"Are you negotiating with the copier?"
"I'm establishing boundaries."
"It's winning."
"That's because it has internal parts and no shame."
Amanda leaned against the doorframe, smiling. "You're very dramatic for someone who usually treats office equipment like a personal kingdom."
"I've been humbled by outdoor labor."
"I can tell." Her eyes narrowed with friendly interest. "You're tanner."
I pulled the jammed sheet free. "That's sun damage with better branding."
The copier chirped, reset itself, and immediately started printing Monica Owens's ten o'clock materials.
Amanda stepped aside so I could stack the fresh pages into the blue cover folder. "How many hours do you have left?"
"Four."
"That's nothing."
"That's what people say when they aren't the ones squatting near tomato plants while a man with forearms keeps turning water breaks into a moral stance."
Amanda's eyebrows lifted.
I slid the first divider into place. "I said too much."
"You said enough."
"I said a normal amount."
"You said forearms."
"I'm an administrative assistant. I notice support structures."
Amanda laughed and shifted the folders higher against her hip. Her white blouse was crisp, her navy trousers were spotless, and her silver hoop earrings caught the office light when she tilted her head. "Is this the site supervisor?"
"That's not the point."
"That's absolutely the point."
"The point is I have four hours left, my thighs are in active negotiations with stairs, and yesterday I discovered irrigation has tiny parts designed to test a person's moral character."
"Was the site supervisor wearing sleeves?"
I looked at her.
Amanda's smile widened. "That's what I thought."
The copier spat out the last page. I took it from the tray and tapped the stack straight. Paper edges clicked neatly against the counter. That sound usually calmed me. Pages in order. Tabs in place. Everything lined up and no one watching me sweat through my dignity.
For one second, I almost missed dirt.
That was alarming enough that I reached for a binder clip.
Amanda noticed. Of course she did. Amanda noticed everything she cared enough to notice, and apparently today she cared about my face.
