Jake and Marcus sat shoulder to shoulder on the other side of the counter. My boss should have looked out of place in our small rundown kitchen, but he looked surprisingly content.

Jake took a deep inhalation and smiled at me. I felt my knees weaken as that dimple winked at me.

Damn, he was gorgeous.

“It smells and looks scrumptious.”

Glad my blush could be attributed to the heat in the kitchen, I murmured my thanks and set a plate of fluffy rice smothered with broccoli and chicken in front of him.

I dragged one of the stools to the opposite side of the counter. “Um…we normally eat here or on the sofa. I hope this is okay.”

“This is nice…it’s cozy. I only get a home-cooked meal on the weekends when I see my mom, so thank you for letting me share dinner with you.” He took a bite of the stir-fry and closed his eyes.

I held my breath, wondering if he would find my cooking wanting.

Blue-green orbs looked at me in wonder. “Oh God! This is so good.” To my gratification, he ate another heaping forkful and made a noise of appreciation.

“See, told you,” said Marcus as he started shoveling food in his mouth.

“Marcus, slow down and chew your food,” I admonished, but there was a smile in my voice. It was not very feminist of me, but it gratified something in me that they enjoyed my cooking.

After Jake swallowed his bite, he said, “I don’t blame him. This is the best stir-fry I’ve eaten outside of Hong Kong. Where did you learn to cook like this?”

I reddened with pleasure at the compliment. “Thanks. I just like to experiment with ingredients.”

When I left for college, I only knew how to make scrambled eggs and toast. After I returned home, my mom was too wiped out from the chemo treatments to do much. That was when I took an interest in cooking. The hobby kept my mind distracted from my problems and it was a personal challenge for me to make something good enough to tempt her waning appetite.

Now that Marcus and I were on our own, I had to be creative with our limited food budget and the only way to make sure we ate healthy was to hunt down the best recipes.

“Cora makes the best lasagna too! It’s better than any I’ve eaten at restaurants. You should come over next time.”

“Marcus!” I almost choked on a piece of broccoli and took a big gulp of my water. Once I recovered, I said sternly, “Jake is really busy and he was nice enough to hang out with us today. We can’t impose on his time.”

Looking suitably chastened but sulky, Marcus muttered, “Sorry.”

“Actually, you tell me when Cora’s making her delicious lasagna and I’ll be here.”

This time I did choke and I had to muffle my coughing with my napkin. Jake reached over the counter and thumped gently on my back. He held out my water and I took a few sips to wet my throat. His hand stroked up and down my spine, sending tendrils of heat through my body. “Sorry. Thanks. I’m okay now.”

Even when he sat back down, I kept my eyes fixed on my plate, too embarrassed to look directly at him. After Jake left, I needed to have a serious talk with my brother about his manners around guests. He had basically cornered Jake into accepting the invitation.

“So Jake, if I promise not to get into any more fights, would you still let me test robots at Robotrex?”

I felt Jake’s gaze on me. “That’s up to your sister.”

“Please, Cora? May I? Please?” Marcus’s voice was borderline whining.

My eyes darted to Jake to gauge whether his offer was serious and he inclined his head.

I looked at my little brother’s narrow face with his puppy eyes and sighed. Nobody had the willpower to resist that expression, but I had learned some sneaky tricks from my boss today. “Well…I will allow it on one condition.”

He was nodding his head before I finished speaking. “What? Clean my room? Take out the garbage? Do the laundry? I’ll do it all!”

I almost ruined my strategy by bursting into laughter. And the knowing gleam in Jake’s eyes didn’t help. “No. I’ll allow you to go if you agree to tell Ms. Woodsen what happened today.”

He sat still for a few seconds. The lure of the robots was too irresistible and he finally nodded in agreement. “Alright.”

I brought up my napkin to wipe off my victorious smile. “That’s good. We’ll call her tomorrow.” I felt the muscles in my shoulders loosen. He might still remain suspended, but at least I knew he wouldn’t get into another fight.

The rest of dinner was filled with Marcus’s excited chatter about his plans for visiting Robotrex. My brother was not normally the most communicative person and it was a new experience to see him talking a mile a minute.

After dinner, Jake insisted he and Marcus would do the dishes and I goggled at him. Did CEOs know how to wash dishes?

I unwittingly spoke my thoughts out loud because Jake reared back in mock offense. “My mom would consider it a personal affront if her sons did not know how to do dishes! Troy and I even know how to sew buttons.”

A giggle escaped me and he seemed inordinately pleased at the sound. He rolled up his sleeves further. “Go sit down and relax. Marcus and I will have these done in no time.”

Although he was never one to volunteer for housework, Marcus nodded enthusiastically.

“Fine, I’ll go read.” I sat on the sofa and picked up the suspense novel I borrowed from the library, but I couldn’t concentrate. My eyes kept returning to the two figures at the sink. Their voices were too low for me to hear, but I could tell Marcus enjoyed spending time with Jake.

I frowned and my gut clenched with apprehension. I didn’t want Marcus to get too attached to Jake. He was being polite today, but chances were, Marcus would never see him again except in passing.

You better not get too attached yourself, Cora.

My mind wandered aimlessly. This day had been full of revelations about my boss and my head was spinning. I had a hard time reconciling the merciless business juggernaut with the man in my kitchen washing dishes with a twelve-year-old. Over the last several weeks, Jake had earned my respect manifold on the professional level, but I was completely thrown by his willingness to get involved in my messy life.

My earlier conversation with Troy crept to the forefront of my mind. Did Jake see me someone who needed saving? Like Sophia?

The thought was utterly repellent to me.

Jake’s voice pulled me out of my trance. “I’m afraid I have to head out. It was really nice to meet you Marcus. I’ll get your email from Cora and have the head engineer at Robotrex contact you in a few days to set up a tour.”

“Cool! Thanks for everything, Jake.”

Thank God for Mom’s etiquette lessons.

I stood and handed Jake his jacket. My fingers brushed against his warm skin and I jerked my hand back. “I’ll walk you out.” A foolish part of me was sad to have the evening come to an end. The day had been horrible, but dinner had been…nice.

I opened the door and frowned at the dark stairwell. “Watch your step. The lights are broken.” I was already dreading the phone call to the super tomorrow.

I thought I heard Jake made a snarling sound under his breath, but I couldn’t see his face clearly. We cautiously walked down the stairs.

At the bottom, I reached for the latch on the door and then pulled my hand back. I glanced up at him and said fervently, “Thanks for everything today, Jake. For giving me a ride, for helping me with Marcus, for…” I gestured aimlessly, “well…for everything.”

“There’s no need to thank me. It was my pleasure.” The dim street lighting cast his upper face in deep shadows and I couldn’t make out his expression. He lifted his hand and touched his fingers to my left cheek and I felt branded by his heat. He stroked my cheekbone lightly and trailed his fingers to my sensitive ear.