In the middle of everything, the room — which had felt heavy enough to press against the walls a moment ago — filled with something unexpectedly light.
Alex, aware that everyone had clocked her small flare of jealousy, gave a small, self-aware smile. "It's the first time I've heard Eliott's name attached to another woman. I'm allowed to be curious."
A hesitant smile crossed Olivia's face — she was warming to Alex more by the day. The analyst who'd been quietly running the digital trace let out a short laugh, shoulders dropping half an inch for the first time in hours.
Christopher, never one to let an opening go unused, made some dry remark that pulled a ripple of laughter through the rest of the room. For a moment, the tension that had been building all evening actually eased — a small, accidental mercy, courtesy of Alex's jealousy giving everyone somewhere else to look.
Once it faded, they came back to the matter at hand.
