Leo (Vigilance #3) - Silvia Violet Page 0,7

he was smiling at me. I really hoped he couldn’t tell what I was thinking.

He handed me a folder. “Here are the documents you need to fill out and sign.”

“You’re really hiring me on the spot? You’re not going to interview other people?”

“You’re the one I want.”

Jesus, I wish that were true. “I…” Was Cathy truly all right with this?

“It’s a good job, Ezra. It’s better for you, and if you hate it, you can go back to the café.”

“What if Cathy hires someone, and—”

“I would really like you to work here.”

How the hell was I supposed to say no to that? I supposed I should be offended by his high-handedness. I shouldn’t let him push me into this job like he’d decided for me that I should make a major life change. And yet, that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to give into him, to surrender.

I’d been wanting to find a better job for me since my first week at the café, but working for Cathy was easy enough, and I’d just stayed. Leo was giving me a chance to push myself out of my comfort zone. That was supposed to be what this break from school was all about.

“Thank you. I want to work for you.”

His smile was enough to make me dizzy. How the hell was I going to survive being in the shop with him every day?

4

Leo

I watched Ezra open the folder with shaky hands. When I held out a pen, he took it, then immediately dropped it. We reached for it at the same time, and our hands brushed. The jolt of electricity that ran up my arm surprised me.

Static. It had to be static.

I was absolutely not going to get involved with this boy. He was going to work for me because I trusted him and Cathy. I needed to know that the person I invited into my shop wasn’t going to turn on me. That was all. In no way was I hiring him because I wanted something more.

He stared at me with his gorgeous blue eyes, and I knew he’d felt whatever it was that passed between us. He’d been crushing on me since we’d met. Seeing me day after day would help him get over it, right? We had a lot of great clients. Maybe he would meet someone more appropriate.

Ezra scanned through the employment documents, then looked back up at me. “You’re serious about this?”

“I don’t offer jobs to people I’m not serious about hiring.”

“I know. I mean, I assumed that, but all this just happened so fast.”

I was being an asshole, pushing Ezra into this, but once I decided I wanted something, I got it. I’d learned all kinds of skills in the CIA, but persuasion and command were the two that came most naturally. “Do you really want to keep working at the café?”

“Um… I get free coffee there.”

“Are you negotiating my offer?”

He went all deer in headlights, and I wanted to pull him to me and kiss him until he forgot he was nervous.

I was absolutely not going to do that, but I also wasn’t going to let him walk away. I wanted him here even if he dropped things and took a while to learn what I needed. Surely he couldn’t cause much damage behind a counter.

Until I’d had him seated across from me in my regular booth, I hadn’t let myself admit how much I looked forward to seeing him when I went to the café. Getting stellar service at Bacon and Bakin’ was way less fun than having Ezra trip over himself on the way to my table, not that I would ever admit that to Niall or Giorgio. No way in hell did they need more ammunition to play matchmaker for me.

I watched Ezra as he filled out the paperwork. I’d already watched him so much that I’d learned a lot about him. Hell, I’d assessed him before he spilled that water on my table all those months ago, another skill I’d learned as an operative.

He was left-handed. The index finger on his right hand had been broken. He’d sprained his right ankle, possibly multiple times. He could move quickly, but he needed more confidence. His clumsiness came from nerves rather than anything physical. He was much smarter than most people thought when first meeting him. He had a dimple in his left cheek I wanted to run my tongue over. His ears were pierced. He had no other visible piercings,