Page 224 of One More Kiss

She printed her proofs, put her laptop into her bag, and left the building without a word to anyone. Truthfully, she didn’t really know anyone from work. She knew names, exchanged greetings sometimes, but she didn’t see anyone from her office outside of work.

She was fine with that, she had her friends, and most everyone in the office spent their days kissing Cecilia’s ass. It was hard to take someone seriously when their nose was constantly brown.

Ten minutes later, she was being led into Gertrude’s sitting area, which was the only part of the house that had any kind of design flow. Not that it was a positive one—it had the look and feel of a medieval dungeon minus the torture devices.

Of course, Bailey considered when Gertrude stepped into the room that being around this woman for longer than thirty seconds was torture enough.

“So, what do you have for me, Bailey? Hopefully something better than a red rug paired with pale yellow curtains.” She took her seat and lifted a teacup from the tray that had been placed on the coffee table between the two high-backed chairs.

You need this account, Bailey. She reminded herself while trying desperately to keep her middle finger sheathed. “Of course, Mrs. Lawson, I’m so sorry that I made that suggestion in the first place.” The suggestion that came from your mouth and you told me to deal with. “I’ve put together a few different color schemes with the pastels.” Bailey pulled the prints from her briefcase and laid them out in front of her client.

“Well, aren’t these lovely?”

Bailey watched, amused, as Gertrude tried desperately to like the designs out in front of her. Were they pretty? Of course, Bailey was damn good at her job, but they were not what Gertrude really wanted. It had taken her some time, but Bailey realized that Gertrude was a woman who wanted to be disappointed so she could swoop in and be the brains behind the idea. Therefore, what she asked for was not really what she wanted.

“I also have this.” Bailey pulled one last design from her briefcase and smiled smugly when Gertrude’s delight-filled eyes widened.

Boom, mic drop.

“This is wonderful.”

“And the best part? You can add splashes of red and blue for your party, but when it’s over, you can use other colors to change out the theme. Valentine's Day—you can use pink and red, Christmas—red and green, in between holidays—pale yellow. The combinations are virtually endless.”

“Bailey, this is perfect!” Gertrude got to her feet and did a little dance.

“Wonderful! I’ll let you think on it for two days, and then I’ll bring over the final contract.”

“I don’t need to think on it. I want to get started right away! Do you have the contract now?”

“Yes, of course.” Bailey tried to hide her relief. Perhaps this meant a full nights’ sleep for the first time since she’d taken on Gertrude as a client three months ago. She pulled out the contract and set it on the table.

“I cannot wait to see this all in my home! You will do every room, right? Just like in the picture?”

“Yes, ma’am, it’s all in the contract. Before I purchase, I will send you an itemized list so you can approve. Once that’s done and the items are in order, I will invoice you for fifty percent. The other fifty percent will be due upon completion.”

“I cannot tell you how happy I am.” In a move that surprised and slightly disturbed Bailey, Gertrude hugged her.

Bailey patted her gently on the back, feeling more awkward by the second. Unless it was friends or family, or she was getting laid, Bailey hated being touched.

“I’m glad. I will get started pulling items for you right away. My team will be coming in to clear out whatever items you tag for them to remove. We can put them into a storage facility for you to do with what you will, or we can donate them to charities.”

“Charities will be fine. I will go through and tag what I want removed. Thank you!”

“Anytime.” Bailey slid her documents back into her briefcase and headed toward the door.

She’d kicked ass this morning, and now she was going home. To take a damn nap.

Bailey was so excited about her future plans she didn’t see the man walking in just as she was walking out.

They clashed, and Bailey fell not so gracefully right onto her ass as her briefcase thudded to the ground next to her.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry!”

“Well maybe you should-” She started but stopped when she locked eyes with the softest brown ones she’d ever seen. “I should be watching where I’m going.”

He reached down to help her to her feet. “I am the one who should have been looking. I was answering an e-mail.” He held up the phone still in his hand.

Bailey brushed a strand of hair from her face as she drank him in. Because a man who looked like him needed to be drunk in.

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