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Marco: Is he seeing anyone? Maybe the universe is trying to tell you to tap that again.

Me: Absolutely not. That would be so inappropriate.

Marco: Okay but hear me out…

Marco: Who cares?

Me: Me. Human Resources. I care about hooking up with someone in upper management. That’s so messed up for so many reasons.

Marco: That just makes it hotter, honestly. Forbidden. Dare I say naughty?

Me: Ew.

Me: Don’t you have a boyfriend you need to apologize to for last night?

Marco: Shoot. You’re right. Ttyl.

I grinned, pocketing my phone and attempting to focus back on the conversation happening around me.

“Wait, you’re cousins?” I heard Violet ask right when I dug into my protein bowl.

“They’re also best friends.” Jamie grinned, leaning against Mary when she rolled her eyes at her girlfriend.

“He’s a pain in the ass,” Mary smirked, “But yeah, we’re close.”

“That’s so cute,” Signe sighed, “Did I tell you that Zaid was lowkey intimated by Leo when he was first hired?”

I raised my eyebrows at that, “What? Why?”

“Before he was hired,” Signe gave me a secretive look, “I kept referring to him as ‘Mary’s Hot Cousin’.” I snorted at the same time Violet laughed.

“Why?” I asked.

Signe’s eyes widened, “…You’ve seen him, right?”

Yeah, I’d probably seen more of him than anyone else at this table. That didn’t mean I’d give him juvenile nicknames like “Mary’s Hot Cousin”.

“But wait,” I shook my head, trying to remember the timeline correctly, “Weren’t you into Zaid, writing romance novels about him?” At that, Violet’s eyes widened as she turned to Signe.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I’ll explain that another time,” Signe promised Violet before turning back to me, “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I don’t notice when other people are attractive. I’m madly in love with Zaid, and I’m also sitting here right now looking at you and thinking, ‘Wow, that top is doing good things for your boobs.”

I blushed before glancing down at my button-up today. It was a more form-fitting one, I didn’t wear it that often. It was laundry day, and my more comfortable clothing was dirty.

“Really?” I asked.

“Yes,” all the women at the table replied, before Mary asked, “Are you going out after work or something?”

I instinctively went to button up another button, but Signe made a whining sound, “Don’t hide the ladies. They deserve to be flaunted every now and then.”

I froze, my hand stuck on my button I hadn’t done up yet, “I don’t want to be inappropriate.”

“You’re not,” Jamie assured me with a smile, her blue eyes shining, “You’re just attractive, Jacqueline. Whether you button your shirt all the way up or not, you still have nice boobs.”

I felt another blush, memories of Leo’s words filling my head,Fuck, they’re perfect.

“I’m just saying you’re attractive. That doesn’t mean I’m going to make a move on you. It was the same with Leo. Then he got hired, and I promptly reminded Zaid how much more attractive I found him as often as I possibly could.” Signe explained.