Page 487 of Manhattan Bossholes

She covered her face as she giggled. “I was protecting myself from a stalker!”

Christopher glanced between us. “What the hell are you two talking about? Mop? Stalker?”

The door buzzed, and Bernie rushed out of the kitchen. “The food is here, I’ll get it!”

Christopher jumped up, and I noticed that he was in clean jeans and a button-down shirt instead of his usual gym shorts and oversized T-shirt.

“That’s Julia,” he said, tucking in his shirt. “She’s great, you’ll love her.”

“You’re on a first name basis with your grocery girl?” I asked.

“Snob.” He frowned at me. “Don’t call her that. She’s working her way through school. This is her side job.”

The sound of cheerful bustling filled the space, and I joined them as the delivery person unloaded. Once I saw Julia, I understood why Christopher was so quick to defend her. She was adorable, with a shiny blonde ponytail under her baseball cap and a giant smile that made me want to smile back at her.

“I brought you birthday flowers,” she said shyly, handing a bouquet filled with sunflowers and yellow roses to Christopher. “Is that weird?”

I watched my brother’s face and realized that he was struggling to remain even keel. My heart clenched when I saw him blinking quickly, staring at Julia with unabashed awe.

“No that’s…that’s amazing. No one has ever given me flowers before,” he said in a quiet voice. “Thank you.”

Bernie seemed oblivious to what was going on as she snatched them away from him. “Beautiful! Let me put these in a vase. Julia, you can unload everything on the dining room table. Boys, be the gentlemen I raised you to be and help her.”

“I’m James.” I held out my hand to Julia and she shook it, smiling.

Natalie was already hard at work, unpacking the overflowing bags with Dee’s help.

“What the hell did you crazy people buy?” Christopher asked, holding up a box of Cracker Jacks.

“Awful, wonderful, delicious snacks! Finger food, like it’s a kid party,” Natalie answered.

“And I snuck in a couple of extra surprises,” Julia said. She opened what looked like a pizza box to reveal a giant cookie cake covered in frosting.

Christopher walked over to her. “Did you pay for this?”

She nodded shyly.

“We talked about this, J!” he exclaimed, attempting to scold her despite the huge smile on his face. “You need to stop buying me stuff. I’m serious. Your tip is going to be ridiculous today.”

“I’ll second that,” I said as I stacked six packages of steaming chicken tenders on the table.

Bernie joined us with the flowers arranged in a crystal vase that was no doubt one of the few things that Christopher’s ex hadn’t taken. “Oh, Julia will be very well taken care of today, don’t you worry.”

My grandmother had her faults, but being a bad tipper wasn’t one of them.

“Okay, I think that’s everything,” Julia said as she packed up her bags. “I’m going to head out. Christopher, I hope you have a wonderful birthday. James, Natalie, Dee, and Bernie, it was nice to meet you.”

“Wait, wait,” Christopher said quickly, moving closer to her. “Can’t you stay? Please join us. There’s way too much food.”

“Really?” She glanced around at us meekly. “I am done for the day…”

“Get this woman a plate,” Dee insisted. “The more the merrier.”

The rest of the afternoon passed with the six of us gathered around the table, swapping stories, eating, and laughing. Christopher seemed more alive than I’d seen him in ages, and I noticed that his eyes seemed to be perpetually glued to Julia. Thankfully, she was equally enthralled with him, finding excuses to touch him and serve him food. All under the guise of treating the birthday boy, but I could tell there was more to it.

I also noticed how at ease Natalie seemed among my family. But then again, that seemed to be one of her gifts. She could charm anyone if she put her mind to it. I hadn’t been on the receiving end of it much at first, but lately? Lately it felt like Natalie and I had reached a place of stability. If I ignored the damned attraction that was boiling in my veins, we’d be just fine as colleagues. In time I’d find a replacement for Clint so I wouldn’t have to see her at the creative meetings, and Lorraine’s replacement would take over for her. Natalie would revert back to being just another Branson employee.

Not someone I couldn’t wait to see every day. And definitely not someone I couldn’t stop dreaming about.