Look! You’re on the list! Sex-toy mogul Jack Sullivan tops this year’s list of the city’s most eligible bachelors in business. Don’t you think he needs a new woman to mend his broken heart? Makes you just want to nab that man even more.

He rolled his eyes, and replied, The depth of their insight never fails to astound me.

He turned the damn thing to silent. He could do without the reminders tonight. Reminders of anything. Of the woman he’d lost, of the fascination the gossip rags seemed to have with his dating or non-dating status—as the case had been for the last year—and of the claws some women wanted to sink into him, thanks to the growth trajectory Joy Delivered had been on. While at dinner with Casey last week, he’d been propositioned by a young woman who’d said she was on the hunt for an eligible bachelor businessman.

Call him old-fashioned, but the next time he got involved, he’d like it to be with someone who actually gave a shit about him, rather than what he did for a living, the company he ran, or his prior love life.

Or with the absolutely stunning brunette who was walking past him and—hello, lucky stars—was now sitting at the other end of the bar. The same one who’d caught his eye when she’d stepped into the elevator earlier in the evening. Her hair was in a twist that showed off her neck. She had a fantastic pair of legs, strong and muscular, a nice trim waist, and she was rocking some kind of buttoned-up-on-the outside vibe with her blouse and pencil skirt that made him wonder if she was buttoned up on the inside too.

Michelle hadn’t been expecting the barrage of questions, but what an eager bunch of counselors she’d encountered after her talk. She’d never felt so popular ‘til tonight, when she was nearly mobbed by fellow psychotherapists as she attempted to walk away from the lectern. They fired off questions for her on treatment and guidance for love and sex addicts, and she happily answered all of them to the best of her ability. Then she gathered up her notes, and made her way down to the lobby. She adjusted her purse strap, and sighed deeply, pleased with her work for the evening. Sharing insights and learning was a true passion of hers, and she’d had the opportunity to do so tonight with colleagues.

Tonight. The word reverberated through her, and she felt the slightest pang when she stepped off the elevator and remembered it was a Thursday. She and Clay had often had drinks on a Thursday night. While they still did from time to time, along with her brother, Davis, the get-togethers had been curtailed since Julia moved in with him. Understandable; the man was committed, and now he was married. Julia hadn’t cut them off; in fact, the redhead was lovely, and Michelle had visited Julia’s bar a few times. But it was simply too hard for Michelle to see them together that often, so she’d kept them in her life, but put herself on a restricted Clay-and-Julia diet.