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“It’s me,” she said.
“Sophie?”
“Um, no, this is Mimi, the hooker from Vegas? You called for a genital massage?” She smiled at the elderly couple approaching the building, hoping they were hard of hearing.
“I’m so amused,” Gray’s voice crackled through the intercom. “I hope you like Top Ramen, because that’s all you’re—”
Sophie punched the call button again to end the cheery discussion and scooted in the front door behind the couple. They turned to size her up, and she gave them her sweetest smile. “You don’t mind if I slide in behind you, do you? My boyfriend’s a little grumpy because I forgot it was our one-month anniversary. Honestly, how is a busy woman supposed to remember these little things?”
The blue-haired woman’s expression softened, and she patted Sophie’s shoulder. “Oh, don’t you stress about a thing, dear. Men pretend they don’t care about that stuff, but they’re so sensitive! Walter here pouted for a nearly two hours when he thought I’d forgotten our forty-eighth wedding anniversary.”
Walter harrumphed, sending his white mustache twitching. “That’s bollocks. I was just upset that the tennis tournament got canceled for those blasted cheerleading competitions!”
“I didn’t exactly see you reaching for the remote to turn the station away from those scandalous little skirts.”
Walter flushed slightly. “My arthritis was acting up, Joyce. You know I can’t just go gallivanting around the living room trying to find the remote.”
The little woman rolled her eyes at Sophie. “You see what I mean? They’re sensitive. Now you go right on up there and make amends with your man. Cook him a nice meal and maybe give him a little nookie!”
Sophie smothered a smile at the throwback to a different era. She didn’t have the heart to tell Joyce that “her man” would actually be cooking her dinner, and that nookie was so not an option.
Saying good-bye to the now-bickering couple, Sophie found her way to Gray’s apartment, giving a perky knock. She tugged nervously at the hem of her tight white sweater. She knew this wasn’t a date, of course. But maybe she’d taken a few extra minutes getting ready.
And the results were worth it. She was wearing her cutest (and tightest) jeans, and the sweater she’d just picked up from Nordstrom. The cashmere kept it classy while the tight fit made it sexy. Not that she wanted to be sexy. He finally answered the door, and all thoughts of her own appearance vanished.
Because Gray looked…gorgeous.
She realized this was the first time since dinner at her parents that she’d seen him outside of a suit, and while he admittedly filled out a suit very nicely, casual was a surprisingly good look on him. He wore dark jeans that were either designer or personally made for him, because he looked like a freaking male model. The gray sweater was layered over a crisp white shirt and made his eyes look, well…actually they looked downright stormy and pissed.
But it was a sexy picture nonetheless.
“How’d you get into the building?”
“It’s called charm—I’ll write a report on it on Monday so you can begin to understand the how the concept works. Short version: you smile at people and they like you more.”
His scowl deepened and he braced an arm on the doorway, blocking her entrance.
“Okay.” She sighed. “I can see I’m moving you along too fast on the path toward not being a dick. Lesson number one: invite me in.”
“Jenna’s not coming.”
Sophie blinked at that. “Why not? Is everything okay?”
“Oh, everything is fine. Just some apparent stomach bug,” he replied.
She chewed her lip. This was not ideal. Although Sophie was technically here to provide a buffer among the Wyatt siblings, what she really needed was a buffer between her and Gray. This would be all the more awkward with just herself, the two brothers, and no fellow female influence.
“I hope she’s okay,” Sophie said. “You and Jack must be bummed to not see her on her last night in town.”
“Oh, I’m not so sure Jack won’t be seeing her,” Gray muttered, still not inviting her in.
Sophie had gotten pretty good at interpreting this man’s moods and mumbles, but she was now officially confused.
“What’s going on?” she asked pointedly, folding her arms self-consciously across her chest.
“We’ve been set up,” he said, not meeting her eyes. “Jack thought dinner tonight was canceled, and I don’t think Jenna ever had any intention of showing up.”
Suddenly everything became clear in Sophie’s mind, and she couldn’t help but laugh at how well Jenna had played her cards. The setup was even more blatant than Sophie had expected.
