"Uh, ma'am. There seems to be an issue with—"
My voice died instantly.
"Ahn! Yes! Yes! More—deeper, you swine!!"
Yep. I walked into my boss's office at the absolute worst possible moment.
My heart thudded. Was that just panic? Or something more equally dirty?
There she was—Madam Victoria—stunning, powerful, half-naked, sprawled on her desk like a scene from a very illegal website.
And behind her? Mr. Sato (whom I despise with my heart and soul). The smug overachiever with perfect teeth and the personality of spoiled milk.
And he was currently "servicing" my boss.
I can't believe I got into a major conflict at the very start of the novel!
I froze.
They hadn't noticed me yet—both facing away—so maybe, just maybe…
CRACK!
Of course! There just had to be a twig in the perfectly clean office floor!!
By the sound of the accursed twig breaking—
Sato glanced back, caught sight of me… and visibly relaxed.
What's that supposed to mean?! Get scared more!
Madam Victoria, however, paled.
She scrambled to fix her blouse, yanking down her skirt like the zipper was the reason for her indecency.
"I—I'm sorry!" I clapped my hands together in a panic. "I'll just get out of your hair now!"
I bolted.
Back at my desk, I was breathing like a farm chicken that had just outrun its butcher.
"Hey, Shephat," Alice—blunt, sarcastic, and the only woman besides my mother who spoke to me regularly—poked her head over our cubicle divider. "Why do you look like you just saw a ghost?"
I WISH!
I WISH I HAD SEEN A GHOST!
"Ah, i-it's nothing!" I said, flailing my hands. "Definitely didn't just see something straight out of Telenove—"
"Mr. Adanabe."
I suddenly heard my boss…
Her voice. Cold and sharp.
I turned. Madam Victoria was there, composed but deadly.
Alice instantly spun to her screen like a it was none of her business.
Traitor!!
"Y-Yes, boss?" I answered, my voice cracking like a pubescent teen facing judgment.
"Come to my office. Now."
No room for escape. Her eyes said it all: if I so much as breathed wrong, she'd ruin me just to keep her secret buried.
"Of course, boss," I mumbled.
She turned away and left.
…That damn bitch!!
Seriously?! Who doesn't lock their door before having an interoffice canal celebration?
No, no! who in the world gets laid in their office?! In broad day light!
And Sato, of all people?!
Even if he is smarter than me, richer than me, and far more good looking, it's still a no-go…
"Huh?! Shephat, are you crying?!" Alice asked in concern, peeking up again.
"Ah, I just remembered how… I'm below bacteria," I replied with a smile so forced it could crack concrete. "Maybe I messed up some code and she's gonna chew me out."
Alice sighed. "Jeez. You klutz. You know what kind of woman our boss is."
"And what kind of woman is that?" a cold voice cut in.
Madam Victoria had returned. Arms crossed. Eyebrows arched. Eyes fixed on Alice.
"A hardworking woman," Alice blurted out with a confident smile. Though, her legs were visibly trembling, "who strives for excellence and inspires her workers!"
Madam Victoria turned back to me, her voice sharp. "Why are you not in my office?"
I don't know; maybe because you just summoned me sixty seconds ago?
How desperate are you to destroy me, you slut?!
"Uh… I-I'm sorry," I whispered.
"What?"
"I mean—I'm sorry!" I squeaked. "I'm on my way, ma'am!"
As I followed Madam Victoria back to her office, my fellow wage-slaves watched me in pity, like I was marching toward public execution.
And probably, they weren't wrong.
"You have seen something you shouldn't have," her voice said as soon as the door clicked shut behind us.
You bet I did.
But, in my defense, your office is NOT a love hotel, ma'am.
"I… I know," I said, dropping to my knees with the grace of a defeated warrior. "I was foolish. Please, forgive me!"
I was on my knees pleading. Because, why not?!
Because this job—this soul-sucking, back-breaking, Excel-filled miracle—was all I had. If I lost it, I'd actually, genuinely die.
Madam Victoria rose from her chair and walked toward me, heels tapping like gunshots on marble.
"Stand up," she said.
I obeyed instantly.
But as soon as I did, I realized we were too close. Way too close. I tried to step back—but she grabbed my tie.
And then… she kissed…me.
Wait.
Wait, what?
Kiss?
My brain went full static.
That was my first kiss!
From a woman like her? Madame Victoria, the goddess of our office—the one with the golden curls, emerald eyes, and dangerous curves sculpted either by the divine… or the devil on his best try?
Why me, though?
I was poor. And average—no, below average in looks. Not very smart, but VERY poor. Weak-willed. Oh, and did I mention "poor?"
She licked her lips and gave me a look that could melt my spine. "How did you like that?" she asked.
"I… I don't think we should… be doing this…" I muttered, my brain losing the fight against my hormones.
"C'mon, Mr. Adanabe," she purred, voice husky, as she slowly unbuttoned her shirt.
She took my hand. "You want it too, don't you? Just this once, I'll let you indulge your instincts."
My mind was in a death spiral.
Desire wrestled with morality…
…Actually, scratch that—my morals were already hanging by a thread.
The only reason I hadn't leapt headfirst into paradise was because something didn't feel right.
Still… she was right there. Those soft curves. Those hypnotic eyes. The way her body seemed custom-designed to destroy men's resolve—
SQUISH.
My hand was suddenly... somewhere it shouldn't be. Somewhere soft. Unreal. Viscous.
Boobs.
Actual b-b-b-b-b-b-boobs!!
Not the blurry kind from midnight dreams—real, living, warm, and enigmatic.
Victoria let out a soft moan, tilting her head back, her breath hitching.
My brain was on fire.
I was playing with something forbidden. Something divine.
I was about to do it. After years of clumsy fantasies and lonely fapping—I was finally going to throw my virginity into a volcano and dance on its ashes!
But… as they say, "Good things never last."
SNAP!!
"WHA—?! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"
A flash. A camera click. A voice I recognized.
I whipped around.
Sato, the ass!