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MidReal Story
Breaking My Walls
Scenario:I’ve spent my life building walls—quiet, organized, and controlled. As an executive at a Manhattan empire, I’ve managed to keep things neat and simple.
But everything changes the day I’m promoted to work directly under Jacob Carrero, the infamous playboy billionaire. He’s the complete opposite of everything I’ve ever known.
Compulsive, confident, and careless with relationships. The kind of man who thrives on casual sex, and has a reputation for charming everyone but never staying.
And yet, despite my every instinct to keep him at arm’s length, there’s something about him that chips away at my ice-cold exterior.
I’ve spent years convincing myself that love is a risk I can’t afford to take. But why does he make me want to throw caution to the wind?
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Taylor Bennett
executive, relationships with Jacob and colleagues, professional attire, analytical and reserved.
Jacob Carrero
billionaire playboy, relationship with Taylor and multiple casual partners, stylish and charismatic.
Lana Delaney
Taylor's best friend and confidante at work.
I have always been the reserved, analytical type.
A chameleon blending into the background, never drawing attention to myself.
I kept my head down, working hard and diligently, earning every promotion that came my way.
My life was going exactly as I had planned it.
That was until Jacob Carrero came into my life and turned everything I had ever known upside down.
Jacob is everything I am not.
Carefree, spontaneous and charismatic.
A self-proclaimed playboy with a string of women in his bed and a permanent place in tabloid headlines.
The last thing that I am looking for in my life is a relationship, but Jacob is impossible to deny.
Everything about him is utterly alluring and captivating.
His touch ignites a passion inside of me that I never knew existed and his kisses have me surrendering to every demand that he makes of me.
I find myself falling deeper and deeper under his spell with every second that passes.
As soon as I step into my office, I shut the door and lean against it, taking a deep breath.
I can still feel the touch of Jacob’s hands on my body and it makes me tremble.
I take a moment to gather myself before sitting down at my desk and opening up my laptop.
I open up a new spreadsheet and title it "Professional Boundaries."
Then I methodically list every interaction that Jacob and I have had that crossed the line.
I am determined to find a way to keep things professional between us, no matter how hard he pushes me to do otherwise.
The weekly department meeting is held in the conference room on the 30th floor.
I sit down in my chair and look around the table at everyone else who is there.
Jacob walks in just as the meeting is about to start and takes his place at the head of the table.
He looks directly at me with a sly smile on his face.
"Good morning everyone. Let’s get started."
He begins by going over the quarterly numbers for the company.
He presents all of the information in a clear and concise manner, but I make sure not to look directly at him while he speaks. I keep my answers short and clipped when he asks me questions about our department’s numbers.
I am not going to give him an opportunity to catch me off guard again.
When he asks me about our projections for next quarter, I answer him in detail, but without making eye contact with him.
When he is finished speaking, we all stand up to leave.
Jacob tries to catch me alone, but I duck into Lana’s office before he can reach me.
"I need you to review these files," I tell her quickly.
"They are urgent."
She looks confused, but nods and takes them from me without question.
I watch as she sits down at her desk and opens them up, then I slip back out into the hallway and head back to my own office.
I know that Jacob will not follow me there because it would be too obvious.
Instead, I will just avoid him for the rest of the day. At lunch time, instead of going to the cafeteria like usual, I walk three blocks over to a small café that is nearby.
It is not as convenient as just eating in the cafeteria, but it is worth it if it means that I can avoid Jacob for even longer.
When I return to my desk after lunch, I redirect all non-essential communication through his assistant so that he does not have any reason to contact me personally.
The rest of the day goes by quietly.
I settle into my routine, methodically going through each task on my list and checking them off one by one.
My office is quiet, with only the hum of the air conditioning and the sound of keyboard clicks in the distance to disturb me.
I open up the quarterly finance folder on my desk and reach for the files inside, but stop when I see something unusual.
There is a piece of paper folded up underneath it.
It is not part of the standard finance packet that is sent to every department head, so I have no idea what it might be.
I reach out to grab it, but then I notice something that makes me pause.
It is not regular office paper.
It is cream-colored stationery with a monogram in the corner.
I recognize it immediately because it is the same kind that Jacob uses.
I can feel my heart rate speeding up as I wonder what he could possibly be doing leaving notes for me at work. I look around to make sure no one is watching me before I slide the note from beneath the folder.
It is folded up into a small square and there are no words written on the outside.
I hesitate for a moment, wondering if I should read it or just shred it immediately.
I decide to read it, but only after glancing around again to make sure that no one will see me reading a note from Jacob at work.
As I unfold the note, I hear a soft knock on my door.
"Expecting someone?" Lana's voice is teasing as she peeks in, catching me off guard.
"No, just... trying to figure out what this is," I reply, holding up the note with a mix of curiosity and dread.
My hands are shaking as I unfold the paper, angling it away from her so that she cannot see what is written on it.
"Everything okay?"
Lana asks, coming into my office.
She leans against the doorframe and crosses her arms over her chest.
"Are you free for lunch tomorrow?"
I nod distractedly, scanning the paper in front of me.
It is written in the same precise script that I have seen on Jacob’s business cards.
I am not sure what I expected, but it is definitely not this.
"Taylor," he writes.
"I know that I crossed a professional boundary yesterday. I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable. If you would like to discuss this further, I will be at Marcello’s tomorrow at 7 PM. Please come if you feel that it is necessary."
I look up to find Lana watching me intently. "What's going on?" she asks curiously.
I crumple up the note and drop it into my bottom desk drawer before she can get a good look at it.
"Just some paperwork from one of our vendors," I reply vaguely.
Lana raises an eyebrow at me, but she does not press the issue any further.
"Alright, well let me know if you need anything."
She turns and walks out of my office, leaving me alone once again with my thoughts.
I immediately retrieve the note from my drawer and smooth it back out so that I can read it again.
Jacob wants to meet with me?
I am not sure what to make of it or how I feel about it.
The rest of the workday is a blur.
I am unable to focus on anything and my mind keeps wandering back to Jacob’s dinner invitation.
I am supposed to be in a budget meeting, but I find myself doodling "7 PM" in the margins of my notebook instead of taking notes.
When the meeting is over, I return to my office and pull up Marcello’s website on my computer.
I study the pictures of the intimate lighting and white tablecloths, wondering what it would be like to sit across from Jacob in such a romantic setting.
My fingers hover over my phone several times, wanting to text Lana for advice, but I stop myself.
I do not want her to know about this yet.
At 6 PM, I shut down my computer and pull out my emergency makeup bag from the bottom drawer of my desk.
I carefully reapply lipstick and blush before running a brush through my hair. I walk into the office bathroom and stand in front of the mirror, smoothing out my blazer and straightening my posture.