Page 50 of The Back Forty
He smiles. “That sounds great.”
“Say… six-thirty? At the Whitewood Creek Brewery? I'll grab us a table.”
“Perfect,” he says, smile still stretching wide across his face. “Thanks again, Dani.”
As he heads out the door, Lydia turns to me with a little sideways grin. “You’re glowing.”
“I am not.”
“You are.And for the record,” she says, already pulling out her phone and scrolling through text messages, “if you’re not gonna ask him out, I might.”
I roll my eyes, but I don’t argue. Because it’s ridiculous. Luca wasn’t flirting with me. Okay, maybe he smiled a little too long, but it’s because he was excited about the job. And even if he was flirting a little, it doesn’t matter. I’m five years older than him with much more life and experience. I'm not interested in dating younger. I need mature.
And besides, sadly for my poor, traitorous heart, there’s only onesmall-town guy I’m interested in. The one who’s permanently ruined me for every other man.
My boss.
Ugh.
The one I haven’t been able to stop thinking about all day. The one who was as steady as they come while I spiraled in front of him. Who held me when I was barely holding onto my sanity. Who saw me in a moment so raw, so terrifying, most people would freak out and dial 9-1-1 so that they didn’t have to do it alone.
My first panic attack in over a year, and he was there—steady, solid, and silent in all the right ways.
I’m glad he hasn’t brought it up, hasn’t pushed or pried. But still, the shame clings to me like smoke. What if he sees me differently now? As fragile. Unreliable. Someone who could spiral at any moment and jeopardize everything he’s built. Embarrass him at one of the most crucial moments.
I shake the thought off and gather the paperwork, organizing Luca's files to send over to Regan so she can start processing him in the family’s HR system. My fingers are still on the keyboard when the door creaks open again and in enters the man I was just thinking about.
Heat, regret, and a heartbeat that skips when it shouldn’t fill my soul. Lawson steps inside, easy and quiet like always, but my skin reacts instantly. Flushed and hot. Like it’s too tight for my body. I don’t dare look at him too long. Not with Lydia sitting right beside me. Unfortunately, Lydia is the opposite of subtle.
“Oh, hey Lawson! Did you see the new guy Dani just hired? Super-hot, right?”
His gaze doesn’t even flick toward her. It stays locked on me. Or through me, maybe. I can’t tell. But I stand anyway and force a smile, because this doesn’t have to be weird us seeing each other again. I mean, we sat next to each other on the flight home for hours and did crosswords like he hadn't seen me naked in a tub.
This is fine. Luca's qualified. He’s capable. He’ll be a great fit, and that’s all this is about. It was a work decision and a damn smart one if he asks me.
“Yeah,” Lawson says. “I passed him on my way in here.”
“He’s the best fit for the job,” I say quickly like I have something to explain. Which I don’t. I’ve never felt like I needed to justify my decisions to him before, so why do I feel it now?
He nods once slowly. “I don’t doubt that.” Then softer, more intimate, “I trust you, Dani.”
And just like that, I’m undone. Because the way he says it, it doesn’t feel like he’s just talking about hiring decisions. It feels like a promise. Like his trust is something rare and precious, not handed out lightly, and here he is, giving it to me easily. It feels like an honor to receive it from him.
“You have dinner plans?” he asks, gaze still steady on me, not wavering for even a second.
“Um, yeah. Meeting up with Luca at the brewery.” I tuck a piece of hair behind my ear and try to sound breezy. “Just to go over onboarding stuff and what I’d like him to start working on when he begins working next week.”
His jaw tightens. Barely. But I see it. I alwaysnotice it. It’s the kind of micro-expression that you wouldn't catch unless you’ve been watching someone for a long time. And I have. For a year. I've learned all his little ticks. His tells. And I hate that I've stored them all in my heart like treasure.
“Are you going too?” he asks Lydia, finally turning to acknowledge her.
She waves a hand. “Nah, I think I’ll sit this one out. But hey, what’s your policy for dating employees?” She laughs like it’s nothing, like she didn’t just light a match and toss it directly into the tension-filled room.
Lawson doesn’t hesitate. “It’s not allowed.” His voice is sharp and final and there’s an edge to it that wasn’t there before.
Lydia blinks, taken aback. “Oh. Uh, too bad, Dani. But if you’re feeling generous later, maybe drop my name and number to him?” She slips out before I can respond, clearly not reading the room, or maybe she's choosing not to.
Now it’s just me and Lawson and the air feels awkward.
