WE MET IN AN ELEVATOR DURING A BLACKOUT. THE LIGHTS CAME ON TOO SOON. Part -2

I found him again seven days later, standing in the exact same spot—like the universe had hit rewind.

This time, the lights stayed on.

"You," he said, gripping a Starbucks cup like it contained answers instead of coffee. His wedding band was gone, leaving only a pale stripe of skin.

"Me," I agreed, pressing the lobby button. The doors slid shut. "So. Funeral or bad date today?"

His mouth twitched. "Job interview." A beat. "I lied about the funeral."

The elevator began its descent.

"You don't seem like the lying type," I said.

"And you don't seem like the foot-in-the-door type." He eyed my boots. "Yet here we are."

Twenty-three floors to go.

I learned three things before we hit fifteen:

His name was Daniel Carter

The divorce had been finalized over coffee, not after

He remembered the vanilla scent of my hair

At floor ten, the elevator shuddered violently. Daniel's hand shot out to steady me, his palm burning against the small of my back.

"Not again," I groaned.

But the lights stayed on.

His fingers didn't move.

"Last week..." He cleared his throat. "I shouldn't have—"

"Kissed me?" I supplied helpfully.

His eyes darkened. "We didn't kiss."

"We could have."

The elevator dinged. Lobby.

Daniel's hand flexed against me. "Dinner. Tonight. Say no and I'll never—"

"Yes."

A slow smile. "You don't even know where."

"Don't care."

The doors opened. A crowd waited.

Daniel leaned in, his breath warm against my ear: "It's a date." Then louder, for the audience we'd acquired: "Ms. Whittaker, as your new boss, I'll expect those reports by Monday."

The doors closed on my stunned face.

[To Be Continued...]

Word Count: 300

New Mysteries:

Is he really her new boss?

Why was he in the building that first day?

That missing wedding band...

"Would you risk your job for an elevator stranger? (87% of readers said YES in our poll!)"

Want Part 3: The First Date Disaster? Let me know! 💋