After we get past that extremely awkward conversation and move on to proper introductions, Andy—not Andrew, never Andrew—shocks the hell out of me by telling me that Chris Murdoch has been singing my praises and told him to go with anything I propose. I’m almost speechless because that man was always so argumentative with me. But, some people just like to bitch, and I have to assume Murdoch is one of them.

We end up working together for the rest of the afternoon because Andy is full of questions and wants to fill in the missing content immediately. He’s amazing with research and quickly finds the answers to almost everything I’m looking for within minutes. It’s a pleasant change compared to always working alone.

When his phone alarm rings at four, he quickly shuts it off and stares into space for a few minutes as if deep in concentration.

“Everything okay?” I ask, hoping he didn’t just get bad news.

“Yeah.” He smiles and turns his phone face-down on the table. “I’m just trying to decide if I should go to class or not.”

“I think that answer is a big, fat yes.” I save the file I’m working on and shut my laptop. “This will all be waiting for you tomorrow or whenever you get back here. Don’t worry about it.”

He smiles and saves his file too. “I know, but…”

“But what?” I put my bag on the table and give Andy my attention, curious about what has him considering skipping class.

“I’m kinda having fun.” He looks embarrassed to admit it but his rosy cheeks are just too damn cute.

I smile wide as I slip my laptop into my padded bag. “I am too. But school comes first. This project won’t be finished for months. Two or three at the minimum, assuming the rest of the content is as easy for you to find as everything was today.”

“Really?” His shoulders relax and he closes his laptop too. “Great. This is a lot more hands-on than I expected so early in my internship. I’m loving it.”

“Alright then.” I stand up and stretch my back, arching it with my arms wide above my head. “I won’t be back in the office for a few weeks but I’ll keep adding to the list we created and you can just check things off as you can get them done.”

“A few weeks?” I glance at his face quick enough to see the disappointment there, but he catches himself and schools his features almost instantly. “You’re not here every day?”

Oh.

Hmm.

That reaction is…unexpected.

“Not usually, but that was when Murdoch didn’t want to deal with this project. I guess if you’re going to be working with me, it might make sense to come in when you’re working. Are you here every day?”

He smiles and inhales deeply. Any hint of disappointment I might have seen a moment ago is gone now. “Yeah, through the summer, I’m full time. I’m not sure about after that.”

I cock an eyebrow, confused. “What about the class you have today?”

“Oh, that’s not for school.” He rolls his eyes. “Well, it kinda is a school but not my regular school.”

I have no idea what he’s babbling about, so I just stare at him, waiting for him to make some sense.

“It’s an infant CPR class. It’s just for today and Thursday. I signed up for it two months ago, before I knew what my hours here would be. After that, I’ll be able to work late every day.”

“You have an infant?” I don’t know why my mouth suddenly feels like the desert and my stomach is roiling…but I don’t like that idea at all.

“No, of course not.” He smiles as he pulls his laptop to his chest and leans a hip against the table. “I’m living with my brother’s family for the summer. I’ll be watching my niece and nephew more often so I want to be prepared for anything.”

“Oh, that’s awesome.” And suddenly, the world is right again. Whatever weird feelings that were meandering within me are gone and I can breathe easily. “I love kids. And it’s great that you have family nearby.”

Andy’s eyes get glassy again as he stares at me, almost…adoringly. “Yeah, they’re pretty awesome. I can’t wait to have a family of my own someday.”

I’m surprised by his blatant desire to have a family. Most guys, especially those in college who are planning careers, don’t think about settling down until their mid-thirties or later. According to his driver’s license, Andy is barely twenty. He’s way too young to be thinking about a family. Although, something about the idea of him chasing after a brood of little ones makes me feel warm inside.

A warmth I haven’t ever known before.

I guess I’ve always known I’d have kids someday. And I’m getting to the point in life where I’d much rather have one mate to settle down with rather than doing the dating thing. But I’m still caught off guard by the longing I see in Andy’s eyes.

Does he see the same longing in mine?

* * *

Before I head into work the next morning, I do something I haven’t done in a long time. I rub one out in the shower like a damn teenager. Mostly because of the dream I had, which starred my new intern, but also because I’m hoping it will help reduce the risk of me having to hide a hard-on all day like I did for the latter half of our meeting yesterday.

Andy is already set up in a small conference room when I arrive. “I hope you don’t mind this room. Since it’s just us, I figured we didn’t need the bigger conference room.”

“Yeah, this is perfect.” I set my bag on the table and pull out my laptop.

“No one ever uses this conference room because there aren’t any windows, so Jenny said we can use it every day if we need to.”

“Great.” I clear my throat as I wait for my computer to boot up. “So, how was your class last night?”

Andy's face grows a few shades lighter and he grimaces. “God, I hope nothing ever happens to those kids when I’m alone with them. Trying to do chest compressions or the Heimlich on an infant is terrifying.”

“Yeah, I imagine it would be.” Thankfully, I’ve never been in a life-or-death situation with someone, the night I found Andy in that room notwithstanding, so I’ve never been put to the test of having to try to save their life.

“I guess I feel better having taken the class, but honestly, I think I’m going to be more paranoid about them eating anything instead of more confident, like I’d hoped.”

“Do you babysit often?” I ask, curious to know what his evenings are usually like and maybe what his status is.

“No, not too often. My brother-in-law is home with them quite a bit, but since I’m staying with them for the summer, I’m trying to encourage them to do more date nights.” Andy chuckles as if remembering something. “They need alone time with other adults, not just alone time with each other.”

When he catches my eye, that rosy tint colors his cheeks, and I have to close my hand to stop myself from reaching out and brushing my thumb over his heated cheek. “That’s very thoughtful of you.”

He shrugs. “What about you?” Andy isn’t very subtle as he glances down at my left hand then back to my eyes. “Did you do anything fun last night?”

“Nothing as exciting as you. I finished the last three episodes of Stranger Things then went to bed early. It was quite a night.” I waggle my eyebrows.

“Well, I guess considering what you had to deal with the last time you went to a club, I don’t blame you for wanting to stay home and chill.”

Andy’s eyes connect with mine, and I just watch him watching me for a long moment. “I do have a lot of regrets about that night, but as long as you’re okay…” I don’t finish the thought because I don’t know how to. He’s not okay. He was raped because I was too selfish and lazy to be bothered enough to react quickly when I knew something was wrong. And it’s not even like I can credit that night for us meeting since we would have met her regardless. Yeah, definitely a lot of regrets.

Andy’s voice is low but firm when he pulls me from my thoughts. “Well, if you’ve ever wondered whether you were a hero or not, I think you answered that question.”

I shake my head, wanting to get off the topic as soon as possible. Every time I think about it, I can’t stop playing the what-if game.

What if I had cut in while they were dancing and gotten Andy away from that guy before anything else could have happened?

What if I had followed them immediately and stopped any kind of assault from happening in the first place?

What if I had broken down the door on my first try, and beaten the shit out of every one of those men who were trying to hurt Andy?

“I’m not really into the club scene anyway. I went a lot more often when I was younger, but now that I’m an old man, I’d rather sit at home with popcorn and Netflix.”