Page 99 of Manhattan Bossholes

“Yeah, sure you are,” Trent laughed. “You look more nervous now than you did before we jumped out of that plane together.”

“Hey, at least my safety was guaranteed with a professionally packed parachute,” I joked.

“Let’s get out there,” Dominic said. “I saved us seats in the back row, so we won’t be a distraction.”

“Trust me, I’m not going to see a thing in that room,” I replied. “I’m going to be staring directly into that camera.”

Paul stood off to the side with his arms crossed, watching me. We’d been okay since we’d talked things out at his apartment with Chloe, but there was still an edge to him, no doubt because Piper had filled him in on the lilac disaster. He finally approached me when the guys made their way back out to the ballroom.

“You got this,” he said as he clasped my shoulder. “Don’t worry.”

I swallowed hard. “Lotta moving parts. I just hope it all works out.”

“Chlo and I agree that this is perfect. You’re doing the right thing.”

“Thanks,” I said, the tension in my shoulders easing slightly. “I sure hope so.”

I watched him leave and went over my speech again. I didn’t even have to write it down. Everything I needed to say was in my heart—and had been for longer than I was willing to admit.

Linda peeked in the door. “You ready? You’ve got about three minutes.”

I took a deep breath. “I am.”

I followed Linda into the ballroom, and a quick glance around the room confirmed that it was a full house. It didn’t matter how big the crowd was, I never got nervous before speaking in public. At least, I never had before, when speaking about work.

But this wasn’t work, which explained why my heart was hammering away in my chest.

I glanced at the AV team near the livestream camera and got a thumbs-up, so I took my place behind the podium.

“Good afternoon, everyone,” I said, and the noise stopped. “I want to begin by thanking you for being here on such short notice. I recognize that it was an unusual request.” I paused to clear my throat. “I think it’ll be worth your time.”

I glanced around the room. Every face watching me was wearing a version of the same confused expression. I caught a few sideways glances, the kind people exchange when they know something’s about to happen but can’t quite figure out what.

“You’re all well aware that Summit releases a set number of fragrances per year. With the recent launch of Evermore, you might’ve assumed it would be a while before you got something new from us.”

I let that hang in the air for a moment, feeling the ripple of curiosity growing through the room.

“But I’m here today to announce a surprise special release.”

A murmur went up from the crowd as I reached into the hidden shelf on the podium and pulled out a bottle. I glanced at the time.

I hoped Piper was watching.

“Introducing our latest fragrance.” I took a deep breath because this was the moment. “Perpetual.”

I raised the bottle up, and the facets shimmered under the lights. It was a recreation of a one-of-a-kind antique Parisian vial, the original of which I hoped Piper now held in her hand, that reflected light like a diamond.

“I guess you could call Perpetual an epilogue to our Trio of Time collection,” I continued. “I thought that Evermore was the last word, but I realized sometimes love can go deeper than evermore. Love should be endless.”

I paused and looked right into the camera. “I met a woman named Piper Doyle who taught me that.”

Gasps rippled through the audience, followed by an excited flurry of whispers.

“This fragrance,” I said, holding the bottle a little higher, “is a tribute to her. I attempted to capture her beauty and enormous heart in this scent, which is a mix of elements that remind me of her. The top notes are of her favorite flower, lilacs, with hints of heliotrope, the scent that’s the soul of Evermore that wouldn’t have been possible without her. I also included supporting notes of vanilla, to remind me of the sweetness she brought into my life.”

The room was now buzzing with excitement, but my thoughts were miles away, imagining how she might react. Would she hate me for this, for putting her on display? Or would she appreciate the intention behind it?

“I never expected someone like Piper to come into my life. Sometimes…well, sometimes you just get lucky. From the day I met her, she knew how to shake up my world like no one else. But I made a mistake. Plenty of mistakes, actually,” I admitted. “The biggest one was not realizing how much I was hurting her by trying to protect myself from what she made me feel. Piper won my heart a long time ago, but I wasn’t strong enough to hand it over to her.”