"Bzzz... Bzzz... Bzzz..."
Her phone vibrated relentlessly, rattling against the wooden desk. Ava's head remained buried in the scattered mess of blueprints, sketches, and design notes -evidence of another late-night work session at her own firm.
The buzzing continued, persistent and demanding, until finally, after the tenth ring, she groggily stirred. The golden morning light crept through her window, forcing her eyes shut tighter. Exhaustion weighed heavy on her features; she hadn't even realized when she dozed off at her desk. Was it just a quick nap, or had she accidentally pulled an all-nighter again? Reaching blindly for her phone, she squinted at the screen. 6:00 AM.
She mumbled under her breath, exhaling slowly before stretching her stiff muscles. Pushing herself upright, she grabbed a loose shirt from the hanging wardrobe near the entrance, pulled on a pair of joggers, laced up her sneakers, and slipped on her headphones. Strava app open, she stepped outside, heading towards Orto Botanico di Brera before making her way through the quiet streets of Milan. Her run eventually led her to Pam Local, where she picked up a fresh baguette, butter, and smoked salmon-she had a craving for bruschetta. Still unaware that her phone was on silent, she hailed a taxi back home.
Once inside, she placed the groceries on the kitchen island before heading straight for a shower. Wrapped in a towel, both around her body and her damp hair, she began preparing breakfast. Only then did she finally check her phone-and nearly choked on air.
Ten missed calls from Maya.
Three missed calls from Luxe Haven Development's receptionist.
Five unread messages.
Three new emails.
"What the hell is going on?
She opened her emails first and froze. The meeting-originally scheduled for noon-had been moved up. To 9:00 AM! Her eyes darted to the clock. 8:15 AM!!
"Shit!"
Ava grabbed her phone, keys, purse, and architect's bag, stuffing the blueprints inside as she rushed out the door. She barely managed to hail a taxi, mentally running through the meeting agenda as she urged the driver to go faster. By the time she arrived at the Luxe Haven headquarters, it was 8:57 AM.
Exhaling sharply, she glanced at her reflection in the taxi's window-and nearly swore out loud. She looked like hell. Her blouse was slightly crumpled, dark circles shadowed her eyes, and her hair was still slightly damp. She sprinted towards the ground floor restroom near reception, quickly fixing her hair and tucking her floral blouse into her navy pencil skirt. She straightened her stockings and-
"Damn it."
She grabbed the wrong shoes!
On her right foot? A Jimmy Choo heel.
On her left foot? A Dior heel.
Same color, similar style, but definitely not a match.
Suppressing a groan, she hurried to the reception desk, collected her visitor's card, and made her way toward the elevators.
As she mentally flipped through the presentation slides,her train of thought was abruptly cut off when a familiar voice chimed beside her.
"Hey, girl! Where the hell have you been? I've been calling you all morning!" Ava turned to find Maya, her longtime friend and colleague, standing there with a croissant in one hand and a coffee in the other.
"I swear, I thought you were gonna bail, so I panicked and borrowed my sister-in-law 's suit-look at me, I look like a freaking corporate robot. But hey, at least I don't look like you." Maya took a sip of her coffee, eyeing Ava curiously. "Seriously, what happened?" Ava sighed, rubbing her temple. "Morning to you too, Maya. We'll talk later okay-right now..,we're freaking late." She grabbed Maya's wrist and pulled her into the elevator.
"Relax.. We're just a minute late," Maya pointed out before pressing the button for the 35th floor-three floors below the penthouse.
Rumor had it, the CEO of Luxe Haven lived in the penthouse. 'Talk about workaholics' Ava amused, momentarily distracted. The elevator doors slid open, revealing a young blonde assistant waiting for them.
Without a word, she gestured for them to follow to the end of the floor. The meeting room door swung open, and inside stood a tall figure facing the window, hands tucked into the pockets of his tailored suit. Before Ava could even take a breath, a deep, commanding voice filled the space.
"You're late."