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right?” he asked her.
    Sami nodded.
    â€œAnd it just so happens I’m in the market for a new employee. Can you answer a phone?”
    â€œWell, sure, but I’m not …”
    He pulled out a chair from behind the reception desk. “Then the job’s yours,” he told her. “Start with line six. Just take a message.”
    â€œI was actually …” Sami was about to tell him that she was looking for a job in the design department, not the reception area. But the truth was, any job would be good right around now. She only had enough money in her wallet for two more nights at the Beresford Arms, and that was only if she didn’t eat. Sami needed cash. And this was a foot in the door—even if she hadn’t gotten past the reception desk.
    Sami slipped into the seat and picked up the phone, pressing down the button for line 6. “Ted Fromme Fashions,” she said inher most professional voice. “How may I help you?”
    The man in the button-down shirt waited until Sami had taken messages from the three callers Roxie had left on hold. Then, when things had settled down a bit, he dragged a chair over beside Sami. “Hi there,” he said, putting out his hand. “I’m Bruce Jamison. And you are …”
    â€œSami Granger.”
    â€œWelcome to Ted Fromme,” Bruce said with a bright smile. “You couldn’t have come at a better time.”
    â€œWhat do you do here?” Sami asked, suddenly wondering who this man was and whether he had any authority at all to hire her.
    â€œI’m a junior designer,” Bruce told her in a voice filled with pride. “I’m also the office manager. In a place like this, everyone’s got two jobs … at least.”
    Sami smiled. “Well, you’re getting varied experience.”
    Bruce laughed. “That’s what we need around here. A little optimism. And”—he stopped for a moment and studied Sami’s body and face—“and a lot of beauty. Youknow, when you first came in here, I thought you were one of the models for the fall show.”
    Sami blushed. “I’ll bet you say that to all the girls.”
    Bruce shook his head. “That’s one bet you’d lose.” Just then, the phone rang again. “You’d better get that,” he said. “But I’ll tell you what. I’ll take you to lunch at twelve. We can talk about your salary, responsibilities, and all that other dreary stuff then.”
    Yes! Sami practically jumped up and down, but at the last second she remembered she needed to make a good impression and instead she nodded and picked up the phone. “Ted Fromme Fashions. How may I help you?”
    â€œThat’s just what I like to see. A girl who likes to eat,” Bruce teased as he watched Sami twirl a huge portion of spaghetti onto her fork and put it hungrily into her mouth.
    Sami chewed for a moment, swallowed, and smiled. “I guess I’m kind of hungry,” she confessed. “I didn’t eat breakfast. And Ididn’t expect to start working today.”
    â€œIt was kind of quick, wasn’t it?” Bruce admitted. “But that’s how things work at Ted Fromme. Think about it. When I started with Ted, I was right out of college. That was two years ago. No one had heard of us. Now we’ve got a show coming up in New York, and possibly another one in Milan. You’re in on the ground floor of a great company, Sami.” He took his napkin, reached across the table, and gently wiped a dribble of tomato sauce from her chin.
    That act, so innocent and yet so intimate, sent a shiver through Sami’s body. All through lunch she’d had a tough time not being obvious about just how handsome she thought Bruce was. His big green eyes were the first thing you noticed about him, but there was plenty more eye candy to go around. His mouth had an easy smile that lit up his oval-shaped