“I’m aware,” I responded with a tight smile, though when it came to keeping Stefan happy, the last thing I needed was my father’s advice. I was figuring things out on my own.
“How’s the campaign effort going?” I asked, changing the subject. “I’m excited to see your ads on TV soon.”
He warmed up the second I brought up his reelection campaign, so we spent the rest of our lunch talking about how that was going. He seemed in high spirits, which made me happy.
While we were waiting for the check, I got a text from Emzee, who was also in Chicago for the week to shoot some brand new talent for KZM.
Editing photos this afternoon—wanna come see? I also have some of you and Stefan from NY that I had printed up. They’re kinda genius, if I do say so myself;)
I had been so focused on the fashion show, and Konstantin’s perplexing behavior with the models, that I barely remembered Emzee taking pictures that night. But I was intrigued. The only photos I had of us together were from the wedding, and although they were beautifully composed, they were so overly formal and posed that I hadn’t wanted to hang any up in the apartment. But these would be candid. Maybe I’d find some that would look good on our walls.
I’d love to see them. You’re amazing, I texted back.
She replied,I’m in the Loop all afternoon. Come over whenever!
So she was at the KZM offices…where Stefan had explicitly told me not to go. I chewed on my bottom lip as I tried to decide what to do. The last time I’d visited, I’d run into that sad, pregnant model with the red hair, and Stefan had been furious. It wasn’t a place I particularly wanted to go back to.
On the other hand, I knew Stefan was at meetings all day and probably wouldn’t even be at the office if I went. Surely there was no problem in just popping in to see some of the photographs Emzee had brought. Besides, Stefan had told me not to go to the KZM offices without beinginvited—and Emzee had just invited me. If I’d been officially and permanently banned, she would have been informed.
Finishing up lunch date with my dad, I texted her.Should be over within the hour.
Emzee sent me a thumbs up in response.
I hugged my father outside, promised to visit him soon, and hopped in an Uber to the Loop. I loved him as much as ever, but after I’d gotten married the distance between us had grown. Now I felt like a new person, and I wasn’t so affected by the things he said. It wasn’t that I didn’t need him anymore, just that I needed him for different things. Marriage advice clearly wasn’t one of them.
When I got to the KZ Modeling offices, I was told that Emzee had called down to put my name on a list and that security was expecting me—another good sign. My anxiety about visiting the building finally drained away.
The receptionist up on the twenty-ninth floor waved me away from the sign-in sheet on the clipboard and let me know that Emzee was photo editing in one of the executive suites a few floors up. I’d seen so little of the building that even though I tried to follow her directions, I found myself lost in the winding maze of hallways.
The floor itself was a puzzle, especially since it wasn’t laid out the same way as the level where Stefan’s office was. It was also mostly empty, and with everything so blank and grey, it was impossible to keep my bearings. Had I already passed that potted palm? Was that the same corner office I’d seen before? The doors weren’t even numbered up here.
I realized I was getting nowhere. But when I pulled out my phone to text Emzee and ask her to rescue me, I saw that my phone had no service. Great. I’d apparently wandered into the building’s Bermuda Triangle. My best bet was probably just to go back to the receptionist on KZM’s main floor and ask for directions again—this time I’d write them down.
That’s when I heard voices. Harsh, angry voices, sounding muffled behind a door.
I headed toward the sound, my steps barely a whisper against the thick carpeting, hoping I’d find someone who could give me directions. But as I was about to turn the corner, I finally realized who I was overhearing.
It was Konstantin and Luka.
I stopped in my tracks, ducking back around the corner. If they saw me, they’d definitely tell Stefan I’d been sneaking around. I was worried for a moment that my husband might actually be in there with them, but it became clear as I listened that it was just the two of them.
I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but they were so close, with the door cracked open by the sound of it, and talking pretty loudly. Clearly, they thought they were alone.
I told myself to leave, but I was too worried about getting caught, my feet frozen to the floor. Stefan might blow up if he knew I had come here, and it would undo all the good things that had been blossoming between us. I didn’t want to lose that.
This had been a mistake. I needed to get out.
Careful to walk lightly so my steps wouldn’t be heard, I began backing away from the office where Konstantin and Luka were talking. I was making progress when their conversation finally registered with me and I froze again, not sure that I was hearing them correctly.
“And you need to keep your greedy little hands off the KZM girls,” Konstantin was scolding Luka. “They’re not for you to play with.”
“They clearly don’t have a problem with it,” Luka shot back.
I was shocked. Not that Luka had been screwing around with the KZ models; that was pretty obvious and not surprising at all. What was shocking was that Konstantin didn’t approve. I’d seen the way the family patriarch looked at women—all women, not just the models—and he didn’t seem like the type to care who they ran around with. In fact, I almost expected him to encourage his son to sleep with them as a sign of masculine virility.
I felt a twinge of respect for Konstantin.
One that immediately disappeared when he kept talking.
