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  “Can we put the top up? I’m sorry, it’s just that I’m so pale I burn easily.”

  “Of course we can,” Gabrielle said. She made a few adjustments, hit a button on the dash, and the top was securely in place. “And now you’re safe.” Her smile was the first genuine one Serena had seen. It was breathtaking. Maybe it was because Gabrielle was away from the office and the people she worked with, but Serena already noticed a difference.

  “Tell me about the company you work for. How long have you been with them?” Serena adjusted her seat belt and waited as Gabrielle plugged the closest doggie daycare into her GPS.

  “Ten years,” she said.

  “So, you started there when you were fifteen.” The genuine laugh from Gabrielle forced Serena to look the other way. Her stomach did a flip-flop at the huskiness of the sound.

  “I’m thirty-three years old, but thank you for the compliment. Arnest & Max pursued me at the beginning of my junior year of college. I was interning at a different firm during the summers, but they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.” Gabrielle gripped the steering wheel tighter, either from determination or anger. Serena wasn’t completely sure. The motion made thick white scars on Gabrielle’s right hand stand out. They looked old, but serious. Serena was afraid to ask because it was rude, but her interest was piqued.

  “Are you the only woman in the company?”

  “The only woman architect. We have a few women engineers, the office manager is a woman, and most of the assistants are women,” Gabrielle said.

  “It’s a male-dominated industry. I’m glad you’re making a dent. I worked as a clerk in a bookstore. The owner is a woman, but she kind of gives women owners a bad name.”

  “That sucks. You don’t work there anymore?”

  “No. I quit about two months ago.” Serena waited for the barrage of questions, but they never came. Gabrielle didn’t press. How could an ex-bookstore clerk afford a multi-million-dollar project? “You know who I am, don’t you?”

  Gabrielle sighed. “I kind of guessed.” She left out the part about Rosie googling her name and finding the info online.

  “How did you know?”

  “Actually the new car and new dog gave it away. I think it’s great. For once somebody who’s young enough to do something good with that much money actually won,” Gabrielle said.

  “Yeah, it was a massive change to my life.” Serena looked out the window and watched the trees and small shops go by.

  “Hopefully all for the better.”

  “It has its ups and downs, that’s for sure,” Serena said. She didn’t know why, but she wanted to share with Gabrielle. Making friends now was virtually impossible. Not that she was great at it before, but forty-two million dollars richer and suddenly a lot of people wanted to be her friend for all of the wrong reasons. Chloe said Amber called her weekly wanting to reconnect.

  “Here’s the first place. I’m sure they’ll give us a tour.” Gabrielle pulled into a close spot and parked. “How do you want to handle this? Do you want them to know what we are doing or are we just looking for a place to board our dog?”

  Again, that genuine smile made Serena’s knees weak. Up close, Gabrielle seemed flawless. Perfect eyebrows, full lips with a touch of color on them, and not a single hair out of place. She was too put together. No freckles, no moles, not even a wrinkle. Serena leaned back because Gabrielle’s presence was overwhelming in the small coupe. “We can just say we are looking around at daycares. We don’t have to tell them why.”

  Gabrielle nodded. “Okay. Let’s do this.”

  Serena watched Gabrielle unfold her long legs and step out of the car. She grabbed her messenger bag and quickened her step when she noticed Gabrielle was holding the door to Pet Paradise open for her. “Thanks.” She mumbled and smiled awkwardly at her.

  Gabrielle walked up to the counter and asked for a tour of the place. Kelly, the new intern at Pet Paradise, was more than happy to accommodate them. She walked them through the play area which, much to Serena’s embarrassment, had several ramps and obstacles for the dogs. The outside area had awnings, which Gabrielle didn’t have on her design, but Serena thought was a good addition.

  “I like the idea of artificial turf on the inside instead of just plain concrete,” Gabrielle said to Serena.

  “It’s very easy to hose off and keep clean,” Kelly said.

  “Do you have heated floors?” Gabrielle asked.

