Page 84 of Hard to Take

“No,” I enunciate crisply. “It’s about this collaboration. Another creator reached out to me because she was having problems with the company. Since yesterday, she’s put me in touch with a few more creators with the same experience.”

Mom waves me in and closes the door behind me. She ignores the desk and chairs and crosses to a couch, perching on one end. “What specifically seems to be the problem?”

I sink onto the seat, crossing my knees instead of my ankles and ignoring her look that follows the movement. “The company has had lags in subsequent payments. They blame in on the banks but it appears to be a consistent pattern, because all of the creators have had at least one successful payment. Then, creators submit photos for consideration but Vivaro won’t approve them. They go back with endless requests and hurdles. One of the creators, Alicia, later found they used her post after all in a print campaign and didn’t even credit her.”

“But so far they’ve followed through on all of their commitments to you.”

“So far.”

It’s possible these are isolated issues and won’t affect me. Still, when I went through the company’s collaboration posts for the past several months, nearly half of the creators were ones cited by Alicia as having encountered problems even though none of them posted about it publicly.

“Why did these creators come to you?” Mom asks.

“I don’t know.” It’s a question I’ve asked myself but haven’t been able to answer.

“I don’t want to see you involved in this. It’s always been challenging for people who look like us to gain the same visibility and profile. If you push on this, you absolutely risk losing the partnership. More than that, it could affect your reputation and chances at future work.”

She’s not wrong, but something about her words rings false.

“Isn’t this a perfect example of why we should stand up? It’s one thing to build a brand for myself, but I want to see everyone succeed. Creators have less power and resources than big companies. Those companies need to be held to account. Isn’t that what you’ve always campaigned on?”

My mother’s eyes soften. “Part of making change is picking the right battles. I don’t recommend that you pick this one.”

Though some of the women have a smaller following than me, Alicia’s is comparable. If they looked me up online, they would have found information about my sorority, my upbringing, my family.

“Maybe they came to me because I’m your daughter. Because they thought you raised me to help people.”

She folds her arms as if she’s about to chastise me.

In the end, she sighs. “If you do take this one, you need to be careful about it. Impulsivity won’t serve you.”

I lift my chin.

On my way out, she clears her throat.

“Before you go, I’d like to ask a favor. It turns out I can’t do things alone, either.”

25

BROOKE

The brown paper package is tucked carefully under my arm like the latest designer handbag. It was couriered over for Miles from his agent’s office, and I offered to bring it by the arena, since he’s going to be in team stuff all day.

Security recognizes me and lets me through with a wave. I head toward the practice area, the sounds of squeaking shoes and basketballs guiding me.

When I reach the end of the hall, florescent lights illuminate the Kodiaks in practice jerseys, working through drills at both ends of the court. All the guys are working hard, but my attention slides to Miles.

He’s cutting through the defense, shoulder to shoulder with Clay, putting up shots a perimeter player has no business getting. But he’s been asked to do more this year, to be two guys really, and he’s doing it.

Coach blows his whistle and the guys head for the sidelines.

Except Miles. He looks for me.

When he jogs over, I say, “Hi. I didn’t want to interrupt practice but I wanted to bring you this.”

He brushes his lips across my cheek before he opens the package, his brows lifting. “What is… Shit.”

The blue basketball shoe is sleek and sculpted. The sponsor’s logo is on the side, but it’s the name across the heel that has him gripping the sole tighter.