A few minutes later, his assistant stepped into his office. She held a steaming cup in one hand and her portable planner in the other. He motioned for her to sit, and she brought the cup closer to him.

“It’s not coffee,” she said when he raised an eyebrow. “It’s valerian tea, sir. I promise you’ll feel better.”

He made no comment and accepted the tea. He took a sip while considering how to approach something as complex as whatever it was that had been happening between the two of them. It was c