Hope peeked out from behind the churning mass, but I forced it back into the shadows. I didn’t want to get my hopes up only to be disappointed when—if—Delamonte told me they were going in a different direction. “Hi Stella, this is Luisa from Delamonte. How are you?” “I’m good. How are you?” I wiped my free hand against the side of my thigh. “I’m good,” Luisa said. “I apologize for calling you out of the blue like this, but I figured this would be a good follow-up to the email we sent this morning.” My stomach swooped. I’d been so busy with my sketches I hadn’t checked my email since waking up. Of course the one day I didn’t check it obsessively was the day I had an important message waiting for me.
“I’m not sure if you’ve seen it yet. In case you haven’t…” I could hear the smile in Luisa’s voice.
“I want to formally extend an offer for you to be Delamonte’s brand ambassador in the upcoming year. We didn’t officially announce the selection process because we wanted to choose our ideal candidates without getting swamped with unsolicited pitches, but after much deliberation, we think you would make a wonderful addition to the Delamonte family…” A loud buzz drowned out the rest of her words, and I stared blindly at the chalkboard menu as the line inched forward.
Formally extend an offer…Delamonte’s brand ambassador in the upcoming year…make a wonderful addition to the Delamonte family… I wanted to pinch myself, but I wasn’t ready to reenter reality in case this was a dream. The campaign meant a ton of money, which meant I could easily pay for Maura’s care and fund the startup costs for a fashion line, which meant…
The loud whir of the coffee machine dragged me out of my racing thoughts soon enough to catch the end of Luisa’s statement. “…look over the contract and let us know. The deadline for acceptance or refusal is next week, so take some time to think about it.” I don’t need to think about it! I’ll take it! “Thank you so much. I will.” The logical part of me knew I shouldn’t agree to anything without reading the fine print first, even if it was for a dream deal. “Excellent,” Luisa said warmly. “I hope we can work together. Your aesthetic is the epitome of our brand, and your account is doing amazing. Fifty thousand new followers in just a few weeks! That’s incredible.
And…before I say this, I want you to know this had nothing to do with our decision…but Christian has always had exquisite taste. I’m not surprised that extends to his love life. He’s never had a real girlfriend before, so the fact you’re dating is quite revealing.” My smile dimmed.
Guilt slowed the tiny effervescent bubbles of giddiness that had been hurtling through my veins until a second ago. I’d gained those followers because I’d been lying to my audience. Granted, it wasn’t a malicious lie, and it didn’t hurt anybody, but guilt ate at me all the same. “Like I said, that had nothing to do with our decision. But it’s a bonus.” Luisa cleared her throat. “Anyway, I have to run to a meeting, but look over the contract and discuss it with Brady. We sent a copy to him as well, so let us know if you have any questions.” “I will, thank you.” I hung up in time to place my order.
I’d finally reached the front of the line, but I was so buzzed I was no longer hungry, so I just ordered a tea and a croissant. By the time I returned to the Mirage, I’d drowned my guilt over my fake relationship with justifications and euphoria from landing the Delamonte deal. I was going to be their new brand ambassador. Me, Stella Alonso, the face of one of the world’s top luxury brands. Not only was it a six-figure deal, but it’d open doors to more opportunities than I could dream of. I could up my base rates, network with— The turn of my doorknob sent me crashing back to earth. It was locked, which meant it’d been unlocked before I put my key in. My high
evaporated, replaced with an eerie crawling sensation up the back of my neck. I was ninety percent sure I’d locked my door on my way out. Was I remembering wrong? The Mirage had never had a breakin, but… I glanced around the empty hallway, the eerie sensation intensifying. I grabbed my taser from my bag before I unlocked the door and inched through my apartment. Part of me felt ridiculous; the other part screamed at me in warning. I found nothing amiss in the living room, kitchen, bathroom, or Jules’s old room. The only place left to check was my bedroom. I slowly pushed open the door. At first, everything looked normal. Untouched bed, closed windows, no open drawers or upended furniture. I was on the verge of relaxing when my gaze snagged on the item waiting for me on my nightstand. And I screamed.
16
CHRISTIAN
Luisa: FYI, your girl got the deal.
I stared at my phone, suddenly more interested in Luisa’s text than Kage’s briefing on the Rutledge situation. I’d told her to update me when she made a final decision, and she’d chosen correctly, as I’d known she would. My only regret was not seeing Stella’s face and the way her eyes must’ve lit up when she got the news. We’d have to celebrate later—for appearances’
sake, of course, since that was what a real couple would do. Maybe dinner in New York or a weekend in Paris… “…could keep the Rutledge account, but we don’t know if Sentinel—
Christian, are you listening to me?” A hint of annoyance worked its way into Kage’s voice. “Yes.
We held onto the Rutledge account, Sentinel will try to steal more of our clients, and they’re allegedly working on something big, but we don’t know what it is yet. Continue.” I looked up, my face hardening. “And don’t question me again.” Kage’s mouth tightened, but he continued as ordered. “We’re still gathering intel on Sentinel’s secret project, but we think…” I dropped my eyes back to my phone and opened Stella’s profile. She hadn’t posted anything new in the past few days, so I settled for examining the photo of us at the art gallery. Even from the side, she was a vision. Lush dark curls, flawless skin, and long, lean lines that transformed even the plainest clothing into a masterpiece. Something tugged low in my gut at the memory of how she’d felt beneath my hands. Of the way her scent filled my lungs when I buried my face in her neck and the little hitch in her voice when I’d touched her. She’d looked so enraptured by that painting I almost hadn’t wanted to interrupt her, but I couldn’t help myself. Trying to stay away from her was like the ocean trying to stay away from the shore. Impossible. I rubbed my thumb over the phone screen while Kage droned on. In truth, I hadn’t needed to convince Wyatt of anything at the gallery opening. He’d already agreed to hire Harper Security; we just needed to sign the contract, which I could’ve scheduled during business hours. But according to Brock, Stella hadn’t left her house since her family dinner, and she’d needed a push to go outside. She shone too brightly to stay cooped up out of fear. “What’s the latest update on the background checks?” I interrupted whatever Kage was saying to focus on the most important matter at hand: Stella’s stalker. As expected, he was lying low, and he’d been careful with all the notes he’d