Her eyes went soft. “You okay?”
“Of course!”
“Only, that meeting with Alexei Nazarov was kind of out there. Why did he go through me to get to you?” Her tone was a mix of characteristic concern and understandable nosiness.
“Listen, I’d appreciate if you could keep this Nazarov business to yourself.” Summer had signed an NDA when she came on board, and all this was covered by that, but it didn’t hurt to remind her.
She did a lips-zipped gesture. “I’m not going to share agency business with anyone. I’m really interested in asking after you. You seemed a little frazzled by his visit.”
I inhaled deeply just as my wine appeared. Rather than desperately gulp like I wanted to, I took a ladylike sip so as not to worry Summer.
“He and I went to college together, so we go way back. We were sort of friendly once, but we haven’t talked in years.”
“Oh, right.” Summer bit her lip. “He’s not hassling you, is he?”
“No, not at all! It’s just our relationship has always been complicated.”
“I see,” she said, making it clear she didn’t see at all. Sure, my explanation was lacking in the extreme, but I was right about our dynamic. Alexei and I were incapable of hitting a groove that worked.
And this was who I married in Vegas. I took a slug of vino, downright pissed at past me.
Summer’s boyfriend, Hatch Kershaw, appeared behind her, circling his arms around her waist and kissing her neck. Shivering, she relaxed in his arms. He caught my eye.
“Hey, Special Agent Lauren, want a drink?”
I held up my glass. “All good! Oh, I heard from Passepartout today.”
“And?”
“They’re sending over the contract for e-signature tomorrow. You are now the official spokesman of an exclusive European watch brand.”
“Yes!” He turned Summer in his arms. “When were you going to tell me, Sunshine?”
“Uh, never. In case you haven’t noticed, Lauren is your agent, not me. I don’t blab about agency business even when it involves my boyfriend.” She shot a coy look my way. “Confidentiality is the name of the game. But congratulations! I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks, baby.” They kissed passionately while I, the founder of the luxury brand watch deal feast, took another sip.
Hatch let Summer up for air, then leaned into me. “Thanks, Lo. I really appreciate you having my back.”
“That’s what I do. And now that you’re a Cup winner, the deals are going to go up in quality. Sponsors love your moody, brimming on supermodel energy.”
“Ooh, like Vadim Petrov.” Summer grinned. “That guy walked runways and modeled for Gucci. That’s what Lauren should work on next. Haute couture so you can take me to the Paris fashion shows.”
“Or you could just go yourself,” I offered.
Hatch squeezed Summer’s waist. “She’s right. I don’t need a deal with Gucci or whatever to take you to Paris. Let’s go this summer before the season starts up again.”
Summer squealed. “Just so you know, I’m not with you for your romantic Paris trip game, but damn it helps.” She turned to me with a sly wink.
That made me laugh. Summer had suffered plenty of accusations of being a gold digger, even from Hatch, so she liked to get a jibe in every now and then.
“What’s all this then?” Thad had finally arrived. “Summer, I can hear your screeching from the door.”
“Oh, just celebrating my boyfriend’s hot new sponsorship deal and our upcoming trip to Paris. Maybe London, too? We could take the Chunnel train. And I’ve always wanted to visit Edinburgh.” She blinked. “Lauren, I didn’t even ask if I could take time off. So rude of me.”
“We’ll sort it out. Like the ogre boss is going to deny you kids a dream Euro-vacay.”
Feeling pretty good about the fact I was a boss at all, I smiled at Thad, who smiled back. Seven and a half months ago, we had matched on Eros, a new dating app created by Landon Kershaw, brother of Hatch and another of legendary defenseman Theo Kershaw’s talented progeny. I had offered to help with the beta testing, and after a couple of false starts, I met Thad Covington, a hedge fund manager who focused on ESG investments—environmental, social, and governance—which made him one of the good ones. (As long as he was making money for his clients.)
