Page 3 of Before the Summer He Found Her

“That was oddly specific,” I muse, lip curled and imagining this woman on a cross-country road trip, wanting to be a fly on the wall forthat. “And erm, no, Channah. No one is losing their job.”

Your manager simply hates what he does, feels forced to accept the inevitable, and has been counting down the days until retirement. Which, at last check-in, amounts to approximately another 11,688 days—or thirty-two more years.

The thoughts flow freely, filling my brain with ideas that completely go against who I have to be as a manager.

Thoughts of which I’d never share with her or anyone else.

Instead, I don my boss’s hat, and I don it well.

“Atlas Technologies has seen an increase in revenue over the last year,” I admit freely, well aware she has access to all the fiscal reports, and I’m not revealing anything not readily available for all employees. “In fact, in the last two quarters we’ve seen substantial growth. I wouldn’t be surprised if the C levels continue to expand, but that remains to be seen. I can say with much confidence we won’t be going through any cuts in the upcoming months.”

There. I’ve done it. Given an employ the managerial answer while also keeping the confidential information to myself. She’ll know soon enough, once I make the announcement after we post the job positions on our site. I’m sure she’ll end up applying once I’m allowed to say something to her. And Scott’s right—she’ll be a great fit.

And maybe one day if she’s Tier 3 she won’t be your subordinate any longer, and you can finally ask her out…

The intrusive thought jars my brain, and I push it away quickly.

No. Dating Channah isn’t logical, even if one day she no longer works for me.

Idon’tdate. Not anymore.

“Alright, well,” Channah says, “now that I know I still have a job, I should get back to it.”

“Channah,” I playfully chide as I pull off Highway 26, turning right to head north.

“Yes, Ezra?” she teases right back.

“Put the work laptop down,” I say, “and go enjoy your weekend.”

“What about the sites that are in QA and—"

“Send me the list. I’ll take care of it.”

“But…”

“No buts. Go. Call a friend or something. See your family. Do something that brings you joy other than spending your time at this place. Work can wait. Your friends and family should come first.”

“Okay, well…” Her voice trails away, and for a split second, I think I hear sadness in her tone. Clearing her throat, her voice returns to its normal chipper sound as she continues. “You know what, you’re right. You do the same though, okay?”

I open my mouth to tell her there’s a fat chance of that happening, but I know if I speak the truth, she’ll refuse to follow my wishes about her own fun. “I promise you I will try.”

“Ha. We’ll see. Have a good weekend, Ezra. See you Monday.”

“See you.”

I click off the call, considering the sadness in her tone as I finish my drive.

Shedoeshave friends and family, right?

Shaking my head, I reason that she must, that there are plenty of people she’ll call and see this weekend, and that I’ve done the right thing by asking her to spend a couple of days away from the job.

CHAPTER TWO

EZRA

On Saturday, I’m dressed in my favorite royal blue suit and halfway through the site audit report in my home office. Rain peters against the window beside my hutch. I’ve got The 1975’s latest album set on shuffle, and the music blasts from my laptop speakers.

As I’m analyzing trends, I receive a ping on my phone. Jeff’s name flashes across my screen. He’s inviting me to some shindig at his girlfriend Sasha’s place with a group of people. Groaning, I pick up my phone to text back, and I’m starting to type thanks but no thanks, when another message comes through from him.

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