Chapter 4
He noticed.
Of course he noticed.
A few days later, Claire mentioned that she’d recently developed an interest in competitive birdwatching.
Dominic asked several surprisingly detailed questions.
Two days afterward, he casually brought up a birding festival in Wisconsin.
Claire stared at him.
“Dominic.”
“Yes?”
“I made that up.”
He went still.
“What?”
“The competitive birdwatching. I made it up.”
His eyes narrowed.
“You deliberately misled me?”
“You researched it, didn’t you?”
He looked deeply offended.
“You said you wanted me to understand your interests.”
Claire dissolved into laughter.
Dominic stared at her for another moment before joining in.
It was the sort of sound Daniel hadn’t heard from him in years.
Unrestrained.
Uncalculated.
Human.
Then a familiar male voice interrupted.
“Claire. Lunch?”
Ethan Brooks stood beside her desk holding his jacket.
Claire immediately grabbed her purse.
“Absolutely. I’m starving.”
No reservation.
No elaborate invitation.
No investigation into her favorite cuisine.
She simply stood and went with him.
Dominic watched them walk toward the elevators.
Daniel appeared beside him.
“Mr. Brooks seems friendly.”
Dominic’s jaw tightened.
“Who is he?”
“Financial operations. Seven years with the company. Very good performance reviews.”
“I didn’t ask for his personnel file.”
“Of course not.”
Dominic gave him a warning glance.
Daniel looked away.
But Dominic kept staring toward the elevator.
For the first time, he realized that his competition wasn’t another powerful man.
It was someone who could walk up to Claire’s desk, ask a simple question, and receive the answer Dominic had been trying to get for weeks.
Ethan understood Claire in ways Dominic couldn’t.
He knew exactly how much hot sauce she poured on her scrambled eggs.
He knew that when she was angry, she became excessively polite.
He knew that she pretended not to cry at sentimental movies, even though she’d gone through half a box of tissues during one they watched with friends.
Worst of all, Ethan knew her coffee order.
Dominic discovered this on a Tuesday morning.
Ethan placed a cup beside Claire’s keyboard.
“Extra espresso shot. No sugar. Just enough cream to keep it from tasting like engine oil.”
Claire smiled.
“You’re a lifesaver.”
“I have many talents.”
Dominic, standing several feet away, stared at the coffee.
Daniel followed his gaze.
“Professional concern, sir?”
“Don’t.”
Daniel returned to his tablet.
Later that day, Dominic found Claire in the employee break room.
“Ethan seems to know you well.”
Claire glanced at him.