Not Safe for Work

Trishara "Tris" Malik, a biracial South Asian-American senior engineer approaching thirty, has spent nearly five years at WMC Purcell, an engineering firm in Chicago, watching her career stagnate. Despite a 4.0 GPA and consistently exceeding her performance metrics, she has been passed over for every promotion. Her disillusionment traces back to Sustain, an environmental start-up where she dated co-owner Leo. When Tris discovered Leo had another girlfriend and confronted him, he retaliated by circulating a private photo of her through the office. She was forced to quit, and Leo blacklisted her in the environmental sector, leaving WMC as the only company willing to hire her. The experience cemented an ironclad rule against dating coworkers.

A year before the story begins, the position of team lead for the environmental division went to Rafe Gallagher, the son of David Gallagher, one of WMC's six senior vice presidents, despite Tris being the most qualified candidate. Rafe then had Tris moved off his team, which she interpreted as a personal rejection. She considers Rafe her workplace nemesis: physically striking but arrogant, a product of WMC's entrenched nepotism.

When WMC announces an inaugural Rising Stars Leadership Retreat in Maui, Rafe's selection surprises no one. Tris's name as the second pick stuns her. Rafe's cousin Rory McGregor confronts Tris about being chosen over him, but Rafe tells Rory to back off. Tris confronts David, who admits WMC has been "remiss" in recognizing diverse talent, and she leverages the situation to negotiate first-class travel and a top-floor suite on the company card.

Her best friend and coworker, Molly Ackerman, encourages Tris to pursue a vacation fling, but Tris deflects, noting Rafe still has a girlfriend named Hannah. At the airport, Rafe sits beside Tris uninvited and bickers with her throughout the flight in a way that feels almost comfortable.

Upon arrival, a booking error places them in a single honeymoon suite with one bed and no alternatives. Rafe takes the couch. At the welcome mixer, Tris meets Lan, an engineer from Seattle, and they bond as two of the few women of color at the retreat. Diane Hart, the sole female VP on WMC's executive team, announces that five attendees will be selected for an executive training program. The prospect reignites Tris's competitive fire.

Over the following days, Tris and Rafe clash during team-building exercises while tension builds between them. Tris blurts out during a construction challenge that Rafe only got his promotion because of his father, and Diane witnesses the outburst. Rafe warns Tris away from Andy, an attendee she has been flirting with. On a boat cruise, Rafe confides that he and Hannah broke up six months ago, forcing Tris to confront feelings she has long suppressed. The next morning in the gym, Rafe corners Tris and tells her, "I do hate you, Tris. I hate you very much," in a tone that makes the opposite unmistakable. Later, an obstacle course sends both of them tumbling into a mud pit, and the shared absurdity draws them closer.

Back at the suite, they share room service on the balcony. Rafe produces French macarons he claims were meant for Hannah but admits he bought for Tris. Over the evening, he reveals his family expected him to marry Hannah and that he once bought a ring before realizing he could never propose. Tris confesses that since Leo, she has been searching for someone who makes her feel safe, a realization she voices for the first time. When a tropical storm forces guests into a ballroom shelter, Tris reveals her fear of storms, rooted in watching her father nearly drown in a cyclone in India. Rafe stays beside her all night, holding her hand in the dark, and she falls asleep against his chest. They agree to share the bed going forward.

Tris discovers Rafe's sketchbook, which contains stunning pencil drawings including two portraits of her: one from Maui and one from her desk in Chicago. When she asks why he drew her, Rafe says he draws things he finds beautiful. The moment swells toward a kiss before he abruptly storms out, though he returns that evening and apologizes. Their connection deepens through a first kiss against a marble pillar that Rafe immediately regrets aloud. On their day off, they crash a hotel wedding, dancing and laughing more freely than ever, and return to the suite to sleep together for the first time.

As their relationship intensifies, Rafe reveals his secret passion for baking and his Instagram account, "The Dessert Wolf," which has thousands of followers. His father considers baking an embarrassment. Rafe also shatters Tris's understanding of her career: When the team lead position was awarded to him, he argued to his uncle Charles that it should go to Tris. Charles told him the alternative candidate was Rory, not Tris, who had never even been considered. Rafe accepted the role to prevent Rory from getting it and moved Tris off his team because he believed she would prefer that. Tris realizes her stagnation resulted from systemic barriers, not personal rivalry, and that Rafe has been quietly advocating for her. She confides the full story of Leo, and Rafe vows never to betray her trust.

Diane tells Tris she has secured five of six executive votes for the training program and arranges lunch with the holdout, VP Paul Stuart. When Diane steps away, Paul places his hand on Tris's thigh and implies she must sleep with him to secure his vote. Tris loudly denounces him. Diane witnesses the aftermath and tells Tris not to overreact. Tris storms out, devastated that the woman she idolized chose to protect the status quo.

On a yacht outing with Lan and Gabrielle, another engineer from the retreat, Rafe asks Tris to continue their relationship after the retreat. Tris realizes she is in love with him, but Hannah's phone call interrupts the moment. Back at the hotel, Tris encounters Hannah, who has flown to Maui to surprise Rafe. Hannah makes a casually racist remark, calling Tris "pretty for an Indian girl." Numb, Tris leads Hannah to the suite. When Hannah embraces Rafe, Tris retreats to the bedroom and packs her bags. Rafe follows her into the hallway, insisting he did not invite Hannah and does not want her back. Tris tells him to sort out his situation and not to contact her until he has. They share a final kiss before the elevator doors close between them.

Back in Chicago, Tris sends a company-wide resignation email exposing Paul's harassment, Diane's complicity, Rory's documented misconduct, and David's performative diversity efforts. The email causes an uproar, and WMC deposits a significant severance payment. Three days later, Rafe appears at Tris's apartment and begins livestreaming the creation of rose-lemon tarts for his followers. He tells Tris and his viewers that she is the most amazing woman he has ever met and that he loves her. The three days of silence were spent ending things with Hannah, telling his parents about Tris, and quitting WMC to pursue baking. Tris tells him she loves him too.

One year later, Rafe has opened The Dessert Wolf, a thriving bakery on Michigan Avenue. Tris has joined EnviroTech, an environmental consulting firm, and been promoted to VP of operations. They are engaged. Lan has accepted a director role in Chicago, and Gabrielle has been hired by WMC to lead a diversity task force, a direct result of the reckoning Tris's email set in motion. Rory was fired. At a gathering in the bakery, Tris reflects that she has a career she loves, friends she adores, and is about to marry the man she once considered her nemesis.