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“Berries.” Paige made a mental note. “And more coffee.”
“Coffee is bad for you.”
“Coffee is my life force. Do not go back to sleep.” She ripped the cover off her friend. “Get up. We have things to do, places to be, people to please and fortunes to make. If we’re going to make a success of this, which we are, we’re going to need to work hard. No part-timers.”
Eva grunted. “You sound uncannily like Cynthia.” But she slid her legs out of bed. “What were you and Jake talking about on the terrace last night? You two looked cozy.”
“He was apologizing for being an idiot.” Familiar with Eva’s ability to find romance in any situation, Paige jogged quickly to the door. “Don’t you dare go back to sleep. I’ll see you in an hour.” Relieved to have escaped the inquisition, she ran down the stairs and knocked on the door of the ground-floor apartment.
At least Frankie wouldn’t ask the same question. Frankie didn’t see romance even if a couple were tongue wrestling in front of her.
Her friend answered the door in a pair of pajamas. She was holding a small basil plant in her hand and it was obvious from the dark smudges under her eyes that she hadn’t slept much, either.
Paige wondered if there had been more texts or phone calls from her mother.
“I’m going for a run. Do you want to join me?”
“Dressed like this? I don’t think so.”
“We live in Brooklyn. It’s acceptable to be different.”
“I’m the responsible one in the family, remember? And anyway, I want to finish my model.”
Paige glanced over her shoulder and saw the half-built LEGO model on the table. “Is that the Empire State Building?”
“Yeah. Matt gave it to me for Christmas. I was waiting for a stressful moment to build it.”
“I guess yesterday qualified.” Paige looked at the detail, marveling at Frankie’s dexterity. “Was it the job or your mom that made you open it?”
“Both.” Frankie rubbed her fingers over her forehead. “Look—you don’t have to worry. I’m dealing with some stuff and—it doesn’t matter. Building the model works for me. I’ll meet you when you’re back. I need to tend to my Ocimum basilicum.”
“Your—? Oh, you mean your basil plant. You could just call it a basil plant. On the other hand that would be a waste of your fancy training.” She smoothed down her ponytail. “Right, well I’ll leave you and your Ocimum basilicum in peace and I’ll see you for a breakfast meeting in the Urban Genie offices at seven-thirty.”
Frankie blinked. “We have offices?”
“Your kitchen is our office until we can afford something more official. Ours is a little bigger but your doors open onto the garden and it’s lovely in the summer. And your kitchen table isn’t co
vered in Eva’s cookery experiments. Don’t prepare anything. Eva is in charge of catering.”
“As long as she doesn’t expect me to drink a kale and spinach smoothie. It’s not often I agree with Jake, but on that we are in total accord.”
Wishing Jake’s name wouldn’t keep coming up in conversation, Paige jogged down the steps to the street.
It was her favorite time of year, when spring nudged the edges of summer and the cherry blossoms and magnolia burst into bloom. They filled the air with scent and color as if the city was celebrating its release from the deep layers of snow that had buried its charms over the long winter months.
In the winter and the height of summer she took spin classes indoors, but right now there was no better way to enjoy the weather and her neighborhood than running.
She loved the wide streets and the symmetry of the historic brownstones shaded by cherry trees. It was quintessential laid-back Brooklyn. Some people chose to live here because they couldn’t afford Manhattan. She lived here because she loved it—the smells, the vibe, the rhythm of the neighborhood. Although it was early, the streets were already alive with activity, and she watched people going about their lives as she ran to the park, feeling the sun warm her neck, breathing in spring air scented with blossom and baking.
The panic of the previous day had eased, along with those unsettling feelings that being with Jake had unleashed.
Today would be all about planning. She’d already had ideas and her light had been on most of the night as she’d made notes.
Like Jake, she loved technology. It satisfied her need for organization and allowed her to track projects and maximize efficiency. Maybe she didn’t understand the detail in the way he did, but that didn’t mean she didn’t enjoy using the results of other people’s creativity.
She tried telling herself that the reason she hadn’t slept much the night before was all down to nerves, excitement and the use of her mobile devices late into the night. Everyone knew that using screens at night was bad, didn’t they?
Her sleepless night had nothing to do with Jake Romano.
