Oh, so the boss caught that. Panic! He knows. But then I remind myself that there’s no way Richard could know Mark and I were talking about him. Let him assume Mark’s wink was about how much the bartender liked me and not how much I like my boss.

I shrug and stop in front of our gate. “Mark is a friendly guy.”

“Mark? Is that why you were holding hands when I arrived?”

Richard stops next to me and gives me a once-over, his eyes lingering long enough to give me goose bumps.

“We… I mean, what?”

Is the boss annoyed because he thinks I’m behaving unprofessionally? No, Richard isn’t prissy like that.

So what then? Could he be acting… jealous? No. No way. Blair, repeat after me: “You are on a business trip.” But I’m not the one getting all worked up over a stupid wink. And he’s ogling my shoes.

Richard’s eyes travel back up my body, stopping when they meet mine. “Do you always fly dressed like this?”

Okay, I admit I made a bit of an effort. In my defense, it wasn’t to seduce the boss. After only a few days, I was so fed up with the athleisure style, I couldn’t wait to put on an elegant dress. And this little black midi dress is nothing too provocative. Maybe it’s the shoes. The super narrow, super high stiletto heels must be eye-catching. Richard was openly staring at my feet just a moment ago.

“Well, since I didn’t have to walk for once,” I finally reply.

Richard’s gaze flickers to the ground again, and I suppress a tiny smile. Are shoes his weak spot?

Ten

Never Make Exceptions

By the time we land, I’m so over the shoes. As gorgeous as my pumps are, I can’t wait to kick them off. No matter that I’ve been sitting the entire time; these shoes were not made for pressure-bloated feet. Outside LAX, we hop in a cab to reach our hotel, and I have to muster all my willpower not to kick the stilettos off during the ride and reach for the flats in my suitcase. No pain, no height.

Indira chose a nice hotel in Santa Monica, near the ocean and with a stunning view of the pier. We check in and agree to meet in the lobby in an hour for dinner. The room is cozy if a little nondescript—a typical hotel chain with standardized furniture. But the view is everything.

A quick shower, and it’s already time to get ready for the night. To pack light, I’ve picked out all my outfits in advance. The designated one for tonight is a sheath bandage dress in a shimmering metallic gold-bronze. The bandage’s horizontal stripes and thick fabric are body-sculpting and make sure everything hangs just right.

But the real stars of this outfit are the shoes. As I take them out of their travel bag, I smirk. If Richard liked my pumps, wait until he sees these beauties. Knee-high metallic sandals with eight narrow straps, toes-to-knee, of which I have to individually buckle the last six. Not a quick job, but worth the trouble.