Page 19 of Wedding Season
She shrugged. “I was busy.”
Right. Busy avoiding him, Alex suspected. “Did you offer Mariella Jacob a job at the Fit Collective?”
He narrowed his eyes as Luann placed the uneaten portion of donut on the plate. She used a napkin to wipe the tips of her fingers, and he had a feeling she was drawing out the moment on purpose. She liked drama, but he’d believed she cared more about the company than any sort of personal theatrics. Maybe he’d been wrong in his judgment—hell, wouldn’t his stepdad enjoy that fact.
“Not just any job. I offered her my position as creative partner. You should be on your knees praying that she accepts it. She’s exactly what the company needs. Maybe what you need.”
CHAPTER SIX
ALEXTRIEDTOcontrol the flash of hot temper that flamed through him at his business partner’s flagrant disregard for any sort of hiring best practices or business etiquette.
“Why would I do that? Why would you do that? There is no way in hell I’d work with Mariella Jacob, and I can’t believe you’d suggest it.”
“Don’t let your ego get in the way.” Luann glanced up at the young barista, maybe Heather’s replacement, who brought her drink to the table. “Thanks, sweetheart,” Luann said as she gave the girl a wide smile. “This is exactly what I need right now.”
“You’re welcome.”
“You are lovely,” Luann continued. “Have you ever thought about modeling?”
The teenager giggled. “No, but one of my life goals is to be a social media influencer.”
“Even better,” Luann agreed. “Follow us at hashtag fit collective and we’ll see if we can’t get something going.”
“Okay.”
As the girl walked away with a huge grin on her face, Alex shook his head. “Why would we give up any of what you just did there? You’re a natural with the brand.”
Luann took a sip of her drink. “It was on the tip of my tongue to tell that girl she needed to show less of her horse-toothed grin and more bosom if she wanted any sort of meaningful social media following.”
Alex went stock-still.
“That’s right. I held back.” Luann nodded. “Showed some self-restraint. That’s not going to last, Alex. I’m well past the age of giving a rat’s patoot about doing or saying the right thing and the current culture isn’t going to tolerate my brand of humor or the way I do business. You have to see that. I certainly do.”
“I don’t believe you can’t control it,” Alex countered. “You’re smart and creative, Luann. A visionary. This is your chance for reinvention. This is the chance both of us need and want. This is what you told me you wanted. Why the sudden change of heart?”
“That’s the thing, kid. I’m not so sure I do want it and I know it’s crap timing that I’m realizing that only now. This has been a fun little interlude, but I don’t feel the desire to censure myself. The company’s success is important. I want you to be a success. Hell, I want the money. But I don’t care about being politically correct. I’m going to say the wrong thing to the wrong person, especially in this Mayberry bubble you’ve chosen as our home. We both know it.”
“You don’t have to be in Magnolia.” Alex wasn’t sure if any of his arguments would hold weight. He didn’t know what to say to convince her. But he had to try. “You can design from anywhere. We’ll keep it behind the scenes.”
Luann laughed out loud at that, a raucous sound that had heads in the small coffee shop turning in their direction. “Can you imagine me taking a behind-the-scenes role?”
“We had an agreement. I went out on a limb for you. With the investors. With the employees. I put everything I have into this company.”
“I know.” Her smile faded and she looked almost tender, as out of character for Luann as it would be for a shark in the open ocean. “That’s part of why I’m suggesting this. I know how much you have riding on the success of the rebrand. I appreciate your faith in me, Alex. I do. I don’t want to let you down.”
“What do you call this conversation?” He looked at the donut in front of him because it was too hard to meet her gaze. There was a faint hint of pink around the place where she’d taken her bite. Lipstick smeared on the flaky outside of the pastry. Luann was simply another person who couldn’t stick it out with him. Alex wasn’t much for paranoia, but he was definitely getting to the point where he considered taking it personally. He simply wasn’t enough. He hadn’t been for his mom once his father left them or for Amber and now...
“I’m not going to leave right away. Not until I have somebody amazing to take my place.”
“Mariella is not that somebody.”
“Don’t be so sure. Have you seen the dresses she’s been designing recently?”
Alex started to shake his head then paused. “One of them. The woman my best friend married at the Wildflower Inn wore one of her designs. It was fine.”
“The dresses I’ve seen have been more than fine. They’ve been works of art and different than her previous designs when she ran Belle Vie. Those dresses were about the event and the spectacle of a wedding. What she’s doing now is personal. It’s about each individual bride and making her feel beautiful. Exactly what you want and need at the Fit Collective. You want someone who can design clothes that make all women feel beautiful. No matter their shape or size or if they’re doing CrossFit or yoga or pushing their kids around the mall in strollers.” She frowned. “Do people still go to the mall or has the mall been canceled along with so many other things in the age of the online life dominating everything else?”
Alex felt a muscle tick in his jaw. “I don’t know about the mall, Luann. I’m kind of hung up on the thought of my business partner and the lead designer for my company ditching me.”
