A Calculated Ploy

Hazel pressed the phone to her ear, softening her tone into a submissive whine. "Bryce? I am so sorry to bother you while you are busy writing your vital thesis," she murmured.

"What do you want now?" Bryce snapped. His signature impatience flared through the speaker as he demanded to know what she wanted.

Feigning deep distress, Hazel let out a dramatic sigh into the receiver. "It is just... Br