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A knock on my office door pulls my gaze up from the computer screen and Mercedes pokes her head in, smiling at me. “Hey. I just read your email. Do you have a minute to talk about it?”

“Absolutely,” I say with a nod, clearing a few things off my desk and pushing my computer to the side as she strides into the room and sinks into the lounge chair in front of my desk she helped me pick out. She crosses her legs and offers me a warm smile.

“So, let’s hear your pitch.”

I take a deep breath and nod, instantly going into business mode as I run over my argument in my head. Not that I think this will take much convincing, but I can’t bring myself to be unprofessional. When Ali and I first started here a month ago, Mercedes was so welcoming and really made us feel like we belonged here which was a pretty big change from our job at the Baton Rouge Times. Ali has hit the ground running with her advice column and I’ve worked on a few things here and there while I tried to figure out where I fit in this company. I’ve honestly never had a boss like Mercedes in my life and each day I come into work, I’m grateful Ali brought me along with her. I can’t even imagine still being at the Times and dealing with our awful boss, Mr. Klein.

“As you know,” I start, my hands shaking as I clasp them in my lap. I didn’t realize how badly I wanted this until this moment. “I’ve been looking for my niche ever since I started here and I’ve been kicking around a few ideas. I’ve looked over the blog and what it already offers and I think both options will complement what is already on the site.”

She rubs her hands together with a grin on her face. “I’m so excited to hear what you’ve got.”

“My first idea was a section on Baton Rouge. We could spotlight local businesses, rate restaurants, tell tourists all the hidden little secrets our city has to offer and you’ll be able to charge local business owners a premium price to advertise on the page.”

She nods, looking at me thoughtfully for a moment. “I like it but let’s hear your other idea first.”

“Option number two came as I was sprucing up my office.”

She glances around the room and smiles. The space has come a long way since I started here. On my first day, it was white walls, wood floors, and nothing else. I may have gone a little crazy designing it, but it was the only time I’ve ever gotten to do it and I fell in love with the whole process.

“So, an interior design section?” she asks and I nod.

“You’ve already got travel, exercise, fashion, beauty, and Ali’s advice column covered. With no interior design section, I see a huge gap in our audience’s needs. We could hold contests where people submit photos of their rooms and the best design wins. I could write about design, home decoration, or try out chic DIY projects.”

“I like it,” she muses, tapping her finger to her chin as she stares blankly at the top of my desk. “If it goes well, I could also buy a fixer upper and have you supervise the remodel and post before and after photos. I’ve been wanting to invest in real estate for a while now, so it would be the perfect time if we were going to do something like that.”

“Really? You like it?”

“One hundred percent. Listen, I didn’t bring you and Ali over here, so you could ramble on every day about something you don’t really care about. There’s a spark in your eye when you talk about design and that’s what I want. I want everyone who reads the blog to hear your passion.”

“Well, all right then.”

She stands and heads for the door before turning back to look at me. “Oh, by the way, I wanted to ask you about that article you wrote about the corrupt cops last year.”

“What about it?” A little over a year ago, it was a regular day in the office when a young woman named Emma and her boyfriend, Nix, walked in and told me a story I will never forget as long as I live. Hearing what she went through, I had to write it and help her in any way I could even though it was way outside my comfort zone and it pissed my boss off. It was the right thing to do.

“Do you want to do a follow up?”

I chew on my lip, considering it. As much as I loved what the article did for my career, I’m really excited about the future and ready to move forward.

“I don’t think so. Unless of course, you’d like me to write it.”

Mercedes shakes her head. “No, I’m okay if you don’t want to. I just wanted to give you the option since you mentioned it when you were hired.”

“I think, at this point, everyone has moved on and we should just keep it that way.”

“Perfect,” she says, walking to the doorway. “I’ll go look at the schedule and let’s meet up again in a few days to talk timelines for rolling out the new page.”

“Thanks, Mercedes.”

She flashes me a smile before leaving my office and I slide my computer back in front of me, excited to research and plan. Before I can even do my first search, my phone buzzes on the table with a text from Chance.

Chance:

I want to see you tonight.

Ignoring him, I blow out a breath and focus back on the screen in front of me. Chance and I need distance - lots and lots of distance if this thing is going to continue. And I want it to continue because the sex is mind-blowing – the best I’ve ever had – and I’m not eager to give that up but Chance makes it hard to resist him. Especially when I’m falling to pieces and it feels like the only thing that will make it better is him. It’s pathetic. How on earth did I ever survive anything before he was there to wrap me up in his arms? Seriously, because I don’t remember.

My phone buzzes again and I glance over at it.

Chance:

Don’t think you can ignore me, Princess.

Oh, I can and I will. I will stay away from him until I can look at him without feeling like a pile of mush. Until his kiss doesn’t make me weak in the knee.

I focus on the screen in front of me and think about my first article, but my gaze keeps being drawn back to the phone. Just when I’m about to toss it in a drawer, it rings and Chance’s face pops up on the screen.

“Nope,” I whisper to myself, staring at the computer screen but seeing nothing. “Not going to answer it.”

I look up designs but his face flashing on the screen taunts me and my fingers twitch to answer it. I haven’t spoken to him since the dinner last night and I don’t think texts really count. Somehow, I got out of the restaurant and home without having to face him and I was thankful for it. Between the looks he was giving me and the fact that Damian was there, again, I was at the end of my patience. After I got home, I turned my phone off and spent an hour in a hot bubble bath until my legs felt like Jell-O.

My phone buzzes again and I sigh as I glance at it.

Chance:

This isn’t over, Carly.

Damn him for being right.