2

      â€œHURRY UP! Staff meeting in the conference room. Charlotte wants everyone there.”

      Nina looked up at Lizbeth from the reference books spread across her desk. She’d been caught up in finding out the name of the original designer of platform shoes and had lost all track of time. Before that, she’d been immersed in an idle contemplation of the mystery man she’d spilled coffee on last night. She still couldn’t put him out of her mind, going over every stupid mistake she’d made.

      Why hadn’t she offered to send his shirt to the cleaner or pay for a new shirt? Why hadn’t she given him her phone number or at least introduced herself? Nina had lived in Manhattan for seven years, since her college days at Columbia, and she’d never met a man quite as handsome as the man she’d affectionately dubbed “Coffee Man.”

      A more appropriate name would come to her, but Nina was already certain that this man would occupy her fantasies for a long time to come. Besides being incredibly handsome, he was funny and smart and confident, though how she knew all these things she wasn’t sure. What she did know was that if she ever saw him again she wasn’t going to let him get away a second time.

      â€œNina?”

      With a start, Nina glanced up at Lizbeth, drawn from her daydream. “Oh, right. The meeting.” She reached up and raked her fingers through her hair. Though Lizbeth looked like she’d just stepped out of a magazine ad, Nina usually managed to run a comb through her hair on the way down her apartment stairs and dash on mascara and a little lipstick during her bus ride from her East Village apartment. “She wants everyone there?” she asked.

      â€œBig news,” Lizbeth warned. “I think bad news, too, from the look on Charlotte’s face. She’s wearing the same clothes she had on yesterday afternoon, her hair is a mess and she’s got raccoon eyes from her mascara. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Charlotte looking like a roadside rodent. Maybe Daddy Danforth has finally cut the purse strings.”

      Nina’s heart twisted in her chest. If the magazine was having financial problems then the first jobs to be cut would be editorial assistants. Her current position as fact checker was safe as long as Attitudes was still publishing. But her future as an assistant editor with the magazine suddenly looked bleak. “Are you sure she wants me there? I’m never invited to staff meetings.”

      â€œShe specifically asked that you come,” Lizbeth said.

      Nina jumped to her feet, hope springing to life inside her. “Did she ask for me by name?”

      â€œYes,” Lizbeth said. “She walked in my office, told me about the meeting and requested that I be sure to tell Tina.”

      Nina rolled her eyes and cursed softly. “Is my name that hard to remember? I’ve worked for Charlotte for nearly three years! She sees me at least four or five times a week.” She looked down at the bottle-green satin Chinese jacket and flowered skirt she wore. “I don’t look like I blend into the furniture, do I?”

      Lizbeth considered Nina’s skirt for a few seconds and put on her best Southern drawl. “My mama did have some dining room portieres that looked a lot like your skirt.”

      Nina strode to the door, pinching Lizbeth’s arm as she passed. “You’re so mean to me. I don’t know why you’re still my friend.”

      Lizbeth fell into step beside her as they strolled toward the conference room. “Because I’m the only one who really appreciates you,” she said with a lazy smile. “And your whimsical fashion sense.” She gave her the once-over with her critical fashion eye. “All right, I love the jacket. There, are you happy?”

      One thing Nina was happy about was that Lizbeth had forgotten the events of the night before. The last thing she needed was her best friend chiding her about the mistakes she’d made. Lizbeth just didn’t understand. She’d always had boys fawning over her and men falling at her feet. Nina had discovered boys a little later in life, so she’d been playing catch-up since she was eighteen. She sighed softly, glancing at Lizbeth. No matter how long she worked at it, she’d never catch up to Lizbeth.

      By the time they reached the conference room, all the chairs had been taken by senior staff. Lizbeth and Nina stood against the back wall and watched as Charlotte called the meeting to order. Nina couldn’t recall ever attending a staff meeting before. Charlotte preferred to deal with her one-on-one and important news was usually passed on to Nina through office gossip, haphazard memos, or not at all.

      â€œWe have a problem,” Charlotte began. “A huge problem. I’ve called you all in here because, frankly, I don’t know what to do.” To Nina’s surprise, the normally icy Charlotte looked like she was about to cry. “I can’t go to Daddy, so I’m asking all of you for your help.” She sniffed. “I know I haven’t always been the nicest boss, but I can’t change that now.” Her voice trembled slightly. “Yesterday evening I had a visit from a representative of NightRyder, some Internet company with truckloads of cash. They offered to buy the