Page 31 of Tasty Cherry

“What happened before today doesn’t count,” I say. “We couldn’t have known.”

“She presses the heel of her hand to her forehead. “We were too busy doing other things.”

“We were. Delightful things.” And then, there is the other question. About it being her first time. That one will have to wait.

She peers at me from behind her hand. “Was it? Delightful?”

I give in and reach across the table to graze the fingers resting by her glass. “Completely. I haven’t dated anyone in almost two years. And there you were. Funny. Beautiful. Smart.”

She squeezes my hand. “And now I’m your minion.”

The warmth of her hand fills me with hope that we can work this out. I hold her tight. “I think it will be okay. We can see each other away from the hotel. Honestly, you and I aren’t going to run into each other all that much. You’ll be in the kitchens, the service halls, the laundry.”

“Doing grunt work.”

“At first. I think you have ten weeks of basic rotations. Raya’s in charge of that, but I sat in on the meetings as she and Havannah put this together. After the rotations, you will all be given more responsibility in the areas you are excelling at.”

“What if I excel at folding towels?”

I grin at her. She’s so funny. “No intern will remain in the trenches. You have a degree in hospitality. You’ll move to more permanent roles. Human resources, possibly. Maybe the front desk team. Or assistant to the concierge. I expect someone will end up as a management team floater to handle pop-up problems, particularly in the off hours. You will each have some say in where you go.”

“I see. When we get into those roles, will I be closer to you in the chain of command?”

I let out a long gust of air. “No. To be in range, you have to be the assistant manager, like Raya, or the head of a department or the CFO.”

“Or the event manager?”

“Actually, yes. That’s in range.”

“So if I win this thing, we could date.”

“Absolutely.”

“But otherwise, I could get fired if we’re found out.”

She’s worried. I don’t blame her. “Raya has that power, but we could likely get it undone with Havannah stepping in.” I don’t add that this would probably cause a hostile work environment, particularly with Raya. And anyone who felt like Mila got preferential treatment.

Mila must go on a similar train of thought because she says, “If I win the big job, though, and our relationship became public, there would always be a suspicion around me being chosen, wouldn’t there?”

“Possibly.”

She lets go of my hand. “It was only a one-night thing. I think we can move on. Do you?”

Damn. I was hoping it wouldn’t go this way. “I like you a lot, Mila.”

She frowns.

I’m pressuring her. I can’t do that. Not under any circumstance. “But yes, we’re adults. We had a great night. We’ll remember it fondly and move on.”

I think of Maverick. If he makes a move on her, I’ll bust his ass.

Yeah, this is all a terrible idea. You should never work side by side with kryptonite.

Mila pushes the menu away. “I think that’s for the best. Thank you for giving me a chance to stay.”

“You don’t want dinner?” There I go again.

“I better not.” She gives me a wry grin. “I don’t want to get any more attached to you than I already have.”

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