Should I be jealous of my boyfriend's friendship with his office 'work wife'?

I must confess: I sometimes sneak a peek at my man’s phone when he’s not in the room and there’s an incoming message. Is it OK to snoop?

Sure! In fact, don’t stop there – why not read his messages and reply with sexual innuendo to any female who contacts him so you can find out who might be interested in your man and if he’s interested in them? No, seriously, do not snoop! Sneaking a peek at your man’s phone – or anyone else’s, for that matter – is not acceptable. A smartphone has become one of the most private things we own; it’s almost like a diary. And it is not OK to sneak a peak at someone else’s diary.

My husband is pretty close to a female co-worker and doesn’t realise that he talks about her. A lot. Am I being paranoid or is he just too close to his work wife?

If he’s spending plenty of time at work, then it’s only natural that he spends a lot of time talking about what happens there – and that might include his, as you put it, work wife. But if he gets a dreamy look in his eyes and stares out the window while droning on about how she’s so smart and terrific, you have a problem. Consider meeting her in their office – nothing like claiming your man in the workplace to deliver a “back off ” message.

Do guys really want the “cool” girl – the one who loves football, plays video games, jams food into her mouth and tells dirty jokes? Oh yeah, and is hot.

Holy crap! Where is this girl? She sounds perfect! I’ll trade my subscription to MLB.tv (and forgo the live streaming of all Major League Baseball games) for her.

But see, this girl doesn’t really exist. She’s a male construct. The girl who becomes this ideal typically doesn’t get along with other girls – they’re so catty, she’ll say – and has nothing but male friends who are all hoping to hook up with her. That is not good for a relationship. So, no, guys who’ve been around know that this is not the girl they want to be with.

This story was originally published in the October 2015 issue of Her World magazine.