"Your first date is Friday?" she asks.
I nod.
"In three days. Wow."
"Would you stop saying wow? It's freaking me out even more," I admit.
"I knew you wanted to bang him, but date him? Is he your type?"
I shrug. "I don't think it's like that. It's just pretend to give him direction. At least that's what Mark said."
"Mark's a troublemaker."
I nod in agreement. "He is."
"He might just be a genius," she blurts out.
"Huh?" I question.
"Nothing, nothing. Just a random thought. He is pretty clever," she answers.
"He is." I narrow my gaze. "I bet he's the one starting the rumors."
"That would make sense. He seems to thrive on chaos. I wonder what Mr. Pierce thinks about all of this," she wonders.
"You'll find out soon enough. It's almost nine o'clock. This is hush hush."
"It goes without saying. You know, I think it's going to be a very interesting day," she says with a grin as she exits my office.
"That's putting it mildly."
* * *
At nine-thirty Imake my way up to the 007 trio's floor. I signal to Jamie who looks at me like a deer caught in the headlights. She hangs up the phone and we start walking.
"What are we doing?" she asks.
"You'll see," I reply, and head straight for the conference room. It's Tuesday so I know exactly where they are right now. They're in the conference room pretending to hold a meeting while talking sports and eating breakfast.
I do have an agenda, but my main goal is to get some of their bacon and a croissant.
Jamie notices where we're headed and smiles. "Thank God. I am so hungry. I skipped breakfast and forgot to restock my breakfast bars in my desk."
I say nothing.
She looks at me. "We're not just going in here for breakfast are we."
It's not really a question, but I answer anyway. "Nope."
"Oh boy."
We reach the doors and I can smell the bacon. Bastards. Well, they're going to be sharing now—after I say what needs to be said.
I open the door and walk right in. All three men turn to look at us when we enter, stopping their conversation mid-sentence.
"Ladies," Mark begins. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"
"Well, I have a bit of a problem."
