The Handler

That night, the atmosphere in the Hygge Suite was suffocating.

They had won the Aquavit. It sat on the mantle, unopened.

Ben was pacing. Elena was sitting on the bed, pretending to read emails but actually staring at the same sentence for twenty minutes.

"I'm going to get ice," Ben said abruptly. "For the... wine."

"We don't have wine," Elena said.

"Right. I'll get wine too."

He fled the room.

Elena sighed. She felt raw. That kiss had cracked something open, and she didn't know how to close it.

She decided to go find him. She put on her coat and headed to the Lodge bar.

She paused at the entrance.

Ben was there, leaning against the mahogany bar. Lars was standing next to him, clapping him on the back.

"You are a patient man, Ben," Lars was saying, his voice carrying over the jazz music. "Elena... she is a lot. Sharp edges, that one. It is good she has a man like you to soften her. A woman CEO... they need a handler. Someone to keep them grounded, eh?"

Elena froze. The blood boiled in her veins. *A handler.* Like she was a wild animal.

She waited for Ben to snap. She waited for him to tell Lars that Elena didn't need softening, that her edges were what made her brilliant.

Ben laughed. It was an awkward, high-pitched laugh.

"Yeah," Ben said, rubbing the back of his neck. "She keeps me on my toes, for sure. But, you know, someone has to watch out for her."

He was trying to be diplomatic. He was trying to save the deal.

But to Elena, it sounded like betrayal. It sounded like he agreed.

She turned around and walked back to the suite, her eyes stinging.

When Ben returned twenty minutes later, Elena was packing her suitcase.

"El?" Ben asked, setting a bottle of wine down. "What are you doing?"

"I'm leaving in the morning," Elena said coldly. "After the signing."

"What? Why? We have the room until Sunday."

"I have work to do. Real work. Not this... charade."

Ben stepped closer. "Did something happen?"

"I heard you," Elena spat, turning on him. "With Lars. Talking about me like I’m a problem to be solved. A 'handler,' Ben? Really?"

Ben’s face fell. "El, I was just playing the part. Lars is an old-fashioned jerk. I just didn't want to punch him and ruin your merger."

"You agreed with him," Elena said, her voice trembling. "And that kiss today... that was just 'selling it,' right? Just business?"

Ben went very still. "Is that what you think?"

"It has to be," Elena said, putting up her walls. Brick by brick. "Because you're my best friend. And anything else... anything else is too messy. And I don't do messy, Ben. I do contracts. I do plans."

Ben looked at her. He saw the fear behind the anger. But he was hurt too.

"Right," Ben said quietly. "Just business. Sorry I confused the memo."

He grabbed his pillow from the bed and threw it onto the rug by the fire.

"I'll sleep here," he said. "Wouldn't want to mess up your schedule."

\---