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“Yes. Thanks.”
My hand slips easily into his as he helps me up. Giselle is still watching the two of us closely, and a frustrated bubble forms in my chest. We’ve just spent two weeks convincing everyone this is real; I thought the pressure was off, but no, apparently, the show must go on.
His hand hovers over my lower back as we leave Giselle’s office and the HR suite. This side of the building is quiet, mostly the billing department and HR, plus a meditation room I haven’t had a chance to look at yet.
There’s a tug on my hand. Jenson pulls me into a little windowed alcove with pseudo-privacy on the fourth floor. It’s quiet, but down below cars meander by and pedestrians hurry to wherever they need to be.
“That’s sorted then,” he says quietly. “We shouldn’t have any technical issues with the relationship now. It’s all just appearances from here on out.”
“Okay…yeah. I can do that.”
“Can you?” His brow lifts, a cheeky smirk on his lips. I tamp down the urge to press up on my feet and kiss him.No one is watching right now. Reel it in, Atkinson.
“So what’s the agreement now?” I ask, ignoring his teasing remark. “Lunch a few times a week? Should I come by your office, or would it make more sense if you came down to check on me? More people to witness it on the fifth floor.”
He hums in thought, hands in his pockets, the collar of his shirt pulling just enough to expose his throat. My mouth waters.
“Both, I think. Lunch three times a week. I’ll take you out, if you want, but we should at least do a coffee here in the morning.”
“Giselle won’t be mad that you’re not in your office at eight o’clock sharp?”
His eyes flash with amusement. “Jealous?”
Giselle is a beautiful woman, but…no. My stomach knots, something tells me that Jenson is all mine.
For now, at least.
We settle into a comfortable moment of silence. Jenson sighs and reaches up to wind a stray piece of hair back into my bun. “I wired half the money over to your account today.”
“You didn’t have to do that,” I protest, but secretly I’ll be happy to get some of the bills that are in collection out of the way. My body starts to relax at the thought, and I put a hand on his waist to support myself.
“Why not? You’ve been working hard.”
“Mmm, well. Itishard work, faking being in love with you.” I give him a smirk with the taunt, praying he doesn’t guess the half truth in it.Being in love with you.Ugh. I’m happily heading for a train wreck. What is wrong with me?
Jenson’s cell buzzes and he looks down, a frown appearing. “Okay—I really should get upstairs now. But we’ll talk later. I have a busy day, so we can touch base after work if I don’t see you. We should set up a date.”
“Or you could just ask me out, like a normal guy.”
“I could, but this is a business transaction, darling.” There’s a purr in his voice as he says it that makes my core tingle with anticipation. He turns and strides down the hallway, his broad shoulders making my stomach flutter.
With a sigh, I step out of the alcove…and right into Adrian.
One look at her somber expression tells me she heard everything. Orenough.
“Adrian, w-what—?” I stutter out.
“I was just coming to find you. We have a meeting in half an hour with the social media team to go over the schedule, and you need to approve their ad campaign design.”
My mouth is still open as my brain tries to catch up. Adrian takes my arm and pulls me right back into the little nook I’d just been tucked up against Jenson in.
Only Adrian is five-foot-five and thin as a toothpick. Her dreads fall to her chest and look like a version of Medusa’s hair coupled with the anger on her face.
“What the hell is going on here, Mel?”
“I…”
“While you were gone, HR reached out to the supervisors on the team, so we all know about you and Jenson. That in itself was a shock,butwhat did I just hear,Mel?Are you two actually together, or not?”