  “No, because our facility is heated. Follow me and I’ll show you the newly renovated individual rooms.”

  As assertive as Gabrielle was in the play areas, she was extremely standoffish when they reached the individual guest rooms. She stood back while Serena walked with Kelly and discussed some of the perks they offered for the dogs. Although they were asked not to touch the guests, Serena couldn’t help but talk to them.

  “Look at you, you big boy.” A St. Bernard was in the largest room they had available. It was a good-size room with a bed that was up on tiny legs so the room could be cleaned easier. Kelly explained that the dogs were taken out five times a day, not including play time. The dog, Samson, was a regular at the daycare. Serena fell in love with him instantly. “I just recently became a fur mama.”

  “Lucky you. Do you just have one pet?”

  “For now, yes. Once I get settled in my house, I’m sure I’ll pick up a few dozen more.” Serena noticed that Gabrielle didn’t laugh along with them. She stood behind them and didn’t show an interest in Samson. “What about areas for other animals?”

  “Oh, we also have a cat area. It’s on the other side for obvious reasons.”

  Serena noticed Gabrielle’s shoulders sagged in what appeared to be relief when they left the dogs. She was more involved when they entered the cat room. “We have cat towers, and scratching walls for them.”

  “Do they all get to be out at once or in stages?”

  “Oh, the easygoing ones are out most of the time. They only go in their spaces at night. The cats who aren’t happy to be here usually either stay in their spaces or go into the special rooms we have for cats that need a safe, quiet zone.”

  The rest of the tour lasted only a few minutes, but it was so helpful that Serena couldn’t help but thank Kelly over and over again. She left with so many ideas that she couldn’t wait to talk to Gabrielle.

  “That was incredible.”

  “Very valuable field trip. I certainly learned a lot.” Gabrielle checked the time and asked Serena what sounded good for lunch.

  “I like just about anything.” Serena came from a life of scraping. As long as it filled her up, she didn’t care what she ate. “I bet I’m not as picky as you are.”

  Gabrielle’s shoulders stiffened again. “I don’t know about that.”

  Serena realized her faux pas and quickly backpedaled. “I mean, if you know my life, you would know that I will eat anything you put in front of me.”

  “High metabolism?”

  “Raised poor.”

  Gabrielle nodded. “I understand. If you don’t mind deli, I know a great place. It’s smallish, but we can get a table at this time of the afternoon.”

  “Sounds delish. I’m in.”

  To be honest, Serena was getting tired of really nice food every night. She just wanted simple stuff like meatloaf and mashed potatoes, but living with Chloe and Jackie while waiting on the papers to close on the house she finally picked was all filet mignons and steamed asparagus and smoked, shaved Brussels sprouts. There wasn’t anything normal. The last thing they ate together that was remotely fun was pizza the night Serena found her lottery ticket.

  “This place is famous for its sandwiches, but their pasta salad and coleslaw are pretty great, too.”

  Again, Gabrielle held the door for Serena. She slipped into the cool restaurant but stopped short as she looked around to figure out where she needed to be. The “order here” line was opposite of where she thought it would be. She also wasn’t expecting Gabrielle to bump into her. The
feel of Gabrielle’s curves against her back almost made her moan out loud.

  “I’m so sorry.”

  “Completely my fault. I’m sorry to just stop.”

  “No worries. The line starts over here.” Gabrielle pointed to a small line to their right.

  Serena’s body was still tingling from their innocent bump, but she followed Gabrielle and listened to her suggestions as she read off the best items on the menu.

  “What is your favorite? I’ll just go with whatever you suggest,” Serena said.

  “Sounds perfect. I’ll order for us.”

  Serena was always attracted to women in charge. She loved the power they had over all situations. She wasn’t meek. She just liked it when other people made the decisions. If life taught her anything, it was to go with the flow. If she didn’t expect things, she was never disappointed.

