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Of all the things she’d expected him to say, none had been that. Her confusion must have shown on her face.

“Whenever I’m around an attractive woman, they just assume…”

His words trailed off, and her face flamed again. She was still stuck on “attractive woman” when he continued talking.

“Sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I was just trying to—”

“Let’s just…let’s just get back to work, okay?”

He nodded and opened the training binder. For the rest of the afternoon, she focused solely on the work at hand until the discomfort she’d felt earlier dissipated. Near the end of the day, Britney called.

“I need Nick to come upstairs and sign another form,” she said, sounding excited.

“No problem. I’ll send him up.”

Stacy hung up and relayed the message, but Nick must have overheard, as he was already closing his binder.

“Mind if I take this home with me? I’d like to review my notes tonight.”

Stacy could hardly contain her pleasure. A student who listened well, took notes, and wanted to study at home! He was a teacher’s dream come true!

“Of course.”

He stood up with the binder in one hand and extended the other across the desk.

She hesitated for a second before placing her hand in his. Warm but not clammy, firm but not too tight. It was a good handshake.

“Thanks a lot for doing this. I’m sure you weren’t thrilled when you found out you’d be training your boss’s nephew.”

She shook her head, their hands still clasped. “It’s my job.”

“Still.”

“It’s no problem. Really.”

He held her hand for another second before letting go. “See you tomorrow,” he said. Then he turned and went out the door.

After he left, her hand was still buzzing like it was filled with his energy.

This is going to be a long eight weeks.

Five

The week passed quickly, and she’d settled into working with her new trainee. Since that first day, they hadn’t eaten lunch together, going their separate ways at noon and reconvening promptly at one. Whenever they took breaks during the day, they’d often go down to the employee lounge together. However, she usually took her drink and snack back to her desk, while he often stayed behind to mingle with other employees. Since the company was comprised mostly of women, it wasn’t surprising. She was glad he was mingling, since it took some of the pressure off her to entertain him. Of course, that all changed when Friday rolled around.

Right before noon, Kelsey knocked on her office door and then poked her head in. “Oh, good. You’re still here.”

“We were just getting ready to break for lunch,” Stacy said.

“Have you asked Nick about tonight yet?”

“I haven’t had a chance,” Stacy said pointedly.

Turning toward Nick, Kelsey said, “A bunch of us are going to Old Detroit Burger Bar after work. You’re welcome to join us.”

“Is that in Detroit?”

“Yes, but there’s also one here in Troy.”