Page 18 of The Boss I Can't Stand
She nodded and set off just as the door to the costume shop flew open. Brenna came hustling the leads into the room. Kaiden McKnight and Shaw Houston were a striking pair. I’d lived in LA for a decade, but I was still amazed at how effortlessly beautiful some people were.
Some people were just destined for the big screen, and Shaw was one of them. She wasn’t just gorgeous—she also had a fresh, youthful energy, a sweet smile, and expressive eyebrows I knew would really bring the character’s vibrancy to life.
If she had the dramatic chops to match her looks, she was going to make the whole world fall in love with her in this part. Kaiden was flawlessly handsome, but it was his easy charm that was the most captivating. They were going to dazzle on-screen together.
“Why don’t you two come over this way, and we’ll start with measurements,” I said once Brenna had made the necessary introductions. Shaw and Kaiden followed, and I got both of them onto fitting platforms in front of the mirrors, separated by a curtain to maintain a modicum of privacy. Carter worked with Kaiden, and Paisley and Trin worked with Shaw while I bounced between them, double checking the measurements.
“Heard you got stuck at the gate,” I said to Shaw. “Can’t tell you how often that’s happened to me.”
She laughed, the sound light and airy. “I don’t often get accused of trying to lie my way onto a studio lot. It was sort of refreshing.”
I liked her attitude. It was good to know she wasn’t the type to kick up a fuss over every problem. “Well, hopefully the rest of your day goes a lot smoother.” I had her turn in a circle, double-checking her waist measurement. Then I checked some fabric swatches against her skin tone, trying to decide on a complimentary color palette that would look the best on-screen.
“I’m just excited to dive into everything,” she said. “And I love this part of the process. I feel like I understand my character so much better once I’ve got the costume on.”
“That’s always my aim,” I said.
“Just tell me one thing,” Kaiden said from the other side of the curtain. “Do I get a pinstriped suit and wide-brimmed hat?”
I grinned. He really wanted the gangster-chic look. “We’ll make sure you both look fabulous. I want the costumes to help you get in touch with your characters. To make you feel like you’re actually stepping into their lives.”
Shaw blinked at me as I draped a swatch of pale blue silk across her. “I want the boning in your formal dresses to help you understand how constrained Evelyn feels. And then the subtle details in your later costumes, like the fringe, to put you in touch with the confidence and free-spirit attitude of the Roaring Twenties. Almost…flapper-esque.”
I heard the door open again, and Finn blew in like a storm, in the middle of an intense phone call. The energy in the shop shifted instantly, everyone immediately nervous around the big boss. I handed my measuring tape to Trin. “Finish up and have them get dressed.”
I stepped out past the curtain just as Finn hung up. He was staring at the board where Paisley had pinned my initial design ideas.
“Is this what we’re working with?” he said abruptly.
My guard immediately went up. Why did I feel like a prickly hedgehog around him? “Yes.”
He rubbed at his chin. “I think the costumes should be more modern.”
I frowned at him. “Did you forget you hired me to work on a period piece?”
“I’m well aware of what film we’re making.”
“Because if it’s unclear,” I said, “I can get you the dictionary definition.”
He huffed. “Every Dayhinges on Evelyn being ahead of her time, seeing things other people couldn’t. More modern styling would make her stand out visually from the start—and it would make the story that much more accessible to audiences. Who can relate to a woman in a corset?”
To my surprise, his justification wasn’t horrible. My thoughts drifted to comparable films, like Baz Luhrman’sRomeo + Juliet. Strategically layering modern influences into that film had helped the centuries-old language connect with audiences right away.
It was frustrating to admit, but the idea Finn was pitching sounded halfway decent. It just wasn’t necessarilymyvision or the one presented in the biography—not to mention, X needed to be involved in the conversation if he wasn’t already.
“I think that’ll be cool,” Kaiden said, stepping out from behind his curtain, dressed in his own clothes again. “Sort of like the choice to use modern music in the latestGatsbyfilm. Audiences loved that.”
“Exactly,” Finn said.
Shaw appeared a moment later, unsure of what to say. Her eyes kept flickering back and forth between Finn and me, as if she was worried one of us would ask her to take sides. The last thing I wanted was for the actors to feel stuck in the middle, like they were being forced to listen to mommy and daddy fight.
“Paisley,” I said, “could you go with Brenna to show Shaw and Kaiden to hair and makeup?” Paisley nodded once and ushered everyone out, including Carter and Trin.
I turned to Finn, prepared to offer a compromise. “What if we do more modern cuts for the costumes but in twenties fabrics? That way the shapes will make sense to a modern audience, but the palette and texture will still capture an authentic feel.”
Finn crossed his arms. “I think you’re missing the obvious metaphor. It shouldn’t beeveryonein more modern clothes. It should be Evelyn and Tommy, specifically. They’re the ones trying to break away from the constraints of society. What better way to show that than in their clothes? Everyone else, the ones trapped in the past, should dress like it.”
I was shocked. “That’s actually a really great idea.” I pulled down one of my sketches, tracing over the top of it. Images took shape in my mind faster than I could get them on paper.
