On Thursday, she arrived in too much of a hurry and although Lexy pleaded with her boss not to show up at the office again, her wishes were not fulfilled when Storni came to greet her and ask about her work during the week.

The girl answered him with ease and showed how well she was adapting to her new job. The only problem arose when the man asked about her broken lip, and she had to lie to avoid the annoying questions she was used to receiving.

Joseph visited all departments of the company first thing in the morning, encouraged the rest of the workers and drank coffee with the financial managers, while Lexy detailed from a distance and with a bit of envy the spontaneity and natural joy of the man.

"Bouvier, come, I invite you a coffee," he said from a distance and moved his hand to invite the girl to follow him around the place.

The was pleased with notoriety and rose from her post shyly, seeking to walk more freely in front of the rest of the workers who watched her with a curious eye.

The man waited for her at the entrance that led to the coffee shop and held the door for her when the young woman reached her side.

Joseph made the coffee himself and displayed his only skill in the kitchen with great grace.

"It smells so good," she said, moving closer to the coffee machine that was beginning to drip rapidly.

"What's your excuse for today?" Joseph asked, and Lexy frowned at his doubt. “Did you fall down the stairs again or hit a door?”

“What?!” She was surprised and stood still when the man reached under her hair to get a better look at the skin of her temple and part of her forehead.

"The blows to the head are complicated, Bouvier," Joseph muttered without looking at her and focused on choosing the perfect cups to serve the steaming, fragrant coffee. “And you went to the doctor? We have a nurse on the first floor of the building, she could give you a hand.”

"No, please, Mr. Storni, I'm fine, it's nothing!" She agilely excused and shook her hands, pleading. I'm fine sir, it's just a scratch. I'm fine,” she repeated, and Joseph turned to face her.

"If you're okay, why do you repeat it so many times?" He asked defiantly and approached her to lock her against the metal counter in the kitchen where they were locked. “Who are you trying to convince? Me or yourself?”

"Sir ... no-not what you think," the girl hesitated and hid her gaze in fear.

"I don't see you well, Lexy." “I see you scared and weak.” He was right and the young woman sobbed.

Without thinking twice, he hugged her shoulders very slowly and took care not to bother her with his first daring.

"Need help. Tell me if you need it, please,” he asked.

The young woman nodded wordlessly and dropped her face onto his chest.

He tensed in his position with the first impression of her body touching his and although it was not part of him to give affection, he surrendered to Lexy's delicacy and her pain, the one that —and because of him past— began to feel like his too.

He let the clock tick and the coffees cool and waited patiently for the young woman to control her crying to separate from his side.

When things were calmer, he again served the coffees and arranged them on an elegant tray; He bought a couple of sweet snacks from a vending machine.

They returned silently to the sector where they worked and concentrated on organizing everything that was pending.

"I have to make a video conference," Joseph explained, looking at his wristwatch. “At two I'll come for you; you have to come with me for lunch.”

“Me?” She asked and wished to disappear from the ground.

"Yes, Lexy, you," he muttered and moved closer to her desk, intimidating her. “I need you there, from now on you are my right hand” He explained, and the young woman's knees trembled.

Her whole body trembled, and she could not understand if she felt fear or any other feeling related to her lack of confidence, the one she had lost with the first blow Esteban had dedicated to her.

"Mister Storni, I don't know if I ..." She fell silent as the man got closer and she was almost sure that she felt his warm breath hitting her forehead. The man remained silent, inviting her to continue. “I don't know if I'll do it right, this is my first formal job, and I don't want to ruin it with my stupid phrases...”

"It's not difficult, Lexy, and you'll adapt over time," he purred, and an impulse overcame him, where he ended up reaching out to touch her again.

It was the most daring thing he had ever done, even inside his own office and even though it hadn't been twenty minutes since he had played in the kitchen, he hadn't put up with being near her.

His fingers adjusted to the delicate and fine chin of the young woman and went up to her battered lip. Then he went up outlining her delicate face and ended at her temple, where a second blow manifested itself on her soft skin.

He played very carefully and held back a growl of rage as the girl moaned in pain.

"I wish you could make her moan about something else." He interrupted his conscience and withdrew his hand in less than a second.

“What happened?” he asked.

"I broke my lip when I was going down the stairs." She lied and Joseph stepped back to glare at her.

"I am disappointed, Miss Bouvier, I thought you were braver," he replied, and left, leaving her with the bitter gulp.

Joseph closed the glass door of the entrance to his private office and closed the blinds that covered his personal environment.

Given privacy, Lexy disarmed herself on the desk and gasped for long seconds, managing to recover as her heart stopped beating at a rate that made her think that at any moment she would have a heart attack.

Did the man know her secret? How was this possible?

She questioned herself while observing the contracts in front of her and moved her fingers nervously when she remembered the sensation of his caresses, of his gaze and of his dominant body on hers, which had turned into a lump of sugar at his nearness.

She forced herself to forget what had happened and read the contracts one by one and wanted to enter the system.

Doubtful about how to start, she summoned up her courage, the one she hardly remembered anymore, and she wrote her boss an email, the one that was less than two meters away, but did not dare to interrupt because she was still very cowardly as to face it.

Mister Storni,

A question before starting:

To enter the purchase contracts, do I have to check that the previously studied policy is respected?

Thank you very much for the information.

The man replied a few minutes later and a silly smile crept onto her lips as she read his playful reply, the one that left her floating on her new, messy desk.

Miss Bouvier,

I am so close to you that I recommend that you choose physical contact and not this cold way of speaking to me.

I'm not going to be mad if you ask me something and believe me, I'll accept that you ask me the same thing at least a hundred times. I am patient and really looking forward to working together.

I'm not going to bite you unless you want to.

Sincerely,

Joseph Storni.

At Joseph's answer, Lexy was so pleased with the kindness of the man that she believed she was in an alternate world, one where she was respected and pampered and did not know where she came from, but the daring girl inside her appeared and showed that she was so alive as eager to live again.

Mister Storni,

I like physical contact and bites.