Page 119 of Pretend To Be Mine

This was what family could be. Supportive, present, choosing each other over and over despite differences and disagreements.

I’d be a lucky girl to end up as part of this family.

Or to have a mom like Mimi, who gently corrected while letting the boys do what they wanted. She didn’t admonish Sebastian for his dresses being too much. She praised him, even though I knew she would never personally wear anything in his collection.

I would love to have her as my other mom.

The thought came unbidden, and I pushed it away. Don’t get ahead of yourself.

After lunch, everyone scattered to their respective rooms to rest before tomorrow’s chaos. Adrian and I had a suite on the second floor, with windows overlooking the courtyard.

“I’m going to freshen up,” Adrian said, kissing my temple. “You okay?”

“Perfect. I might sit in the courtyard for a bit. Sketch a little.”

“Don’t work too hard. Tomorrow is going to be intense.”

After he disappeared into the bathroom, I grabbed my sketchbook and a cup of espresso from the kitchen—tiny and strong and absolutely perfect. I carried it outside and settled into a chair in the courtyard. The afternoon sun was warm. The fountain’s trickling created white noise that wiped away any remaining stress. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and let my mind wander.

I found myself drawing logos, which was silly and definitely premature. I was completely getting ahead of myself. But I couldn’t help it. If I ever had my own line, what would the branding look like?

I tried different variations of my initials. E and L, intertwined, separated, stacked. Nothing felt right.

“What are you working on?”

I looked up to find Adrian had joined me. He had changed into jeans and a T-shirt that made him look like any other guy.

Well, except for the fact he was absolutely gorgeous.

“Nothing. It’s dumb.”

“Show me anyway.”

I tilted the sketchbook so he could see. “I was just messing around with logos. Just in case I ever have my own line. Which is ridiculous but I guess I’m a dreamer.”

“It’s not ridiculous.” He sat beside me, studying my attempts. “But these aren’t quite right. What are you going for? What feeling?”

“I don’t know. Something that feels like me. Romantic but modern. Classic but fresh.” I laughed. “That’s not helpful at all, is it?”

“Actually, it is.” He took the pencil from me. “What if instead of trying to separate the letters, we integrated them? Like this.”

He sketched quickly. The E and L began to take shape, flowing into each other, the curves creating a shape.

“A heart,” I said softly.

“A heart.” He refined it, adding subtle flourishes. “EL. Elizabeth Laramie. Your initials forming something that represents your design aesthetic—romantic, emotional, from the heart.”

“Adrian, that’s perfect.”

“It’s a start. We can refine it, but this could work. Simple enough to be memorable, distinctive enough to stand out. You don’t want to overcomplicate it.”

“I love it,” I said. “Thank you. I guess there’s a reason you get paid the big bucks.”

He chuckled. “We’ll show it tomorrow when we show your dresses.”

I almost choked. “Seriously?”

“Hell yeah. Dash loved your designs when I showed him the sketches. He’s already planning where they’ll fit in the show.” Adrian put down the sketchbook.