CHAPTER 1
"Are you free for dinner tonight?" Ryan stood behind the desk next to me, his cologne strong and his interest in my art work lifting.
"Yes." I gave him a concise answer and nodded with a friendly smile.
"Great." He bobbed his head. "Very nice." He quickly laughed, then with a wave to everyone he exited the office.
Jim strolled up to the desk, a curious look on his face. "Hey." I smiled at him.
He cocked his head to the side and gestured to the door, "What was that all about?" He pressed his lips together in a tight smile, nervous confusion evident in his body language.
"Oh not much." I smirked, pretending to be attentively working. "Ok, Ryan asked me to go to dinner with him!"
I watched Jim's eyebrows come together. "But, isn't that what we're supposed to do? As a couple?"
"Well yeah, but this is strictly business."
Jim nodded slowly, confusion written all over his face.
I brought my face closer to his and whispered excitedly, "He wants me to create our new logo!" I was ecstatic that someone was recognizing my talent.
"Oh." Jim nodded again, an obvious fake smile forming.
"Don't grimace." I pulled on the collar of his shirt, bringing him down to my level so I could give him a quick kiss. I bit my lip. "I liked that." I knew I wore a big goofy grin, but I didn't care.
He laughed and raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, me too." His fake smile turned into one of approval. "Meet me in the break room in 10." He motioned towards Dwight. "His behavior today calls for a new prank." We shared a secret happiness for Dwight's short-comings. "I'd love to hear your ideas."
"10 minutes. Count on it." I looked back to my computer screen with butterflies in my stomach.
"You bet I will."
