification.
• I looked down.
• A message from Adrian.
• My office. After lunch.
• I stared at the screen.
• Emma immediately leaned closer.
• “Is that him?”
• “No.”
• She looked at me.
• “You are a terrible liar.”
• I sighed.
• “Yes.”
• She smiled.
• “What does he want?”
• “I do not know.”
• “Are you nervous?”
• “No.”
• Another pause.
• Emma laughed.
• “You really need to stop answering too quickly.”
• I ignored her and placed my phone down.
• The annoying thing was that I actually was nervous.
• Not because I was afraid of Adrian.
• Not anymore.
• It was because I had started caring about what he thought of me.
• And that was a much bigger problem.
• After lunch, I walked toward his office while trying to convince myself that it was just a normal meeting. Nothing special. Nothing unusual. Just an employee meeting with her boss.
• Simple.
• Professional.
• Completely normal.
• Except my heart did not seem interested in following those instructions.
• When I entered his office, Adrian was standing near his desk looking through some papers. He looked up when he saw me, and for a second, I forgot the reason I had walked in. Which was extremely inconvenient.
• “Sit.”
• I sat down.
• “You called me?”
• He nodded.
• “There is an event this weekend.”
• I waited.
• “And?”
• “You are attending with me.”
• I blinked. “Excuse me?”
• He looked amused by my reaction.
• “The company is hosting a charity event.”
• “I know.”
• “You will be representing the marketing team.”
• I relaxed slightly.
• “Oh.”
• A small smile appeared on his face.
• “What did you think I meant?”
• “Nothing.”
• “Lily.”
• I looked away.
• “Do not make this uncomfortable.”
• “I am not.”
• “You are smiling.”
• “I am allowed to smile.”
• “That is suspicious.”
• He shook his head.
• “You are impossible.”
• “And yet you keep inviting me places.”
• The moment I said it, silence filled the room. I immediately realized how that sounded.
• I cleared my throat.
• “I mean, for work.”
• “Of course.”
• His tone was calm, but there was something about his expression that made me wonder if he was teasing me.
• Probably.
• Definitely.
• Maybe.
• I hated how unsure I was.
• He handed me the event details.
• “You will work with me during the preparation.”
• “Okay.”
• “And Lily?”
• “Yes?”
• “Try not to spill anything on me this time.”
• I stared at him.
• “You are still not over that?”
• “Not completely.”
• “It was weeks ago.”
• “It was a memorable experience.”
• I laughed.
• “You are ridiculous.”
• “And you are the reason I have that memory.”
• I smiled despite myself.
• As I walked out of his office, I realized something that bothered me more than I wanted to admit.
• The problem was not that Adrian Cole was becoming easier to like. The problem was that I was starting to wonder what it would feel like if he liked me back.
• And that was a question I was not ready to answer.
• Because some accidents were harmless.
• Some accidents changed your plans.
• And some accidents quietly walked into your life, smiled at you, and made you wonder if they were ever really accidents at all.