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Chapter One

It was official

She was a failure

Julietta Conte stared sightlessly at the buttercream-colored wall of her hos or photos up Unmarred by any marks or holes by numerous nails, the clean lines usually soothed her reminded her of the orderly, controlled life-style she proudly led Tonight, the pristine perfection of that wall only host

A funny sound escaped her lips She had lost the biggest deal her fa her mind was not a possibility at this point A month of research, endless paperwork, little sleep, and various social outings had yielded rejection by the esteemed Palazzo Hotel She’d been so sure of success Instead, she was left with nothing but the i

Tugging her cocoa silk robe tighter around her, she crossed the lush carpet over to her trendy kitchen and poured herself a glass of Bolla Low voices on the television chattered behind her, but the stark silence of her home screamed

What rong with her tonight? She’d lost deals be-fore rarely did she allow herself to stuhen up and head toward the next beacon of profit It wasn’t like La Dolce Falia was in any financial trouble This wasn’t life or death yet, the lure ofher mark on the business world and in her faive And now, she couldn’t even accomplish that

A de buzz rose to her ears Julietta scooped up her phone and glanced at the text Her sister Again Was this the third or fourth text tonight?

Did you do it?

I was happily tiht the whole thing together

If only How much easier would life be if you just made a list of all the qualities needed in a man, burned it in a fire to earth Mother, and sat back and waited? of course, Julietta gently tried to explain, it probably wasn’t the book but the siether Carina refused to believe it

So Carina had pressed the violet fabric book into Julietta’s hands during her last visit and made her swear on their sisterhood she’d try the spell Carina believed if Julietta cast this silly love spell, Mr right would show up at her door and change her life After an hour of being verbally abused regarding her inability to see past her spreadsheets toward the future, Julietta agreed, certain her sister would forget the ridiculous conversation and move on

Teeks noenty texts A dozen phone calls And no end in sight to forgetfulness

Her fingers punched out two letters

NO