Don’t flatter yourself. Move on. “So we’re fine? I, um, I like working with you, and I don’t want there to be any awkwardness between us.”

“We’re fine,” Anja said. “No awkwardness.”

Susanne should have been relieved, but somehow she felt less than satisfied as they continued down the stairs.

Anja tentatively went from one step to the next, clinging to the railing. Going down was probably even harder for her because now she couldn’t keep her gaze on the horizon; she had to look down so she wouldn’t miss a step.

Maybe she should have kept her mouth shut, but Susanne couldn’t watch her suffer like this. “Anja? Since we established that we like working together…how about we treat this as a team-building experience?”

“Meaning?” Anja asked, her voice tense. She continued to stare down at the metal grates and the ground beneath.

“Rely on your team members to get you down safely.” She extended her hand.

Anja hesitated. “I never said I like working with you.” A twinkle chased away the scared look in her big eyes.

“Oh, so you’re suffering through your workdays, and all that laughter I heard from you when we played around with the Instagram filters yesterday was just…what?”

“Tension,” Anja said with a straight face.

“So then why don’t I hear the same sounds now? I’d think being up here would make you very tense.”

“Um, because… Okay, okay, maybe I like working with you too. Not at the beginning, but now you seem…bearable.”

“Bearable?” Susanne tried her famous ice-queen glare but couldn’t quite manage it. “All right. That’s good enough. Come on.” She stretched out her hand a little farther, and this time Anja reached for it.

They held on to each other more tentatively than before. The gesture seemed to have lost its innocence.

Don’t overthink it. It was okay to like working with Anja. Trying to be an effective, emotionless robot at work might have proven successful in her previous job, but it wouldn’t get her far in her uncle’s store. Even liking Anja as a person was okay. As long as she didn’t start liking her too much or giving in to this damn attraction, they would be fine.

Miri waved until Susanne and Franziska, still standing at the streetcar stop, were out of sight. She dropped into the free seat next to Anja and pulled Gino closer so he wouldn’t get in the way of other passengers. “I never thought I’d ever say this about a dentist, but, God, she’s cute!”