control of the choosing?”
His hand tightened on her elbow. For a moment he didn’t answer. Then he relaxed his hold. “You’re probably right.”
“In this case, you could let go and let whatever happens, happen.”
He snorted. “And here I thought I was uptight about the whole thing because I don’t have time and the project I’m working is not going to make the deadline.”
“What will happen if you don’t make your deadline?”
“I built my reputation on my ability to bring a project in on budget and, most of all, on time. Speaking of the project, I still need to make half a dozen calls tonight and make sure the right supplies are delivered in the morning.”
They’d descended fifteen flights by then.
Ariana was enjoying the man’s company. She was about to ask his name when the lights flickered and came on. “Well, looks like we can take the elevator the rest of the way down.”
“I don’t know about you, but I was enjoying the walk,” he said, smiling down at her.
“Me, too,” she admitted. “Only five more floors to go.”
“Might as well walk them,” the stranger said.
“Don’t you have some calls you need to make?” She tilted her head to the side.
He smiled. “I’m sure cellphone reception in this stairwell is lousy. I’ll make those calls later.”
“See? You can do it. You can let go of that control. Even if only for a few minutes.”
He grunted. “You’ll make a convert of me before we reach the bottom.”
“I doubt that, but you’ll have a start.”
“The next thing you’ll have me doing is goat yoga and singing ‘Kumbaya’.”
“As a matter of fact, I lead yoga classes as well. I’d be glad to show you some poses. As for the goats, you’ll have to bring your own. And, unless you can sing, I’ll leave ‘Kumbaya’ to those with more vocal talent than I possess.”
He laughed out loud. “If it makes a difference, I feel more relaxed already.”
She smiled up at him. “And here we are. At the bottom.” She pushed through the door into the lobby of the office building.
“Will you let me escort you to your car?” the stranger asked.
“I’d appreciate that, as the security guard appears to be busy answering calls.” She nodded toward the front desk where a guard had just hung up the phone when another call came through.
They nodded to the guard as they passed and left through the door to the garage, descending one more flight of stairs.
Ariana wished there were more stairs. She wasn’t quite ready to leave this man. She liked how relaxed and comfortable he made her feel after how tense she’d been over coming to the BODS headquarters. Here she was talking to a strange man, and it wasn’t awkward or difficult at all.
“This is my car,” she said as they approached her Audi SQ5, the car her husband had always wanted and had just purchased when he’d gotten his diagnosis.
“Thank you for keeping me company on the tower descent,” he said, giving her a little bow.
“Thank you for seeing me safely to my vehicle,” she said with a nod. “If you decide you want to come to my meditation class, get a hold of Leslie, she can tell you how to find me.”
“What if I want to know how to find you before that?” He took her hand. “I like talking to you.”
She smiled. “We’ve just committed to letting Leslie’s system find our matches.”
“Didn’t you just say I should let go of my stress and the things I can’t control?” He raised an eyebrow in challenge.
Ariana wanted to do like he said and let go of that stress and uncertainty. Still… “Leslie is convinced her software will find the one who is right for each of us.” She looked up into blue eyes. “We should at least give it a chance.”
He nodded. “I get it. You don’t want to go out with me.”
“I didn’t hear you ask.”
“If I did?”
She shook her head. “BODS is churning away as we speak, now that the electricity is back on. It could already have found someone perfect for you.”
“And you.”
She shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Will you let me know if it doesn’t work out for you?” he asked.
She nodded. “I’d like that.”
The man held out his hand. “It’s been nice talking with you.”
“And with you.” She placed her hand in his, and the electric current that raced up her arm excited and frightened her. Ariana could see herself falling for this guy, and she just wasn’t ready for that level of