California Dreamin'

He's the resident office flirt. I'm the quirky Pride and Prejudice-loving editor who uses big words and dresses like the world's non-sexiest librarian. We have nothing in common. And we're competitors for the same job. Game on, right? May the best person win and all that? Fine by me. And considering I'm practically the only woman in the office he's never flirted with, he's obviously happy to do the same. But when we're stuck overnight in our office building thanks to an earthquake-induced landslide (don't worry, we're totally fine), things between us start to change.

I like rules. Rules make me happy. Rules keep me in control. Most importantly, rules keep my heart safe. But when I suddenly find myself out of a job and blackballed by my wicked ex-boss, the rules of the game change - and now I'm opening shop as a dating coach. Local coffee shop barista Josh Gregory agrees to be my guinea pig, and I jump at the chance to help him land the woman of his dreams. But as Josh and I work together to improve his dating game, I start to wish that woman was...me.

Ever heard of love at first sight? What about love at first push? Because I may have hurtled Christopher to the ground so that car wouldn’t hit him, but I’m pretty sure I’m the one who fell that day. It’s not just that he’s drop-dead handsome. Or that he talks in a delicious British accent and calls me “love”. Or that he’s impeccably dressed all. The. Time. He’s also mysterious. And I feel like he really gets me, even though we’re so different. Like he...sees me. Which is kind of terrifying for a girl whose past keeps her off social media and out of the public eye.

I love three things in this world more than life itself: my family and housemates, musicals, and my best friend, Eric Moody. The first two are no surprise to anyone who knows me. The third is a secret I’ll carry to my grave. Most of the time, I manage to keep my feelings for him under lock and key, but things change when Eric moves in with me temporarily. Now, he’s here all the time. And it’s harder and harder not to imagine what life together could be like, if only. The final straw? When he starts helping me prepare for my (forced) lead role in a local musical.

I hate fakers—and Dax Nyhart is as fake as they come. I also hate to lose. My nemesis has been stealing all the best clients for the last year at the marketing firm where we both work—and not because he’s better than me. Because 1) his uncle is the boss and 2) he kisses up to people. And I’m sick of it. So when he asks me to fake an engagement so he can land another job—far away from me—I agree. It’s only one dinner, right? Yeah, sure. One dinner turns into an entire Caribbean cruise

He’s a freaking doctor, for one. Humble… Mature (Did I mention he’s eleven years older than me?) … And flat-out gorgeous. If only he wasn’t also … my boss. Look, if I wasn’t the nanny to his nieces, I’d be all. over. that. But I’m in the middle of a personal crisis of sorts—a recent move, a public breakup, a foiled career—not to mention beholden to a successful CEO grandmother who is withholding my trust fund until I can become “respectable” in a way my mother never was.