I’m buzzing with excitement even into the next day. Every step I take it’s all Sofia, Sofia, Sofia, more with every breath. It’s a weird feeling, this headlong rush into a woman from my past, although she was nearly a girl back then. We’re totally different people, and yet…

There was the hint of the girl I wanted back in my classroom. Just the hint of her, a subtle suggestion of that flirtatious eighteen-year-old. She looks like her still, of course, but it’s in the small quirks. The smiles, the way she makes eye contact, the way she leans toward me when I speak. It’s the cadence and rhythms of her speech.

That night, after work, I went home and found the yearbook from ten years ago. I found her picture and smiled, a stupid grin: she looks almost no different. Better figure now, since she’s a woman, but basically the same.

I come into work this morning with a smile on my face. I haven’t felt this energized in a long time. I can’t believe I broached it with her, the subject I was dreading. Part of me was afraid that she would remember it negatively, like her creepy teacher tried to make out with her one day or something. But when I brought it up, she didn’t seem upset at all. In fact, she blushed and seemed excited by it, which makes me think she has the same memory that I do. It was one of the most erotic, sexual, intense moments of my life, and all we did was kiss back then.

I bet she’s been imagining what else I would’ve done to her all these years. I bet she still wants to find out.

It’s an insane thought, but I can’t help myself. Instead of going to my office, I head down a floor and walk right past Sofia’s cube. She’s not in yet, since I come in early, but I’m not looking for her.

I knock on Karl’s office door. “Yeah?” he calls out, and I open it up. He’s at his computer, bent slightly forward, reading something on the screen. He looks surprised when I step in.

“Morning,” I say to him.

“Morning, Jacob,” he says, leaning back in his chair. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

“I’m here to ask you a favor.” I stand in front of his desk, refusing to sit down in the chairs. He has them purposefully low, to make him sit up higher than his guests. It’s a cheap power move.

“What’s that?” he asks. “I figured you were here to yell at me for the board meeting.”

I hesitate a second. “I don’t need to yell,” I say to him. “You know how I feel about it.”

“I do,” he says. “And you know I disagree. And so do certain other board members.”

“Yes,” I say to him, inwardly chafing, but I can’t let it show. Not when I want something from him. “Well, at any rate, I’m not here about that.”

“What can I do for you?”

“It’s about an employee.” I hesitate, not sure how to go about doing this. As soon as I start, I know it’s a mistake, but it’s way too late to back out now.

“Someone mess something up?” he asks me, raising an eyebrow.

Of course he assumes someone made a mistake. He always assumes the worst.

“No, actually. I know someone from your team, from back in the day. I was hoping I could have her transferred over to my department.”

Karl looks surprised. “Sofia?”

“That’s right,” I answer, remembering how we were first introduced.

He doesn’t say anything at first. His eyebrows shoot up to the top of his head and I can see the wheels spinning.

“She’s a good worker,” he says finally. “Really highly paid recruit. We did a lot to get her. I was under the impression that the two of you were only passing acquaintances.”

“I’m sure she’s great,” I say, ignoring that last part. “I’d be happy to have my people assist in finding a replacement.”

“Ah,” he says. “That’s just it. I don’t think there is a replacement, not for her. You understand, don’t you, Jacob?”

I understand perfectly, I realize. He knows now, he knows that I want Sofia. Maybe not sexually or romantically, but he knows she matters to me in some way, and he’s going to use that against me. Before, she was just someone I happened to know. Now though, she’s someone I want around, and that makes her important.

This is a stupid mistake. I’m distracted by my sudden renewed desire for Sofia and clearly not thinking right. I should have known as soon as I had this idea that Karl would see through me instantly and use this against me.

That’s the kind of man he is. Karl is a hard worker, bright and creative, but he’s also ruthless and emotionless. He only cares about results and success above all other things. He’d tear apart absolutely anyone or anything to get what he wants.

And he wants my job. He wants to take this company in a new direction. He’s wanted that ever since I first hired him eight years ago. When we first started growing and expanding, about a year after the company was funded and founded, he was one of my first new hires. He was bright and impressive back then, and he’s moved up through the ranks ever since.

Now, he’s an upper level manager, as close to upper management as you can get, but he wants more. He thinks he can make this company as profitable as possible, and he’ll do anything to get us there.

He’s tough on his employees, notoriously tough, but he gets results. I should have fired him years ago, but now he has support from the board and protection, so I can’t make a move anymore.

I hoped that I could get Sofia out from under him. I was thinking I could make her life at the company easier. Now I see that I just tipped my hand to Karl without thinking.

“I understand,” I say to him. “Can’t blame you. She was a good student when I knew her. I’m sure she’s a good employee.”

“Very good, very good,” he says, nodding, a big stupid smile on his face. “I’ll let her know you were asking after her.”

“Sure,” I say to him. Without another word, I nod and leave the room. I don’t want to spend another second standing in front of that snake bastard.

I’m kicking myself all the way back to my office. Fortunately there are few people in this early, so I don’t have to smile and pretend like I’m not in a black mood.

I’m a fucking moron. I’m a Georgie-level idiot. I should never have gone to him. I just wanted to help Sofia out, maybe get her close, maybe get to taste her one last time…

And there it is. I was blinded by my own stupid desire and made a dumb mistake. I need to be careful, way more careful. I can’t just do whatever I want to do. I need to start thinking two moves ahead.

Karl is dangerous. He’s coming after me. That stunt with the board is proof that I’m under attack, and if I want this company to keep moving in my direction, I better shape up. I can’t be complacent anymore. I’ve had a lot of good years at the helm of this place, but the tides are changing, and I better change with them.

I can’t afford to get distracted by Sofia. And yet every time I think that, I just let myself get sucked further into her orbit. I need to find a way to do this, a way that won’t distract me from my work.