HE WAS MY DISTRACTION I met Adrian on a Thursday evening, three weeks before my biggest presentation. I was sitting in a quiet hotel lounge, trying to finish a business proposal that could determine whether I got promoted. My laptop was open, my coffee was cold, and my patience was nearly gone. Then a man dropped into the chair opposite me. “You look like you’re about to declare war on that computer,” he said. I didn’t look up. “And you look like someone who has never been told to mind his own business.” He laughed. That was the first thing I noticed about Adrian. He laughed as if the world had never given him a reason not to. The second thing I noticed was that he was annoyingly handsome. The third was that he had no intention of leaving me alone. “Working on something important?” he asked. “No. I enjoy looking miserable in hotel lounges.” “Good. I was worried you might be having a bad day.” I finally looked at him. “Do you always talk this much?” “Only when someone interesting is trying very hard to ignore me.” I returned to my laptop, determined to forget he existed. Five minutes later, he placed a small chocolate beside my coffee. “What’s that for?” I asked. “Your face looks like it needs an apology.” I stared at him. He smiled. I hated that I almost smiled back. After that evening, Adrian somehow became part of my routine. He worked in the same building as me, running a creative agency on the floor above my office. We kept meeting in the elevator, the café, and the hotel lounge where I often worked late. Every time, he had something to say. Every time, I pretended I didn't enjoy it. “You know,” he told me one afternoon, “you’re much prettier when you’re not threatening people.” “And you’re much more tolerable when you’re quiet.” “So you have imagined me being quiet?” I nearly spilled my coffee. He looked delighted. That was the problem with Adrian. He could turn a simple conversation into something that stayed in my mind for hours. And I was beginning to look forward to seeing him...