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tedious process of collating the information. He came around the desk several times to compare notes. His hand would brush my spine as he rested it on the back of my chair. I tried to ignore the heat that suffused my muscles with every touch and focus on the work. I shifted in my seat, which only made it worse, because it put less space between us.
    Finally, two hours later, we were done. I stood and stretched, trying to work the tension out of my back muscles. I gathered up my things, desperately ready to escape back to my office after two hours of intense concentration. It had taken all my willpower to remain focused on our work instead of the waves of heat I felt every time Charles even brushed my skin.
    “Yancy?”
    I glanced up at Charles and stilled. After my conversation with Tanya at lunch, I was able to recognize the look in his eyes, but it was something I hadn’t seen in a long time. It was appreciation. Male appreciation for a woman he found attractive.
    He started to say something, but my cell phone buzzed on the desk. I glanced at the screen and saw it was Kathy.
    “I’m sorry, Charles. Please give me a moment. It’s my daughter’s babysitter.” I slid my thumb across the screen to answer.
    I turned my back on Charles as Kathy explained that Carolena seemed to be coming down with a bug. She was running a fever and had a stuffy nose and cough. My heart sank at her words. With cystic fibrosis, even a small cold could potentially lead to a hospital stay. Carolena’s body created too much mucus which created a breeding ground for bacteria, it was very easy for her to catch colds and it took her twice as long to recover.
    I disconnected and started grabbing my things. “I’m sorry, Charles. I have to go. My daughter is sick.”
    “I understand. I’ll get the files to Judith and see you later.” He came around the desk and opened the office door for me.
    “Thanks.”
    On my way home, I realized that Charles never told me what was on his mind.

    Later that night, after Carolena was asleep, I stretched out on my bed to watch some television but couldn’t find anything that held my attention. Instead, my mind was back in Charles’ office and the moments just before Kathy called me. Remembering the look in his eyes made my legs tremble despite the fact that I was lying down.
    It seemed as though my attraction wasn’t completely one-sided after all, which was even more disconcerting than when I thought my crush was unrequited. My uncertainty had doubled. Like any woman who had been burned before, I was torn between protecting my heart and going after what I wanted. What would I say if he asked me out? Was I getting ahead of myself? Considering what I thought of him for the first month I knew him, how could I even be considering this?
    Realizing I was obsessing, I rolled my eyes. I allowed my mind to go off on a ridiculous tangent.
    My cell phone rang, jerking me out of my circular thoughts. I grabbed it from the night stand and almost dropped it when I saw who was calling. It was as if he knew I was thinking about him.
    I took a deep breath and answered. “Hello?”
    “Hi, Yancy. This is Charles. Are you busy?”
    I plucked at some of the decorative stitching on my comforter. “No, just watching some TV.”
    “How’s your daughter?”
    My heart melted a little at his question. He sounded genuinely interested.
    “She’s doing okay, sleeping now. If the fever doesn’t break tomorrow, I’ll have to take her to the doctor.”
    He paused. “I hope she’s better by then.”
    “Thanks.”
    There was another pause, this one longer. I started to say something, anything, to fill the silence, but bit my tongue just in time.
    “Look, Yancy, I realize this may be forward, but would you like to have lunch with me next week?”
    I hesitated. I wasn’t sure what to say. I’d just been obsessing over this very situation when he called and I still didn’t have an answer. The rational part of my brain that