“Don’t need it.” He didn’t look up, eyes fixed on the screen, nimble fingers moving over the keys. “I’ll just pull your camera footage and start building my case for sexually inappropriate behavior. The settlement alone will keep me comfy for life.”
A laugh broke out of me—real, unexpected—even through the fear.
And I found myself wondering how the hell he made it feel easier to breathe just by being here.
CHAPTER EIGHT
ETHAN
Midday at VistaReal meant the heat was building—the AC was nonexistent on my side of the room—and people were getting restless, already eyeing the exits for lunch. I wasn’t planning on joining them. Not with me as the new guy—splitting my time between morning classes and this place—buried in authorization packages, compliance logs, and a stack of files I barely understood and was now expected to flag for inconsistencies.
But today was an exception. I’d only had one class this morning, and I’d made it in early, so for once, I wasn’t rushing to fit everything into the day. Henry had insisted on taking me out because of it, but I wasn’t completely sold on the idea. That thing with Sebastian last week—spotting the duplicated authorization chains—had apparently put me on people’s radar. Not in a dramatic way. Just enough that a few more heads lifted when I walked past, a couple more emails landed in my inbox, and Marcela had started forwarding documents with a quietCan you double-check this?
Oddly, it drew more attention than the fact that I’d once dated the CFO, which was… refreshing, I guess.
But I could feel the pressure creeping in because, one, I didn’t want to screw this up, and two, I still had school to keep up with. And I’d barely gotten my footing there before being dropped into a company-wide compliance freeze.
“Ethan!”
Plus there were other nuisances.
“Hey, Bruno. What’s up?” I tried my best not to sound as annoyed as I felt.
He perched on the side of my desk, all smiles and charm. “We’re going out. You want to come with us?” Bruno had a slight accent, which would’ve been endearing if he didn’t keep interrupting me every five seconds. He didn’t even work in my area—we just had the tiniest overlap since he was a junior analyst, and after one meeting on my first day, he decided I was either his new best friend or the new option on the menu, judging by how much he kept eyeing me.
My gaze dropped back to my screen, fingers tapping fast to get the idea down before it fled my brain. “Can’t. I’m waiting for someone.”
“How about drinks after work on Friday? You didn’t make it last week, and it’s our newbie tradition.” Another charming smile.
“Maybe,” I said, trying not to get on his bad side too soon. “I’ve got so much schoolwork to catch up on. I’m not sure I’ll have any spare time until I figure out how to juggle everything.”
“What? Our genius research assistant?” he teased. “You’ll conquer the world in no time.”
I huffed a laugh. “Not likely, but I appreciate the confidence.”
He scooted a little closer on the desk. “Anytime.”
Jesus, this guy.
“I actually have to get this done before I can leave,” I said, nodding at the screen. “It’s for Marcela.”
“Right, right.” He nodded, dark eyes lingering on mine. “So, is it a lunch date?”
Don’t roll your eyes. Don’t roll your eyes.
I forced out a polite smile. “Something like that.”
“Babe, are you done? Got the reservation for one!” Henry called out—too far away and far too loud, but in this case, I was incredibly grateful for his lack of subtlety.
“Just about. Give me five, okay?”
“Cool. Gonna pop in and say hi to Ash, and I’ll be right back,” he said, pulling his sunglasses down to peer at my desk companion over the rims. “Hiya, there.”
“Hi,” Bruno said, suddenly looking uncomfortable.
Henry walked off to Sebastian’s office.
“Your boyfriend?” Bruno asked.
