Page 507 of Manhattan Bossholes

I frowned. Part of me agreed that Kathleen needed to be present for her family’s challenges, but blaming the very idea of love for her issues? Besides, it sounded to me like Kathleen had gone a lot of years without having much of a life outside of her family. In a way, wasn’t it a good thing that she was finally living for herself?

The conversation ended there. We packed in silence, and I wondered if all the talk about Heidi triggered memories. I’d done a tiny bit of research on their relationship but stopped when I saw the beach photos of them in Capri, with a bikini-ed Heidi draped over James’s muscular back. The way he had his hands casually wrapped around her arms, like he didn’t want to let go of her, made me want to throw up in my mouth.

James came up behind me and slid his arms around my waist, as if he could feel the nervous tension radiating off of me. He kissed the side of my neck.

I closed my eyes at the sweetness of being pressed against him. “Did I do okay this weekend?” I whispered as I leaned back and breathed him in. I’d been dying to hear what everyone thought about me.

He turned me around and gave me a long kiss.

“You were perfect,” he murmured against my mouth. “A goddess among mortals.”

I laughed. “Ooh, say more.”

“I couldn’t have asked for a better partner in crime,” James said, running his hands down the sides of my body and lighting a fire inside of me.

Did we have enough time for a quickie?

“We made a great team, huh?” I kissed him tenderly, then nipped at his lip, which made him kiss me back even harder.

“Oh yes,” he said, backing me towards the bed. “You’re an incredible fake girlfriend.”

My skin went cold, and I wondered if he felt the chill roll through me. It was a stupid reaction since he’d been straight with me about my role since I’d agreed to go. But still…even after everything we’d shared, did he really consider our time together nothing more than acting?

“What’s wrong?” James asked as he pulled away, eyeing me suspiciously. “It seems like you disappeared for a second.”

I smiled even though my insides were churning. “Nothing, I’m fine! Just thinking about the flight home. I still don’t have my helicopter legs.”

He gave me one last kiss, then walked back to his bag, our sexy moment lost. “Don’t worry, there’s plenty of time for you to learn to love my helicopter.”

Plenty of time? How long was this fake relationship going to last? Or did he think there was a chance of it actually turning real? That was what I wanted…but did he? He didn’t seem to think much of love.

I had so many questions…but I didn’t dare ask them. When I was young I’d learned the hard way that asking too many questions and making too many demands could bite me in the ass, so I shut my mouth, smiled, and pretended that I was happy to go along with whatever happened next.

19

JAMES

The couture launch deadline was approaching and the crunch was on. That, coupled with the hunt for Clint and Lorraine’s replacements, as well as the upcoming Pantone project, should’ve been enough to grind me to dust, but for some reason I was more energized than usual. It wasn’t hard to figure out the reason.

Natalie.

Even thinking about her made me want to grin. Had I been in a haze since Bernie’s party? A high that made me hum ridiculous Beyonce tunes? Yeah, definitely, because the weekend had been even better than I could’ve imagined. Natalie had charmed each and every person she’d met, but that was no surprise.

The woman was magic.

She’d fit in perfectly. I’d been a little worried that including her in the family celebrations was going to be awkward, but her strong foundation with both Christopher and Bernie meant that they already had inside jokes that made it seem like they’d known one another for ages. And by the end of the weekend, Natalie and my mom were already planning to meet up the next time my mom made it to New York. It was almost as if she already was…well, family.

I actually sort of liked the thought of it.

I could feel the smile on my face as I headed for the elevator, and Frank from accounting gave me an out-of-the-blue high five as we passed one another in the hall. Maybe my upbeat mood was obvious to everyone? The buoyancy I felt was canceling out my habitual poker face, probably making me seem more approachable than usual. And of course, the gossip grapevine was probably working overtime with the news that the big boss had taken an employee to a family function. I’d seen the photos of me and Natalie on the New York Post’s website, so there was no use trying to hide it.

I had absolutely no reason to pop into the creative department other than the fact that I wanted to see her. I could come up with a concrete excuse for the visit, and I’m sure Lavonte would corner me to press me for feedback as usual, but I knew that Natalie would figure out why I was actually there. I didn’t care. For the first time in my life, I wanted someone to know that they’d invaded my brain.

Most women I’d dated probably thought they held that place of honor, since I was good about flowers and such. Or, truth be told, Lorraine had been good at it. But with Natalie, I didn’t want to do the choreographed mating dance. She would’ve seen right through it anyway. And Natalie didn’t care about stuff like a box filled with three dozen rare, imported roses. A new sketchpad and box of colored pencils? That was more her speed.

There was a spot on the creative floor, right before turning the corner, where I could observe everyone without being noticed. As usual, the room was buzzing with music and conversation, with Natalie in the center of it all. She’d been elected the group’s unofficial leader, and despite her love of the job, it was clear the stress of trying to keep a handle on everything all at once was getting to her. I watched her smile as she chatted with Rhea, but the second she walked away, her face fell. She was exhausted.

My girl needed a break, and fast.