Page 38 of Claiming Her Cougar
I nod.“I love cozies too.My favorite sugar cookie recipe is from a bakery mystery series, but Ineedromance.”
“You do need romance, Mallory,” Daphne says earnestly.“If only I knew a single, good-looking guy who isn’t a jerk.”
“No.”
“Good job, nice family, fun…”
“Daphne, seriously.No.Not going to happen.We’re friends, and that’s all we can be.Don’t make it awkward, or else we can’t all hang out together.”
My friend stares at me.I don’t know what she sees other than the bags under my eyes and my hair pulled back in a simple ponytail.I made no effort today.If I could have come in yoga pants and one of Trevor’s old jerseys, I would have.
“Okay,” she agrees.“When you’re ready to talk, I’m here.”
I take a sip of my tea and look at our task list for the day.There isn’t anything crazy since we aren’t taking on new files.I should be able to knock out a lot this morning so I can spend the afternoon downstairs closing files.I grab the files I need for the first few tasks and start preparing what we need to get them off my to-do list and back on the shelf.
We work in silence for a while, but not quite the companionable silence we normally enjoy.The click-clacking of our keyboards creates a soothing rhythm, which helps diffuse some of my tension.
“Did you want to hit Francisco’s for lunch?”Daphne asks after a while.
“I don’t want to talk about it, Daphne.There’s nothing to talk about.”Welcome back, tension.
“Okay,” she replies easily, “but you still eat, right?”
Dang.Who knew Daphne could be snarky?
“Lunch sounds good.I always love Francisco’s.”
Now our silence is more companionable.Good.Daphne has become a close friend, and I don’t want what is or isn’t happening with Liam to affect that.
“You’re going to the office holiday party, right?”Daphne asks a little while later.
“Yeah.You are too, right?”
“Of course.It’s nice to have brunch at the country club.I never go anywhere that fancy.”
Isn’t that the truth.
“How dressy is it?”
“Nice dress or dressy sweater and skirt.Nothing crazy.”Daphne chuckles.“Well, you can wear an ugly Christmas sweater.Those are fun.”
“What are you wearing?”Safety in numbers.If I dress like Daphne, I should blend in.
“I don’t know.I need to go shopping.Want to go together on Sunday?”
“Sure.What are you looking for?Nice dress or crazy sweater?”I ask.
“Not sure.Maybe both?My wardrobe is kinda boring.I want to revamp it a bit.Get some date clothes?”Daphne shrugs.
“Ooh, yes!Mall or outlets?”
“I guess we will see what the weather’s like.If it’s not raining or unbearably cold, do the outlet and support our company.If it’s icky, we do the mall.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
We go back to our respective tasks, and when my stomach lets out a loud growl, I look at the time on my monitor.It’s past noon.My…breakup?No.It’s not a breakup since we were never together.My whatever with Liam last night had me so upset that I couldn’t stand the thought of finding breakfast.My tummy is protesting that now.
“I heard that all the way over here.Ready for lunch?”Daphne raises her gaze from the figures she’s computing.
