“Have a good day.”
I closed the door. Inside the brown paper bag, I found two items: a bottle of Tylenol and an envelope. The latter wasn’t sealed, so I slipped out the thick piece of stationery inside to read the slashy, bold handwriting.
Figured you might need what’s in the bottle before using the other.
Jagger
I unfolded a second piece of paper from inside the envelope—a free, one-month gym pass to Equinox.
The rush of excitement that pulsed through me because Jagger had stopped at my building was positivelyridiculous. I sucked in my bottom lip, forgetting all about my pounding head. And apparently also forgetting that I was still on FaceTime with Miles.
“Well…” he called. “What was delivered?”
I held the phone back up to my face. “Tylenol and a gym pass.”
“From who?”
“Jagger.”
“Whoa.That’s above and beyond CEO duties to an intern. What the hell happened between you two last night?”
“Just what I told you.” I went into the kitchen and propped the phone up on the counter so I could make espresso. “He saved me from making a fool of myself, fed me, and sent me packing.”
“This guy is into you, Sutton.”
I didn’t have a ton of experience with men, and none with someone even remotely like Jagger Langston, but I felt in my bones that Miles was right. It was in the way he looked at me, the way he wanted to take care of me. Though none of that mattered.
I sighed. “Even if he is, he’s not going to cross the line. He’s the boss, and I’m an intern. Not to mention, he’s totally hung up on me being a virgin. And then there’s the Edmund situation.”
“Remember Hugh Kempner, the editor at the magazine where I interned?”
“Hugh Kempner? The guy you renamedHuge Member?”
Miles laughed. “That’s the one.”
“What about him? You’re not going to try to tell me my situation is the same, are you? You threw yourself at the guy. If I remember correctly, you walked into his office,locked the door, and gave him a blow job while he was on a conference call.”
“It’sexactlythe same thing. Hugh was in a position of power. I knew he wanted me as bad as I wanted him, but he wasn’t going to make a move. So I had to take things into my own hands.” Miles smirked. “Or mouth.”
I chuckled and frothed milk to make my morning cappuccino. “I’m not you.”
“Says who? Reinvent yourself. Do things outside your comfort zone in New York. Become a siren.”
I took my much-needed caffeine to the couch and popped open the bottle of Tylenol from Jagger. Swallowing two pills, I set the phone on the coffee table. “I wish I had your courage.”
“You do, cookie. You just need to listen to your gut. Courage comes in all forms. Sometimes it’s just a subtle whisper that tells you to go for it, even when everything else around you is shoutingstop.”
***
It took a full two days to feel like myself again.
Monday morning, I arrived at Equinox at five thirty sharp, determined to get my life organized. A young guy with hulking arms greeted me from behind the desk. He smiled. “You must be new here?”
“I am. But how did you know?”
“Because I offer every new member a free personal-training session, and I’d remember you.” He extended his hand over the counter. “I’m Troy. One of the trainers here. And you are?”
“Sutton.”
