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I shift as memories of what Dylan and I did in his office come to the forefront of my mind. I can still feel the ache between my thighs, and my heart does that flip thing I wish it would stop doing. “I guess the important part was that one thing led to another and…”
“In his office?” Maggie balks. She’s giving me that judgy look I was worried about.
Ami kicks out at Maggie. “Quit ruining it for her. This is amazing. Like a fairy tale.”
Maggie tilts her head, looking at Ami. “What fairytales are you reading? I think you mean porn. She’s fucking her boss in his office, after hours. Not exactly Cinderella.”
Ouch. That hurts.
The jolt must show on my face because Maggie changes her expression really quickly and seems to understand where I’m coming from. “Sorry, girl. I didn’t mean it like that,” she says quickly, attempting to backtrack. “Look, I know I told you it was no big deal, but that was when it was a one-off and you weren’t working there.Just… be careful, okay?”
I feel like everyone keeps telling me that. Like I don’t see the red flags myself even though they’re nearly on fire and waving around like a pyrotechnic show.
But I also feel what I feel, and I know what Dylan said.
I meet Maggie’s eyes, understanding that she’s doing her best to look out for me and be a good friend. “I hear you. Really, I do. But we talked.”
“Before or after?” Ami asks with a grin. At least she’s on my side, wanting sordid details more than conversational ones.
“Both,” I say, fighting back a grin to match Ami’s. “He told me that it had nothing to do with my work. That we can keep them separate. And he said that no one has to know unless I want them to. He’s not hiding me, like Evan was.” That causes a little unexpected twinge in my gut because that’s exactly what Evan did. Shaking my head, I add, “He’s not sleeping with anyone else or seeing anyone else. Just me.”
That means more to me than he realizes. It should be an automatic, but as I’ve recently learned, it’s most definitely not.
Maggie and Ami have been listening closely as I tell them everything, so now I hold my hands out. “Okay, hit me with it. Have I completely fucked my life up? Am I a disaster waiting to happen?”
They silently meet eyes, making me wait for what feels like an eternity but is probably less than two seconds.
Maggie sighs. “I don’t think so, but I will not be held responsible if it all blows up. I’m hereby releasing you to the wilds of your own decisions.”
Ami laughs, ticking off on her fingers. “All I’m hearing is Hottie McMoneybags has it bad for you. You love your new job. And your boss said you’re great at it. So, congratulations!”
As if dinner is agreement with her, the buzzer goes off. “I’ve got it,” Ami shouts, hopping up to let the delivery person in the door downstairs and then the apartment door.
She comes back a moment later and passes out cardboardcontainers of something that smells delicious. “You know what you’ve gotta do now, right?”
“What?” I ask, opening up my container to reveal ooey, gooey, cheesy yumminess. “Ooh.”
“That’s the lobster one,” she says happily, pointing at my food with her fork, and then she answers my other question. “You’ve gotta bring your new man to my party! My actual party, not just the times we’re gonna celebrate me and my utter awesomeness.”
New man?I don’t think she’s really understanding the nature of this relationship, but she’s tipsy and it’s her birthday and I don’t want to pop her bubble at the moment.
“What are we doing for your actual party?” I ask, and Ami grins. “What? I’ve been sort of caught up in my own drama. I’ve missed the details. Sorry.”
“It’s okay, she’s not grinning about that. She looks like that because she’s got some news of her own,” Maggie whispers my way, even though Ami can totally hear her. As she opens her own container, she prompts, “Ames is thinking a swanky but cheap get together at… drumroll, please.”
Ami does her own drumroll, kicking her feet on the floor in a way that’s absolutely going to irritate our downstairs neighbor, before she squeals, “Los Ingobernables!”
It’s my turn to choke on my drink, and I cough repeatedly. “You think you can have something cheap at Los Ingobernables?” I ask. “That’s one of the hottest restaurants in the city!”
“And I just happen to have a favor I can call in with the sous chef,” Ami says mysteriously. Seeing my look, she shakes her head. “No, I didn’t fuck him. I only assisted in helping him do something, so he’s paying me back with helping with the party. Private room, fully catered, chef’s menu.”
My jaw drops, and I’m already looking forward to it.
“That’s going to be amazing,” I reply. “What else do you have planned for the month? It’s kindaimpossible to top that.”
“I’ll figure it out,” she answers with a shrug. “Even if everything else is just ‘twenty day celebration till Los Ingobernables’, ‘fifteen days’, ‘ten days’, and so on and so forth, it’ll be fun.”
Suddenly, I’m excited for Ami’s birthday month celebrations.
