JESSICA OPENED THE door to the apartment and was greeted by colorful bouquets of exotic florals. Vases lined every available counter space and when she breathed in the sweet fragrant air, all she could think about was James and how much she wanted to feel his lips graze hers.

With her apartment key, she ripped open an Amazon box to find a pile of Sudoku books. How adorable. He actually listened to me. She smirked. Another anomaly.

She wandered into the living room to find Lisa lounged on the couch watching Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

“Seriously, Li? There’s nothing else on?”

Lisa giggled. “I’m sure I could probably find something with way more substance, but I can’t help myself. I get sucked into this show. You know that. By the way, it’s beginning to look like the New York Botanical Gardens in here.”

Jessica nodded. “It’s nice, makes me feel like he’s closer.”

Lisa snickered and pointed to the coffee table. “Hope you don’t mind but I helped myself to his latest treat.”

Jessica gasped. “A Starburst jelly bean tree?”

“Yeah, he’s definitely creative. I’ll give him that.” She grabbed another bag off the trunk made of Twizzlers.

Jessica pulled a few beans off a branch and popped them into her mouth. “Mmm, so juicy.” She settled back and looked at Lisa. “Today was a crappy day. After Charlie dumped me from the partner meeting, I found out he’s yanking me off the project. I’ve got a new assignment downtown, somewhere he can keep tabs on me, I’m sure. It looks like my involvement in building this new consulting practice is pretty much over. And so are my chances to get back to California.”

“Oh no.” Lisa put her arms around Jessica. “Are you sure about that? Are you going to talk to James? Did you tell him anything?”

“No, I can’t say anything now. I don’t want to throw any wrenches into this relationship yet—it’s too new. But there’s more. I went to see Dr. Martin and he said this numbness may indicate a progression of the MS. I can’t believe how everything turned upside down so quickly, Li.” She shook her head. “It’s crazy that we even found each other but with all these obstacles, can it go anywhere? Is he going to be able to handle all this? I mean, he seemed pretty sure about me when we went out. But that was before…”—

“Be honest with him, Jess. You’ll never know until you talk to him.”

“I know. But if he’s going to be in this, I want him to be in it on his own. It has to be his decision, not something he does because he feels pressured by all of these extenuating factors, you know? I want to give it a shot but I’m also the one holding all the baggage.”

Lisa smiled and motioned to the countless bouquets around them. “I don’t know. Looks to me that he’s definitely in.”

“I really hope so. I’m also meeting with Charlie’s boss Justin about this project. I need to find out if there’s any hope for the new practice. I can’t give up on it yet. I put too much time in and I deserve that promotion. If Charlie isn’t going to stick his neck out for me, I’m going to handle things myself.”

Lisa wrinkled her nose. “You’re going over Charlie’s head? Is that such a smart idea?”

“Li, I’m furious I didn’t get a chance to have a say in that meeting. I’m giving it one last shot. If things don’t pan out and it really is over, at least I can say I tried.” Jessica grinned. “Okay, enough about Charlie and my oodles of issues. Tell me, did you meet up with your office buddy Scott again? Was he devastated to see you leave?”

“Oh, sure. We had lots of fun together.” Lisa flashed her a wicked smile.

“You didn’t! I can’t believe you! Aren’t you worried about getting involved with someone at work?”

“Jessie, don’t pretend to be all prim and proper just because you didn’t give it up to James!” Lisa giggled.

“Oh come on, we had one date! I’d want to keep him coming back for more!”

“Listen, if you’ve got the right moves, they’ll always be back. Plus, it’s not like you’ve never ignored your rules before, right?” Lisa tossed a throw pillow at Jessica.

“Ha ha.” Jessica grimaced. “Please don’t remind me.”

“So speaking of…what did you decide to do about Paul? Are you going to contact him for your business meeting? Since your last impression was super-favorable, I’m sure he’s anxiously awaiting your call.”

Jessica made a face. “You’re such a bitch. There’s no reason for me to call him now anyway. I didn’t feel comfortable about rekindling anything with him, professional or otherwise, so I’m glad that the decision was made for me.”

Lisa nodded. “I still think you’re insane for not taking another shot with him. But, I get it, it’s cute. You’ve got a crush on James.”

Jessica giggled. “Yeah, I guess I do. All right, I need to change for dinner. I have to meet my parents and Haley in a little while.” She made a face. “Can’t wait to find out what Daddy Dearest has in store for me tonight. Here’s to hoping I can at least choke down my first course without too much indigestion.”