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Grace pulled a face. “I don’t think there are enough flowers in the city to make up for no carbs.”
“Agreed.”
She grinned at the solemn tone in his voice. “Thank you for the flowers.”
Anton smiled and hitched a hip against the lab table. “You're very welcome. It seemed the right way to begin day one of, well, this...” His voice trailed off and he furrowed his brow as he searched for the right word.
“Us?” Grace tried.
“Us,” Anton agreed, and then gestured toward the bouquet with a sweep of his arms. “Is this a good start? I mean, there isn’t a manual to consult, which let me tell you, as a man who lives and dies by research, is a highly uncomfortable situation to be put in. I looked.”
Grace bit back a laugh and relaxed against her seat. It was nice to know that even a renowned playboy was at a loss when it came to functioning in an actual relationship.
“I’d say you’re off to a more than adequate start.” She tucked a lock of pink hair behind her ear and cautioned a look around the lab. She bit back a grin when she saw every woman in the lab staring at Anton with heart eyes. Elisha pumped her fist at Grace while she mouthedyou go, girlto her.
“In fact, I’d say that the entire lady population in this lab agrees with me on how above and beyond your efforts are in the boyfriend game.”
He shot her a wink. “I’ll have you know that I’ve always been an overachiever.”
She smiled at him. “Is that so?”
“Top of my class.” He waved a hand. “Dean’s list, the whole shebang. You’re very lucky, you know. I’ve got it all in writing.”
“I’ll make sure to have your credentials apostilled by the end of day, Mr. Kovalev.”
“That could take some time, so why don’t I just show you?”
“Show me?”
He nodded, hands going to his pockets. “Mm, the flowers were just the first stop on the boyfriend train.”
“What’s the final destination of the locomotive, then?”
He rubbed a hand over his jaw and thought. “Brunch? That’s a thing couples do. I know this for a fact, manual or not, from copious amounts of movie-watching and the sort.”
Grace nodded and bounced out of her seat. “Farmer’s markets are next up on the couple to-do list, aren’t they?”
Anton laughed and offered his arm to her. “Did you look ahead on the itinerary or something? Because that is not playing fair.” She hooked her arm through his and followed him toward the lab doors.
“I thought we both agreed that there’s no manual, which means that I can kinda do whatever I want.” She paused and bit her lip, glancing around the lab as they reached the front door. There was still so much to be done for Lou’s research, and there was an entire data set she hadn’t even touched. Grace tugged on his arm to pull Anton short of the door.
“Wait. I don’t think I can go.”
Anton raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”
“There’s just so much to do here.” She jerked a thumb over her shoulder and stepped closer to him. “I gave them all decaf,” she whispered. “This place is a ticking time bomb and I can’t leave Lou to deal with it on her own. She hasn’t even been taking her scheduled naps, you know?”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that we are one tiny science bender away from her deciding that she needs equipment capable of projecting her consciousness on an intergalactic level. Do you know how close that woman is to becoming an actual supervillain?”
Anton huffed out a laugh. “You know what? After she roughed me up, I could see it.”
“I did not rough you up.” Lou came to stand beside them with her arms crossed. “I put the fear of truth and justice into you.” She cut her eyes to Grace. “Which basically makes me Wonder Woman, the exact opposite of a supervillain.”
Grace held up her hands. “Whatever you say, boss lady.”
“Get out of here, okay? I can handle the science horde for a few hours.”
