“I ask questions.”
Clay did not want anyone digging around for information about him. That didn’t sit well with him at all. “Well, don’t. You and I are coworkers. There’s no reason for you to know anything about my personal life.” Anger was bubbling up inside him. He just needed to get to his car.
“I’m sorry. I’m trying to understand.”
“Understand what? Me?” He nearly started laughing. As far as he was concerned, he was an easy case. If he was left alone to live his life, he’d be fine.
“Yes, you.” She gripped his elbow and her warmth traveled through his body at warp speed. “I want to be able to work with you. I want to learn from you, and collaborate, and try to soak up at least a little of your brilliance.”
He stood paralyzed. He didn’t know what he was supposed to say to that. She was so earnest, so unrelenting in her pursuit of a compromise. As far as he was concerned, that only made her more dangerous. Why couldn’t she simply give up on him, go back inside, and forget about this whole thing?
“Why do you hate me, Clay? I’m struggling to understand what I did.”
“I don’t hate you.” It’s that I can’t stop thinking about you.
“But it feels that way sometimes.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.” He clicked the fob and strode double-time to his Audi, fumbling for the door handle like a fool. He wasn’t going to let another woman get to him. Not like last time. Not ever again. He started the engine and the lights immediately came on. Straight ahead, Astrid stood there, shaking her head in disbelief. Even in the harshest light he could imagine, she was beautiful and alluring and the exact woman he wanted to take in his arms and kiss. She was also so difficult to understand. What could make someone so eager to trust in a virtual stranger?
He’d learned long ago to trust in virtually no one.
Two
A peace offering was in order for Monday morning. Astrid decided that hers would be simple—baked goods. Clay displayed no weakness for anything, but he did sometimes duck out of the office in the morning for a doughnut from the bakery across the street from Sterling Enterprises. Was satiating his sweet tooth the way out of the dog house with Clay? Astrid wasn’t sure, but it couldn’t hurt to try.
The line was always long. Sometimes it was out the door, but this morning, Astrid must have been lucky, because that wasn’t the case. She took her place in the bustling, lively space, where six or seven people worked the counter, taking orders, ringing up customers, bagging pastries and making lattes. Heavenly smells of cinnamon, chocolate, coffee and steamed milk swirled in the air. It was a warm and cozy spot, which did make Astrid wonder about Clay. People got a sliver of happiness here—is that why he liked to come? Or did he feel out of place?
Astrid knew very well what it was like to feel that way, starting with her family. She was the youngest of six, and the only girl. One could argue that she’d been out of place from the word go. Her mother had apparently always wanted a girl, but her father had been opposed to the idea of more children. There were already plenty of mouths to feed and their four-bedroom house in Bergen, on the southwestern coast of Norway, was bursting at the seams.
Astrid’s five brothers were all tall, strapping young men, who not only treated Astrid as though she were made of glass, but also acted as though she might be an alien. She’d had to fight for their attention, and most important, to be included. They all had their lives pretty well worked out when Astrid came along. She was the intruder, the one who disrupted the family equilibrium. It didn’t help that her mother, who was loving and full of heart, was always nagging her brothers to take her along when they went places and let her be included in their activities. It wasn’t until she had a growth spurt at age eleven and convinced her oldest brother to let her play football with them that she finally earned some respect. She’d gotten pretty roughed up that day, but she’d stood nearly shoulder to shoulder with them and she’d competed. She’d forced them to include her.
Astrid couldn’t ignore the parallel here, with Clay not wanting her around and Tara taking the role of her mom, urging them to find a way. But Astrid was not a little girl, she was a grown woman, and she owned just as much of the company as Tara did. She would sort this out for herself. She didn’t need anyone else’s help. She just needed doughnuts.
When she finally reached the front of the line, she was pleased to see they still had several of Clay’s favorite, the Diego, filled with dark chocolate custard and topped with caramelized sugar like crème brûlée. She ordered three, two for Clay and one for herself. She might as well see what all the fuss was about. As she was waiting for her coffee, a familiar face caught her eye—Sandy, a woman who’d worked at Sterling as a general assistant when Astrid first arrived. Sandy was a valuable member of the support staff, confident and capable. Sandy had also essentially disappeared.
As she approached the door, Astrid eyed her, unsure if she’d identified her correctly. When the woman caught sight of Astrid and quickly looked away, Astrid knew she had to say something. “Sandy? Is that you?”
She turned, confirming Astrid’s suspicions. “Oh. Hello, Ms. Sterling. How are you?”
“Good. I’m on my way into the office.” Astrid held up the bag of doughnuts. “I
