The next day, Joy learned her lesson and decided to share the uneaten bits of her turkey jerky with her colleagues, who were touched beyond words. In return, they dug out their last bag of spicy beef jerky to
gift her back.
Joy resisted the temptation, coolly waving it off with a "I quit."
As the workday neared its end, her gaze kept drifting towards Austin's office every few minutes.
Austin had popped into the office in the morning but hadn't returned since. Joy waited but didn't catch sight of him all day.
Was he not going to kiss her today? Joy felt a tinge of disappointment.
It wasn't until she overheard some colleagues chatting that she learned Austin had gone on a business trip with Mia.
Austin traveling for work was nothing new; he had taken Mia along before, and others too, depending on who was handling the case. But for some reason, Joy couldn't help but imagine scenarios she wished she hadn't.
If Austin felt lonely, would he turn to Mia for a kiss?
If he could kiss her, he could kiss Mia too, right?
If he had kissed both of them, didn't that mean, in some way, she and Mia had indirectly kissed?
Joy quickly shook off those disturbing thoughts and immediately planned a night out at the pub with Selina and Leanne, hoping some male model eye-candy would cleanse her mind.
Austin returned a few days later.
He arrived at the office in the afternoon. Having been away for a few days, he had a backlog of issues to catch up on, and the head of the Client Services Department came to discuss some matters with him. Before entering his office, Austin noticed Joy sneakily reading a novel on her computer in a minimized screen.
By the time he finished his meeting and came out, barely fifteen minutes later, her desk was empty.
Austin pulled out his phone to call her. "You left?"
"Long gone," Joy replied, guarded, fearing he might call her back for overtime. "You should look for our team leader."
"Come back," Austin said, "I have something for you."
Joy didn't take it seriously. "I have plans, just leave it on my desk."
Austin was about to say something else when a man's voice came through the phone: "Do you need to go back to the office for something? I can drive you back."
Joy hadn't gone far, merely to a nearby intersection before turning back.
Austin watched from the office
ched f
window as the man who drove her back, a mature and suave gentleman in his thirties, got out of the canto open the door for her, his hand above her to prevent her from bumping her head.
That sort of gentlemanly behavior typically happens in two situations: First, when someone's trying to butter up their boss or a client Second, when they're trying to win over a woman.
Joy headed straight for Austin's office, expecting work-related materials, only to find a large box waiting for her.
The box was surprisingly heavy, leaving her curious about its contents.
"What's this?"
"A gift," Austin said.
Joy's irritation at being called back after hours vanished instantly. What kind of boss brings back gifts from a business trip?
Her eyes lit up with excitement, rubbing her hands together: "What kind of gift?"
"A lamp."
A lamp?
Joy found his smirk a bit odd but was too rushed to linger. She eagerly hoisted the box, ready to leave.
Austin, sitting by his desk, started
coughing but Joy paid no heed.
Struggling to open the door with the
bulky box in her arms, she turned to
him and said, "Boss, could you get the door for me?"
Austin stood up to help her, coughing even more intensely this time.
Joy seemed as if she turned deaf, exiting with the box without a second thought.
Austin wondered if she was just thick-skinned or genuinely indifferent.
Following her out, Austin called, "Got a bit of a cough. You got any medicine?" Joy looked back, saying, "Nope."
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