Page 101 of My Lucky Charm

“Just a couple,” she sing-songs at me while cracking it open and taking a drink. “I don’t want to clog your space with my stuff, but some things—” she waggles the bottle at me “—are a necessity.”

“Stop stalling,” I say.

She caps the bottle, draws in a deep breath, then brings her eyes to mine.

At the point of contact, I swear the air sparks, and all I can think of is everything I promised myself I wouldn’t think of today.

“I accidentally got you an endorsement deal,” she says, then immediately shrugs her shoulders with a grimace.

“Accidentally?”

“I mean, kind of. Maybe. Okay, yes. But only if you want it.” Her cheeks turn pink.

“I don’t want it,” I say.

She makes a face. “Could you just hear what it is though? Because I think it’s sort of great.”

I cross my arms over my chest and lean back on the counter, but my only reply is a slightly raised eyebrow.

“Okay. So. Story time.” She’s over-gesturing, which reads as “nervous,” and I wonder what Eloise has really gotten me into.

“I asked Kim to send me the proofs from your photo shoot, and when I picked this one to enlarge and frame, I meant to send it to a friend in Loveland who owns a custom frame shop, but—” She scrunches her face. “I accidentally sent it to my entire address book.”

I cock my head to the side and study her.

“Yeah. I know. Huge mistake. But. My friend from high school, Cybil? She’s in advertising, and when she saw it, she called me, like immediately. I haven’t talked to her in three years, but I guess she’s doing really well, she has a little cockapoo now, his name is Harry, and—”

“Eloise,” I say.

She startles a little, then inhales. “She said the photo gave her an idea for a big brand they’re working with, something about smoothing out rough edges or a man’s softer side or something? I don’t know, but by the time she called me, she had already pitched it to her boss, who loved it, of course, because it’s you,” she points at me, “and it’s Scarlett, and I guess it would be, like, a huge deal for her career to get you and—”

“No,” I say.

She’s undeterred. “It could be great!” she says. “And a lot of fun for Scarlett.”

I shake my head. “There are a million reasons why this is a bad idea.”

“I know. I know you want to keep her out of the limelight. Plus, I knew you’d say that,” she says, “so I told her you’d think about it.”

“I thought about it, and my answer is no.”

“Well, I think we should do it.” Scarlett is standing at the edge of the kitchen like a tiny cat burglar. “It’ll be fun.”

“How long have you been standing there?” I ask.

She shrugs and walks over to the bar stools on the opposite side of the counter. Then, she grins at Eloise, who grins right back.

“Morning, sunshine,” Eloise says.

“Good morning,” Scarlett says. “My dad thinks you’re pretty.”

Eloise’s eyes go wide, which is exactly, I’m sure, what mine do. “Scarlett.”

Scarlett’s innocent expression feels like an act. If I had to bet, I’d say she knows exactly what she’s doing. “What? You do.”

I look at Eloise, ready with a whole explanation. “We were talking, and she asked me—”

Eloise holds up her hand. “It’s fine. I get it. She also asked me if I think you’re handsome.”

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