Breaking Boundaries

CHAPTER ONE

The soft hum of conversation and the distant clinking of glasses filled the dimly lit function room. Fairy lights draped across the ceiling, casting a warm glow over the gathered staff members, all celebrating another successful year at the nursery. The annual staff party was always an interesting affair, where the stress of the job melted into laughter, where colleagues became confidants, and where unspoken tensions simmered just beneath the surface.

Janice stood near the bar, an untouched glass of wine in her hand. She never drank much at these events, preferring to stay in control, observing rather than partaking too deeply. Her long black hair, streaked with elegant white money pieces, cascaded over one shoulder. She was poised, effortless, her soft-spoken charm drawing people in with ease. But tonight, her eyes weren't on the crowd, they were on Charlotte.

Charlotte, in contrast, was at the heart of the party, laughing gently at a joke one of her coworkers made. She was sweetness personified, kind, warm, a natural nurturer. Her dark, soft curls framed a face that lit up whenever she smiled. But Janice saw through the exterior, she saw the way Charlotte's shoulders tensed ever so slightly when their eyes met, the way her fingers traced the rim of her glass absentmindedly. Janice knew what that meant. Charlotte was just as affected as she was. It wasn't the first time.

No matter where they were, whether in the office, passing in the hallways, or seated across from each other in meetings, somehow, their eyes always found each other. It was never intentional, yet it happened so often that neither could pretend it was mere coincidence.

A glance over a laptop screen during a board meeting, a fleeting moment in the break room as Charlotte reached for a mug and Janice leaned just a little too close. The briefest pause in conversation as their eyes locked across a crowded room, as if the rest of the world had faded into the background. These moments weren't planned, but they were inevitable.

And though neither of them spoke about it, others had begun to notice. Colleagues, quiet observers, made mental notes of the stolen looks, the slight hesitations, the way Janice's normally poised demeanor softened just slightly in Charlotte's presence. Whispers never became words, but the atmosphere thickened with unspoken questions.

The tension wasn't just theirs to carry anymore. It had begun weaving itself into the spaces between them, becoming something real, something undeniable. And yet, they kept looking. Kept seeking. Kept finding.

Since the merger, since Mia and Charlotte had ended things, there had been moments. Moments too fleeting to be anything but stolen, yet too powerful to ignore. A lingering glance during a staff meeting. A brush of hands while passing each other in the hall. Conversations laced with an underlying current of something more, something unspoken but undeniably there. But before Charlotte had been free, Janice had held herself back, knowing that Mia was still in the picture.

Janice had always seemed distant to Charlotte, sometimes even cold. During the merger, they had been at odds constantly, Janice representing head office while Charlotte fought to maintain the nursery's ethos. Their debates had been passionate, sometimes infuriating. Charlotte had thought Janice was ruthless, but in reality, Janice had been fighting a different battle, one within herself. Wanting Charlotte had been a weakness she couldn't afford, not when Charlotte was still with Mia. But the moment Mia left, something had changed. Janice had allowed herself to soften just a little, to show the parts of herself she had kept locked away.

Charlotte had noticed, of course. She had been confused by Janice's sudden kindness, the way she had reached out to offer comfort. At first, Charlotte had been hesitant, unsure of Janice's motives. But over time, the truth had become clear Janice had been holding back for reasons deeper than mere professionalism. And now? Now there was nothing standing in the way.