Page 41 of Brittle Heart

But honestly, she’s so damn love-struck that I bet she’s already running right back into his arms.

The door swings open, and in walk Josh and Clay. I take a deep breath, bracing myself for the sarcastic crap that’s about to pour out of Clay’s mouth as soon as he gets to me. I swear, I’ll never hear the end of this humiliation from him. Knowing him, he’s going to milk it forever.

“Ladies,” he says, coming over to my desk. “Oh, come on, Karen, you look so unapproachable.”

“And yet, here you are,” I mutter, making him chuckle.

“Oh, little Karen,” he singsongs. “And little Karen is funny because you’re short as fuck.” He reaches out to tap my nose, and I shoot him a glare. “You know, you could have let me in on the secret that your date last Friday was with my boyfriend.”

Josh, who is leaning against Sophia’s desk with his arms crossed, chokes on his own breath before blurting out, “What?”

I meet Clay’s brown gaze and narrow my stare.

“And on your birthday of all days, that one got me, Karen. Why wasn’t I invited?”

“It was your birthday last Friday?” Sophia asks, but Josh jumps in.

“Can we focus on the fact that he just said Carolina dated Xander?” His eyes widen in disbelief.

“It was a damn tattoo appointment.” I clench my teeth.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Sophia asks.

“Because it wasn’t important,” I say.

“Of course, it’s important! I would have baked you a cake,” she nearly yells.

Clay chuckles but quickly bites his lips when I give him another glare.

“Can’t you ever keep your mouth shut?” I ask.

“Nope,” he pops the ‘P’ and grins mischievously.

“You’re definitely coming to my birthday get-together on Sunday. We’ll celebrate our birthdays together,” Sophia declares.

“Can’t. I’m having a headache this weekend,” I say.

Josh snickers, and Sophia glares at me.

“Na-ah, Carolina, you’re coming! We’ll eat cake, drink, and have fun. Consider it an order from your boss.” She giggles.

I don’t want to go, but I can’t come up with any excuses. Plus, since I plan on working with her for the foreseeable future, it’s probably a good idea to ensure she likes me. It might blur professional boundaries, but it could earn me some points with her.

“When and where is it?” I ask reluctantly.

“You can finally give me your number, and I’ll text you the address. We’ll start with cake in the afternoon around four and just hang out until we’re tired from the drinks,” she replies with a smile.

“Okay, but I’ll have to leave by five,” I say.

“That’s fine,” Sophia reassures me. “Just glad you’re coming.”

“Why, you have another date with my man?” Clay chuckles. “Was your goal to get him into bed too? I’m sorry I unintentionally got in the way, but I’m sure he’s up for it if you want to try again. I’d encourage such behavior since it’s my bed too.” He winks at me.

I huff. “Don’t be rude to me. My level of rudeness will out rude yours, and I’ll make you cry.”

“Why do you have to leave so early?” Clay asks, being nothing but persistent.

“I work at a bar in the evenings, and I bet it takes some time to get back to Harlem from where it’s located.” I shrug.She’s living somewhere nice, for sure.

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