“That’s a cartoon, not a rom-com.” Julia’s mouth quirked. “But either way, you’re talking about a fantasy. We don’t get meet-cutes with guys with BDE; we get awkward dates with guys who send us unwanted pics of their trouser shrimp.”

“Maybe it is fantasy, but that’s part of the appeal.” Kat tugged on her braid. “I’m with Andie on this one. If we had a chance to meet someone by accident instead of by app, or if life were a little more like a romantic comedy…”

On the TV screen, the movie was ending, and the conversation stalled as everyone paused to watch Colin Firth’s character kiss Renée Zellweger in the softly falling snow. When he wrapped his coat around them both in the middle of the London street to the tune of a soft, sultry love song, all three girls sighed.

“If life were like a romantic comedy, we’d get more kisses like that,” Kat said.

“Total fantasy.” Julia shook her head. “I’m as likely to find the wardrobe to Narnia as I am to find my own Mark Darcy. Life isn’t like a romantic comedy.” As she stared at the melting ice in the dregs of her drink, an idea came to her. “Now that would make a great piece for TrendList.”

“Let me guess.” Kat smirked. “‘A Dozen Reasons Why Life Isn’t Like a Romantic Comedy.’”

“I was thinking ten, but sure, I bet I could come up with a dozen.”

“Does this mean you’re not getting fired after all?” Andie wondered, collecting their glasses and walking back to the island for refills.

“Laid off,” Julia corrected primly. “And that’s still a very real possibility, but I’ve got to keep doing my job while I have one.”

“What happened to the asset plan?” Kat asked.

“Yeah, you were supposed to give us an update,” Andie reminded her, over the sound of the cocktail shaker.

Julia had intended to keep her pitch problem to herself and focus on enjoying the evening with her friends, but she’d also promised to fill them in. And now that they’d asked … She rubbed a hand over her face.

“Well?” Andie pressed. “Did you do the TADA thing?”

“I did.”

“And?”

“And this.” Julia reached for her purse, pulling out a handful of key chains. She tossed one to Kat.

“What is that?” Andie asked.

“Oh, it’s ‘Take Me!’”

Andie blinked. “Take you where?”

“No, you daffodil,” Kat snapped, her amused tone taking out the sting. She held up the key chain. “It’s a new segment on TrendList.” Kat turned her attention back to Julia. “Those videos are all over my social media feed.”

“They’re all over everyone’s social media feed,” Julia agreed. “I talked to my boss, and the bottom line is I need to come up with an idea for a place to review by Monday.”