Page 24 of More than Fiction (Misty Springs #1)

“What I’m trying to say is, I have a good feeling about you, Sophia, so I’m admittedly going about this a little backward.”

She plopped down what appeared to be a draft of a novel—a binder-clipped pile of printed pages with no name and no title.

“I need you to read this. I’ll give you a couple of weeks.

Hopefully, by then, HR will get their shit together enough to green-light the interview process.

Then I would like you to come back in and give me your notes on it.

” She pushed the large stack of papers toward me.

“Do you think this manuscript has something? What kind of direction do you think it needs? Anything jump out at you? Anything missing?”

“Yes, I can do that, absolutely.” I wanted to crack it open now. If this was what I needed to do to prove myself, I would make it happen.

“Great. Let me pull up my calendar to see when you could come back.” She opened her laptop, the glow of the screen reflecting off her thick yellow glasses.

I heard the door click open behind me.

Andi glanced up, head tilted, eyes gleaming like she’d just swiped the last cookie off the tray and was daring someone to call her out.

“I thought you had already left for New York,” she said over my head.

I knew who he was before he spoke a word, his scent hitting me before the rich timbre of his voice did.

“My flight was pushed out to seven. My original pilot got food poisoning, waiting on a replacement. ”

I felt his stare at my back, pinpricks dancing along my neck where I felt his eyes linger.

“Gross. Well, while you’re here, meet Sophia Carlson.” Andi stood to provide the introduction. “Sophia, Corbin Buescher, COO. Mr. Buescher, Sophia.” She gestured to both of us, unaware we’d already met… more than met.

I stood and brushed my hands on my skirt, trying to delay the inevitable of looking into those damn bourbon eyes of his and losing myself in them.

Oh God, I was just touching myself to images of him last night.

My body reacted instinctively, betraying me with a flush of warmth.

I turned, my mouth going dry as my eyes landed on Corbin. My heart pounded in my chest, nearly drowning out every word of Andi’s introduction.

I scrambled to regain control.

I wanted this job. I needed this job.

Corbin’s eyes flicked to mine as he stepped into the room. His casual air was unnerving, but then I caught the subtle tick of his jaw—the only hint that my presence was affecting him, too.

That small tell gave me the confidence I needed. I straightened my shoulders and took a step forward. His gaze didn’t falter as I extended my hand.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Buescher.”

His hand wrapped around mine, warm and firm.

The same hand that was snaked in my hair while his tongue danced with mine. The same hand that I pretended to be touching me instead of my own, after he had left me in a heated mess on my front porch.

“Likewise.” The way his fingers released mine felt almost teasing, and I couldn’t help but notice Andi beaming between us, oblivious to the undercurrent of tension.

“I was just looking for a time for Sophia to come back for a second interview. Do you want to sit in on it?” Andi walked around the desk to look at the calendar she had pulled up on her screen.

“Seems a little premature, don’t you think?” Corbin’s voice came out sharp, slicing through any hope building in my chest that I had this job secured. “I haven’t seen anything come through from HR yet. ”

Andi straightened and crossed her arms, her face shifting into a scowl. “Well, we both know how slow those asshats can be. I was helping speed things along.”

Corbin’s eyes narrowed at her, and I suddenly felt caught in the middle of something I shouldn’t be privy to—like when you're a child watching your parents fight about matters you don’t understand.

“Don’t you think you should let me take things over here like we agreed?” Andi pressed.

“Don’t you think we should talk about this later?” Corbin said through semi-clenched teeth.

That felt like my cue to get out of there. One thing a doormat hated was being caught in the middle of a raging stampede.

“Andi, you can email me once you have a date secured. Thank you for letting me come in to speak with you today.” I turned my attention to Corbin, his expression unreadable. “Nice meeting you, Mr. Buescher.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Andi said, in my direction, though her eyes were still narrowed at Corbin.

Andi and I strolled down the hallway toward the lobby.

“Don’t worry about him,” she said, her voice low but fierce. “He’s been like that all week. I’ll email you some available times for your second interview. Read that manuscript and send me your notes in a couple of weeks.”

Her dark eyes burned with certainty—the kind that made it hard to doubt myself, even when I wanted to.

“Thanks, Andi.” I hoped my voice carried even a fraction of the gratitude I felt. “Really… this opportunity means a lot to me.”

Outside, Hank’s car waited at the curb like a lifeline. I climbed in without looking back.