Page 106 of The Attraction File

FORTY-TWO

Evaleen

October 31, 5 Years Ago

Edgar held the door of the coffee shop open for me and ushered me outside.

The cool breeze was refreshing and everything felt electric. When I glanced at him he smiled but turned his head toward the street so that I wouldn’t notice his blush. But it was there. And it made me start to wonder, maybe I was too harsh on men.

Not all of them wanted to use me for some selfish reason. Some of them were sweet. I realized Edgar was kind when he went along pretending to be Thor for that little girl and then again for Chewie.

I couldn’t help but laugh thinking about it.

“What’s so funny?” he asked walking with me.

“Just back there. Your line about how you love some hammer.” The more I thought about it, the funnier it seemed.

I stopped walking as I tried to control my laughter. Edgar was chuckling too.

“So, I never did ask you. Is your interview close by?” He tucked his hands into his pockets and bit his bottom lip. It was cute, and I sensed he was a little nervous.

Normally I wouldn’t tell a guy I just met anything about me, but the way he helped that girl and her mother had me believing he wasn’t a bad guy.

I pointed to the building we were approaching. “Right here. I’m interviewing at Mimir.”

Edgar stopped and stared at the building. His hands left his pockets and he lifted his arm to rub the back of his neck. If he appeared a little anxious before, Edgar was on edge now.

“Really? You don’t say. Well, I guess this is where we part ways then. It was nice to meet you, Evaleen, and good luck.” He winked while smiling, producing killer dimples, and reached for my hand to shake.

In a matter of seconds, he made a complete one eighty from being freaked out to turning into a lady killer. For a moment, when he wouldn’t let go of my hand after I shook his, I thought he might drool on it.

I finally yanked it away and nodded. Perhaps it was best we part ways. For a moment, I thought he was friendly but then he turned creepy.

Once I was in the lobby, I noticed a few people stepping into the elevator so I raced toward it. I managed to make it before the doors slid closed. I took it as a good sign.

I smiled, something I rarely did in public. Since I was shoved against the side, I glanced around and was able to see the faces of my elevator companions clearly. Most of the people were facing forward, and that’s when I noticed him.

He was tall, with dark hair, and very handsome. His head lifted from his phone and he looked at me. A thought popped into my head—I should smile at him. For once give a man the benefit of the doubt.

The elevator stopped on the tenth floor, letting most of the people out. The dark-haired man frowned.

He rolled his eyes and I heard him mumble, “Great. Stuck in the elevator with the crazy one.”

So much for feeling positive.

No, you know what? I wasn’t letting the one asshole ruin it for me. I was about to interview with a great company for a job in my field. And I helped make a little girl happy today. That’s what I was going to focus on.

I lifted my chin and pushed out my chest. The doors slid open on the twenty-eighth floor. The asshole exited with me but luckily, he turned to the right where I went left. I glanced at the directions I was given over the phone yesterday and found the door to the HR department.

Stepping inside, I walked to the only office door in the whole department, as per the instructions. After knocking, I heard the woman inside yell for me to come in.

“Hello. I’m Evaleen Bechmann, here to interview for the human resources position. Are you Ms. Carol?” I moved inside but kept the door ajar.

A woman with thick gray hair and those 1950s cat’s eyes glasses looked up from her desk. She stood and swished at the mess of papers on her desk before pulling one out. “Yes, it’s nice to meet you. I was expecting you. Well, actually, I forgot about the interview, to tell the truth. Sorry, long morning. I apologize for the mess. Sort of been stuck here for a while.”

“It’s quite all right. You should have seen my bedroom floor when I left. I think I tried on every piece of clothing I own about two times—”

“No! Don’t shut that door,” she yelled and raced around the front.

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