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“Sure,” I manage, voice a full octave higher than normal. He settles into the empty chair, folding those gigantic arms across his chest and leaning in just enough to shatter the comfort of personal space.

“What a coincidence this is,” he says, dryly.

I nearly drop my croissant as I mutter, “The story of my life.”

His lips twitch. There’s a ghost of a smile there, but it vanishes before I can be sure. He glances down at my notes, then at my skirt, which now sports a constellation of pastry crumbs.

He leans in closer. “Relax.”

I flush so hard my earlobes burn. “Yeah, right,” I snort, and before I’m able to stop myself, I add, “That’s not going to happen.” What in the world? Is he like a human lie detector or something?

He cuts me off with a slight shake of his head. “You don’t have any reason to worry.” His voice is still low, but the hint of amusement is unmistakable.

Is he… flirting with me? No, that’s impossible. Stress has finally pushed me over the edge. But he keeps staring, those eyes drilling into me like he’s cataloging every last detail.

“I’m glad,” I mutter as it occurs to me that the rest of the room is totally silent. Like, so silent you could hear a paperclip hit the floor. I can feel everyone watching us, their gazes flicking back and forth between Gabriel and me like we’re the pre-lunchtime entertainment. Even Jonathon, who’s usually glued to his emails during breaks, is straight-up staring, mouth open just a tiny bit.

Oh my God. They’re all trying to figure out what in the world is happening here.

Gabriel just leans in closer, eyes burning into mine, and it’s like nobody else in the world exists.

As the meeting resumes, I avoid his gaze entirely, focusing on my furious typing. But I can sense him watching me. By the time it ends, I have a complete set of notes, a stress headache, and exactly zero idea how to handle this situation.

God. I need that rocky road ice cream. Bad.