Page 98 of The Romantic Agenda

“How early did you get here?” he asks.

Oh, you’re talking to me now?“Seven.”

“Did you sleep okay?”

Of course, I didn’t. Pepper’s separation anxiety roared back to life,someonehasn’t responded to any of my messages, and suddenly my apartment feels too quiet.“Just fine.”

Malcolm nods. “We should take advantage of our mostly cleared calendars today.”

Yes, that’s exactly how I want to spend most of my workday: with you, in denial and pretending everything is fine between us.“Sure. What did you have in mind?”

Joy and Malcolm slide back into their work dynamic with ease—catching up, scheduling meetings, and fulfilling orders. They even have lunch with a couple of the girls from finance to discuss the new changes they’ll be implementing for payrollandhave coffee with a prospective client.

Everything as seamless as ever, just as it’s meant to be. Being at work feels normal. Their instincts and trust in each other slot back into place as if it had never been tested—their undisputable bond in action.

And that’s where it ends.

Red Warren the office typically shuts down around six p.m., with the last of the employees filing out of the building by then. As soon as work is no longer between them, Malcolm shuts Joy out again.

He doesn’t even walk her to her car, disappearing while she grabbed her purse from her office and clocked out for the day.

“I can’tbelievehe’s acting like that,” Grace shouts through Joy’s car speakers.

“I know.”

“So he’s just going to avoid you during non-work hours? Pretend like you don’t exist?”

“Seems like it.”

“Oh, that’s fantastic. If that’s how he wants it, he must have forgotten who the true queen of petty is.”

Joy sighs.

I’m trying to figure out how much I’m willing to let go to move forward. We can’t stay like this. It’s not working.

Maybe this is what Malcolm decided he could handle—purely having a working relationship with Joy.

Not knowing for sure sits like a rock in the pit of her stomach, weighing her down. She doesn’t feel much else apart from that. She knows the resigned numbness she feels is for the best. It’s her body’s way of protecting her from further harm because Malcolm feels tied to her DNA. His absence has the power to send her unraveling if she loses control over her emotions.

Grace continues, “For someone who claims to love you, he’s incredibly selfish. And childish.”

Joy understands. She sees where he’s coming from, how this makes it easier for him. But Grace is right too. Heisbeing incredibly selfish. The least he could do is respect Joy enough to tell her to her face that this is how he wants it to be. Instead, now she’s stuck in limbo wondering what exactly the truth is.

“I’m not disagreeing with you, but I think it’s more complicated than you’re making it seem.”

“It’s not. You just feel that way because you’re so used to taking up for him. He’s grown. He doesn’t need you to play devil’s advocate,” Grace says. “Anyway. When are you seeing Fox again?”

Joy’s hands jerk on the wheel in surprise. A car next to herblows its horn at her for drifting into their lane. Jesus—she waves apologetically, mouthing, “Sorry!”

“What was that?” Grace asks.

“Nothing. Just someone honking their horn. I’m home,” Joy lies. “I’ll call you back after I’m settled.”

“You better. I want a Silver Fox update.”

Joy hangs up. “Well, you’re not getting one.” Her heart stutters as she panics, double-checking to make sure she did in fact hang up and didn’t just say that out loud to her sister.

She made it almost the entire day without crumbling into a ball whenever she realized she missed Fox by following a very simple rule: she’s only allowed to think about him for five controlled minutes every hour.