  Gabrielle had no problem telling the worker behind the counter what she wanted, what she didn’t want, and how much she wanted. Serena wondered what she was like in bed. Was she as demanding? Or did she like to give up control? Amber had most of the control in their relationship. Serena never fought or argued with her. She was happy to be in a relationship that worked most of the time. The one thing she couldn’t handle was infidelity. One time was forgivable. The second and the third time couldn’t be overlooked. With Chloe and Jackie supporting her, she was able to cut that toxin out of her life. It was hard, and she almost caved a time or two, but with Amber gone, Serena felt stronger and more in control of her decisions.

  Gabrielle turned to Serena. “Is there anything you don’t like? Tomatoes? Onions?”

  Serena took a small step back and wished Gabrielle’s nearness wasn’t such an issue. “Um, I could probably do without the onions, but if you think it tastes better with them on, then we can keep them.”

  “Good point. No onions.” Gabrielle turned back around to the sandwich engineer and gave him very specific instructions on how much of everything she wanted.

  “I think I’ve got this,” the young man said. He slid both sandwiches into the toaster for thirty seconds and filled their side orders of coleslaw and pasta salad and potato salad.

  “Then do it right, or I’m going to complain,” Gabrielle said.

  Serena was surprised at Gabrielle’s rudeness with the young man. He didn’t back down, though. He remained positive and friendly.

  “Don’t make me sneak jalapeños on your sandwich. Or over-pepper it,” he said.

  “I’m standing right here watching you,” she said.

  In an amazing turn of events, they both busted out laughing. Gabrielle explained that the sweet young man was her nephew. Serena breathed a sigh of relief and laughed nervously.

  “What are you bringing to the barbecue on Sunday?” Phillip handed Gabrielle their tray after taking her payment.

  “Sandwiches from here. You?” Gabrielle winked at him.

  “I’m manning the grill. And I’m probably going to bring some cookies.”

  “I’m going to make peanut butter brownies and probably bake a pie,” Gabrielle said.

  “Oh, can I make a request?”

  “Let me guess. You want a whole pecan pie to yourself.”

  His wide grin was a dead giveaway that she was right.

  “Okay. I’ll bring peach for everyone else and sneak you a pecan pie.”

  “You’re my favorite,” he said.

  Gabrielle slipped a twenty in the tip jar. “See you on Sunday.” She grabbed the tray and found an empty table near the back of the deli.

  “He’s very sweet. I’m glad you know him because I was getting a little nervous,” Serena said. She waited for Gabrielle to divide up what was on the tray, not really knowing what was for her.

  “You thought I was being rude like I was at the lodge, didn’t you? I promise you that was a one-time deal. I’m not normally rude. That day was very stressful. Getting stuck on the highway was such a helpless feeling, and I knew Elizabeth was waiting.” She handed Serena a plate with her sandwich, half the salads, and silverware.

  “This is a lot of food,” Serena said. She wasn’t quite sure where to start. Gabrielle didn’t waste time and took a hearty bite of the warm turkey and provolone sandwich.

  “The secret sauce makes this so yummy,” Gabrielle said between bites.

  “What’s in the secret sauce?”

  “Phillip refuses to tell me. He said he has a nondisclosure with Tommy’s, which is completely untrue. He won’t tell me just because I want to know. He’s such a brat.”

  “He’s adorable. Is he your brother’s son or sister’s? And by the way, this is delicious. Normal food. I love it.”

  “My brother and his wife adopted him when he was about three. He’s been a perfect kid the entire time. Seriously, if I was going to have a kid, I would want to clone him. Honor Society, works all the time, helps around the house, and is super smart.”

  “That’s amazing. My sister is twenty, and she has been a handful since the time she was three. I mean, she’s smart and adorable now, but she rebelled when she was a kid.”

  Gabrielle wiped her mouth. “Not an easy life, huh?”

  Serena sat back in her chair to take a break from eating. “It wasn’t the worst, but I had to grow up fast, so I have a strained relationship with my mom.”

  “What about your father?”

  Serena gave a half laugh, laced with sarcasm and bitterness. “What about him? I honestly don’t even know his name. Truth be told, I barely remember Faith’s dad. He wasn’t around for long, thankfully.”

