Page 76 of Letting Go

He smirks, full teeth, no shame. “It was.”

I actually have to stop walking. “Wait. You’re telling me, they are Glen andGlenda?”

“Yep.” He’s too pleased with himself.

“Like, did he just hire her for her name?”

“Pretty much.”

“Oh my god,” I whisper, like I’ve just discovered a company conspiracy. “Wait, how do youknowabout the text?”

He shrugs. “Someone accidentally added me to it a while back. I never left. It’s…interesting reading.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “What kind of interesting?”

Caden looks at me, dead serious. “According to last month’s thread, I’m gay, in a secret marriage with the CFO, and planning to fire half the marketing team because I don't like purple.”

I snort, which turns into an actual laugh, which turns into a full-ongaspbecause oh my god-

“You seduced me… while you were married.”

He doesn’t deny it. Just gives me that look, the one that should be illegal in an office hallway, and says, “Don’t act like you didn’t seduce me right back.”

And damn it.

He’s not wrong.

I don’t even need to check the damn group chat to know Glenda’s lit it up like a reality show reunion. Because thesecondwe step off the elevator, it’s like the air changes.

Everyone’s pretending not to look. Which is adorable. Because theyabsolutelyare.

Heads down, eyes up. Screens open, but no one’s typing. One guy literally walks into a filing cabinet because he's too busy side-eyeing us like we just descended from the ceiling in slow motion.

And the vibe? Oh, it's a mix. A veryspicyblend of fear, fascination, and office gossip-fuelled adrenaline. One thing is clear: they are definitely,definitelyterrified of themarried gay bosswho just showed up with a woman.

I want to laugh. I want to grab Caden’s hand and twirl dramatically through the open-plan office like we’re announcing our engagement at a Bridgerton ball. But mostly, I just want to disappear into the break room and hyperventilate behind the fridge.

Because on one hand, yeah. I get it.Look at him.He’s tall, terrifyingly composed,criminally attractive, and walking exactly three inches behind me like some kind of corporate bodyguard-slash-boyfriend fantasy.

I feel like Bella when she walked into Forks High with Edward. Like,yup. This fine, brooding, emotionally complex specimen?Mine.Exclusively. Eternally. Bite me, whatever.

But on the other hand, Iknowwhat this looks like. Iknowwhat they think. That I got this job not because I’m qualified. Not because I have a degree and real ideas and something to say. But because I’m sleeping with the man who signs their checks.

Which, fine. Iamsleeping with the man who signs their checks. But I also worked my ass off to get here.

And I hate that I suddenly feel like I have to prove it. Like I have to walk taller and smile less and use extra-long words just to compensate for the fact that I let him eat me out for breakfast this morning.

Caden leans in slightly, murmuring, “If it helps, no one here has the balls to ask.”

I smirk. “Even Glenda?”

“Especially Glenda. She’s too busy writing the next episode ofThe Marx & The Mistress.”

I roll my eyes, but my heart skips. I should be embarrassed.

Instead, I kind of want to kiss him in the copy room just to keep them guessing.

But work comes first. Ithasto.

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