Sophia

 

 

"What if she hates the dress?" I stare at my reflection in the full length mirror in the hallway of my apartment. "I wish I would have chosen a different belt to go with this."

Cadence glances down at the screen of her phone. "You have time to find another belt. You're not supposed to meet Nicholas and Claudia for another hour yet."

I take a step back and turn to the left. "I don't know, Den. What do you think about the one I'm wearing?"

She walks up behind me and rests her hands on my shoulders. "I've already told you twice how much I love the dress. The belt is just an accessory, Soph. It's the dress that's going to impress Claudia."

I know she's right. I've worked on the dress non-stop for over a week now. I sewed every black pearl onto the bodice by hand and I painstakingly took my time with the scalloped neckline. This is, by far, the most beautiful piece I've ever created and I'm hopeful that once Claudia Stefano sees it, we'll be having a conversation about a trial run of my line in her stores.

"Have you heard from Nicholas yet?"

I turn around to look directly at my best friend. "The last time I spoke to him was two days ago. He was finishing up the draft on his latest book. He told me he'd be in the zone so I shouldn't expect to hear much from him until tonight."

"He's intense, isn't he?"

He is. It's one of the things I love about him, or think I love about him. I've been trying to convince myself that the depth of my feelings aren't real but our time together this past week has been sparse and I've missed him more than I've ever missed anyone before.

I've been busy working on my dress and he's been engrossed in his writing. It's been hard since most of our contact has been sporadic text messages. I did promise him I'd spend the night with him tonight after we're done having dinner with Claudia. It's been the prize at the end of the finish line for me. I can't wait to feel his arms around me.

"You're daydreaming about him again." Cadence laughs. "You're in another world right now, Soph."

"I'm nervous," I confess on a sigh. "This is the most important night of my life. I get one chance to impress Claudia. If this goes well, I can launch my career tonight."

"You're going to launch your career tonight," she subtly corrects me as she adjusts the silver pendant I'm wearing. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and you're nailing it. You have the dress, you have the man of your dreams by your side and you're going to walk out of that restaurant with a deal in place to show your designs at the boutiques of one of the most influential women in the world."

Before I told Cadence last week that I was having dinner with Claudia, she had no idea who the woman is. The fact that she's done her research this week to understand the magnitude of this meeting has not only impressed me, it's touched me deeply. She's now as invested as I am in the outcome of tonight.

"You should have a glass of wine before you head out."

I glance up at her face. She's so calm. She's been my voice of reason since she rented me a room in this apartment more than two years ago. She knows exactly what I need. "I'll have two sips of wine to calm my nerves and then I'll go show Claudia Stefano why I'm the next big thing in fashion."

"That's my girl." Cadence hugs me tightly. "Before this day is over, your entire life is going to change."

 

***

 

"I believe the reservation is under Wolf," I say to the woman behind the small podium that sits just inside the doors of Hibiscus, a new restaurant that just opened on the Upper East Side.

She scans the computer screen in front of her. "I don't see that name here."

"It must be Stefano then. I'm meeting Claudia Stefano for dinner."

She doesn't bat an eyelash which isn't surprising. The little black dress she's wearing is obviously straight off the rack of a major department store. It's unremarkable in every way.

"I'm sorry, but there's no reservation in that name either."

I fish for my phone in the small gold clutch that Dexie loaned me for tonight. "The only other name you can try is mine. That's Reese."

She nods slowly. "Let me try that one. Our system is new. Something might have gotten mixed up when the reservation was made."

I don't look at her as my fingers race over the screen of my phone. I pull up my contact's list and scroll down to his name. I dial Nicholas with a push of a button.

"Again, let me apologize." The woman behind the desk tosses me a sympathetic look. "Perhaps you can call the people you're meeting?"

Apparently, the fact that my phone is next to my head isn't a clue that I'm doing exactly that. I take a step back from the podium and listen to ring after unanswered ring.

"Nicholas, it's me," I whisper when his voicemail finally picks up. "I'm at Hibiscus and something's happened with the reservation. Call me as soon as you get this."

