I want to believe it’s just in my head, and that I’m not really seeing what I think I am. She seems to love talking to them.
But every time I run into her, she acts as if I might fire her on the spot.
I’m fuckingjealousof the way she seems so relaxed with them.
I’m halfway through my mental conniption when a soft knock makes me look up. It’s after five, and she should be gone by now, but there’s Maddy, holding a cup of coffee and a folder with a single pink sticky note.
“I know you need these to straighten up the legal mess over those permits,” she says. I take in her dark blue form-fitting dress and her hair up in some kind of twist. There’s a confidence to the way she moves now that wasn’t there when she first started working here.
She sets the coffee next to my laptop, then places the folder exactly where the old one was. She knows how I like things to be, and it’s fucking torture in the best way.
“I figured you’d want coffee too,” she hums.
I glance at the folder, then back to her. She’s waiting for a reprimand, or a compliment, or a sign that she can relax.
I give her none of it.
Instead, I study her for a few seconds, which is long enough to see her jaw tense and then relax. The sight of her warring with herself is so fucking satisfying.
Madison rocks back on her heels. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”
“No, thank you,” I say, and my voice sounds weird. I pick up the coffee. It’s perfect.She’sperfect.
She hesitates, like she might leave, but then speaks. “You might want to check page six. There’s a discrepancy in the clauses.”
This should make me furious. No one catches those. But the fact that she did—it’s fucking impressive.
“Show me,” I say, and push my chair back.
She comes around the desk, leaning in to point out the problem. Her sleeve brushes my wrist, and it’s like a current of electricity shoots through my forearm.
Fuck,I hate how she gets to me.
“Here,” she says, and her finger lands exactly on the spot. “They don’t make it clear about the boundaries.”
I should say something, but I just nod and watch her face, the way her mouth tightens when she’s trying not to smile at her own cleverness.
Our eyes meet, and there’s a moment where neither of us looks away. I finally break eye contact, flipping the folder open to verify. It’s exactly as she said.
I make a note, then close the file. “Good catch,” I say, more clipped than I intend.
She doesn’t move away. “Should I send it back to the legal team?”
I purse my lips, thinking about it for a second. “Let me go through it first. I want to see what else they missed.”
She nods, then finally steps back, but only just enough to hover at the edge of the desk. I can feel her watching me, waiting for some sign that she did the right thing.
I realize my tie is off-center and reach to fix it. My hand is unsteady.Shit.
“Is there anything else?” I ask.
She glances down, then back up, and I see the wheels turning in her pretty little head. “No, I don’t think so,” she says finally. “Unless you want me to stay late and double-check the rest.”
I take a deep breath and let it out. “I can handle it.”
She doesn’t argue. She just lingers, then nods once and heads for the door.
I should let her go. But my mouth moves before I make that decision.
