Page 90 of Nothing to You
“I’m kidding.You know I love him,” Roxie said, picking up a canapé from the tray in the middle of their table.“Besides, Cam is adorable… and hotter.They were not made equal.”
“Knox is adorable too.”
The circular table had four short, curved benches around it.The side closest to them was open, allowing those at the table to observe the room.If she and Rourke weren’t there anyway.
Knox passed behind Roxie and Zairn to sit by Jane.He swept her hair aside, and she turned to meet his waiting lips.
So sweet, these couples all together, happy.Eurgh, it was kind of sickening.
“Come on,” she said, tugging on Rourke’s forearms.“We should go schmooze.”
He’d used the word, so couldn’t mock her for it.Well, he could, but he groaned instead.
“I don’t want to go schmooze people.Can’t we stay here?”
“I don’t know,” she said, then appealed to the table, “how many of you have donated to Huddle Hope?Tell Rourke.”
“All of us, Rourkey-baby,” Roxie said, pushing the tray toward Lilya.“Try the green one.”
“Then these are not the people we need to schmooze.I gave you a chance to escape, you didn’t take it.Too bad that’s over.Now it’s time to get your schmoozing hat on, Boy Scout.Schmoozy-schmooze.”
“You like that word, don’t you?”
“I’ve had a couple of champagnes,” she said, slapping her palm to his when he offered it.“Let’s get this party started.”
TWENTY-EIGHT
THEY DANCED, they drank, they schmoozed.Somehow, they ended up back at the elevated seating area, him in a huddle with the guys standing next to the women occupying the table.
Her feet hurt and her jaw was tired.If that was a measure of her night, there wasn’t a person in the city who didn’t know everything she did about Huddle Hope.Still, it didn’t feel like a job, like a chore she wanted to get out of the way.Huddle Hope was important; it was her duty to make others see that.
For too long, complacency ruled.Disparaging the system was easy.Anyone could talk about how things needed to change and how someone had to try something because doing nothing failed them all.Huddle Hope was that something.If it didn’t get off the ground or failed, it wouldn’t be because she hadn’t given it her all.
Slumping at the table by Roxie, she loved her friend for pushing a fresh cocktail over to her.
“Z and I are going back to New York.”
“Oh no!”Straightening, she picked up the fruity drink to sip.“LA was bad enough, now you’re crossing the continent?”
“Jane’s coming,” Roxie said.“We were talking to Merci and she really wants to meet you.”
“I want to meet her too.”
“Reid, her fiancé, he has all kinds of medical contacts in New York.And there’s a woman you absolutely have to charm.Her support could be pivotal.”
“That’s great.Maybe we can ask some of their contacts to donate their time.Focus group them.Float our ideas and get their take.Johann will hate it, but I’d love to hear thoughts from outside our circle.And the more endorsements we collect, the better.Do you think they’d campaign for us?Maybe do some videos, something for the marketing packet?You know how these things can snowball if they have the right faces involved.”
“Toria has a marketing background and our friend in Chicago owns a marketing company.She’s jet-setting around the world right now, but she’ll come back for this.Well, she’ll come back if you convince the doctors in New York.”
“Me?No.This can’t be done over video call.What does that say about our commitment to Huddle Hope?No, it has to be done face to face, in a formal or informal setting fine, but we have to show reverence for what we’re doing.”
“I agree.”
“Mosaic is officially working in tandem with Lola’s Liberty on this.That gives you exactly the—”
“Not me,” Roxie said.“You’re going to do it.”
“I can’t.Web link—”
