“Uh-huh.” Saba was not buying it. “And you’re on very friendly terms, I see.”

I could go with that. We were on friendly terms.

“Yeah, he’s great.” I grinned because I couldn’t help it. “He’s a psychologist. Actually, he’s considering going to New York for a PhD at Columbia. I mean, he got in, but he deferred and is deciding whether to go or not.” And that was not making me fret, and I was not wondering what it would be like for Elias to be at Columbia while I went to NYU.

I would never do that because I wasn’t delusional.

Saba dipped her head approvingly. “Ambitious, but not too proud to do a less fancy job while he gets himself through school. I like him already.”

As Saba said that, I thought of how meticulous Elias was about getting the supplies ready for us while we were in the field. The careful way in which he approached everything. And before I knew it I was gushing about him to Saba.

“He’s great at his job too. There was not a single supply or emergency he wasn’t prepared for in the field. Even when Sam, one of the expats, majorly fucked up and we had to scramble to go out on the field without him.” I narrowed my eyes, thinking about what an asshole Sam was that day. “Elias just took over one of the teams without missing a beat.”

Saba was looking at me with a smirk on her face. Knowing her, she was probably plotting some kind of romance, despite the many issues that could bring me in Ethiopia.

I rolled my eyes at her. “Saba, stop scheming.”

She scrunched her eyebrows and tried for an innocent expression.

I wasn’t buying it. “I’m not even sure what’s going on with your eyebrows and eyes right now, but if it’s some corny idea about me and Elias, stop it. It’s not happening.” I actually clapped my two hands together, because yeah, we needed to shut all this shit down.

She just laughed at my protests. “I’m not doing anything with my eyebrows. He just sounds like a nice man.” She snapped her fingers then, and the wide smile that followed set my alarms off. She was up to something. “Actually, he sounds like a great fit for a program I’m hiring for at the moment.”

As soon as she mentioned a job, I got fidgety. Elias was supposed to come to the States for a PhD, where I could get to know him better.

Riiiight, all under control here.

I tipped my head to the side and tried not to glare at her. “Well, he’s thinking about school in the States. I’m not sure if he’s the right guy for that.”

Oh man that was the face of someone who had my number.