Mandy Makes Her Mark Read Free Page A

went back thirty years in the bridal-wear business. If the shoot went badly, he wouldn’t hesitate to let everyone know he was dissatisfied with the Leif Agency. And the tiny operating margin, not to mention the profit they were on schedule to earn for the first time in the agency’s two year history, would be lost overnight.
    Mandy wasn’t going to let that happen. Before two years ago, she never dreamed she would run a modeling agency. Her job as a marketing assistant after college hadn’t taught her the first thing about forming a company. But with hard work she’d turned the agency into an enterprise she was proud of…the first time she’d ever felt pride in her own accomplishments. She wasn’t about to endanger that. She’d given up her personal life for the agency; she hadn’t gone on a date since arriving in L.A. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d even flirted with a man.
    She wasn’t about to let that sacrifice be for nothing. So even if she had to stay up all night, when the plane left LAX for Miami in the morning, she’d be on it, armed with everything she needed to ensure that the Cupid Island shoot was a success.

CHAPTER THREE
    â€œThank you,” Mandy said, mustering every last remaining trace of civility she possessed. It was nearly six o’clock, Florida time, and she had been awake for twelve hours. She gave the boat captain a tired smile. “Zeke, wasn’t it? It was really nice of you to come back for me.”
    â€œAbsolutely, ma’am,” the captain said, tipping his baseball cap. At least he’d provided nice scenery for her to stare at on the ride over from Key Grande—tanned and muscular, dressed in a faded Hawaiian shirt and a necklace of shells, with sun-bleached hair around his shoulders, he was a grown-up lady’s beach boy fantasy come true, especially with one arm slung casually over the steering wheel. Mandy really ought to take advantage of this unexpected break from her routine to brush up on her rusty flirting skills, since there would be little for her to do when they weren’t shooting. Maybe, if she were really lucky, she might even meet someone for a tropical fling.
    The thought filled her with more dread than anticipation. Growing up with a sister as beautiful as Luna hadn’t exactly bolstered her confidence around men. The minute her few boyfriends met Luna, they became so distracted that Mandy had almost given up on finding a man who cared more about what was on the inside than on appearances. She wasn’t horrible looking—she might not have Luna’s height or poise or freakishly perfect features, but she did have the same clear pale skin and intense green eyes and thick auburn hair—but in her the combination was merely pleasant, not stunning. Add to that a nerdy streak a mile wide, and Mandy had learned early on to settle for being “the smart one” in the family, the one more likely to land a scholarship than a date.
    Once, she’d made the mistake of forming a crush on a popular baseball player. Luna had discovered the secret place on the back deck where Mandy had carved the name of her crush—“Amanda and Brandon 4Ever”—and mocked her mercilessly. Ever since, she’d set her sights low. She knew she would have to work at it if she wanted to meet someone, but she’d made one excuse after another since starting the agency.
    The engine noise had made conversation impossible—Zeke had gunned it, since he was behind schedule from squeezing in an extra round trip—but it was just as well, because Mandy was worn out from traveling. She’d had only three hours of sleep, after sending emails and working with Liam on the phone to rebook the rest of the week. Then her cab was late, and later still after he got lost on the way to LAX.
    Once at the airport, she barely made it to the gate in time to board. Tad was sitting in first