“That’s what we do here.” With a wink, Madelyn, the president of Posh Pulse, removes her chunky Tom Ford glasses from her silver hair and slides them onto the bridge of her nose.
I swallow, suddenly feeling as open and on display asone of those fetal pigs I petitioned so hard not to dissect in high school.
Madelyn nods to Jade, who glances at me, sending a rush of ice through my veins. Jade chose my idea for the LuminaLuxe campaign and gave me this chance to pitch it directly to the client—an honor usually reserved for VPs. But with Vanessa leaving for London, one of the fancy corner offices will soon be empty, which means Posh Pulse has a senior-level position available for the first time in years. A position with my name on it.
See the door and open it.
I stand and clear my throat, and the room’s attention swings my way. I straighten, smoothing out invisible creases in my dress, the remote faces on the screen watching expectantly.
“Our campaign,” I begin, “is a revolutionary take… Wait, no. Sorry. I’m Hannah. Hello.”
A chorus of uncomfortable chuckles pops through the speakers. “Continue, Hannah,” Brad says, adjusting his red power tie and nodding at the camera.
I glance down at my handwritten notes, my face burning. Shit. Six words in, and I’m already screwing up. “As I was saying, our campaign is a revolutionary take on skin care. It’s edgy, daring, and, well, frankly, unprecedented.”
The CEO narrows his eyes and tilts his head. His office’s overhead lights gleam against his gelled hair, shiny as an oil slick. Was that a flicker of hesitation? Is he already questioning the idea before I’ve started?
My heart leaps. I can’t lose him. Not when I’m so close to getting to the juiciest part of my pitch.
“You’re worried we’ve gone too far,” I offer,the words charging up my throat. “Look, this idea is definitely unconventional, but it’s still accessible…formostage groups. I think for the teens and the twenty-to-forty cohort, there will be great engagement, but older customers might not mesh so well with the messaging we’ve put together. But then, that’s what being cutting-edge is all about, right?” I give a nervous chuckle and meet Jade’s startled gaze.
Brad lifts an eyebrow, and sweat dampens my palms. “That’s not to say the boomers—” I blurt, motioning to Madelyn. “Sorry, theelderlycohort won’t like it. I think there will be a certain number of negative online responses, but nothing trending or messy that we can’t handle.” My throat clenches, and I let out a barking cough as I push back my unruly hair. “And if you’re worried about—”
“What Hannah is trying to say,” a smooth, calm voice cuts in, “is that we’re envisioning a campaign that’s as bold and daring as our clientele, with the added benefit of leaning into the social consciousness of Gen Z consumers. By integrating a corporate responsibility initiative, we’ll ensure shoppers feel great about where their skincare dollars are going. This approach not only strengthens the LuminaLuxe brand, but it also aligns with the values of the campaign’s target demographic.”
I stare across the table, frozen, as Stephanie grins up at the screen, her teeth all white and straight and perfect.
“This campaign doesn’t just whisper—it roars.” Stephanie stands, tugging on the waist of her double-zero-sized dress before grabbing her copy of the pitch book off the table. “Brad, if I can get you and your team to look at page seven, you’ll see exactly what I mean.”
I sink into my chair, my mouth noiselessly opening and closing as Stephanie stalks back and forth, giving my presentation, deadly as a shark.
Jade stares at me, questions pressed into the deep furrow between her green eyes. But I have no answers.
I look down at the table. My vision blurs, and I blink to keep the tears at bay.
I have nothing.
* * *
“What the hell was that about?” Jade shout-whispers as soon as we’ve filed out of the conference room and into the hallway. Through the tears still threatening to absolutely ruin my makeup, she looks like an angel. My watery vision smears her white silk shirt dress into the gold walls, all of it seeming to add an ethereal glow to her dark skin.
I hiccup back my tears and white knuckle my pitch book, theoriginalcopy, in one hand. I glance over at Stephanie and James both grabbing their jackets to head out for a celebratory drink. LuminaLuxe loved the campaign.Mycampaign. Of course they did. But that fancy office and senior-level position won’t be mine—not after Stephanie flawlessly delivered the pitch while I sat there, clutching my water glass, drowning in shame.
“I don’t know.” I shrug, swiping my free hand through my tangled hair. “I just…I thought I scared him off by saying it was edgy, and I knew he’d have some concerns, so I was trying to make it clear that any he did have had already been thought through and worked out.”
Jade sighs and presses her burgundy lips into a thinline, her disappointment palpable. “Babe, were you selling them the dream or the disclaimer?”
“I just thought—”
“You thought wrong.” She squeezes my arm and gently rubs her thumb across the worn fabric of my used dress. “You’re too busy looking at the shadows, Hannah. Focus on the light.”
“I can’t believe I screwed this up,” I choke out, clapping my hand over my mouth to keep in a sob.
“Hey,Hanns?” Stephanie’s warm, velvety voice rings out from across the room as she shoots me a megawatt smile. “You coming for a drink? We’re going to Giovanni’s to celebrate the deal!”
I stifle a groan and silently hope the marble floor will open up and swallow me.
Fucking Stephanie. And she totally took credit for the corporate responsibility angle she’d spent the past week shitting all over.
