“Yes. See you. Drive carefully.” Anja squeezed past her through the door and turned on the light in the staircase for her.

Their bodies brushed, making Susanne glad that she could escape to the cooler air in the staircase. She picked up her umbrella by the door and walked down the stairs. As she rounded the bend after the first set of stairs, she glanced back up.

There were four small apartments on Anja’s floor, and since Anja’s was the one straight ahead from the stairs, Susanne could still see her. She stood in the doorway, gripping Gino’s collar with one hand so he wouldn’t run after her.

Their gazes met, and they nodded at each other.

Susanne raised her hand for one last wave before she reached the landing and was out of sight.

“That was the big, bad wolf?” Miri asked as soon as Anja closed the door. She used the flyer that the Indian restaurant had stuck into one of the bags to fan herself. “Damn, girl! How can you work with her without being constantly distracted?”

Anja took the flyer from her and used it to give her friend a playful slap to the shoulder. “I manage just fine. You’re the one who can’t resist a beautiful woman, even if she’s a total ass.”

“But that’s the thing—she’s not. An ass, I mean. She seems nice to me. A little reserved maybe, but she thawed out pretty fast.”

Yeah, Anja had to admit that Susanne hadn’t been so bad, at least not with Miri there to draw her out. She had even agreed to finally switch to a first-name basis. But would it be like this at Paperworld next weekend—or at work on Monday, for that matter? She doubted it.

“Thanks a lot for embarrassing me with that movie theater story, by the way,” she grumbled as she went in search of snacks for their Netflix night.

“Oh, come on. It wasn’t that bad. We all have a first-kiss story like that.”

“Yeah, but neither of you shared yours. Plus she’s my boss. Kind of.”

Miri plopped down onto the sofa bed. “Hey, you were the one who insisted that she’s not there to take over, so she isn’t really your boss.”

“Still.” Anja tossed a bag of sweet chili chips onto Miri’s lap, settled down next to her, and grabbed the remote control before her friend could. “Just for that embarrassing story, I get to pick what we’re watching.”

Still thinking about her unplanned dinner with Anja and her friend, Susanne entered her apartment and kicked off her shoes. Even in socks, her steps echoed through the hall. God, her bare apartment had all the charm of an impersonal hotel room. Maybe she should get some more furniture, even if it was just for a few months.