“Hey Sonia!” Chloe called and the tall blond looked up with surprise. It took a moment for recognition to dawn in Sonia’s eyes, then she laughed and came forward to hug Chloe.
“Wow. New look for you. I’d ask whether the west coast suits you but it obviously does.” Sonia stepped back to survey Chloe. “You look great!”
“Thanks!” Chloe laughed and spun around, letting Sonia check her out. Once upon a time, she’d been the bookish nerd and new hire, the serious girl with the glasses and the conservative clothes. Since then, she’d found her own style, a sleek corporate look that appeared effortless but wasn’t. Her hair was long but she wore it twisted up for work—she thought it made her look older and more credible. She also wore her horn rim glasses for work instead of contacts for the same reason. Her lipstick was pink and her make-up subdued, but the pink hues flattered her skin. Her dark suit was a designer knock-off that fit her perfectly and, thanks to her new work-out routine, she could run through airports in her four-inch heels. She looked expensive, like the world was her oyster.
And she was back to conquer New York.
“Did you lose weight, too?” Sonia asked.
“I work in a fitness club,” Chloe said with a laugh. “And I’ve been using my free membership.” She’d toned up in a big way. Chloe felt strong, maybe even invincible, and that had done great things for her confidence.
She could even say no to her mom now.
The trick would be getting her mom to listen.
“Good for you. It’s great to see you.”
“Ty asked me to lead the meeting since I was coming home anyway.”
“Awesome. We should get started soon. Cassie had to go upstairs with the baby for a minute.” Cassie was one of the five founding partners and lived in the penthouse with her partner, Reid, and their new baby, born just a month before. Cassie headed up the marketing for the club and was Sonia’s immediate boss.
“Is Martin as adorable in real life as in pictures?” Chloe asked. Chloe had sent a stuffed zebra when Martin was born and had seen the baby in online meetings, but she hadn’t yet seen him in person.
“Believe it,” Sonia said with a smile. “And such a cheerful baby. He’s as easygoing as Reid.”
Just then, Cassie came striding toward them from the elevators to the apartments. She was in her black yoga gear with her blond hair tied up in a ponytail. Chloe would never have guessed she’d had a baby just the month before. Cassie looked flushed and very happy as she talked to the baby in her arms. There was something black and white tucked in with him, part of it in his mouth, and Chloe was glad to see that her gift was a hit.
Cassie’s partner, Reid, met her halfway to reception and lifted Martin from her arms. They talked for a minute, then Cassie kissed Reid’s cheek and their ways parted: Reid headed back to the bodega he ran in the lobby and Cassie continued toward Chloe and Sonia. Chloe would have to meet Martin later. Cassie smiled when she recognized Chloe.
“The giver of zebras!” Cassie cried and they hugged in greeting. “He loves that toy the best. Great choice. Thank you, again.” She also stepped back to survey Chloe with admiration. “You look amazing.”
“Proof that F5F workouts work,” Chloe said as they headed into the conference room together. More squealing and hugging ensued as Chloe greeted her former co-workers. She booted up her laptop and plugged in the display, then she rapped on the conference table.
“Let’s get this show on the road,” she said with such authority that the others exchanged glances. She tapped her watch. “Tick tock, people.”
“There she goes, channeling Ty, like they were twins separated at birth,” Theo teased as he took his seat. He was another of the five partners, the one with a gift for ensuring celebrities came to the club. “We have an agenda and we’ll complete it on time.”
Chloe had worked with Theo and Kyle the most since they ran the west coast club, but had almost daily conference calls—and steady barrage of emails—from Tyler. Of the five partners, she knew Cassie and Damon the least well. Kyle was a force of nature, but Theo had a sense of humor that most people overlooked. She liked that, as well as his ability to solve problems. His British accent was as easy on the ears as he was on the eyes.
“Do you want to run the meeting?” Chloe asked him, thinking she should defer to him as partner.
“No way.” Theo held up his hands. “I’m not messing with Tyler McKay’s big plan.” He smiled when Chloe laughed. “Go for it. Show them how it’s done.” The phone in the conference room rang and Theo put Ty on speaker-phone.
“Lousy internet here,” Ty said. “No chance of Zoom, but I’ll listen in.”
“You know the agenda,” Chloe teased and he laughed.
Meesha, their social media manager, joined the group then. There was a new pink streak in her hair, squiggling up from her temple like a lightning bolt. She had an affection for pink, but it hadn’t been in her hair before.
“Ms. Frankenstein?” Chloe teased and Meesha grinned.
“It’s my mad professor look.” Her expression turned diabolical. “Consider yourself warned.” Then she looked Chloe up and down. “You’ve made some changes, girl. I might have to work with that.”
“Don’t put me on your shipping board!” Chloe said. “My mom’s matchmaking is more than enough for me.” Meesha routinely started discussions among the members across social media platforms. One of the most popular initiatives let members propose and vote for fictionalized relationships between the partners or other staff, sometimes with celebrities, sometimes with members.
“Come on! You look really hot. Still single?”
Chloe nodded and tossed out her stock reply. “Sometimes I wish Tyler had a younger brother.”
Meesha laughed. “Get in line, girl. That one goes around the block.”
“I heard that,” Ty protested.
“None of us have a chance,” Nate complained as he came into the conference room. “Hey, Chloe! Looking awesome, as always.” Chloe gave him a hug, too, noting that he’d bulked up a bit. It was probably all the coaching he was doing with vets in the weight room. He looked more at ease, too, which pleased her. When they’d met, he’d been more self-conscious about the prosthesis he wore on one arm. It was probably because no one at the club made a fuss about it.
“You could lift your game,” Theo suggested. “Get a good suit.”
“Waste of money,” Nate said easily. “I wear my uniform for funerals and weddings.” He was an ex-marine, like Damon.
“There is that,” Theo agreed.
The human resources manager, Jax, had shut down her computer in the main office and joined them, shuffling a bundle of paper. “Good to see you back, Chloe,” she said with a warm smile. “We’ve missed you.”
“Thanks, Jax. We could use someone as organized as you out west.”
“Maybe I’ll move,” Jax said, to Chloe’s surprise.
“I’ve got a job for you, if you do.”
“My oldest is in Los Angeles. It might be nice to be closer,” Jax said, then smiled. “I hear you’ve taken up kickboxing. We’ll have to square off while you’re in town.”