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The guy she would beup, and it was obvious to Zoey that he’d taken the unusual step of actually reading her profile before hethe usual line of Eenerally boiled down to “when can we hook up?” He was handsoent, and soft-spoken, but a streak of h hi She had enjoyed every one of their conversations, and was really looking forward to finallyhim

“Maybe all of this bullshit has a silver lining,” she ave her a strange look

TWO

Even after all the time she’d spent on the train, Zoey still had six blocks to walk before she reached her uy fro to follow her surreptitiously, so she walked directly toward the first NYPD officer she saw He broke off his pursuit, and Zoey pointed hi toward the miserable day that waited for her She tried to focus herto the tiny bit of hope it afforded her

Eventually, she arrived at a block that was dripping with affluence Every building featured i plants and outdoor torches Each building had a clean, , despite the fact that everything inside thelanced at a fashion accessories store across the street fro as she reme in there was priced at eighteen hundred dollars

Zoey turned to face Melinda Forde Singles, a striking building fronted with gold-flecked black old above the brass-handled glass doors Zoey let herself in, deterh the day as fast as possible

Inside, the agency looked a lot like the lobby of a boutique hotel An intricately-patterned carpet, handhanistan, covered the floor along one wall Generally, even theon its beautiful design, and as she passed it now, Zoey could see why

On top of the carpet was a long white sofa that custolass end tables sat on either side of the sofa These bore gorgeous porcelain lalass table was just in front of the sofa, standing on curved, brass feet

The entire space gave an impression of sophistication, and even Zoey, who knew that an i sucked in by everything Despite the marble-topped receptionist’s desk and the oak-paneled walls, she knew she alking toward her own little prison

Along the rear wall, the paneling gave way to a frosted glass door with golden block letters placed at eye level “Zoey Amelia Forde,” they proclaimed “Senior Relationship Services Expert” The title sounded official enough, but Zoey kneas mostly bullshit

She walked into her office and booted up her laptop, deterh her personal eh to spy on her

Zoey’s co desk that was built into an elaborate wall unit made of handsome ebony wood The cabinet doors were arched at the top, and a lass Leather-bound books and dozens of curios filled the cabinets in neat arrangeed to Zoey, however—most of the books and trinkets were heratmosphere

She quickly logged in to her eh her inbox She was happy to see aWith a sh the other emails, a mixture of thank you notes from her previous clients, charity appeals, and sales alerts from stores she had shopped at recently She archived so to others until a sharp series of knocks rang out against the wooden frame of the door