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Being so closely linked to Janeway and Picard worked against her, not for her. Seven didn't know though. Oh, sure Starfleet finally caved and allowed her to join Starfleet after pressure from them, but no one wanted to take the risk of having her aboard their ship. Not because she was Borg although Shaw was sure it played a part. It was more that no one wanted to face Janeway or Picard if anything happened to her. Didn't want either potentially holding back them from getting promoted.
He didn't care about that. Shaw had the best safety record plus he never wanted to be more than anything a Captain. So he picked her as his first officer. Never expected to fall for her though.