Sunset In Central Park

“The twins’ brother is a client of his. I think they play poker occasionally. Daniel Knight?”

“The lawyer? I’ve met him. Brilliant by all accounts, not to mention smooth and charming.”

“Single?”

Paige laughed. “Very. He’s also as dangerous as they come. Definitely doesn’t mate for life.”

Eva sighed. “Not my type, then. I’ll have to keep looking.” She perked up as she checked her schedule. “I used to loathe Mondays when we worked for Star Events, but now I love them.” Through the floor-to-ceiling glass behind her, Manhattan basked in a pool of blazing sunshine. Urban Genie operated out of Jake’s company building—he ran a digital marketing firm and had generously let them use one of his boardrooms as they got their own company off the ground. “I love running my own business. And my blog followers tripled overnight so the work side of my life is perfect. Which, of course, means that my love life is totally crap because everyone knows both parts can’t go right at the same time.”

“You need to teach me how to flirt.” The words came out before Frankie could stop them and Eva stared at her.

“Excuse me?”

“Flirt. You know. That thing you do with men without even thinking about it.”

“Er—it’s true that I flirt if I have someone to flirt with, but it’s been so long since I met anyone I’ve probably forgotten how to do it.” Eva slumped in her seat. “There are so many men in Manhattan. They’re everywhere. And I don’t meet a single one of them. My life is a manless, sexless desert. And the con—”

“The condom in your purse has expired. We know. You keep telling us.” Paige gave her an exasperated look. “It’s boring, Ev!”

“It’s a tragedy, that’s what it is. Here I am, a warm, willing woman, and no one wants me. And you’re not allowed to comment, Paige, because you’re getting regular sex.”

“I’m going to buy you a brand-new condom.”

“Don’t bother,” Eva said gloomily. “It will only expire again and I’ll feel guilty that it had a wasted life. Anyway, back to flirting. I can rack my brains and try to remember how to do it if that would be any help. Who are you planning on flirting with?”

Frankie felt her face heat. “No one specific. It’s precautionary training. Like self-defense or basic cookery.”

“Basic flirting. Flirting 101. No problem. I’ll book you in for a one-on-one session.” Eva reached for her phone. “When do you want to start?”

“Not now. I need to be in the right mood.”

“We’ll do it over a bottle of wine. It will loosen you up.”

“You think I need loosening up?”

“Let’s put it this way—your starting point is glaring at every guy as if you’re thinking of stabbing him between the shoulder blades with a sharp implement, so we have a way to go.”

“Am I that bad?”

Eva exchanged glances with Paige, who shook her head.

“You’re lovely as you are. Why do you want to flirt?”

“I hate being tongue-tied when guys say things. I want to memorize a few swift, witty comebacks, that’s all.” She watched as Eva slid her phone into her bag. “Why have your followers tripled?”

“Not sure. It might have been the photo I posted to Instagram.” Eva opened the drawer of her desk and selected a pair of shoes with heels that could have doubled as a lethal weapon. “I took a photo of a cupcake and it looked delicious.”

“Were you in the photo, too?”

“It was a selfie.” Eva slid her feet into the shoes with all the delight of Cinderella discovering the glass slipper fitted.

“Were you dressed at the time? Because there’s your answer.”

“I was dressed!”

Paige was sending a response to the vice president. “Be grateful she wasn’t eating a banana or that might have qualified as Most Embarrassing Moment.”

Frankie didn’t respond.

Right now when it came to Most Embarrassing Moment, she had the edge.

She’d spent the whole of Sunday reliving the moments that had followed Matt’s discovery that her vision was perfect. Feeling as naked and exposed as a snail that had been extracted from the protection of its shell, she’d virtually pushed him out the door.

Had she even said goodbye?

She couldn’t remember. All she remembered was planting her hand on his chest—a strong chest, very muscular—and giving it a good, hard shove. Of course, Matt being built like a linebacker, he could have resisted if he’d wanted to. He hadn’t. Which either meant he’d been as keen to exit the apartment as she was to see him leave, or that he’d been weakened by the shock of discovering that she was wearing glasses when she didn’t need to, and embarrassing didn’t begin to describe that moment.

Frankie squirmed in her seat.

What must he think of her?

She wanted to slink under the table and never come out again, but that would be about as mature as her reaction when he’d raised the subject on Saturday.

She wished she could put the clock back. There were so many more dignified ways she could have reacted. A light, flirtatious response would have been perfect.

“Did you see Matt yesterday?” She kept her tone casual and Paige glanced up from the screen.

“Briefly. Why?”

“No reason. I wondered if he mentioned anything.” Like the fact that he had a deranged woman living in his apartment. A deranged woman with perfect vision.

“He mentioned he’s overloaded with work. I promised to feed Claws tonight because he’s going to be late. He’s going to owe me big-time for that favor. I might need a bodyguard.”

“I am generally considered to be a people-pleaser and the fact that I’m not volunteering to do it in your place tells you what I think of that cat.” Eva stood up. “I’m willing to call the Bronx Zoo if you like and ask if they have any tips for feeding predators. Maybe we could open the window and poke a piece of meat through with a long pole.”

“I’ll feed her.” Frankie shrugged as they both looked at her. “Why not? She’s just a cat.” And it would give her an opportunity to leave a note in Matt’s apartment. She’d apologize for being rude. Then she wouldn’t have to do it face-to-face.

Which meant that she could add cowardice to her other flaws, but never mind.

Turning back to her work, she answered an email from a client who wanted flowers delivered to his wife on a monthly basis.

“Claws isn’t just a cat. She is a psychotic cat,” Eva said. “She scratched me so hard last week I thought my bone was going to fall out through the hole.”

Paige shuddered. “That’s vile.”

“It was vile. Lucas Blade could use that animal in one of his books as a murder weapon.”

“What did you do to her?”