"Miss?" The woman behind the podium calls out to me as I drop my phone back into the clutch. "You're more than welcome to take a walk around the restaurant to see if your party is here. As I said, our reservation system has had a glitch or two since opening and I'd hate for you to miss your dinner because of that."

I follow her in silence as she leads me into the packed dining room. I survey the faces of each patron, quickly looking them over in a desperate attempt to find Nicholas or Claudia.

"I don't see them." I turn back to the hostess. "Is there another dining room?"

"We have two private dining rooms." She waves her hand to the left. "There's a shortcut through the kitchen. Follow me."

I do. I fall in step behind her as she weaves her way around servers before we take a straight path through the crowded kitchen.

We walk down a short corridor before I hear the raucous voices of a group of people who are all gathered in an alcove around a large dining table.

"I take it those aren't your friends?" The hostess tosses me a smile.

I shake my head. My voice is stuck somewhere between my stomach and my throat. If Nicholas and Claudia aren't in the other private room, I have no idea what I'm going to do.

An earpiece the woman is wearing buzzes suddenly, causing her to stop in her tracks. "I have to take this. All hell broke loose back at reception. The other dining room is straight ahead and to the left."

I stand in place as she walks away.

There's no sound drifting from the dining room to my left. I smooth my hands over the skirt of my dress before I take a step forward and then another. Just as I turn to look into the dining room, I stop moving.

The only person standing there is Nicholas. He's facing me. His hands are tucked in the front pockets of his jeans. His face is impassive.

"Nicholas?" I rush toward him. "Where's Claudia? I was so scared I was going to miss this."

He raises both of his hands in the air as I near him. "Stop. Don't fucking touch me."

I freeze in place, my heart racing. "Nicholas?"

"I told Claudia who you really are, Sophia. She wants nothing to do with you."

My stomach knots. "What does that mean? What's going on?"

"You play innocent better than anyone I've ever met." He chuckles. "I fell for it. Fuck, did I fall for it."

"You fell for what?" Anger simmers inside of me. "I want to know what's going on."

"What's going on is your career is over. I spoke to Gabriel an hour ago and if you haven't heard yet, you're fired. Claudia is going to make sure that your designs never see the light of day in this town."

My knees go weak. This can't be real. How is this happening? I look down at the dress I'm wearing. This is the dress that was supposed to launch my career. "Mr. Foster wouldn't fire me. He wouldn't do that to me."

"It's done. You're done, Sophia."

I search his face trying to understand what the fuck he's talking about. "You're not making any sense, Nicholas."

"I'm not making sense?" He clears his throat. "You stole from me. You took that manuscript I gave you and you sold it and now you're going to pay the price for that."

"What manuscript?" I search his face for reason but all that's there is bitter rage.

"You're not getting out of this by playing the naïve card."

"I'm not playing any card," I scream at him. "You're scaring me. I don't know what you're talking about. I swear, Nicholas."

"Let me make it crystal clear for you." He steps toward me, his hands bunched in fists. "Two people had access to that book I let you read while you were naked in my fucking bed. Those two people are you and me."

I nod. "I remember reading it."

"Do you remember fucking sell it to the highest bidder?" His voice is edged with sarcasm.

"Sell it? Why would I sell it?" I haven't touched the flash drive he gave me since I put it in my purse at his place. I've been too focused on creating the perfect dress for tonight.

"I don't know why you sold it." He brushes past me. "All I know is that the book made its debut on a streaming site this morning and my lawyer will see you in court."

"Court?" I twist around and grab his elbow to stop him." What does that mean?"

"You know what it means." He tugs his arm free. "I knew I couldn't trust you. You never once invited me to your apartment. That was the first red flag."

"I was nervous," I confess. "That's a big step for me."

"It's a fucking excuse. I knew the second I realized you put your hands on the note Briella wrote that this wouldn't end well for me. I should have listened to my gut. I wish to hell I would have."

I don't say a word. I stand in stunned silence as the man I love turns and walks away taking every single one of my dreams with him.