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Claire held his gaze, suddenly very aware that he wasn’t teasing.

Noah didn’t grin. He didn’t follow it with a joke. He simply stood there like caring about her was the most natural thing in the world.

Claire opened her mouth. Nothing came out. Because what was she supposed to say to that? Thank you?

That’s not how this worked. People didn’t care about her because they wanted to.

She cleared her throat. “Well. Thank you for the coffee.”

Noah smiled. “You’re welcome, Claire.”

And somehow that was worse. She glanced down at the cup in her hand. An iced vanilla latte. Oat milk. Of course he knew her order.

She turned the cup in her hand, inspecting it. Her name was written across the side in black marker.

Not extra coffee.

Not I happened to be downstairs.

Claire.

She told herself it wasn’t a big deal. He must have overheard her order or seen the label on her coffee. It was just coffee.

Except it wasn’t.

It was midmorning when Mrs. Sinclair appeared beside Claire’s desk. “Claire, I reviewed the concepts you sent over. This is moving in the right direction. Let’s take this version into the next round.”

Claire sat a little straighter. “Really?”

“Really. Clean up the remaining copy and coordinate with design. I want a full set ready for review tomorrow.”

“Absolutely.”

Mrs. Sinclair gave her a quick nod and had already moved toward her next meeting before Claire could say anything else.

One of the designers lifted his coffee in a small toast. “Look at you.”

Claire smiled. “Apparently I haven’t been fired yet.”

“Strong start.”

Claire should have returned to work. Instead, she reached for her phone.

She didn’t think about who she wanted to tell. Her thumb had already found Noah’s contact.

Claire: My boss just told me she loved the concepts I sent her. She wants to proceed with my idea.

She looked at her phone. Why did she tell him? Why was that her initial reaction?

Claire Bennett had never needed anyone to be proud of her.

So why did she suddenly want Noah to be?

That was a problem.

Noah: That’s great!

Claire: Tell Biscuit. I thought he might want to know.