Page 78

Grady is already waiting for me at a high table. There’s a basket of bread in front of him. He’s holding a piece in his hand and dipping it in oil.

I walk up behind him. “Would you have ever imagined a few years ago that you’d be sitting here in Nolita, eating white bread dipped in oil, old man?”

He turns toward me and pops the piece of bread into my mouth. I’m laughing so hard that I open my mouth too wide and end up with the bite stuck between my teeth. “Mmm. That’s tasty.”

Grady raises an eyebrow. “I’d never put anything gross in your mouth.”

I shake my head in mock reproach. “If that’s supposed to be a reference to . . . ” But before I can bring up memories of our brief time together, he interrupts me.

“Oh. No, no. I’m not usually that unprofessional. And you know I’m happily taken. Monogamous.”

“Of course.” I scan the surroundings. “Where’s Bailey, anyway?” Usually, the two of them are glued to each other’s sides.

“She’s not too well right now. I’ll tell you about it in a minute. Nothing to worry about.”

We order, and Grady peers at me with his hands folded in front of him.

“What else is new? How’s business going?” I ask him.

He tilts his head thoughtfully. “Good. We’re facing a few restructuring changes. We want to expand. Before that, though, we need to rearrange things and we’re not planning any new permanent positions.”

“Oh?” Was he hinting at that during our phone call?

“Bailey’s pregnant.”

My jaw drops. I hadn’t expected that. Not that I knew anything about their family plans, but . . . “Congratulations. Is that why she’s not here?”

Grady nods. “She’s feeling nauseous right now. All day long. So much for the term ‘morning sickness.’ Anyway, the baby wasn’t planned. At least not now. It’s pretty much the worst possible time for our business. We wanted to expand. Now I need a replacement for Bailey’s maternity leave and someone for the expansion. Ideally, both at the same time. But I’m not sure if anyone has the capacity to train that person. Having their own contacts and insider knowledge of the business would be important. But Bailey’s contacts from her modeling days only trust her. I can’t send any random person to deal with those people. They’ll turn around and we’ll never see them again.”

“That means you don’t want to expand by adding a social media department, but instead keep outsourcing to freelancers?”

Grady nods. A weight settles in my stomach. Of course, I didn’t expect Grady to offer me a new job right away, after that disastrous conversation with Simon. But somewhere deep down, I’d apparently been hoping for it. That hope is now crumbling inside me.

“But that doesn’t mean we’re done working together. We’ll have to postpone it. Give us a year until we’ve stabilized the company. I know you want a permanent position. We’re not quite there yet.”

I wave it off. “Sure. Don’t worry about me. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Good.” He places his hand on my forearm and squeezes it. “We value your expertise, and I hope we’ll continue to work together through Simon’s agency in the meantime.”

“Of course,” I assure him. “And that’s why I’m here.”

Grady nods. “The contact you reached out about recently in the middle of the night?”

I pause for a moment, trying to figure out what Grady means. “No. That’s someone else. But . . . maybe that person will get in touch before the end of the year.”

Grady eyes me. “Are you going to tell me who that person is under contract with right now?”

I shake my head vigorously. “No way.”

My old friend immediately raises both hands. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked. He seems important to you.”

I sigh. “You know how it is. Sometimes you go a bit overboard. These decisions are none of my business. My clients are all adults who can make up their own minds.”

“Even if you want to give them a piece of yours every now and then,” Grady adds, and we both laugh.

“Back to my British musician. He’s given me permission to share all of this with you. I strongly recommended that he get in touch with you. I hope this isn’t falling apart now because of your restructuring?”

“Absolutely not. Don’t forget, expansion is still our top priority.”