“Hey, I heard it was your birthday,” Kristopher Jarvan said as he came into the room.
“Tomorrow,” Ahri said with a laugh. “Come and help us eat this.”
Kris, Olaf’s replacement, took the other seat and accepted a third of the muffin. He seemed like a good kid and had plans to stay in the area after graduation which made Cass happy. Her advancing pregnancy was taking its toll, and Ahri wondered if she’d be able to keep working as long as she planned.
Working for Rafe had turned out to be a bigger challenge thanAhri had expected. He was demanding, and she guessed that came from him being so smart. It really kept her on her toes. When he needed things, he needed them quickly. One good thing was that he wasn’t a micromanager. He told her what he needed and then left her to take care of it. It made her stretch, but it also let her be creative in how she fulfilled his requests. So far, he’d approved.
Now, if she just understood how she felt about him. Since those times when she’d been struggling with Zed issues, he hadn’t touched her. Every once in a while, she’d catch him watching her with a look that sent a thrill from the top of her head clear down to her toes. But he was always kind and professional, friendly but not too inquisitive. Sometimes she’d hear him chatting with employees as he “managed by walking around.” He asked them the same generic questions he’d asked her; she was nothing special. She had to remind herself that he was her boss, and the best one she’d ever had.
“Do you have any plans for tomorrow?” Cass asked.
“Just a quiet day at home.” Ahri would be babysitting Lessa and Nik. When Francie had asked if Ahri could take care of them, she hadn’t mentioned it was her birthday. Alex had a weekend conference, and Francie would be going with him. She’d been teaching Ahri to cook, so she could make dinner for the guys on Sunday.
“I mean to have the both of you over to our house for a barbeque once this baby is born, and my body is my own again.” Cass arched her ankles again while Kris looked on a little glassy-eyed.
“Don’t worry, Kris,” Ahri said as she gathered the trash. “She won’t go into the girly talk while you’re here.”
“I can’t thank you enough.” He rose and brushed off his hands over the wastebasket. “I have two married sisters with kids. When they start in, I leave. Have a good birthday tomorrow, Ahri, and thanks for sharing.”
“Thanks.” She turned to face Cass. “You sure you shouldn’tstop working sooner? I’ll bet you can do the rest of your training from home. Thisisa tech company, right?”
“Rafe’s already had it set up.” Cass slowly got to her feet. “I just don’t want to sit at home thinking about how uncomfortable I am. At least here, I’m busy.”
“Whatever, but your little lady’s going to need her mama to be healthy when she arrives.”
“Yes, mother.” Cass rolled her eyes.
They walked out of the building together and separated when they reached Cass’s car.
Ahri pinched her lips as she approached the giant truck that her brother had lent her to drive. It still amazed her that Kayn had jumped so enthusiastically into the “good old boy” image. Until she’d moved to North Carolina, she hadn’t realized the Southern “western” and the one she’d grown up with in Arizona could be different and yet the same.
But seriously, it could have been a mini-monster truck. It still irritated her to have to drive the thing instead of getting a car of her own. When her brother had offered to buy a car for her, Ahri had refused. She wanted to buy one once she could do it under her own name, but Bill had nixed it. He said she had to be patient until they were confident she was safe to assume her true identity.
Ahri had lain awake nights, trying to decide what she would do when she was free again. She loved spending so much time with Kayn. Busy as he was, he always tried to see her every day. Once a week they’d have lunch together and play a game in the PC Café. She hoped no one thought she was dating her brother. That would just be creepy.
And then there was Rafe. Would he be different when she wasn’t working for him? Would he be open to seeing her as more than Kayn’s sister? Was it too close to Zed’s death for her to even be thinking about this?
“Hey, Ahri,” a male voice called.
She turned. Ken, one of the artists, was jogging toward her.Rafe had asked her to sit in for him at a couple of meetings about the new champion for which he was writing lore. Ken had sat next to her and been friendly, almost flirting.
“Hey,” she said. “What’s up?”
“I was wondering if I could take you out to dinner sometime.” Ken’s words tumbled out, like he was afraid he’d choke on them before he could speak them. It was kind of sweet.
Because of his earlier flirting, she wasn’t surprised at the invitation. After living with Francie’s family for nearly six weeks, Ahri had come to realize how isolated she and Zed had become, how lonely. She’d been stupid to let that happen, but when she was fretting about Zed, she hadn’t been good company for anyone. Or so she’d told herself. Maybe it was time to move on.
“Thank you for the kind invitation,” Ahri began, “but I want to be completely open with you. I’m coming off of a breakup.”
“So, are you saying no?” Ken asked, his expression an odd mixture of disappointment and wishfulness. “I’ve enjoyed your company. I want to get to know you better.”
“I don’t think I’m ready for more than just friends. If that’s okay, I’d love to go to dinner with you.” His entire countenance lit up which her beat-up self-esteem found flattering.
“Great. When are you free?”
“Not this weekend,” she said. “I’ll be babysitting for my landlady.”
“I could bring dinner to you and keep you company.” Ken looked hopeful.
