Page 6 of It Must Be Love

"Speaking of Naya, Amais, did you tell her that I asked you to hire her?" Nolan asked casually.

I cocked an eyebrow. "What?"

He shrugged. "She called yesterday and said that she overheard something about you hiring her because I asked you to."

"Oh, tell me you didn't, Nolan," Kara immediately admonished him. "If she screws up, Amias is going to blame you."

I tried to compute what Nolan was saying, but before I could, I needed to shut Kara the hell up. "She's not screwing up, Kara. In fact, according to her boss, she's one of his star employees."

Kara sighed. "Well, she has no life, so it's a good thing she has her career, right? She doesn't date, doesn't go out…it's so sad."

"Come on, Kara," Nolan said wearily. "You know why that is."

Why was it? I wanted to ask, but I didn't want to seem overtly interested when I, in fact, was not interested. I was not!

However, reflecting on Nolan's mention of her overhearing a conversation, I wondered, my mind racing as I considered was she might be referring to.

I stilled. She'd come into my office right when Ann was leaving. My jaw tightened as I remembered we'd been talking about Naya. I couldn't recall exactly what Ann or I had said, but none of it had been flattering.

Fuck! Had she heard us? Damn it. I remembered saying something about how awful she looked and how she had no fashion sense.

"You okay?" Hayes asked.

I nodded.

"You have to come see this, Kara." Ann dragged Kara away.

"Hey, Amias, I'm looking for my next opportunity," Nolan began, "if you see something, let me know, yeah?"

"Yeah, of course, man."

"Ah…you got anything in finance at Midas?" he asked uncomfortably.

Nolan had gotten an MBA and was a senior director of finance at a tech company. Midas would be a great next stepping stone for him. But I knew from the tech grapevine that he wasn't the highest-rated employee. He was average, and I wasn't about to hire average at Midas, especially in a senior role.

"Not right now, Nolan, but if anything changes, I'll reach out. But let me look around. I'm sure we can find something for you."

He held out his hand, and I shook it. "Thanks, man. I knew I could count on you."

Nolan left Hayes and me on the patio.

"I never liked him much in MIT, but since he married that woman, he's become even less likable," Hayes mused, lighting a new cigar. "Why is he so desperate for a new gig?"

"He bought a house he can't afford, and Kara quit her job," I murmured.

Hayes picked up his drink. "Something spooked you. What?"

I ran a hand through my hair. "Fucking hell, Hayes. I think Naya may have overheard Ann and me talk about her. That's the only place she could have heard about me hiring her because Nolan asked me to. I've told absolutely no one that except…Ann yesterday evening."

Hayes raised both eyebrows and took a long puff. "Did you hire her because of Nolan?"

I shrugged. "He told me she was coming back, and I knew she was going to be her father's primary caregiver. You know Nolan wouldn't lift a finger. Kara wouldn't let him, even if he wanted to. I just wanted to help out."

"But?" Hayes persisted.

"But we may have talked about how she looked and…hell, something about how she has a crush on me. Ann was doing her green monster routine." I remembered seeing Naya by the elevator bank, how she didn't look at me, pissing me off some more.

"Why is she jealous of Naya? No offense, man, but your girlfriend is a horrible person. Naya is a sweetheart. She fucking takes care of everyone. I mean, she's babysitting Nolan and Kara's kid on a Saturday night. And you saw how loyal Kara is to her?" Hayes liked Naya. Amongst all of us, he was the one who talked to Nolan's baby sister.

---