Page 3 of Doll Face

She even left a red lipstick print at the bottom next to her name. I’m upset she didn’t wake me to say goodbye but it’s probably for the best. We’re both too emotional when it comes to goodbyes. Last time we had to say goodbye, both of us ended up sobbing at the airport, and she probably wanted to avoid that—I get it. I just wish I had a chance to see her again before she left. Sure, she’s only going for a few weeks, but that’s still a long ass time to go without seeing the woman you love.

Chapter 2

Barbie

5 years later…

“I needed those designs on my desk over an hour ago! Where could they be?” I shout to no one in particular. I’m about to lose my mind, so I take a deep breath in and out before looking at my assistant.

“Can you please go grab me a pink drink? I need a large one if I’m going to be working all night,” I say to my redheaded assistant, Midge. I’m not much of a coffee drinker but I love the Pink Drink from Starbucks—mainly because they’re full of caffeine.

“Yes, ma’am. And I think the designs are still with Kelly,” she says before leaving.

Kelly is my next in line. Whenever I do take a day off, she’s in charge. Trusting her with the company is easy—she’s my blood, after all. My little sister knows how important my job is to me. When our parents left Up, Up, Away toys to me, they didn’t anticipate that toys would take a backseat to tablets and other electronics. We’re competitive in the toy business, ranking high enough to sit at the table with Mattel and others, but that still doesn’t mean I can take a day off to relax like my sister can. I have too much riding on making sure the family business doesn’t crumble. It’s all on my shoulders, and I don’t want to let my parents down.

“Can someone get Kelly down here?” I ask my string of interns. They look up from their computers, then at each other, and one of them picks up the phone.

“She’s coming down now,” they say, hanging up the phone.

“Good.” I look down at the half-assed papers in front of me. They won’t be complete until we get the designs from Kelly. The next quarter of sales depends on these designs, and I have to make sure they’re going to bring in enough revenue to keep us afloat. It’s been a rough few years; despite being competitive, we still aren’t doing as well as Apple or Amazon.

“What’s up, sis?” Kelly walks in the room wearing wheelie sneakers and a pair of ripped jeans. Thank GOD for casual Fridays.

“I need the Woods designs for the toy line.” I sigh.

“Got them right here. I was going over logistics with the team,” she says, proudly rolling over to me.

“Thank you.” I take them from her and look them over. If we can create this exact line, and in time for Christmas, we’ll be under our yearly budget.

“They look good, right?” she asks, searching for my approval.

“They look amazing. Did you help?” She’s more on the administrative side of things, but I’ve known of her to dip her toes in the designs every once in a while. We need her as our CFO, but if we didn’t, she’d be head of the design department. She’s surely talented enough for the position.

“I did. I know you said not to, but I couldn’t help myself. I’m the one who did that one.” She points to one of my favorite toys.

“It looks really amazing.” I smile.

“Thanks.” She grins.

Just then, Midge comes back with my Pink Drink in her hand. My eyes light up when I see it, and I take it from her with a quick thank you. She checks if I need anything else, and when I don’t, she heads back to her desk outside the conference room.

“Mom and Dad called, by the way. They’re wondering if you’re vacationing with us in Hawaii. We leave in like two days, you know.”

“I know; they’ve left me messages. I just don’t think I can swing it with both of us not being here,” I admit. If Kelly were staying home, I’d consider it, but I’m a workaholic who would probably stick around anyway.

“I told them you’d say that.” She shakes her head. “Will you be okay here without me?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“You should get out more, you know. Go on a date. See the city. Be spontaneous.”

“I’ve lived in New York for four and a half years; I know the city.” I laugh.

“Well, you should get out and date more.”

I turn toward the batch of interns. “Excuse us a minute?” They all trickle out of the office, and I turn back to Kelly. “Where is all this coming from?”

“Mom and dad are just worried about you. And so am I. You work so much. But you never go out … you never date. You haven’t dated anyone since Kenzie.” She never brings her up, so I know she must actually be concerned.

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