Page 17 of Manhattan Bossholes

I’d expected her to fade into the background, seeing as her position with Summit had an expiration date, but here she was in my office a week after her promotion, bright and early and ready to present the latest campaign concepts.

The ideas were solid—no surprise there—but I was having a hard time staying focused on what she was saying because she had dressed up for the meeting in a clingy green dress and heels. Her body was…distracting. But she didn’t wield it like a weapon. Piper seemed utterly oblivious to the fact that every time she leaned forward, she gave me a front-row view down her cleavage. She was completely focused on making sure I could follow the mock-ups she was presenting, which normally wouldn’t be a problem for me but…that body.

“You don’t like them?” Piper’s bottom lip pouted ever so slightly as she asked the question.

I’d fantasized right through the latest slide on her iPad.

“No, no, they’re fine,” I replied quickly, tamping down any response that could be construed as a rave. “I’m just not sure your direction is exactly what we need.”

The corner of her mouth tipped up in a sly smile. “Good, you walked right into my trap!”

I scowled at her. “Trap?”

“I’m kidding,” she said lightly as she flipped to the next slide. “I purposely showed you my least favorite concepts first because I saved the best for last. How about this?”

She held up the tablet proudly.

The mock-up was of a woman in profile, posed similar to our previous campaigns, but this time in full color. And instead of being alone in the image, a strong-jawed male model was facing her, also in profile, spraying the bottle at her neck. I looked closer at the vapor trails coming from the bottle and noticed shadowy representations of the scents within the bottle, so subtly rendered in the mist that they were easy to overlook. The woman had her head thrown back in ecstasy, and the way the man was spraying the perfume looked suggestive of…well, let’s just say it looked like a happy ending for both of them. The whole thing was sexy, bright, and joyful.

When I considered the feelings Evermore evoked, I focused more on the intensity of love, but Piper was revealing a side to it I usually didn’t consider. Love could be effervescent. Playful. Light.

I snorted softly. Maybe for others, but that had never been my experience. When I thought about my past relationships, the only word that came to mind was “drama.”

“Not bad,” I finally admitted.

Piper’s expression darkened. “That’s it? You don’t love it?”

I did, but I needed time to wrap my head around the new concept. Plus, I wasn’t about to admit she’d hit a home run on her first try. The woman was a menace behind the wheel, but she clearly knew how to steer a campaign.

“It’s a departure.”

“No, it’s an evolution. It makes sense.”

“What does the team think?” I asked to buy myself time.

“Everyone agrees this is the direction we need to go.” Piper paused. “But we also know you have final say, so no one wanted to get too attached to the concept before you weighed in.”

“Let’s set up a quick consumer review panel for feedback,” I suggested. “We need to be sure.”

“I’m sure,” Piper said in a quietly defiant voice. “But don’t worry—I’ve already put that in motion. You’re welcome.”

Again with the attitude. Piper clearly had a problem with knowing her place.

“Let’s set the campaign aside for a minute,” I said. “What’s the latest with the Sullivans?”

I flexed my hands into fists as I waited for her to respond, because the stress of not knowing was killing me. R&D was pushing me to give up on the blooms, but there was no way I was letting go with success within reach.

If Piper would actually make good on her promise to me.

“As I told you,” she began pointedly, “I believe in the power of wooing.”

She arched an eyebrow at me. What the hell was she getting at? That I wasn’t? I knew how to woo the hell out of anyone I chose, but there was a time and place for the long game, and we didn’t have the luxury of a goddamned slow burn! I needed results, and I needed them now.

“And I believe in action,” I said, barely hiding my frustration. “Making a battle plan and then going in for the kill. Knowing my enemies’ playbook better than they do.”

“Kill? Enemies?” Piper asked with disdain in her voice. “This is perfume we’re talking about, right?”

I harumphed at her.