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“Takes a long time to load, doesn’t it?”

“Oh? That’s news to me.”

“Where’s your gallery?”

“It’s on the menu, right under—”

“Ah, yes. Just a few too many clicks to get to it. Mmm.”

“What?” Olivia asked when the woman winced and shook her head at the same time. “What’s wrong with my gallery?”

“Again, it’s slow. You’ve got too much content on there. It’s just… Well, clunky. Far from the best website I’ve ever seen, you know?”

chapter 10

Really?Olivia was not so sure how to take all this. What did she mean, too much content? Wasn’t a gallery supposed to showcase her work?Dammit!She was actually very proud of her website. She’d done her research on which platform to use, slaved over the layout of the gallery, learned all about SEO, and carefully selected each photo…

“You did not include the shots from your phone that you just showed me,” Grace stated as if she could read her mind. “I wonder why?”

“Well, these are more recent pieces, so I was—”

“Ah!” Not even bothering with the answer to her question, Grace made a face as she scrolled to the bottom of the welcome page, presumably to emphasize the fact that it took a long time. Then she fixed her with laughing eyes. “Squarespace, uh?”

“Yes?” Olivia prompted, irritated now.

“Don’t tell me you designed your own website?”

“I certainly did. I take it you disapprove?”

“I certainly do not.” Grace agreed, looking amused.

As she crossed a slender leg, getting more comfortable, her foot brushed against the side of Olivia’s shin. On purpose? Hard to tell, and it only added to her fluster.

“Tell me why you don’t approve,” she pushed.

“It’s not efficient. Surely you can afford a professional to do this kind of thing for you?”

“Yes... But why would I hire someone else to do something I can?”

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. That’s why you don’t cut your own hair and go to a professional instead of—” Grace stopped abruptly as her eyes drifted, indeed, to her hair. Biting on her lip, she clearly suppressed a smile. “Oh, okay. You do cut your own hair.”

“No, actually. Anyway. Are you always so judgmental and rude?”

“Have I offended you?” Grace laid her fingers on her arm, eliciting another involuntary shiver. “Sorry, Olivia. Didn’t mean to.”

This must be true, though her tantalizing smirk indicated she wasn’t that sorry. This was a game. Olivia suspected she was being teased and tested. The realization that she was enjoying it was quite startling.

“It takes more than a remark about my hair to offend me,” she stated, hoping that she was not blushing too hard. “This being said, you are pretty effortlessly insulting.”

“So I’m told.” Grace shrugged. “I guess it just depends on how open you are to receiving helpful feedback. From what little I’ve seen of it, your work deserves better than a half-assed website job.”

“I worked hard to create that site.”

“That’s why I don’t fix my own toilet.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Grace chuckled. “Still on the same theme, darling. Meaning I know where my skills lie, and I focus on that. All the rest of it, Iam happy to delegate. Why would you waste your valuable time and innate talent sweating on something that you can easily pass on to an expert? Someone who’ll do it better, quicker, and more successfully?”