His easy manner had evaporated. That was probably her fault. He wasn’t the one who started acting weird; she was. He’d tried to get up and make her breakfast, and she’d barely reacted.
She took a deep breath. She followed him to the main door, opening it for him. “Thank you for inviting me. I loved meeting everyone.”
He nodded, and then he was gone.
She wanted to crawl back into bed and pull the covers over her head, but there was no time. She quickly showered and got ready for the day. She was only ten minutes late to work, but everyone was a little sluggish getting started. She heard several jokes that morning about saving all the really sensitive work for the afternoon.
But luckily, they had a lot of paperwork to do and a hectic day, and she was happy to stay very busy for the first few hours of work.
But all of that ended a few hours later.
Ava had managed to avoid Eli for most of the morning, but by the afternoon, it was impossible. They were both using the same equipment and working on the same project.
Not only was the conversation stilted, but she kept dropping things, which was very unlike her. And when she was walking some equipment to the decontamination area, she nearly ran right into him.
Okay, Jeez. You need a break.
She washed her hands and removed her protective equipment. She went to sit outside for a few minutes. This was why it wasn’t smart to sleep with your boss. Because you developed feelings, then acted weird when he brought you juice, and then proceeded to fumble around all day at work.
And none of this was Eli’s fault.
She was the only one acting odd. It was up to her to grow up.
9
Eli
Eli hung up the phone and immediately checked his email. As promised, the itinerary for the upcoming genetics conference was in his inbox.
He’d just been asked to be the keynote speaker for the conference, which was taking place in Galway, Ireland. He was a frequent attendee of conferences, and he often spoke, too, but he hadn’t been to Ireland in years.
He was looking forward to the trip, not just because of the topic he’d be addressing with his colleagues, but for the location.
His friends Nora and Niall lived in Galway. Nora was a witch, and she’d played a crucial role in saving his clan the year before. They’d been threatened by a group of demons, and until it happened, Eli hadn’t even known demons existed.
Nora had flown over alone and single-handedly enchanted all of his clan’s weapons. Without her, his clan might have been decimated.
Nora’s husband Niall was a dragon shifter, and he was a professor at the University of Galway. When Nora came to help with the demons, he’d stayed behind with their baby, but Eli had heard he was a formidable fighter as well.
He looked at his calendar. The conference was only one week away. He’d taken his assistants in the past—the medical conferences were a great place to learn new concepts and hear new ideas, as well as network with like-minded scientists. He had enough funding to take Ava with him.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. He wanted to tell her she was coming, no excuses. But that wouldn’t work. He might be her boss, but he couldn’t be that heavy-handed. He wanted to invite her immediately, but they’d barely spoken in the days since the charity gala. Which also happened to be the night they’d slept together.
The night he’d spent with Ava had been hands-down the best night he’d ever had. He’d had several dragon shifter girlfriends, and he’d been intimate with all of them, but not one of those nights had come close to what he’d shared with Ava. He’d thought they were on the same page, but the next morning, she’d seemed bashful and possibly regretful.
He’d been excited to wake up in her bed and see her lying there next to him. But as he’d rushed to make her breakfast, it had slowly dawned on him that she wanted him to leave. She had gotten up and put her robe on, covering up her gorgeous body. She’d tied the sash tight, and her body language told him that she was embarrassed.
He might be oblivious to many human cues, but his dragon shifter instincts gave him an advantage.
If they’d been on a real date, he’d have asked her to tell him what was wrong. But they hadn’t been on a date. He was still her boss, and he owed her privacy.
Since that morning, he’d been careful to be polite and cordial, but not cross the line. He knew if he tried to ask her any questions, he’d end up coming on way too strong. The last thing he wanted was to interrogate her.
He was certain she’d enjoy the conference. Besides his own interest in genetics, Ava was the most invested in the field of any person that he’d ever met. She would thrive in that environment, surrounded by other scholars.
He would just have to invite her and let it be no strings attached. He didn’t want her to think he was trying to get her alone again so that he could seduce her. He wanted to be clear that this was a work trip only.
That afternoon, she came to his office. After they discussed the data points of their latest research project, he cleared his throat.
“I’ve been invited to a conference in Ireland. If you’d like to go, you have a spot. I do need to let them know so they can reserve you a seat in all the lectures and a room at the hotel.”
She didn’t hesitate. “I can go?”
“Yes, the hospital is willing to send us both.”
A bright smile crept across her face. “I’d love to.”
On the plane, Eli settled into his seat. He’d personally upgraded them to first-class. He was just too tall to sit comfortably in coach, especially if
