working on something big. I just wish he’d tell someone what it is.”
“Good luck with that. Dr. Vaughn doesn’t really have any friends that he’d share his secrets with,” Vijay said. “He would rather keep this to himself. I wouldn’t sweat over it. If he wants to talk you, he’ll talk to you.”
Olivia looked down at the now huge pile of papers. “You don’t happen to have a cart that I put this stuff on, do you?”
“Right over here.” He pointed to a metal cart in the corner. “Just bring it back here when you’re done. Anyway, we’ve stalled you long enough. Hope you enjoy the rest of your day.”
“It was nice to meet you both. I’ll see you around.” She dumped all the books and papers into the cart and pushed it over to Donnie’s office. He said it would be unlocked, so she could just leave the items on his desk. All the while, she was thinking about Donnie. It was strange that she was the only one allowed to call him by his nickname. He didn’t seem uptight when they were speaking with each other. After the little incident in the lab, he had opened up to her and told her about his plans. There was a little sparkle in those green eyes, and she couldn’t stop thinking about it. Maybe he needed a friend after all. She didn’t want to move too fast, but a social cup of coffee together couldn’t hurt. It wouldn’t be a date; just two coworkers spending some time together outside of work. If it bothered him that much, she could always plan it for during lunch.
“Yeah, lunch.” She said out loud as she rounded the corner to the office. “I can ask him during lunch today. The worst he can say is no.”
In her mind, she tried to write out a good note. Far too many of her lines came out flirtatiously, so she scratched those and went with something simple. Scribbling it down, she put the note on top of the first book so he would be sure to see it. This couldn’t hurt either of them. She wanted someone who could be her friend here, and maybe he did, too.
At the very least, she would find out a little more about him.
~ ~ ~
By the time Donnie arrived at work, Olivia’s computer was up and running. Pam had given her some things to key in, so she was busy with them. She had picked up all of his things from lab for him and left a note on the first book.
Donnie,
This is what your assistants gave me. If anything is missing, just let me know and I’ll go get it. I’m in my office if you need me.
-Olivia
P.S. I know this may sound forward, but I was wondering if you were free during lunch. Maybe we can grab a cup of coffee or something?
Donnie frowned at the note. It was a very bold move to ask him out like that. They had only known each other for a day, and she wanted to go on a date with him—her boss. He wanted to crumple up the note, but he couldn’t. It sounded innocent enough. All she had asked was to go out for a cup of coffee. It wasn’t like she was propositioning him to sleep with her or go on a honeymoon. A cup of coffee between coworkers was not something to be scared of. She was trying to be friendly.
“I guess going out for coffee today won’t hurt.” He decided out loud. He had no idea what he was supposed to feel about this. It was the first time anyone had bothered to ask him out to do anything. He’d had the urge to ask people out before, but was too scared to do it. All the other girls he knew seemed to think he was a nerd or a weirdo. There were a few girls back in college who used to think he had Lyme disease, and that scared them off. That, combined with the fact that he was fourteen at the time, left him no chance at the dating game. As he got older, it got harder to develop any kind of confidence with women. At the end of the day, all he had were his inventions.
She doesn’t like you like that, Donnie. You’re jumping into a river before you know how deep it is. He scolded himself, sifting through the anthropology books. He had