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‘Hang on.’ Jules moves to kneel beside Cat on the floor. ‘That feels like a jump too. Talk, flirt, date? Shouldn’t step two have, like, sub-steps?’
‘You want specific tips on how to flirt?’ Cat asks, turning her pale blue eyes on Jules.
‘I know how to flirt.’
‘The past few years say otherwise,’ Tori jokes.
‘Hey.’ Jules throws her used napkin at Tori’s head. ‘I may not have dated in a few years because of … Todd. And work has been sucking all my time and energy—’
‘Sorry,’ Tori apologises. ‘I know it has.’
‘—but I still know how to flirt,’ Jules finishes her point. ‘Though step three may be an issue. I don’t know any date places in Sydney.’
‘Google it later,’ Cat says, though she adds a sub-entry between step two and three for it.
‘Okay. This is looking achievable.’ Jules scans the napkin like a sitemap to her dating life. ‘Step one, we talk face-to-face.’
‘So you can make sure he’s not boring in person,’ Tori says.
‘Step two, I flirt a little. Step two-point-two, find a date place. Step three, trial date. Perfect.’
‘I’ll help you pack some flirty outfits,’ Tori offers. ‘And I’ll see if my Sydney siblings have thoughts about a date place.’
‘Thanks, Tor.’ Jules spins on her knees to face her. ‘That’d be awesome. But nothing too flirty, since it is a work conference.’
‘Got it. I’m excited,’ Tori grins. ‘I see sexy things in your future.’
‘Agree,’ Cat says. ‘See, it says it on the plan. Step four is hanky-panky.’ Cat barely gets through the sentence before dissolving into giggles, laughing so hard water leaks from her eyes.
Jules snatches the napkin but the damage has been done.
‘Are you seri—Cat! You actually wrote ‘hanky-panky’ on my planning map!’
Cat gasps and doubles over, pressing her hand to her stomach. Tori joins in with her snorting laugh and Jules can’t fight against their mirth. She’s got a plan for her presentation and a plan to make things happen with Cameron, vague as it may be. Now if only the ants would quit marching across her skin when she thinks of acting on it.
Chapter 3
Cameron checks the tags on his polo shirts as he lays them on the bed, making sure not to pack any of the smaller size that show off his biceps and torso. He doesn’t want to invite that kind of attention in a work setting. His presentation speech is printed out as well as downloaded onto his phone and iPad, same with the itinerary. No chance for his technological bad luck to kick his ass this year. Everything in order for a productive work conference.
Except him and his racing heart.
Walking into Patricia’s office yesterday—less than 24 hours ago—was like stepping through the looking glass, but instead of a white rabbit, he’d come face to face with a goddamn beautiful woman. Light-brown hair that fell straight over her shoulders, deep blue eyes, a smile that was like a cool breeze on a hot day. The second he’d heard her voice, he should’ve picked who she was, but he’d been too entranced by her smile. Jules. The woman in IT he’s been talking to for months.
Their conversations had been one of the few bright spots since leaving Sydney. Then he fucked that up by wondering what it would be like if they were more than friends. If this woman who made him laugh and made his tech problems seem momentary delays instead of endless hurdles would want to talk to him face-to-face. If her smile was as stunning as it sounded over the phone.
He can’t have that happen.
It’s why he’s been avoiding her in the office. Going on coffee runs when he knows she’s coming up or racing into the bathroom. He knows his patterns. He knows how quickly he falls. He knows that falling can lead to a downfall. It’s what landed him in Canberra working at Infinity Press with Jules in the first place.
He needs to focus on his conference presentation anyway. It’ll be the first time seeing his old Cable co-workers after the unprofessional exit he made, abandoning his team right on the cusp of a massive marketing campaign he’d spearheaded. He wants—needs— to redeem himself, to them and the wider publishing industry. It’s a small sector and reputations travel. It’s why his whole damn speech is about targeting Gen Z, even though Infinity has a tiny YA list. He may as well have called his session ‘To my old Cable colleagues: I’m sorry.’
His phone ringing jars him so much he swears.
Pulse racing, he accepts the call from his older sister. ‘Hey, Carrie.’
‘It’s Chloe,’ his younger sister answers.
He double-checks the caller ID. ‘Chloe? Why’re you on Carrie’s phone?’
