After making rounds and shaking hands with more people than I could count, Jasmine and I finally made it to my office. I didn’t miss her sigh of relief as I closed the door behind us. As much as I was letting them have a party on my floor, there were restrictions, so we barely heard the noise from outside.

“Please, take a seat,” I said, my stance stiff and my tone professional, as I gestured her over to the table.

I grimaced and cursed myself for my awkwardness.

“Is this anything official to do with work?” she asked slowly. “Because , if so, maybe moving to the desk would be appropriate.”

“No,” I said, almost too quickly, before I could stop myself. Then I cleared my throat and forced my body to relax. “Well, it is partially business related, but you and I do need to talk and I don’t want it to be as boss and employee.”

She sent me a curious look, one eyebrow arched inquisitively, but she did cross the room to take a chair at the table. I moved and took a seat opposite her. I sat stiffly, placing my hands on my thighs and sitting with my back straight. Jasmine looked as unsure of herself as I felt, fidgeting, plucking at her skirt with her fingers, then pushing her hair behind her ear, then clasping her hands only to unclasp them a second later so they could fidget some more.

After a moment, I sighed, frowning to myself as I looked down at the table.

“Okay. I think we can probably agree that we’re acting ridiculous right now.”

I glanced up at Jasmine to see I had her full attention.

“You’re right,” she said slowly. “We do need to talk, so you might as well start.”

I grimaced at the prompt, even knowing she was right. I had to be the one to go first.

“All right,” I said, slapping a hand down on my thigh. She jumped a little at the noise my action made, but I pretended not to notice. “First of all, the issue of your job. I was looking through the company’s policy, and…”

She frowned when I didn’t complete my sentence. “And what?” she asked, impatient. “I’m not in the mood for playing games here, Gabe.”

“It’s not a game,” I countered. “And I plan to talk. I just don’t know how to explain it properly...”

“It’s bad news,” she guessed, her shoulders slumping as she loosely clasped her fingers in her lap.

“Yeah,” I sighed, leaning back in my chair. “The moment you were arrested, you technically already lost your position at the company.”

Her eyes widened as she sputtered. “B-but that wasn’t—wasn’t I cleared—”

I held up a hand to stop her disjointed flow of words. “I went through all the regulations, and it’s solid. I suppose it was put in place to protect the company’s image. I mean, my dad had to leave his position behind the second he was targeted by the FBI. Just because he was the CEO and you the secretary, doesn’t change anything.”

Jasmine’s eyes grew shiny and I watched as she blinked away her tears. She looked down at her lap, but only for a moment, before she was raising her head again. She rolled her shoulders back and looked at me with her chin raised, expression determined.

“So, what happens now?”

I was impressed and I let her see it in my expression.

“What happens now is… I apologize to you.” A small furrow appeared on her brow that probably meant she was confused. Or annoyed, or both. “The thing is, with you cleared of all charges and it's clear that you were framed, then I could give you your old job back. If you want it?”

Immediately, her eyes opened wide and she leaned forward eagerly. I hated to break her heart, but I wouldn’t lie, either.

“Don’t get too excited so quickly. I said I could, not that I was going to. You might not realize it, but Jasmine, there is no fucking way you and I could work together again.

She scowled, still looking a bit confused, but she obviously got that I wasn’t lending her a hand to get her job back.

“What exactly do you mean by we can't work together?” she asked, voice arched.

I half sighed, half chuckled. “Jasmine, no offense, but you are a terrible secretary. That’s probably part my dad’s fault. He did tell me a little about how the two of you worked. Then you’ve only been with me for a few weeks and you can't say we acted entirely professional at all times.”

She opened her mouth, only to snap it closed again and frown because she knew it was true. It wasn’t just us fucking in the office. She pursed her lips.

“I mean,” she started. “I know I was lazy to begin with. I just didn’t work a lot when I was with your dad. And I might have been rude… sometimes…”

I barked a laugh, louder this time. “It was more than just sometimes, Jasmine. Had it been anyone else, you do realize you wouldn’t have stayed employed for as long as you did?”

She folded her arms under her breasts as she glared at me. “I wasn’t even trying at times, because my boss can be such an ass.”

I chuckled. “Well, I don’t know about that…”

After a moment of keeping up the defensive stance, her body softened. Her hands dropped to her lap, her glare turning into a frown of worry.

“So, just like that, I’m out of a job. What am I supposed to do now?”

I shifted in my seat and smoothed a hand down my lapel as I grew nervous once more. “Well, I have some news for you,” I started tentatively. “Depending on how you look at it, it’s great news.”

She looked up at me, eyes narrowing. I couldn’t stop fidgeting, and she must have read something in my behavior that had her on guard again, her fingers clenching tighter together.

“Did something happen?”

I shook my head. “Nothing happened, Jasmine. Everything’s all good. But since you lost your job on short notice, you are owed a severance package.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh. I hadn't even thought about that.”

“I’m not surprised you didn’t. You were under a lot of stress.” I rubbed my suddenly sweaty palms on my thighs. “But see, because of your position and the work you’ve done, not to mention all the shit that both my father and I have put you through, is the reason why I won’t get your job back for you.”

She nodded her head frantically, leaning forward, eager to hear what I had to say. I took a deep breath.

“Do you remember that evening we went out to dinner and you told me your dream was to open a bakery?” She looked confused, but she nodded. “Well, I did some research, and with the big package you’ll be receiving, it’ll be enough for you to realize your dream.”

Jasmine sat so still for a moment, she didn’t even blink, and I wondered if she’d even heard me. I opened my mouth to call her name, only to be interrupted as she took in a sharp breath and leaned back into her seat.

“Gabe, what the fuck,” she said, breathless. Then, she glared at me, filled with so much anger I had to dig my fingers into my thighs so I wouldn’t flinch. “Seriously, what the fuck? I don’t need your charity, you know. I always planned to follow my dreams, but do so on my terms.”

I sighed and shook my head at her stubbornness. “How about I put it this way, then. To get another secretarial position, especially after you got arrested for the FBI, not to mention working for my father, who was also arrested by the FBI, you’ll need a good reference from me.”

Her eyes widened as she sat up. “You wouldn’t, Gabe.”

“You’re right; I wouldn’t. I don’t have the obligation, or intention, to; and I don’t see why I would give you reference for another job like this. Why would you even want it? Besides, I’ve already called you a terrible secretary. You won’t be able to get another job like it elsewhere.”

Her hands were curled into fists on her thighs. The expression on her face was strange, like she couldn’t help wanting to be angry and happy at the same time. There was a part of her that wanted this, that would take it, because it was, after all, her dream.

“Come on, Jasmine,” I coaxed. “It’s everything you want, isn’t it? And it’s all very legal, trust me. With what you’ve dealt with, you should be earning way more, even. So please, just take it.”

I watched her intently, looking for some sign. When, after a few moments of silence and stillness, she slumped her shoulders and relaxed, my body did the same because I knew she’d made her choice, one that we would both abide by

By the happiness growing in her eyes as her lips twitched up into a delighted smile, I knew it was the right choice.