"Something's bothering you. You want to talk about it?" she asked. She wasn't sure if his distracted state came from work or something personal, but his lack of focus had been obvious during the two meetings they'd sat through after lunch.
"Yes, but not yet." He glanced at her and made eye contact. "I need to process some things, and then… yes, I definitely want to discuss it with you."
"Okay." Claire shrugged it off. She'd learned over the past months he didn't like to be pressured for answers. "So, are you nervous about seeing Brinnie again? Now that you're officially 'my young man'?" She giggled at the memory of Brinnie pegging Noah as a love interest for Claire the first time she met him, way back when he was still Mr. Grumpy Pants to her.
"You have to admit, she is intimidating." Noah smiled, the furrow in his brow easing.
They were supposed to eat with the Crawford Cookers tonight, but Claire wasn't sure Noah was up for it.
When he put the car in park, she laid a hand on his arm. "You've been in your head all day. Do you want a night off?"
He stilled and searched her face. "Are you asking me to leave, Claire?"
She registered the hurt in his eyes and carefully chose her words. "No. I'm recognizing that you've got something important weighing on you, and asking if you need time alone to work through it." She squeezed his arm. "I love having you here with me." She gave him a lascivious grin as her gaze roamed his body. "But if you need to focus on whatever's on your mind, I understand. And Brinnie and her crew get together every week, so they won't care."
He pulled her close and kissed her hard. "You're right, of course. I can't concentrate tonight, and you deserve all my attention." He rubbed his neck and blew out a breath. "Okay. Why don't I head back to my place and then we can talk tomorrow? Some things at work have me wound up. I want to bounce them off you after I've mulled them over and am clear on what I'm thinking." He paused, reading her face again. "You sure you're okay with that?"
Claire waved him off. "Of course. We've been stuck together like glue for a week. Let's take a break. I'll have dinner with Brinnie, then maybe watch one of those chick flicks you can't get into."
She kissed him goodnight and exited his car, then watched as he left the parking structure. He had a real burr under his saddle. And though you'd never guess by the way he answered questions on the fly, Noah preferred to think things through before verbalizing them. She'd seen him get agitated at work when someone pressed him for an answer while he was still digesting the problem. Hopefully a night alone would give him the clarity he needed on whatever worried him.
The next day, Noah slipped into Jackie's office and sat in one of her visitor's chairs. He'd asked Simon earlier to text him when she headed back to her office following their early meeting. He'd thought all night about his situation and wanted to bounce things off her as a friend, but needed to be careful not to influence her decision about the job offer.
Footsteps in the hallway sent his foot tapping. He tugged at the collar of his shirt, trying to get air circulating to his suddenly warm body. When the approaching gait halted, he twisted around in time to catch the surprised look on her face. "Good morning," she said.
"Morning."
"Come to tell me you're joining my team?" She smiled broadly at him before shutting her office door and sitting behind her desk.
"More like coming to get advice from a friend. Meaning, I need a conversation with my friend and mentor right now, and not my potential future boss." He cocked an eyebrow at her. "You think that's possible?"
Her brow furrowed momentarily, then cleared. "Sure, we can do that. What's up?"
Noah cleared his throat and rubbed his palms down the thighs of his trousers before clasping them in his lap. "I have a situation. I've met someone." He paused when Jackie's left eyebrow rose. "She works at Caprock. I had… well, an unpleasant experience in the past when I dated someone at work, and I'm concerned about doing it again."
When he didn't continue, Jackie said, "I see. Someone locally? Or back home? Is this what's making you hesitate about accepting the position? She's not based in the US?" Jackie sat forward and continued, "Look, people spend the majority of their waking hours at work. It's highly possible—likely, even—that they meet their special someone through work, whether that's a colleague, a vendor, or someone they met at a conference."
Noah looked down at his entwined hands, unsure how to respond.
"Nobody's going to give you grief over having a relationship with someone you work with, as long as there's no conflict of interest." Noah swallowed, but Jackie continued before he could say anything. "You know Jeff Davis met his wife through work, right?" she asked.
Noah pictured the petite, smiling woman who frequently joined their CEO at company events. They'd been married for decades, raised two children to adulthood, and expected their first grandchild soon. "How did they meet?" he asked.
"She was in accounting when he was still an engineer. He kept messing up his expense reports so she'd have a reason to call him."
"That's brilliant." Noah grinned, imagining their company leader humbling himself in front of the tiny woman.
"Yes. And everyone knew what was going on except her. She kept trying to teach math to this hopeless engineer who couldn't get his expense reports right to save his life." Jackie chuckled. "It's a great story. And they're hysterical when they tell it together." Her cell phone buzzed, and she glanced at it before pushing it to the side.
"What happened as he advanced through the ranks?" Noah asked. Eventually, Davis would have become his wife's boss as he climbed the corporate ladder.
"Oh, they were always careful to never be in a direct manager-to-employee relationship. And I believe she left the company to raise their children before he rose to any level of authority over her. That's why working together shouldn't be a roadblock if you feel strongly about her. What you really should be concerned with is whether the decision you're facing right now creates a power imbalance or other conflict." She paused, staring at him for a full second. "Are you going to tell me who she is?"
Noah hesitated, running through everything Jackie had said and weighing the decision to come clean about Claire. Jackie was Claire's boss's boss. He certainly didn't want to cause an issue for Claire by mentioning her at the wrong time. He tilted his head. "Not yet. I'm still sorting through everything." He stood to leave. "Thanks for the talk, Jackie. You've given me plenty to think about."
"Noah," she called before he left. He looked back over his shoulder. "Make sure she's worth it if you're arranging your career and your life around her. It's a big deal to turn down a job offer over someone you're not certain of."
Noah nodded and walked out, wondering why Jackie thought he wasn't certain of the mystery woman they were discussing.
