Ron Lowell. Didn’t the two of you used to date? He’s kind of cute in a bookish sort of way.”
“We went out a couple of times,” Zoe said, thrown by the non sequitur. “He’s a nice guy, but it was nothing serious.”
“Who are you dating now?” Steffi-Anne pressed.
“No one.”
“I thought you had a boyfriend,” she said.
“No, I’m completely free.”
The way Steffi-Anne was moving the food around on her plate instead of eating it made Zoe think of a witch at her cauldron. At any moment she might pull out a poison apple and lob it at her because it was much healthier than a funnel cake.
“I’m surprised you don’t have someone special by now,” she continued. “You’ve dated a lot of really nice guys. Like Jake over there and George Simpson from marketing.”
She pointed with her fork.
“And why didn’t things work out with Frank? I thought you two looked especially cute together.” Steffi-Anne turned her attention back to Joaquin. “I’m not saying this girl gets around. She’s just very popular in the office. Joaquin, if you’re interested, you’d better take a number.”
Okay, so that was her game. Zoe had always known that Steffi-Anne was the queen of the backhanded compliments, but she’d never pegged her as a mean girl. Then again, she’d never gone head-to-head with her over a man.
“That’s what dating is for,” Zoe said, “trying out potential relationships, seeing how they fit. If they don’t, there’s no use in prolonging them.”
Since the day Zoe had started working for her father at Robinson Tech, she’d made a point of not playing the daddy’s-girl card. She realized, by virtue of birth, she’d been born with some privileges. She was deeply grateful for her blessings, and she didn’t want to get the reputation that the only reason she’d gotten ahead at work was because she was the founder’s daughter. It was important that she got her jobs and any promotions on the merit of her knowledge and expertise, because she was the best person for the job. Not through nepotism. She never wanted to come across as entitled. That’s why she worked hard and went out of her way to be extra nice to people.
But sometimes when people like Steffi-Anne knew she wouldn’t fight back, they tended to push her more than they would someone who would put them in their place.
Today, Steffi-Anne was hitting extra hard and low. Zoe wasn’t about to get into a catfight with her, and she seemed to be spoiling for exactly that. Zoe really thought the woman was more professional than that. But she was dishing it out, and the others at the table looked eager to feast on a huge helping of juicy drama.
Zoe hadn’t finished her lunch, but she’d lost her appetite. Maybe the best thing she could do would be to go get that funnel cake and enjoy every fat-laden bite. Part of her hated to leave Joaquin in Steffi-Anne’s clutches, but if he sat back and allowed himself to be clutched, then maybe he wasn’t the guy for her, after all. Better to find out now. Her heart sank at the thought.
Zoe tossed her napkin on her plate, stood and gathered the rest of her garbage. “I think I’m going to go get that funnel cake now.”
To her surprise Joaquin stood, too. “I’m not surprised Zoe’s popular. She’s got a lot going for her. A guy would be lucky to get a date with her.”
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