Page 8 of The Floral Arrangement

I had two months—if I was lucky—to find a new supplier or lose my home and my beloved flower shop I’d worked so hard to establish. I blinked furiously. I couldn’t let that happen. Not again. I’d do whatever it took to make sure of it.

CHAPTERTHREE

ROZ

“Tellthem the merger will only be successful if they’re willing to streamline, consolidate, and restructure, and that means layoffs,” I barked into my phone at a junior partner as I strode across the floor toward my corner office. “If they don’t have the stomach for firing people, they shouldn’t move ahead.” I nodded at Sofia, who sat at the desk outside my office, stabbed my phone with my finger to hang up, and then swung open the door.

I frowned. An enormous vase of flowers sat in front of the window, which showcased expansive views of Bryant Park from the thirty-fifth floor. I walked over, my nose wrinkling at the sickly, cloying scent. I grabbed the card and opened it, stepping away. A note from James.Good luck, Roslyn.I gritted my teeth. What a dick. He knew I hated flowers. And no one called me Roslyn. For some preposterous reason, the idiot clearly thought he had some chance of getting the promotion.

I strode to my desk and pressed the button on my phone.

“Sofia, what are these flowers doing in my office? Get them out of here, now.” I threw the card in the trashcan.

“Sorry, Roz. They must have been delivered while I was on the phone with Jess.”

“Jessica? What did she want?” My pulse spiked. With only weeks until Adam’s official retirement, it was about time he shared the results of the senior partners’ vote. As managing partner of the New York office, with an impressive client base that included some of the world’s largest tech, energy, and pharmaceutical companies, I was the obvious choice to be Adam’s successor.

“Adam wants to speak with you this morning. The only time you were both free was nine-thirty. I’ve put it in your calendar.”

I glanced at my phone. It was 9:05 a.m. Plenty of time for me to finish ripping a report one of my consultants had prepared for another project about clean energy to shreds. I stretched my fingers.

“Yes, that’s fine.” I dropped the phone onto my desk, my gaze falling on the photo of Lottie and Matt next to it, and I paused. I’d give them a call over dinner. Lottie had no clue what I did, but she’d become bizarrely fixated on my promotion after overhearing Matt and me talking about it. I smiled. I’d finally have good news to share with her tonight.

The door opened, and Sofia rushed in to remove the flowers. Her eyes lingered on them as she left.

“Thanks, Sofia,” I said as I straightened the photo. “Feel free to keep them if you’d like.”

That should make up for me snapping at her—not that Sofia took my curt manner personally anymore. But she deserved the flowers.

I sat at the desk, whipped out the clean energy report and my favorite red pen from my briefcase and got to work.

After making quick work of the report, I made my way across the floor to Adam’s office, arriving with three minutes to spare. A few offices down, one of the assistants watered a potted plant. The memory of Olivia and her ridiculous t-shirt came flooding back. I clenched my jaw. It had been six months. I should just throw it in the trash and move on. But the evening had stuck in my mind. Olivia’s dark shiny hair and intelligent eyes, the rapport we’d shared, the way she’d looked at me, desire clear in her eyes, that kiss. And then… nothing.

What had gotten into me that night? It was like I’d been transported back to my pre-Sadie days, when I’d flirted with gorgeous women, dating some and falling into bed with others. It had felt good, being desired and desiring in return, but I knew from experience that it didn’t always end well. Especially with desire that strong.

I pressed my lips together. That night was an anomaly that would not happen again. Anyway, I wouldn’t have time for dating once I was promoted.

“Did you get your flowers, Roslyn?”

Gritting my teeth, I looked up. James was sitting on Jessica’s desk, smirking. Jessica, sitting behind him, rolled her eyes. I fought the urge to do the same.Be civil, Roz.

He must have flown in from London to hear the results of the vote. While he was the only other contender for the role, he was a weak one. The insufferably pompous Brit’s financials were nowhere near as good as mine, and his vision for Saunders & Company was effectively the status quo, whereas my focus was ensuring our relevance well into the twenty-first century. There was no real contest. I almost felt sorry for him.Almost.

“I got them.” I studied the cuff of my right shirt sleeve.

“Excellent.” James slid off the desk, ran his hand through his salt-and-pepper hair and adjusted his tie. “Well, I’d better leave you to it. All the best.”

I wanted to rub that damn smirk off his face, but instead, I nodded. “You too.” He wouldn’t be smiling when I got the job.

He sauntered off, and I approached Jessica’s desk. “I take it James hasn’t met with Adam yet?”

She glanced at her screen. “No. He’s meeting him at ten.”

Adam must have decided to give me the good news first before letting James down gently.

Jessica’s eyes flicked up, gazing over my shoulder. I turned just as Adam stepped out, tall and impeccably dressed, with teeth and hair that looked whiter than white against the tan he’d acquired from spending weekends at his house in the Hamptons. He ushered me into his office.

Excitement vibrated through me. This was it. Since joining Saunders & Company at twenty-three, I’d dedicated my life to climbing its rungs. Each time I’d reached one milestone, I’d firmly set my sights on the next one: the youngest person to be made partner at the firm, the first female managing partner of the New York office, the firm’s top earner three years in a row. Now, here I was, finally about to reach the pinnacle of everything I’d worked for. How would it feel to be global managing partner? There wasn’t anywhere to go from there.

---