Sleepless in Manhattan (From Manhattan with Love 1)

“Tell me a little about her. What does she enjoy?” While she was talking, Paige created a new file, made notes and exchanged a few ideas. “We’ll come back to you with a list of suggestions. You can tick the ones you like and we’ll do the rest.”

She ended the call and forwarded the list to Eva. “This one is for you. Go shop.”

“You’re paying me to go to Bloomingdale’s? I’ve died and gone to heaven. Have I told you how much I love being in business with you guys?” Eva checked the list. “I might change the brand of scented candle. And the scent. You have to be careful with scent when you’re pregnant.”

“That’s why you’re doing this job. Do whatever it takes to make sure this woman recommends us to her friends. Next we need to talk about—” Paige paused as her phone rang at the same time as Frankie’s. “Or maybe we won’t talk.”

She took the call and Frankie did the same, walking out of the office as she discussed colors, petals and blooms with the person on the end of the phone.

“Yes, concierge services are available to our clients,” Paige explained to her caller. “Waiting list?” Her eyes met Eva’s and she smiled. “You’re in luck. We have capacity at the moment. Why don’t I come to your offices and we can talk about your needs? I’m sure Urban Genie can help.”

By the time she ended the call she had a brief for a corporate training session and the promise of a major product launch in the fall.

“Can you believe this?” Eva’s eyes were shining. “We really are in business. All we have to do is not mess it up.”

“We’re not going to mess it up—” Paige updated her spreadsheet “—but I’m starting to wish I’d had more than four hours of sleep last night.” Her phone beeped and she checked her texts.

It was Jake.

My office. Now. Debrief.

Her stomach flipped and she stood up. “We can finish this later. Jake wants a debrief, and then I have a meeting over on Fifth. I need to run.” She scooped up her bag just as Frankie walked back into the room. “Well?”

“That was a bride-to-be who was at the event last night and loved the floral designs. She wants something similar for her wedding.”

Eva blinked. “She wants scaffolding at her wedding? What’s the theme? Prison Break? How is that romantic?”

“She wants a gazebo, you baboon.” Frankie was busy making notes. “And she wants to walk on rose petals.”

“Did you just call me a baboon? Because if so, I’m reporting you to Human Resources for bullying and abuse. And someone needs to warn the bride that rose petals are slippery. Either that or call the hospital and have an orthopedic surgeon on alert.”

The phone rang again and Paige looked at her friends with a mixture of excitement and disbelief. “We need to find a way of consolidating these calls so that we all know what’s going on.”

“You always know what’s going on. You’re the detail woman. I’ll take this one.” Eva reached for the phone, a smile in her voice. “Urban Genie, your wish is our command—” Her smile faded as she listened. “No, not that sort of wish. That isn’t what we do.” She ended the call, her cheeks pink. “Well!”

Frankie looked at her expectantly. “Are you going to tell us?”

“No, I’m not! I’m not repeating it.” Eva sniffed. “Never tell Jake. We’d get a big, fat ‘I told you so.’ He warned us ‘your wish is our command’ would get us into trouble.”

Paige loaded her laptop into her bag.

She had a feeling she was already in bigger trouble than any of them could possibly have predicted. Had she really thought sex with Jake would be simple?

Wondering what happened next, she walked toward Jake’s office and spied him through the glass.

He was prowling around as he talked, looking insanely gorgeous in snug jeans and a button-down shirt. It wasn’t hard to see why Jake Romano had his pick of women.

He turned and caught her looking.

“I’ll call you back.” Without waiting for a response he ended the call and beckoned Paige into the room. “So we have a choice—” His tone was businesslike and she forced herself to sublimate the indecent thoughts she was having and respond in the same way.

“A choice?”

“I can have sex with you right here—” he rested his hip on the corner of his desk “—or I can take you home and do it there but that will mean a delay. I’m pretty impatient by nature. When I want something, I go after it. I’m not good at delayed gratification.”

“I—I thought you wanted a debrief.” It took her brain a moment to catch up. “You’re giving me a choice about whether we have sex again?”

“No. We’re having sex again. I’m giving you a choice of venue.”