were ready to work, she slipped off her high heels and tucked her feet up under her on the couch. It wasn’t the best working situation, but she’d been a trooper about it.
“I promise I’ll find us an actual office soon,” I said as she readjusted on her seat for the hundredth time that morning. She glanced up from her laptop and smiled.
“This is fine, I swear.” For a second it looked like she wanted to elaborate and then I caught a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Other than the day I found you in your skivvies, it actually hasn’t been that weird.”
I laughed. “Yeah, I’m still expecting a lawsuit for that.”
Since that first morning, I’d made it a point to always have my slacks, shirt, and tie on well before she arrived. One time could be written off as a mistake. Twice and she’d write me off as a weird-ass creeper.
“Don’t worry, I didn’t report you to HR or anything,” she joked.
I smiled. “Should we hire an HR person next?”
She scrunched her nose in distaste and shook her head. “How about we hire a personal chef instead?”
“I like your moxie. You’re hired. Now go make us some manicotti.”
She playfully dusted her nails on her blouse. “You couldn’t afford me.”
I laughed and she bent forward to grab her coffee cup off the table. Another few inches of blouse spilled over the top of her computer screen. It was a cream silk top that brought out her recent tan. For just a moment, I let my gaze follow the elegant curve of her neck, down over her collarbone, and then lower. The top button of her blouse was open and the few inches of exposed skin there made it perfectly clear why Josephine was quickly becoming my favorite fantasy.
I’d just pulled my gaze away when her phone vibrated on the table beside mine. I glanced down and read the caller’s name as it flashed across the screen before she snatched it up: Forest Financial.
“Feel free to take it,” I offered.
She shook her head and dropped her phone a few feet away from her on the couch, well out of her reach.
“It’s okay. I’m right in the middle of setting up a Facebook page for the brand and I want to get it finished before lunch.”
“I thought Lorena already had one,” I protested.
Josephine turned her computer so I could see the screen. “She did, it’s just that she never finished setting it up and she hardly ever posted. No one even knew that it existed. I want to revamp it and then post some promotional content so we can start to build her presence there. I redid the top banner and added professional photos of her last line. We should be posting everyday so that everyone can stay up to date with the brand.”
I mentally high-fived my past self for hiring Jo. Sure, she was funny and interesting and gorgeous, but also in just three weeks she’d managed to completely overhaul Lorena’s online presence. I knew the business side of things, but the creative end of the company was beyond my scope. We needed to hire a full marketing team, but for now Jo would work just fine. Besides, I kind of liked it being just the two of us.
“What do you think?” she asked, hope brimming in her eyes.
“It looks great,” I said, truly meaning it. The old version versus the new version was like night and day. The new version actually looked like a real brand. “Do you do the graphics for your blog as well?”
She smiled wide and then glanced down to her computer. “Yeah. I took classes for it in college. I’m not a graphic designer or anything, but I know enough to get by.”
I nodded. “I can tell. Your blog looks really professional.”
She flicked her gaze up to me and then offered up a crooked smile. It was the sort of smile I gave my mom when I was about to beg for something.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“I have a favor to ask of you.”
I tilted my head, interested in what she was about to ask for. The last time I’d mentioned a “favor” around her, it hadn’t gone so well. This time I was going to wait for her to speak first.
“Would you mind helping me take a few photos for my blog? I want to do a few photos in Central Park.”
Oh.
That’s it?
I opened my mouth to agree, but she spoke up quicker.
“I promise if you