But even as he considered it, he knew he wouldn't. They had arrived together. They would leave together. It was the professional thing to do. So, Finn straightened, adjusted his tie once more, and went back inside to play the role expected of him: the assistant who felt nothing beyond professional respect for Dr. Elena Herrera.
By the time they finally left, it was after eleven. The drive home was silent. Finn felt Elena occasionally glancing at him, but he kept his gaze safely on the empty streets as they drove. It felt childish, but he didn’t know what else to do.
"You were a hit with the committee," she said, breaking the silence. "Dr. Phillips couldn't stop talking about you."
"Good," Finn said, keeping his focus on the passenger window. "That should help with the funding."
Another silence stretched between them. "Is everything okay?" Elena asked, her voice softer than before. "You seemed... distracted after the first hour."
Finn tried to find a lie that would satisfy her. "I'm just tired. These events are not my forte. Draining."
"Yeah, I get that," she said. "But you showed up. That matters.”
He nodded. His presence may have done more harm than good, but he didn’t say that.
Elena sighed, her fingers tightening on the steering wheel. "Did I do something wrong? Because it feels like you're angry with me, and I don't understand why."
He could have told her then. He could have told her that David saw their research as a commodity to be monetized. He could have told her that David was a greedy asshole. She deserved to know what kind of man she was having dinner with.
But why did he want to tell her? Was it really about protecting her, or was it about the jealousy that had been eating at him all night? The image of David's hand on her back, the way she'd laughed at something he'd said, the casual mention of their Friday dinner. It all burned in his chest.
Even if his motives were pure, what would happen if he told her? Best-case scenario, she cancels the date. Then what? David Turner didn’t seem like the type of person who hears the word ‘No’ very often. How would he respond to that? Finn had already been rude to him at the bar, potentially torpedoing his own career prospects. But he was twenty-six, just starting out, and had less to lose. Elena had worked for years to get whereshe was, had Miguel to think about, had a team depending on her. If she rejected David and he made things difficult for her...
No. He couldn't risk Elena's career just because he couldn't stand the thought of her with David Turner.
"No, nothing's wrong. Just thinking about tomorrow’s work."
"Tomorrow’s work," she repeated, a strange note in her voice. "Right."
They lapsed back into silence. When they reached his apartment building, Elena pulled to the curb but kept the engine running.
"Thank you for coming tonight," she said as he reached for the door handle. "I know it wasn't easy for you."
Finn paused, one foot already on the pavement. He had to say something. Something that would reassure her, that would maintain the equilibrium of their professional relationship.
"David seems nice.”
Elena's expression shifted. "Yes," she said. "He is."
Finn nodded once. "Goodnight, Dr. Herrera."
He closed the car door before she could respond, walking toward his building without looking back. Behind him, her car remained at the curb for several long moments before the engine revved and she pulled away into the night.
Inside his apartment, Finn shed all the formal clothing he wore for the event. He stood at the window, looking out at the city lights, and tried to remember why he was here. He had to help with the research project in any way he could.
Elena Herrera was his research supervisor. His colleague. Nothing more. Never anything more. It was time he accepted that.
Chapter Fourteen
ELENA
The lab was cold and sterile today. That was the normal state of a laboratory, but it felt especially so today. Elena hadn’t interacted with Finn all day, except for the brief morning greetings that were exchanged. She got barely any sleep last night. The gala was exhausting, but Elena had been to enough of them to understand her role. Smile, listen, and make the people with the power feel smart. It was an unfortunate part of the job, but thankfully it only occurred once a year.
David Turner was another unfortunate turn in the evening. She should have recognized him when Laura shoved his picture in her face. But she had never worked with David before and didn’t make the connection. And now she was supposed to go on a date with him. The man at the top of the board that controlled the funding for her research. The very same board that was responsible for the drastic reduction in their timeline.
He was charming, of course. Handsome and confident too. He seemed to show a genuine interest in her and her research. She thought of the dance they had shared. Two adults who knew the steps moving together in the expected way. It couldn’t have been more different than the dance she shared with Finn. With Finn, it had been...something else. Something that made her heart race even now, remembering the intensity in his eyes, the warmth of his hand at her waist.
It was clear to her that Finn did not enjoy the night either. He was already in a bad mood when they arrived, but by the end of the night, he was just… withdrawn. All night she had been recounting the events of the evening, trying to pinpoint what had caused the shift. She hadn’t really spent much time with Finn at the gala. He seemed to always be in the distance. Except for when they had the conversation with David. Even then, he was in the background of that scene too.
