Page 57 of Affinity

The question must have shown on my face because Catherine answered my unspoken question. “She’s had stars in her eyes for Jenner since my first meeting with him, and the fact that he’s not a bachelor anymore, being married to you might have soured her feelings toward you.” She let out an amused laugh. “Not that she ever had a chance. He never even looked at her once, let alone gave her the time of day.”

That explained why Melanie had acted the way she had. Not that it gave her any right. It wasn’t like they were dating, and he upped and married me.

“Did they ever hook up?” I cringed after the words slipped from my mouth. I couldn’t believe I’d just asked my boss if my husband had had sex with one of my coworkers. I wasn’t sure I could work with someone day in and day out if he’d had sex with them. Not now.

“No.” She shook her head as her phone pinged with a message. “Like I said, he never gave her the time of day.”

“I’m not sure how selective he was, so I wasn’t sure,” I fired back.

“True, but he kept his dick out of the CJJ well. If Melanie continues to be a problem, let me know, and I can assign you to someone else. I need to get going in a minute, but I wanted to reiterate about keeping Jenner out of trouble. Especially while I’m gone, he needs to stay out of the news for a while unless it’s favorable. I’ve been fielding a mountain of calls about him no longer being on Alpha Blue and tamping down rumors he was a problem to work with. Unfortunately, their statement seemed to only fuel the fire.”

“I’ll do my best. When I asked him what his plans were for the day, he seemed . . . I don’t know what exactly. Kind of sad. I think he’s used to being busy a vast majority of the time and doesn’t know what to do with himself.”

“I’m sure that’s a big part of it, but I think now that he’s in a good place, it might do him some good to find himself. It’s not healthy to work constantly, and that’s what his dad trained him to do. I can’t tell you how happy I am Jenner fired that man. He’s been making a lot of good changes lately.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at that. “I don’t think I was a conscious decision.” Leaning forward with my hands parked on the table, I confessed. “The more I think about it, the more I think we might have been drugged. It makes no sense that neither of us remembersanything. Even though I was there to celebrate, I’m not a big drinker.”

Her lips formed a thin line, and she started to tap the tip of her fingernail on the table. “I think so as well. I’ll have someone from my husband’s company looking into it. He’s trying to get the security footage from the hotel. I promise to contact you and Jenner the moment I find anything.” She stood and pushed in her chair. “Would you like to walk out with me? I need to stop by my office before I leave. Do you have everything you need?”

“I need to grab my phone and purse from my office and let Jenner know to come and pick me up. I didn’t know about the meeting until Melanie said I was going to be late.”

Catherine hummed as she walked. “Good to know,” she said quietly, as if it was to herself. “Every Monday at five, we have a meeting to go over clients like we did today. Depending on what’s going on, the meeting can last thirty minutes to two hours. We never know. It’s the only one that’s scheduled every week.”

“Thanks. I wasn’t sure if Melanie was trying to get me fired or what. I’m still not sure with the news of her crush.”

We walked side by side until we reached Catherine’s office, where we split ways so we could gather our things and leave. I was shocked that it was only six o’clock. I had a feeling this wasn’t the norm. As I made my way to my office, which was barely bigger than a cubicle, I noticed Melanie sitting at her desk. She hadn’t mentioned having any problems with a client, so I wasn’t sure why she was still hanging around unless she wanted to see how long Catherine kept me.

Putting my notebook in my drawer, I held my laptop while I grabbed my purse and phone. Since I was unprepared when I found out we were having a meeting and I was going to be late, I hadn’t grabbed it. I had three texts and one missed call from Jenner. I first went to the text messages.

Jenner: What time do you get off work?

Jenner: I called Catherine’s assistant, and she said you were in a meeting, but when it’s over, you can leave.

Jenner: I’m outside waiting in the gray car.

As if I wouldn’t have been able to spot him. When I left my office, I knew I had a bright smile on my face. There was something sweet about Jenner wanting to drive me to and from work. I knew it couldn’t last forever, and eventually, I’d have to take myself to work, so I’d enjoy it while I could.

Catherine came up to me with her own gleaming smile. “Are you that happy your first day at the office is over with?”

“Jenner left me a message saying he’s waiting for me out in the parking lot.” My smile fell when we stepped outside, and I saw Melanie eyeing Jenner, who was leaning up against his car.

“Hey, you’ve got nothing to worry about. Even when he was at his worst, Jenner was never a cheater. He’d never do that, especially after Poppy.”

“I know, but now that I know she wants him,” I shrugged the shoulder without my purse strap on it, “I don’t like it.”

“I have to say I like that you’re possessive over him. It’s exactly what he needs.”

Heat rose up my neck to my ears. It was silly to be embarrassed, but I was since she knew the real truth to our start.

“Don’t think I didn’t notice your big smile when you were walking out,” I countered. “What’s that all about?” Maybe it was wrong to assume we were somewhat friends, but there was something about Catherine that drew me in.

“I’ll be spending a week with my husband, hopefully without any distractions from either of our jobs, in a tropical location drinking fruity cocktails on the beach. What more could a girl ask for?” She sighed dreamily.

“Sounds perfect to me,” I answered honestly because it did sound like perfection. I wondered if Jenner and I would ever go on such a trip. I wanted to believe what we had was real and would last, but only time would tell. “Well, I should let you go so you can start your romantic week with your husband.”

“And I’ll let you go stake your claim onyourhusband.” She gave me a pat on the shoulder before getting into her car and driving off.

Melanie continued to stand over by a dark blue car with her gaze transfixed on Jenner.

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