Go to my place.
I didn’t need to be told twice. With Josh around recently, we hadn't been together for days. My body ached for Mark’s touch.
But halfway to his house, I got another message that ruined my night.
He's planning on working tonight, so it's going to be late. I'll see you tomorrow. I miss you too.
Frustrated, I tossed my phone into my purse and headed for the subway. If Josh ever wanted me to think of him as anything other than a cock block, he needed to go out of town again. Immediately.
Over the next few days, Josh continued his flirting, which only served to frustrate Mark. Instead of working in his own office, he decided to plant himself right outside mine in the common area. It started out innocently enough, especially since I couldn't flat out ignore him. I tried steering the conversation towards professional talk, but he was having none of it.
The problem was I couldn't be rude to him because I didn't want to jeopardize my job or my relationship with Mark. At times I didn't even realize he was flirting until he'd touch my arm lightly as he spoke to me. He was charming in his way, and I couldn’t help but laugh at his funny stories and blush when he complimented me.
Mark spent most of his time in his office and said nothing when we occasionally texted after work. It was like if he paid no attention to the matter that was frustrating him that it would go away completely.
Worst of all, I felt like we everything we'd become to one another was fading away with every day Josh stayed around. I wanted to talk to him, to tell him I missed him and couldn't wait until we were together again, but all I could do was text it. That wasn't the same, though.
One afternoon toward the end of the day when Josh was particularly busy trying to charm me, Mark sent a single text that stoked my fears. Just as I'd feared, he thought I wanted his partner and not him.
I've never seen him like this before. He must be really into you. You seem into him too.
I wanted to text back and tell him how wrong he was, but I couldn't because Josh was right there in my office talking me up again.
"Earth to Emma. You in there?" I heard from next to me as Josh tapped me on the shoulder.
"What? Yes, I'm sorry. I was just thinking about…"
"About hanging out with your hot boss tonight?” Josh asked confidently.
What? Did he mean what I thought he meant?
I was shaken by his response and replied, "Wh…what? No. I…"
"Emma, it’s okay," he said with a smile.
But it wasn't okay. I'd tried so hard ever since he got there not to sneak looks at Mark or linger too long in his office when I had to talk to him about work. How could Josh have found out about us?
"No…I wasn’t thinking about…" I said, unable to explain myself.
"It's fine to admit that you're into the boss, Emma. There’s no real rule against it, and he's definitely into you."
"What? No, I mean…" I said, my mouth falling slightly open but the words got stuck in my throat.
Had we been found out? Had Mark said something to Josh and neglected to fill me in? A sense of panic raced through me, and I struggled to form words fast enough to try and cover our tracks.
Suddenly, Josh laughed. "Relax, relax. I was just teasing you, Emma. You really should consider it, though. I can take you to places you've never seen."
Oh. My. God. He'd been referring to himself the whole time. I silently thanked God that I hadn't started blabbing on about anything.
Relieved, I took a deep breath before shaking my head and with a smile said, "Oh, I'm sorry. No thank you. I'm with someone."
He leaned in close enough that I could smell the faint hint of the soap he'd used that morning. I turned my head and realized he was right in front of my face.
"We could have a good time," he said before placing his lips on mine.
Startled, I didn’t pull away as instantly as I should have. Maybe I was just a little starved for affection, having spent the better part of the week with only myself to be with. But after a moment, I pulled away and shook my head. "I'm sorry. No."
A moment later I heard a door open, and Mark said sharply, "Josh, you’re needed in here. Now."