Page 13 of Neighbors With Benefits

Sexual tension? Maybe. I wasn’t sure. But it was clear that the two of us felt different now that Bash was gone.

And Aiden was giving me what he probably thought was a friendly smile, but which held a flirty note to it. At least, that’s how I interpreted it.

“Sorry about Bash,” Aiden said. “Our jobs are usually pretty relaxed, but sometimes things go wrong and we have to scramble.”

“You two work together? What do you do?”

“We work for the corporate office of a grocery chain,” he explained, pausing to chew and swallow his pasta. “Bash and our other roommate are on the acquisition team. They travel to new cities and scout existing grocery stores that might be good candidates to purchase. They write up an acquisition plan andsubmit it to our executive team, who then decide whether or not to pull the trigger.”

“Sounds exciting.”

Aiden shrugged one shoulder. “It’s usually pretty boring. But sometimes a store we’re attempting to buy changes their mind at the last moment. Usually it’s a tactic to try to squeeze more money out of us, but this store up in Connecticut seems like they genuinely want to back out of the deal.”

“You said that’s what Bash and your other roommate do. Is that not your job, too?”

“Kind of. They’re the acquisition team, but I’m on thetransitionteam. A few months after we’ve bought a store, I go in and help them move onto our system. I train them on our point-of-sale system, inventory management, everything. Our company is an expert at logistics, so that’s where we have a competitive edge over other chains. Getting new stores onto our system is crucial to our long-term success.”

“So that’s what Bash meant when he said you were a great teacher.”

Aiden shrugged. “I don’t know if I would say I’mgreatat it. But I’m solidly good at my job.”

“A B-tier employee,” I suggested.

He bobbed his head. “Exactly. I love my job, though. I get to travel about twenty weeks a year, and it’s always a new place. That keeps things fresh. What do you do? I meant to ask you at the party yesterday. You said you had to go in today?”

I leaned across the table like I was going to tell a secret. “It’s the most important job in the world.”

He leaned closer to me. “I’m listening.”

I lowered my voice. “I’m the manager… at Top Golf.”

Aiden’s eyes widened and he gasped. “No way. Are you even allowed to tell me? Will you have to move to a new city now that your secret identity has been revealed?”

“Thanks for pretending it matters,” I said with a laugh. “I like my job, but it’s as mundane as it gets. I schedule all the worker shifts at my location, and oversee food and equipment deliveries.”

“Top Golf is a cool place, though,” Aiden offered. “That’s more exciting than a regular restaurant.”

“I guess. But I’m happy there. I worked as an assistant for five years before getting promoted to manager. That’s how I was able to afford this house!”

Aiden grinned, which filled me with a tingling warmth. The wine probably helped. “Nice. We had to pool our resources to afford our place next door.”

“I should note that my parents helped me with the down payment,” I revealed. “But the mortgage payment is all mine.”

“Zero judgment. We Millennials need all the help we can get.”

I raised my wine glass. “Cheers to that.”

“This was amazing, by the way,” Aiden said, gesturing at his empty plate. “Better than what I was going to make.”

“Well, you helped make it better.”

“I added a single spice at the very end. That’s, like, five percent of the work.”

“I appreciate your expert taste buds nonetheless,” I said.

We smiled at each other. This night was going sowell. I normally preferred to relax Sunday evening before the work week began, but I was enjoying my neighbor’s company more than I expected. I didn’t want him to leave just yet, but he wasglancing at his watch. I desperately tried to think of a reason for him to stay.

“Are the Phillies playing tonight?” I asked. “I can put on the game.”

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