“What can I say? You’re a tenacious woman. You wore me down.”
“Vicki, thank you!”
April beamed. She was so happy, she wanted to throw her arms around Vicki’s neck and kiss her, to run her fingers through those blonde locks, to bury herself in Vicki’s skin.
But the room they were in had glass walls and everyone could see them. Already, they were sitting much too close.
“I should get going,” April said. “I have so much work to do.”
“So do I,” Vicki replied. “I’ve been putting out fires all week because of your little campaign.”
“I hope you’re not expecting an apology.”
“I’m not. Even I have to admit, it was a smart play. I’d be commending you if I wasn’t the target of this. You should be working PR at a Fortune 500 company.”
“I would never take a job like that in a million years,” April said.
“Of course you wouldn’t,” Vicki said. “You’re too busy crusading for the greater good. Your talents are wasted here.”
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
The two of them gathered their things and left the room.
“I’ll see you later.” April was uncertain of whether it was a question or a statement.
“Oh, I’ll be seeing you,” Vicki said. “As soon as everything cools down, you’re coming to my apartment, and I’m going to give you a taste of the rest of my collection.” She straightened up her blazer. “By the way, that picture you sent me. Did you take it at your desk?”
“I did,” April replied.
Vicki shook her head. “You’re a bold woman.” With that, she turned and headed for the exit.
April made her way back to her office. It was almost five p.m., and it was Friday. All the excitement of the week had been taxing. April wanted nothing more than to go home and have a long soak in the bath. She was looking forward to doing absolutely nothing for the entire weekend.
When April reached her office, Lexi was sitting with her feet up on her desk and her arms crossed.
She gave April a cold look. “Have a nice talk with Vicki, did you?”
“I don’t know what you mean,” April replied.
“I thought you hated her. Now the two of you are acting like best friends?”
&nb
sp; “We’re working together. I’m just being friendly. It’s nothing more than that.” April didn’t like lying to her friend, but Lexi had made her feelings about Vicki very clear. “What do you have against her, anyway? Did she try to steal some girl you were chasing?”
“Like I said, I don’t like the way she treats women,” Lexi replied.
“That has nothing to do with our jobs and the library. You’re being unfair.”
“You’re actually defending her now? Unbelievable.” Lexi muttered something else under her breath that April didn’t catch.
“I don’t understand why you’re so angry,” April said.
“I’m angry because you’re falling for her act.” Lexi picked up her bag and grabbed her coat. “Vicki Blake can’t be trusted. She’s just going to end up screwing us over.” Without another word, Lexi stormed out of the office.
Chapter Sixteen
April was woken up on Saturday morning by the ringing of her phone. She rolled over and picked it up. It was Lexi. The two of them hadn’t spoken since Lexi stormed out of their office the day before. April wasn’t upset with her. The two of them had been friends for years, and they were both hot-tempered. It wasn’t the first time they’d had a disagreement.