Is this destiny?

After breakfast, Tiffany and Mike moved to the living room.

Emma joined them. It's not like she wants to be the third wheel, but she was curious if her younger brother is really interested in Tiffany or did she imagine it?

Tiffany, on the other side, looked cool like a cucumber.

"So… engineering, right?", Emma broke the awkward silence in the room.

"Mhm…", Mike hummed in confirmation.

"I suggest you start backward.", Emma said. "Think first what you would like to do, then look at job descriptions for those jobs and find your education needed based on that. Also, if you want help in picking engineering courses, Felix is an engineer."

Mike lifted an eyebrow questionably. "Felix?"

"Sophia's husband. He is in charge of the hardware department which focuses on creation of small security devices at Orion Enterprise.", Emma explained.

"I will keep him in mind.", Mike said absent mindedly while his eyes darted toward Tiffany who was gazing through the large window which is facing the garden. Is she ignoring him?

"Is there something specific you wanted to ask Tiff?", Emma asked while trying to suppress her smile. By now she confirmed that her brother is interested in Tiffany!

"Mike said he wants to talk to Tiffany. Do you need to be here?", Charlie's voice coming from the door told Emma that he does not approve of the current situation.

Emma looked at Charlie playfully. "Where should I be?"

"I want you… in private… Remember? Sunday is our day for lazing around and it seems that Mike has other things he wants to do, so you can focus on me.", Charlie responded with a smirk.

Emma's face exploded in a blush. Why is Charlie being so sugestive in front of Mike?! She swiftly stood up and walked out while hoping that her brother didn't see her reaction.

"You two can talk without me…", Emma's voice drifted in from the hallway.

"My brother is right there!", Emma whispered angrily at Charlie.

"And he wants to talk to Tiffany. Unless you have a reason to prevent them from being by themselves, you come and make sure your fiancé does not die of thirst…" Charlie's laughter died away when the bedroom door closed behind them.

In an otherwise silent villa, both Mike and Tiffany got a start from the sound of the door closing from the second floor. It was not very loud, but both of them were tense.

Mike told himself to calm down. He saw Emma blush and he got a good idea what that means. This is not the time for his sister-protection mode to activate. He repeated few times silently that they are engaged, and living together, and it's normal that they are intimate... and he should be happy that Emma and Charlie are getting along so well.

He took a deep breath and reminded himself to focus on the young lady who is looking at him, right now.

"So… what do you want to know?", Tiffany asked Mike. She was doing her best to keep her eyes off form the hunk in front of her, but now that Emma is gone she can't avoid him. And she can only hope that her expression does not show how attracted she is to him.

Mike paused while trying to formulate questions: "Uhm… How do you organize your time and courses? Do you go in person to attend classes, or how does that work? How do you take exams? I really don't know anything other than regular education where you go to school full time from Monday to Friday, but that is obviously not the case here. So, I don't even know from where to start…", Mike was blabbering.

Tiffany stifled a laugh. "OK. OK. I didn't know any of that two months ago, so I can show you… Do you want to come to my room? You can see my plans and schedules and…"

"Sure.", Mike responded with a smile.

…

In Tiffany's room…

Tiffany and Mike are sitting on chairs, next to each other, in front of her desk which has a PC, several notebooks and papers scattered on it.

Mike is observing Tiffany intently while she is telling him about the courses she selected. She is so close that he can clearly observe every detail of her face, and the more he looks at her, the more attracted he is. She is beautiful.

Through his daze Mike remembers her telling him that exams can be taken online or with a proctor present in a public library. Most of his attention was focused on her inviting lips which moved seductively while she talked, and he controlled himself not to kiss her senselessly.

Tiffany is doing her best to concentrate. Why is he so close? She can practically feel the warmth of his body coming from her right!

She was not happy that her finger is shaky while pointing at the paper with courses and timelines listed. But her voice was only slightly elevated while explaining: "This degree takes three to four years to complete as a full time student. If I follow this schedule, I can continue working and get my degree in five years… But I made reserved estimates. If I put more effort to it, I might be able to do it in four years or maybe less."

"You just started?", Mike noticed that she marked as 'in progress' the first two courses on her list.

Tiffany nodded in confirmation.

"What motivated you to go back to school?", Mike was genuinely interested.

Tiffany lowered her gaze, unsure how to respond.

"Is it a touchy topic?", Mike probed.

Tiffany bit her lip and a sense of shame washed over her. She can see that Mike is an honest and unspoiled man and she is not.

"My parents pimped me to their business partners for benefits. I betrayed my father in exchange for a ticket out of that environment. And… here I am. Trying to be self-sufficient and not to depend on anyone else so that no one can take advantage of me."

Tiffany is not sure why she told him all this. Part of her wanted Mike to move away from her, to realize how dirty she is and to stop looking at her like she is… special. Because she is not.

Mike stared at Tiffany, and he was not sure if his mouth is open.

"I am sorry. I didn't realize it is so… personal.", he said awkwardly.

Tiffany looked at Mike and smiled bitterly. "Doesn't everyone have a personal reason when they decide to turn their life around?"

Mike smiled. "You are right."

Tiffany noticed that Mike is looking at her with eyes full of admiration. How can he still look at her like that? Didn't he get the message? She is dirty and unworthy, and people used her like a thing to have fun and discard when they are done. She is not special, not special at all. "Aren't you disgusted by what I told you about my past?"

Mike realized that Tiffany is insecure. How is that possible? She is beautiful, and smart and has spunk. "You are the most attractive woman I've ever seen. But even without that, why would I be disgusted by anyone who wants to take charge of their life?"

Tiffany was not sure if she understood him right. Is it possible that this delicious-looking man does not care about her past? "What?"

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