Page 13 of Must Be Love - Irresistible Bachelors

“Oh, hey,” she says. “A bunch of people from work are out at that bar we like a few blocks away. They invited us to come hang out. You in?”

I check the time. It’s only a little after seven. Our teams probably just got out of the office. We all tend to work longer than the traditional nine-to-five workday.

“Yeah, I’m in. I don’t want to stay too late, though.’

“Understandable.”

Nicole quickly shoots a text that we’ll come by after dinner, and we go back to eating our food. It’ll be nice to hang out with our work friends. Plus, I really do like the bar she’s talking about.

We finish our dinners, pay the bill, grab our coats, and walk the two blocks to Bar Uno.

The party is in full swing by the time we get to Bar Uno. When Nicole mentioned a bunch of our work friends were here, I didn’t think she meant basically the entire sales and marketing department.

“Amber!” my coworker, Gino, calls out.

He sways a little when he walks over to me. When the sales and marketing teams go out, they tend to party hard.

“Hey, Gino,” I say, pulling him in for a hug. “Is Don here?”

Gino rolls his eyes. “Please, Don would never be caught dead in a place like this. You know he prefers those hipster places in Brooklyn.”

I laugh. “Right, I knew that.”

Don works in the accounting department, but he and Gino are usually a package deal. Except when it comes to bars, apparently.

“You missed out on half the fun, Amber. Why were you so late?”

“I was at dinner with Nicole.”

“Right. You went to the convention today, yeah?”

Everyone knows about our tradition. We talk about it a lot. I’ll be the first to admit that we like to brag.

“Yeah, we were there all day. I guess I need to catch up to you guys.”

“Please,” Gino laughs. “Don’t even try. You know you can’t.”

We both laugh because he’s right. I’ve never been a big drinker. I’m actually a bit of a lightweight, and I’m already feeling tipsy from all the wine at dinner. I’ll only have one or two drinks here. Otherwise, I’ll be too hungover to make it to work tomorrow. And my boss would kill me.

Of course, Nicole’s boss is here hanging out with the department. Mine would never be caught dead at a bar, but Miranda likes to be a part of things. It’s never awkward when she’s around. I think her best quality is her ability to keep work and play separate. She may hang out and drink with her team, but she’s not afraid to hammer down on them if need be.

God, I wish Miranda was my boss.

Nicole flutters around the room, hugging everyone she knows. I opt to get a drink instead. She’s more of a social butterfly than I am. I do like being around people, but I’m more of a silent observer.

“What are you drinking?”

I turn toward the voice and find an attractive man standing next to me at the bar. My tongue feels like it’s swollen in my mouth.

“Um…vodka orange juice,” I manage to say.

The guy smiles. “Excellent. Can I buy you this round?”

Never say no to a free drink, especially in New York City. Going out gets expensive. If Hot Guy wants to spend his money on me, I’m going to let him.

“Sure,” I reply. “Thanks.”

“It’s my pleasure. I’m Cory.”

“Amber.”

“Nice to meet you, Amber.”

We stare at each other while the bartender makes our drinks. My mind immediately wanders to Dr. Blake. Cory resembles the good doctor. They have similar dark hair and build. It’s the eyes that are different, though. While Dr. Blake’s are a shiny blue, Cory’s are a dull green.

“Where are you from?” I ask, not wanting the silence to get awkward.

“I grew up in New Hampshire, but I live in the city now. I work for a social media marketing company.”

“Oh! That’s awesome. I actually work in marketing, too.”

“Really? Where?”

“Merhalle. It’s a beauty company. I’m in-house there.”

“Nice! That was my goal when I graduated, but I ended up at this firm. I love it – don’t get me wrong – but it would be nice to work in-house.”

“I envy you a little, too. You probably get to work on a ton of different products. I’m sure it’s never boring.”

“That’s true. I guess there are pros and cons to both.”

“Aren’t there always?”

Our drinks are finished, and we each take a long sip. The bartender mixed mine strong. I’ll only be having one of these.

Cory nods at the small clearing in front of the DJ booth. It’s a Thursday night, so the dance floor is sparsely occupied, but it’s still there.

“Do you want to dance?”

“I’d love to!”

We make our way to the dance floor. I love dancing. It’s always my favorite part of going out. Nicole struggles to get me to leave when I start moving to the music.

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