Total pages in book: 28
Estimated words: 27128 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 136(@200wpm)___ 109(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27128 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 136(@200wpm)___ 109(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
“You are so crazy, Anita.” I couldn’t even chastise her like I usually do because I was trying not to laugh.
“You should’ve seen the guy I was talking to, Tae. He was gorgeous. Tall with blue eyes, blond hair, and a five-o’clock shadow at eight in the morning. Made my mouth water, and his friend, woo, I need to fan myself.”
I nod because from Anita’s description, he sounded mouthwatering. However, Anita tended to exaggerate, especially when it came to men. She was forever trying to set me up on some blind date, and I swear she should’ve been a fiction writer instead of a Human Resources assistant the way she would have those disappointing men sounding. I learned my lesson about trusting Anita to set me up.
“He sounds… cute?”
“He was delicious. Just your type.” Anita got a wicked gleam in her eyes, and I instantly started shaking my head.
“Nope. If he works here, he’s definitely not my type.” As an HR specialist, I’ve seen office romances go completely wrong. Sometimes people lose not only their jobs but also their damned minds. No thanks.
“Come on. Mixing it up at work could be fun and exciting. Sneaking in the copy room, a little elevator touching. Sounds like something you need in your life.” Anita’s eyes sparkled with mischief, and I shook my head.
I was entirely too uptight to do anything so scandalous. At least, in the workplace. I’ve had my walk on the wild side in the past. And although it was as fun and exciting as Anita described, those aren’t the type of risks I take anymore.
“Mixing business and pleasure can get messy, and I’m good on that. So, listen,” I shake my head and change the subject, “Anita, you shouldn’t tell anyone else you were on the executive level.” I don’t want to get her started on my dating life again. She’s like a dog with a bone. I can only distract her with my “goody-two-shoes” way. At least, that’s what Anita calls my affinity for doing the right thing.
“Don’t worry about me.” Anita sighs.
“I do worry. Anita, you could get into trouble. Especially if the man you spoke to was telling the truth.” We both know he was telling the truth, but I can’t confirm it out loud, not even to Anita.
“I won’t get into trouble,” Anita responds too confidently, and I eye her apprehensively.
I can’t figure out why a random man would tell Anita he was from HJI when the merger hasn’t been officially announced yet? And why she’s so positive, she won’t get into trouble.
“I won’t tell anyone else; besides, he thinks I’m an executive assistant.” Anita shrugs, and I just look at her like she’s crazy. Because obviously, she is!
If the man she was talking to is an executive himself, what Anita did is grounds for termination. I could be called in for questioning about it. I like Anita and everything, but I like paying my mortgage even more.
“Don’t tell me anything else about your shenanigans, Anita. I swear you forget we both work in the human resources department,” I speak low so nobody can hear what I’m saying. Anita’s meter for self-preservation is faulty, but mine sure the hell isn’t.
“Ohhhhkay, fine. I won’t tell you anything else. Well…” Anita wickedly smiles before shrugging her shoulders, “Unless, it’s really, really good.”
“What am I going to do with you?” I say with a chuckle.
“Love me? I mean, I am your work bestie.” Anita hugs me and we both laugh.
“Let me go, you lunatic, so I can get some swirl ice cream. You know that’s my favorite flavor.”
“I always knew you were down with the swirl, Tae.” Anita cackles, and I roll my eyes at her.
If Anita only knew what I used to get up to when I was younger, she wouldn’t think I was so dry. But I’ll take those secrets to the grave.
***
I couldn’t wait to get home after the day I’d had. After Anita’s break room confessions, I found myself reminiscing about the fun I used to have. It made me realize my social life is almost nonexistent now. It’s always been easy for me to prioritize everything but my romantic relationships. I’ve been working so hard on my career that it’s taken all of my focus.
I’ve always dated for fun times, and I guess when I decided that having fun was distracting me from reaching my career goals, I sort of just stopped dating. I can’t say that I actually missed dating because the dating pool nowadays has pee in it. These men out here are full of foolishness and toxicity, and I honestly can’t be bothered.
I remember one guy asked me, “What do you bring to the table?” Now, this could have been a very valid question; however, he had just finished telling me his mama dropped him off because his car was in the shop and he was in between jobs.