There were no more awkward moments or inside jokes after that. A few minutes after our food arrived, the rest of the team started trickling in, and soon we were caught up in our work. Even Sam had been on his best behavior, at one point thanking us for making sure we didn’t get behind in the surveys. Tsehay had discreetly let me know Mr. Dawit had called Bonnie in Addis, so I figured she’d given him the riot act.

But now it was almost past ten and everyone had gone to bed except for Elias and me. I wasn’t lying to myself—I was here because I was greedy for some time alone with him. We’d have another two days working in separate teams, and I had no self-control, so here we were. Elias, who had been putting away his laptop while making notes on his iPad, looked down at my stuff, which was still sprawled over the table.

“Do you have more to do?” He knew I didn’t, since I’d said as much to Tsehay before she left, but I went along with whatever kept us talking.

“Not really, just giving myself a moment to breathe before heading up.” I stretched my arms over my head, getting the kinks out of my tired muscles. Elias kept his eyes on my face as I did it.

I could feel that he had something he wanted to say, and my stomach flipped, wondering if I’d made him uncomfortable before. But if I had, why would he still be here with me?

No, maybe he just wanted to make sure we left the room like we’d found it. That was it. He’d reserved it and didn’t want people leaving a mess.

“Are you heading to bed?” I asked, my mouth overriding the lecture about boundaries I’d given myself just a few hours ago.

He looked at me for another minute, and again I felt that charged but comfortable silence from earlier. I usually hated long silences—as an only child I’d had to endure them constantly, especially after my dad died—and I always felt compelled to fill them. But with Elias, I didn’t. It was like I could let my mind drift, and even if it went to a place I didn’t like, I wouldn’t get stuck in there.

“I’m heading up soon,” he said, then raised his chin in the direction of my laptop. “I’ll wait for you to pack up.”

He stopped and looked at me again like he was deciding whether or not to say what was on his mind. I turned my attention to clearing my things off the table while he weighed whatever he was considering. Telling myself that if he really had been weirded out, he wouldn’t have stayed behind in this room with me.

Finally, he spoke. “Desta.”