Page 16 of Business Casual

“Well, well, well,” a booming voice interrupted our conversation. Once a tall redhead moved out of the way, a handsome square-jawed man appeared behind Keisha’s chair. “This isn’t what I was expecting when you said you two were wildly inappropriate.”

He looked vaguely familiar. But my eyes went back to Tre.

“We’re sorting something out,” Keisha explained. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Bryce,” he flirted, taking her hand and raising it to his lips. “The pleasure is all mine. And you are?”

“Married,” Keisha answered, yanking her hand from his.

He gave a solitary nod. “Happily?”

“Stop that shit,” Tre demanded.

Even with a drink, Bryce held his hands up in surrender. “My bad.” Then he shifted his gaze to me. “You said he was her type but she’s definitely his type, too.”

“Aye yo,” Tre reacted. “Chill.”

“And this one is beautiful,” Bryce continued. “Even though I didn’t get a close look, she looks hotter than the one you interviewed.”

I froze.Did I hear that correctly?

Turning my head slightly, I stared up at Tre who was glaring at Bryce.

Wait… this was the man calling out to him in the lobby,I realized.Oh. My. God.

Confusing my shocked reaction for something else, Bryce rushed to explain. “Oh no, my boy’s single. I was just giving him shit because he wasn’t able to close the deal with the girl at work—”

“Bryce.” Tre’s voice was intimidatingly calm but firm.

“— but now that I’m seeing you, what didn’t work out earlier could be a blessing in disguise. You could be the woman he needs in—”

“Bryce,” Tre barked.

“What?” he laughed, finally breaking eye contact with me and looking at his friend. “Come on. I can’t mess with you about your car or the girl at work?”

“Imaniisthe girl from work,” Keisha replied with a shake of her head. “Yeah, I made that mistake too.”

Bryce’s eyes bulged as he looked from me to Tre and then back to me and then back to Tre. “What?”

“And that’s why I was telling you to shut the fuck up,” Tre grumbled, signaling for the bartender.

“This is… shit.” Bryce poured the contents of his glass into his mouth. “Wait, let me get this straight. You’re the girl from the lobby that he asked out and then interviewed?”

“I’m the woman he asked out before we knew what our roles would be,” I corrected him, before turning to Tre. “Or better yet, I’mawoman he asked out this morning. There could be others.”

With his eyes pinning me in place, Tre clarified, “You’re theonlywoman I asked out today.”

“Hell you’re the only woman he’s asked out since Syd,” Bryce added under his breath.

“Oh okay,” I whispered, holding his gaze.

With his eyes burning into me like that, I couldn’t look away if I wanted to.

“I thought it was awkward before but now with them eye-fucking each other, this is worse,” Bryce griped jokingly to Keisha.

She laughed loudly.

And even though I heard them, and I knew we were at a bar in a busy restaurant, I was lost in the eyes of the man in front of me. He had my full attention. And when he licked his lips, my nipples reacted immediately.

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