“You should have,” he agreed, “especially since you got me in trouble too.”

“Simon, I really am sorry.”

He waved his hand, his enormous ring catching the fluorescent lights. “Not your fault. You can’t change her.”

He was right. She couldn’t change Vivian. Nobody could. Leopards didn’t change their spots.

She glanced at the closed door to Vivian’s empty office. Leopards might not change their spots, but they were pretty good at eating people alive. Why should Jules stick around to get devoured?

She immediately imagined being devoured by Vivian in a more pleasant way, throbbed between her legs, and wondered if it wouldn’t be better just to jump out of the nearest window.

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Simon wasn’t the only one who got the cold shoulder. Vivian didn’t talk to Jules all day either.

Talk about taking the wind out of someone’s sails. She tried not to droop.

Vivian left the office at two to get a manicure, returned at four, and continued to ignore Jules. At four fifteen, Simon walked in, gave Vivian something, and walked out again. He paused by Jules’s desk.

“So I heard back from Casey,” he said.

Jules forgot about Vivian for two seconds and stood up, wringing her hands.

He grinned at her.

They were going to publish her article! Jules clapped her hands and jumped up and down with a little squeal. “It’s going in Salon? She liked it?”

“She liked it.” He kept smiling. “You should hear from her soon. Nice work.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you,” she said honestly. “Thank you so much, Simon.”

He opened his mouth to say something, but at that moment, Vivian growled from within her office, “Julia, get Ellen von Unwerth for me. Now.”

She sounded furious. Of course she’d overheard.

Simon left quickly while Jules scrolled through the fashion photographers group on her phone. Better take care of this one quicker than quick.

That was the most Vivian spoke to her until nine p.m. She’d stayed later than usual tonight for no clear reason. She had no parties or engagements scheduled. Jules hadn’t been called upon to do anything in the meantime, and now it was just the two of them alone.

Then at nine, Vivian called out “Julia” in a cool tone.

It gave Jules a clue about how this conversation was going to go. Shit. Vivian was going to do it again. Jules was happy for the second time about her story, and Vivian was going to ruin her mood again.

But no. No, that wasn’t going to happen. Forget it. Jules wouldn’t let her do that. She was excited about her work, and she was going to stay excited. So she lifted her chin and marched into Vivian’s office with her head held high.