Chapter 2: The First Step

Lily's heart pounded as she stood outside her boss's office door. The sound of typing and hushed conversations from the open - plan office behind her seemed to fade into the background, replaced by the thumping of her own pulse in her ears. She took a deep breath, smoothing down her still - damp, coffee - stained blouse as best she could, and knocked.

"Come in!" her boss, Mr. Henderson, barked.

Lily pushed the door open and stepped inside. Mr. Henderson, a tall, imposing man with a shock of silver hair and a perpetually furrowed brow, looked up from his desk. His eyes widened in displeasure when he saw her disheveled state. "Thompson, this is unacceptable. You're late, and you look like you've just rolled out of bed. What on earth happened?"

Lily swallowed hard. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Henderson. There was an accident on the way here. I spilled coffee on myself and—"

"Excuses, Thompson," he interrupted, waving a hand dismissively. "I don't pay you to make excuses. I pay you to be professional and on time. This is the third time this month you've been late. If it happens again, you'll be looking for a new job. Understood?"

Lily nodded, feeling a lump form in her throat. "Yes, Mr. Henderson. It won't happen again."

"Good. Now, get back to work. We have a big pitch coming up, and I need you to be at your best."

Lily turned and left the office, feeling defeated. As she sat down at her desk, Sarah gave her a sympathetic look. "Rough meeting?"

Lily nodded. "He threatened to fire me if I'm late again. I just can't seem to catch a break."

Sarah leaned in closer. "But hey, at least you had that amazing encounter with Ethan Carter! You have to text him. I mean, how often does a girl get a chance like this?"

Lily bit her lip. "I don't know, Sarah. What if he doesn't really want to hear from me? What if he was just being polite?"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me? The way he looked at you, the way he gave you his number... He definitely wants to hear from you. And besides, what's the worst that could happen?"

Lily thought about it for a moment. Sarah was right. What was the worst that could happen? He could ignore her text, but at least she would know where she stood. "Okay, fine. I'll text him. But if this goes horribly wrong, I'm blaming you."

Sarah grinned. "Deal! Now, come on. Let's see what you're going to say."

Lily picked up her phone and opened a new message. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard as she tried to come up with the perfect thing to say. She didn't want to seem too eager, but she also didn't want to come across as cold. Finally, she typed: Hi Ethan! It's Lily, the coffee - spilling culprit. I hope your suit survived the incident. If you're still looking for that lunch recommendation, I know a great place.

She read the message over and over again, second - guessing every word. "Is this okay? Does it sound stupid?" she asked Sarah.

Sarah peeked over her shoulder. "It sounds great! Send it!"

Lily took a deep breath and hit the send button. "Oh my god, I can't believe I just did that," she said, her heart racing.

For the rest of the day, Lily couldn't focus on her work. She kept checking her phone, hoping to see a reply from Ethan, but her screen remained stubbornly blank. As the hours passed, she started to feel more and more discouraged. Maybe she had been wrong. Maybe he wasn't interested after all.

Just as she was about to leave the office for the day, her phone buzzed. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw Ethan's name on the screen. She quickly opened the message. Lily! I was starting to think you weren't going to text. I'm definitely still up for that lunch recommendation. How about tomorrow at noon?

Lily's face broke into a huge smile. "He replied!" she exclaimed, showing the message to Sarah.

Sarah squealed with excitement. "I told you! This is going to be amazing. You have to pick the perfect outfit for tomorrow."

Lily spent the rest of the evening trying on different outfits, finally settling on a simple but elegant black dress that hugged her curves in all the right places. She styled her hair in loose waves and went to bed feeling a mix of nervousness and excitement.

The next day, as she walked into the café, her heart was in her throat. Ethan was already there, sitting at a table by the window. He stood up when he saw her, a smile spreading across his face. "Lily, you look beautiful," he said, pulling out a chair for her.

Lily blushed. "Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself."

As they sat down and started to chat, Lily felt herself relax. Ethan was just as charming and easy - going as she remembered. They talked about everything from their favorite movies and books to their dreams and aspirations. Lily found herself opening up to him in a way she had never opened up to anyone before.

But as the lunch went on, she couldn't help but notice the stares from other patrons. Whispers started to spread, and she could feel the judgmental looks. She knew that dating a celebrity would come with its challenges, but she hadn't expected to feel so self - conscious so soon.

Ethan seemed to notice her discomfort. "Don't worry about them," he said, reaching across the table and taking her hand. "They're just curious. Let's focus on us."

Lily looked into his eyes and nodded. Maybe this was crazy, maybe it was too soon, but in that moment, she didn't care. She wanted to see where this would go, no matter what the world thought.