Riley rolled her eyes. “For God’s sake, Grace. We’re your friends. We believe you. Also, we need to work on your comebacks.”
But Grace wasn’t listening to Riley. Or any of them. She had a new text message from Jake. Just to her this time.
Jake: Did you hear? Ninety-seven percent of readers think you’ve got the hots for me.
Her mind flitted back to that kiss. The way he’d owned her mouth and had her body humming. Ninety-seven percent of readers wouldn’t be wrong. But of course he didn’t need to know that.
Grace: Nice touch getting the website out on Stiletto’s and Oxford’s Twitter feeds.
Jake: Indeed. What’s it the kids say today? It’s gone viral?
Grace: Wow, that’s such great news. I’m sure all that traffic is going to love what I put up next on the site.
“You have a plan, then?”
Grace jumped as she realized Riley was reading over her shoulder, and instinctively she hid her phone like an eighth grader trying to hide her crush from her mother.
Riley’s eyebrows rose knowingly. “Graaaaaacie … Is there something you want to share with the class?”
She held up a finger. “No comment. I don’t want to hear one comment from any of you. Let me think this through.”
“So no plan, then,” Emma said under her breath.
“She was flirting,” Riley said in a scandalized tone. “I saw it.”
“Not helping,” Grace ground out, trying to clear her head.
It took two pieces of chocolate before the answer came to her. “Julie, you keep in touch with that guy from Oxford? The sportswriter you had a couple dates with?”
“Cole? I mean, we’re not best friends or anything, but we’re chatty in the elevator if we run into each other.”
“You have his phone number?”
“I think so.”
“Good. Call him. You need a favor. If you can’t charm him, bribe him.”
“Of course I can charm him,” Julie muttered as she dug through her purse for her phone.
“What am I asking him for?”
Grace’s eyes fell on the computer screen, which revealed that now 98 percent of people thought she was moping around for Jake Malone’s phone call.
He’d expect her to deny it.
She had a better idea.
* * *
Grace had never had reason to go to the Oxford offices before. Technically they were only one floor below the Stiletto offices, but in the Ravenna building, each floor was like a different world.
The Oxford office had a very distinct vibe.
One might call it … testosterone.
On the plus side, there was plenty of male eye candy. Apparently the Oxford staff took all of those macho-men workouts and manly diets to heart, because there were plenty of broad shoulders and trim butts.
None quite as nice as Jake’s, of course.