1. Felicity
"Hey, Felicity, I'm heading out. Need me to do anything before I go?"
Felicity Groves looked up from her computer screen and rubbed her eyes. Her assistant, Melinda, was leaning in through the glass-fronted doors of her office.
"And before you asked," Melinda said with a smile, "I've finished the week's invoicing, got the PowerPoints for the Brockman presentation ready to go for Monday, and emailed your Denver clients about rescheduling that meeting. Is there anything else?"
Felicity laughed and shook her head. "You are a wonder, Mel. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Mel leaned against the door and playfully buffed her nails on her stylish top. She was all sharp angles and long legs, in contrast to Felicity's curves. Between the two of them, Mel was much more the picture of a top-end fashion designer, long and coltish with high model's cheekbones. Felicity was curvy and busty and cheerful, her dark, shining brown hair swept back into wings on either side of her face—slightly drooping wings now, at the end of a long work week.
"Go on, enjoy your weekend, Mel," Felicity said. "Turn off your phone and don't even think about this place until Monday."
"Oh, don't worry, I've got a hot date lined up and I hope I'll be much too busy to think about clients and spreadsheets." Mel winked. "What about you? Hot plans for the weekend?"
"Oh, I don't know. I thought I might get out of town for a day or two, if nothing else comes up." Felicity set her computer to shut down, and began gathering her things into her briefcase. "And no, that is not an invitation to set me up with another of your friends' brothers, cousins, or ex-boyfriends. Right now, all I want is to go home and have a nice hot bubble bath."
"On a Friday night?" Mel protested, scandalized. "Felicity, I feel as if I'm breaking some kind of oath of sisterhood if I let you do that. Can't I take you out for a drink, at least? My date's not picking me up 'til seven."
Felicity smiled, scooping paperwork into her briefcase. "I appreciate the offer, but really, Mel, all I want is to go home, kick off these shoes and have a nice bubble bath. Go get ready for your date, and have a wonderful time. See you Monday!"
Mel blew her a kiss and tripped out of the office. Felicity flipped off the lights and followed her out.
Groves Design was on the tenth floor of a brand-new office tower in downtown Minneapolis. Minneapolis-St. Paul was one of the few good-sized metropolitan areas where it was still possible to live near downtown without spending a fortune, and less than fifteen minutes after stepping out of the office, Felicity was unlocking the door of her apartment. She had, however, absolutely no intention of taking a bubble bath. Common sense said that she probably ought to eat, sleep, and drive north early in the morning, but she felt as if she'd waited much too long already. She always got this way in the spring, antsy and eager, the winter's long period of inactivity making her vibrate with suppressed energy.
And so, she stayed in the apartment for no more time than it took to change out of her work clothes into something more casual. Then she hurried back down to the car, two steps at a time. She didn't take an overnight bag. Where she was going, she wouldn't need one.
She picked up dinner from a drive-thru burger place on her way out of town.
Suburbs gave way to farms mixed with forest. Felicity drove north for nearly two hours before she turned off the highway into a small town, the sort of little nothing of a town that's scattered along rural highways from Alabama to Alberta. There was a one-pump gas station, an antique store, and an ice cream place that had been closed every single time she'd driven through.
She was very close now, and eagerness beat in her chest like the flutter of wings. She drove through the downtown and along a rural road, past little clusters of mailboxes, until finally she found the dirt road where she turned off. There was a
"Hey, Felicity, I'm heading out. Need me to do anything before I go?"
Felicity Groves looked up from her computer screen and rubbed her eyes. Her assistant, Melinda, was leaning in through the glass-fronted doors of her office.
"And before you asked," Melinda said with a smile, "I've finished the week's invoicing, got the PowerPoints for the Brockman presentation ready to go for Monday, and emailed your Denver clients about rescheduling that meeting. Is there anything else?"
Felicity laughed and shook her head. "You are a wonder, Mel. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Mel leaned against the door and playfully buffed her nails on her stylish top. She was all sharp angles and long legs, in contrast to Felicity's curves. Between the two of them, Mel was much more the picture of a top-end fashion designer, long and coltish with high model's cheekbones. Felicity was curvy and busty and cheerful, her dark, shining brown hair swept back into wings on either side of her face—slightly drooping wings now, at the end of a long work week.
"Go on, enjoy your weekend, Mel," Felicity said. "Turn off your phone and don't even think about this place until Monday."
"Oh, don't worry, I've got a hot date lined up and I hope I'll be much too busy to think about clients and spreadsheets." Mel winked. "What about you? Hot plans for the weekend?"
"Oh, I don't know. I thought I might get out of town for a day or two, if nothing else comes up." Felicity set her computer to shut down, and began gathering her things into her briefcase. "And no, that is not an invitation to set me up with another of your friends' brothers, cousins, or ex-boyfriends. Right now, all I want is to go home and have a nice hot bubble bath."
"On a Friday night?" Mel protested, scandalized. "Felicity, I feel as if I'm breaking some kind of oath of sisterhood if I let you do that. Can't I take you out for a drink, at least? My date's not picking me up 'til seven."
Felicity smiled, scooping paperwork into her briefcase. "I appreciate the offer, but really, Mel, all I want is to go home, kick off these shoes and have a nice bubble bath. Go get ready for your date, and have a wonderful time. See you Monday!"
Mel blew her a kiss and tripped out of the office. Felicity flipped off the lights and followed her out.
Groves Design was on the tenth floor of a brand-new office tower in downtown Minneapolis. Minneapolis-St. Paul was one of the few good-sized metropolitan areas where it was still possible to live near downtown without spending a fortune, and less than fifteen minutes after stepping out of the office, Felicity was unlocking the door of her apartment. She had, however, absolutely no intention of taking a bubble bath. Common sense said that she probably ought to eat, sleep, and drive north early in the morning, but she felt as if she'd waited much too long already. She always got this way in the spring, antsy and eager, the winter's long period of inactivity making her vibrate with suppressed energy.
And so, she stayed in the apartment for no more time than it took to change out of her work clothes into something more casual. Then she hurried back down to the car, two steps at a time. She didn't take an overnight bag. Where she was going, she wouldn't need one.
She picked up dinner from a drive-thru burger place on her way out of town.
Suburbs gave way to farms mixed with forest. Felicity drove north for nearly two hours before she turned off the highway into a small town, the sort of little nothing of a town that's scattered along rural highways from Alabama to Alberta. There was a one-pump gas station, an antique store, and an ice cream place that had been closed every single time she'd driven through.
She was very close now, and eagerness beat in her chest like the flutter of wings. She drove through the downtown and along a rural road, past little clusters of mailboxes, until finally she found the dirt road where she turned off. There was a
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