She gestured for us to sit. Her assistant shut the heavy door and began taking notes, even though nothing of real value had been said yet.
“I’m sorry I didn’t provide many details. For projects like this, secrecy is the absolute key,” Emma explained, her tone sounding polished and rehearsed.
“I don’t understand,” I admitted, glancing over at Penelope, who finally closed her laptop screen.
“I’ve followed your career for a while, Vanessa, and I’m incredibly impressed. My father passed away a few years agoand left me a substantial inheritance; I’ve been investing it strategically. I’ve had my eye on you, and I would like to invest in you directly.”
My brain slammed on the brakes.
“In me?” I asked, entirely incredulous.
“Yes,” she said, pressing her lips together to keep from laughing at my shock.
I scanned the perimeter of the room as if Vera Wang might suddenly jump out from behind a curtain. Penelope finally gave the conversation her undivided attention.
“Welcome to the meeting,” I murmured under my breath to her.
“So, what do you say?” Emma asked.
“Is this real?”
“Very real,” she replied seriously.
“I don’t even know what to say,” I admitted, my defensive walls going up. “Full disclosure: Ever After fired me after some of my original designs were stolen and credited to someone else.”
Pen pinched my thigh hard enough to make me flinch.
“I know,” Emma said, her voice calm and steady. “Ever After Bridal is an institution. They’ll be here long after we’re gone.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” I asked.
“I’m willing to back you financially, Vanessa. I just need to know that you’ll believe in yourself.”
My head started to throb with a dull ache.
“You think I slept with him, don’t you?” Emma asked suddenly, and the entire axis of the room tilted.
“Excuse me?” I stammered.
“You think I slept with him?” she repeated, slowing down her syllables.
My brain went into a frantic overdrive because this situation was about to turn incredibly dramatic and awkward. “Look,whatever you and Elliott are, or whatever you had in the past, is honestly none of my business.Heis none of my business. If anything, I just don’t want you to tie your money to a losing horse.”
Penelope gave me the most murderous look I had ever seen in my life and kicked my shin again.
“He took me to the benefit so I could meet you and learn about the foundation,” Emma revealed. “That night at the house, he was only hoping you were asleep so he could show me some of your portfolio designs in secret. Admittedly, getting tipsy beforehand wasn’t great timing on our part. I know exactly how it looked, Vanessa, but believe me—you’re the only one I’ve been interested in from the very beginning.”
Each sentence landed against my chest like a physical blow. My heart and head ached in tandem. He had planned all of this: the firing, the fundraiser, Emma, the thirty days. I could barely draw breath into my lungs.
“If he still works for Ever After, wouldn’t this be a massive breach of his contract?” I managed to ask.
The assistant quietly slid a thick manila file across the table. Emma opened it and turned a high-end mock-up design toward us. It was elegant, luxury storefront signage that read:Catherine James.
“He was willing to risk it,” Emma said, her voice dropping into a soft but certain register. “Risk it all… for you.”
Our eyes locked, and her gaze softened. I placed my palm flat over my heart—it felt like my chest was going to cave right in.
“Catherine built that brand, but over time, with multiple new corporate visions, it slowly drifted away from her original intent,” Emma continued. “Elliott and I have been talking about this for months, and the only designer he trusts to handle her legacy is you. He told me that no one could carry on his mother’svision the way you could—and we simply couldn’t make it happen any sooner without risking everything.”
