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Chapters (68)
  1. Partner Pursuit
  2. Copyright
  3. Dedication
  4. Contents
  5. Chapter One
  6. Chapter Two
  7. Chapter Three
  8. Chapter Four
  9. Chapter Five
  10. Chapter Six
  11. Chapter Seven
  12. Re: Whitaker retirement party
  13. Chapter Nine
  14. Chapter Ten
  15. Chapter Eleven
  16. Chapter Twelve
  17. Chapter Thirteen
  18. Chapter Fourteen
  19. Chapter Fifteen
  20. Chapter Sixteen
  21. Chapter Seventeen
  22. Chapter Eighteen
  23. Chapter Nineteen
  24. Chapter Twenty
  25. Friday, New York City
  26. Chapter Twenty-Two
  27. Chapter Twenty-Three
  28. Chapter Twenty-Four
  29. Chapter Twenty-Five
  30. Chapter Twenty-Six
  31. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  32. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  33. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  34. Chapter Thirty
  35. Chapter Thirty-One
  36. Chapter Thirty-Two
  37. Chapter Thirty-Three
  38. Chapter Thirty-Four
  39. Chapter Thirty-Five
  40. Chapter Thirty-Six
  41. Subject: Deposition of Plaintiff in James case
  42. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  43. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  44. Subject: Mentors Found
  45. Chapter Forty-One
  46. Chapter Forty-Two
  47. Chapter Forty-Three
  48. Chapter Forty-Four
  49. Jake: While you’re stuck at work, think about this: I thought you might want to do a yoga session while I’m surfing in Santa Teresa. Should I book?
  50. Chapter Forty-Six
  51. Chapter Forty-Seven
  52. Chapter Forty-Eight
  53. Chapter Forty-Nine
  54. Chapter Fifty
  55. Chapter Fifty-One
  56. Chapter Fifty-Two
  57. Chapter Fifty-Three
  58. Chapter Fifty-Four
  59. Chapter Fifty-Five
  60. Chapter Fifty-Six
  61. Chapter Fifty-Seven
  62. Chapter Fifty-Eight
  63. Chapter Fifty-Nine
  64. Chapter Sixty
  65. Chapter Sixty-One
  66. About the Author
  67. Acknowledgements
  68. On any top-ten list of best Sunday plans, today’s brunch with my former crush and his new girlfriend would rank number eleven … hundred. Times five. But I couldn’t say no. We’re still friends.

She leaned, drained, against the door, flattened by the toll of hosting the party and the disappointment that nothing had happened with Jake. Whereas before she’d been floating, she now crashed to the ground. She shook her head. Jake is a nice guy doing the right thing. She’d thought it was over with his ex-girlfriend. Clearly not. But he’d moved uptown. That is pretty drastic. Is he still emotionally involved? He is involved enough that he cares when she texts him and leaves in the middle of night to go to her. And leaves me. Maybe he hadn’t made a move because he still had feelings for Veronika. She wasn’t sure if that made her feel better or worse.

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty

An emergency meeting convened at their Tribeca brunch place once Audrey texted Max that nothing had happened. She slumped against the turquoise diner seat as she finished recounting how Jake had left. After a brief pause, both Max and Eve jumped in.

“He has a dark side. That makes him much more interesting than just a party boy,” Max said thoughtfully.

“OMG, it’s the plot of Rebecca—get out now!” Eve said, talking over Max.

“Okay, okay, hold on here. He doesn’t have a dark side—his ex-girlfriend does; and his ex-girlfriend is alive, there’s no scary housekeeper, and he seemed to be trying to make clear that he isn’t still in love with her,” Audrey said. The clatter of plates from the kitchen punctuated Audrey’s defense as a waiter with a tray full of food emerged from the swinging kitchen door.

“My advice is to steer clear of men with crazy ex-girlfriends—especially those who call in the middle of the night and require the guy to come over,” Eve said.

“And interrupt potential fooling around. I’m seeing Eve’s point here. Potential sex vs. consoling ex-girlfriend. No contest,” Max said.

“Man, you guys are so right. But I really like him.”

The three friends considered options.

“Well, on the bright side, he’s interested,” Max consoled. “Aside from the possessive ex, he’s a good catch.”

“Personally, I wonder if she was just so attractive that he didn’t probe deeper,” Eve said.

Max conceded that men may initially prioritize looks without a deeper analysis. “But to give Jake the benefit of the doubt, he probably didn’t know she was possessive when they first dated,” Max said, defending his gender. “And what about women who are attracted to bad boys? Case in point here.”

“Jake is not a ‘bad boy,’” Audrey said.

“Putting aside his ex, I still prefer Jake to Tim. Although I did talk to Tim at the party, and maybe he’s not as boring as I thought,” Eve said.

“Compared to Tim, Jake is definitely ‘the bad boy.’” Max snorted.

“Really, you liked Tim?” Audrey asked Eve.