  “I’m sorry it was hard for you. I hope that now you can live the life you’ve always wanted to.” Gabrielle sounded sincere and not at all jealous of Serena’s fortune.

  “Speaking of which, I thought the field trip was great. It gave me a lot to think about.”

  “Are we going to have a lot of changes?” Gabrielle lifted her eyebrow at Serena.

  She shrugged. “Let’s wait until we see a few more. Maybe the next one will give us even more inspiration.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Christopher, I have to redesign the whole thing. This will be the third time.”

  Gabrielle sat down so hard her chair rolled back and she had to grab her desk to keep from falling over. Her boss was kind enough to not laugh at her.

  “You’ve only been working on it a few weeks. You know you have to give it time.”

  “Here’s the shitty part. She’s added back things we scrapped from the original design. We went from plan A to plan B, then a combo of both. Now she wants so much on a relatively small amount of land.” Gabrielle was frustrated. After their field trip and lunch meeting, Gabrielle was full of ideas and was excited to revise the drawings. Friday afternoon and they were almost back to square one. The designs she’d shared with Serena weren’t met with the same enthusiasm. “She added the obstacles in the play area back in, but wants safety rails so the doggies don’t fall off.” Gabrielle stood because sitting was too much. She paced the little area in front of her desk as she shared her frustration.

  “What do you need me to do? Do you need my help?”

  She sat down. His tone was genuine and instantly deflated her bad mood. “No. I’m just being a whiny baby. It’s all relatively easy. I’m just used to knocking it out of the park the first go around. This rejection is killing my artistic groove.”

  “You’re one of our best. Don’t worry. I know you will shine on this project. The client has written you a blank check. Do what you need to and make her happy. Keep me posted.” He stood and looked at his watch. “Don’t stay too late. You need a night off.”

  Gabrielle nodded as he left, thinking she did need a break. It wasn’t that it was taking her forever, she just couldn’t see Serena’s vision. It was her fault. Her fear of dogs really blocked her creative ability to move forward on this project. She wasn’t giving Serena the best she could. If the prestigiousness of partner wasn’t on the line, Gabrielle would have handed it off to a junior a
rchitect. But everything was riding on this project. She couldn’t fuck it up. The last conversation with Serena that afternoon made her want to throw something. Instead, she took a deep breath and did the one thing that always helped her mood: called her mom.

  “Hey, Mom. What’s going on?”

  “Finally planning the barbecue and sending the lists to everyone, reminding them what they’re supposed to bring.” Meredith’s voice instantly soothed Gabrielle’s ruffled feathers from the day’s rejection.

  “Are you texting everyone? I already know I’m bringing pies. And making an extra one for Phillip,” Gabrielle said.

  “When did you see him?” Meredith asked.

  “I took my client to Tommy’s. She’s the one who wants me to build the pet hotel. We keep running into walls. Mom, I’ve tried everything. She’s very stubborn and has all of these ideas, but they aren’t practical. She almost doubled the size of the big dog room, which takes away from their indoor play area. It’s not that it’s impossible, but she only has two acres. It’s amazing how fast that real estate fills up with normal things like parking lots.”

  “Honey, remember that the client is always right. And she’s obligated to pay you for your time. If she wants to drag it on and on, you just have to roll with it. What’s she like?”

  “The client?” Gabrielle wasn’t prepared to answer questions about Serena. “Well, she’s very quiet and stubborn, but not rude about it. She has a dog that travels with her everywhere, which you know I don’t like.”

  Gabrielle heard her mom sigh on the phone. “You’re not used to nice people who are stubborn. You’re used to fighting to be heard and diving right into a project. Do you want my advice?”

  “That’s why I called. I always need your advice.”

  “Get to know her better. If this is the most important job of your life, try harder. As a matter of fact, why don’t you invite her to the barbecue this Sunday.”

  “I’m not going to mix business with pleasure. You know I don’t do that.” Gabrielle was irritated because it was a solid solution, but she didn’t want to cross the line with Serena.