Please don’t tell me they’ve already slept together! Because if they had, her plan would fail for sure. If Amelia and Vogue had been intimate, there would be no way of putting a wedge between them.

  Damn! Why didn’t I intervene sooner?

  ‘So far so good. Vogue seems happy with my work.’ Amelia leant forward and whispered in a conspiratorial tone. ‘Being her personal assistant, you probably already know, but I’m bursting to tell everyone that she’s going to use my designs for her outwear collection. I haven’t even told Cecile yet.’

  Melissa’s heart sank at the sight of Amelia’s obvious happiness. It truly made her feel like the worst person in the world, knowing that she was going to be the one responsible for taking her happiness away from her.

  Melissa played with the stem of her glass. She fought with herself as to whether her next sentence would make her look like a complete bitch in Amelia’s eyes. In the end, her head overruled her heart. She had to follow through with her plan. She couldn’t allow for emotions to derail it.

  ‘I wouldn’t be so fast to finish your designs, if I was you.’

  The smile on Amelia’s face disappeared in an instant, replaced with a frown of confusion. ‘What does that mean?’

  ‘Meaning.’ Melissa paused for dramatic effect. ‘That you might get caught up in the crossfire when the shit hits the fan, and you know what they say about birds of a feather, you’ll be tarred with the same brush. Vogue isn’t the person you think she is. Trust me, I should know.’

  ‘Oh.’ Amelia’s stare didn’t waver, but Melissa could see she was crushed by the news.

  ‘Look, I’m telling you this in confidence,’ Melissa continued, leaning forward, hoping she hadn’t misread Amelia as someone who kept her word. ‘So this goes no further than the two of us, right?’

  Amelia nodded in agreement.

  Melissa took a sip of wine, drawing out the tension. ‘Vogue was involved in a scandal a while back—’

  ‘What kind of scandal?’ Amelia asked with a puzzled expression.

  ‘I can’t tell you, not now, but she’s not out of the woods yet—’

  ‘But what’s this got to do with my designs?’

  Melissa tried to sound as sincere as possible. Amelia didn’t strike her as someone who would take anyone’s word at face value. She had to gain her trust. Slowly, slowly catchy monkey.

  ‘Everything. Just trust me on this… delay finishing your designs. That way when it all blows up, you can walk away unscathed with your work. I have contacts in the industry who would be more than happy for you to join their team.’

  ‘You’re the second person that’s warned me about Vogue. I genuinely thought she was a nice person.’

  Melissa felt a huge sense of relief at her revelation being validated. She had been relying on the fact that Cecile would have bad-mouthed Vogue to Amelia at some stage. She didn’t know exactly what had happened, but something had occurred between the two women to cause the discord she sensed whenever they were together. Melissa had never asked Vogue about it because their relationship wasn’t the type where they shared details of their personal lives. Not that Melissa would have wanted Vogue as a shoulder to cry on.

  With Cecile, though they were on friendly terms, Melissa had never encouraged her to open up as she didn’t have the bandwidth to take on other people’s problems. It was hard enough dealing with her own.

  ‘See. The only reason I’m telling you is because… well… I like you.’

  At this Amelia smiled. What she was conveying by this, Melissa didn’t know, but she took it as a positive sign. Especially when Amelia got up and went to the bar.

  Melissa watched as Amelia ordered another round of drinks.

  Amelia glanced back, still smiling.

  It looked like she was in with a chance after all.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  There was one rule Vogue tried to live by, and that was to face the truth no matter how hard or painful it was. That was what she was going to do now – face up to the fact that she was on her own. It wasn’t fair, but then life wasn’t fair. It was what you made it.

  Sitting in her office surrounded by awards of achievement, she was still surprised at how quickly her life had fallen down around her. The fact that she’d been able to conceal the accusations made against her was a feat in itself. The fashion industry was well known for its love of gossip, and taking any opportunity to step over another company if it meant them getting to the top. It was a testament to the loyalty of her staff, and that’s why she couldn’t afford to fail. Even if Melissa did think it was an impossibility.

  The way Melissa had suddenly switched on her, made Vogue wonder if she’d been holding those sentiments about the company all this time. She had stupidly thought Melissa had believed in her, so it was a shock to realise she didn’t. But Melissa’s opinion wouldn’t stop Vogue from rising to the top. If anything, she was going to use it as fuel to propel her even higher this time. Feeling the determination rise within, Vogue was going to bypass the stage she had been at – she was going to come back better. Stronger. Nothing or no one was going to get in her way.

  It saddened her to think of the last meeting with Amelia. Where she had opened up about her lack of self-belief. Vogue had been speechless at how little she thought of herself. So much so, Vogue couldn’t find the words to explain to Amelia how amazingly talented and special she was. By the time she had found her voice, Amelia had made a quick exit.

  A tap on the door caused Vogue to push thoughts of Amelia aside. She had already made the decision next time she saw her, to have a heart to heart. Hopefully, Vogue would be able to make Amelia see her self-worth.

  ‘Come in,’ Vogue said when she saw Trudy standing in the doorway.

  Trudy walked in, her demeanour edgy and nervous.

  ‘Trudy,’ Vogue said smiling. ‘How can I help?’

  Vogue liked to have an open-door policy with her staff. That way they could tell when things were going wrong, as well as when they were going right.

  ‘Um, I don’t know how to say this.’

  ‘Just saying it as it is normally helps,’ Vogue said, gesturing for Trudy to take a seat which she did.

  Vogue searched Trudy’s face to pick up on any cues. The woman had only been working for her for a few weeks and, as far as she knew, everything had been running smoothly on the floor below.

  ‘I… I think someone’s stolen my designs.’

  Vogue almost choked upon hearing Trudy’s words. Whether it was caused by a trigger from the past in dealing with Bev, she didn’t know, but she had to force herself to maintain her composure and keep in the present moment.

  ‘Oh,’ Vogue said, ‘What makes you think that?’

  ‘It’s just that….’ Trudy paused and looked bewildered for a moment. As if trying to work out whether her accusation was real, or whether she had somehow misplaced her designs somewhere.

  ‘Go on,’ Vogue pressed gently.

  Either way, Trudy was in the hot seat now and her words had been spoken. She had no choice but to follow through.

  ‘I left my designs in my desk drawer overnight. I normally take them home, but I was going out last night.’

  Vogue kept her hands under her desk out of view. She didn’t want Trudy to see her fingers twisting, a habit of hers when she wanted someone to get to the point rather than go around the houses with meaningless details.

  ‘Right,’ Vogue said, nodding her head in encouragement.

  Trudy combed her fingers through her thin hair. ‘I just checked and they’re gone.’

  Vogue inwardly shuddered. Did they have a thief working there or was it a simple misunderstanding? Maybe someone else moved it. Why they would randomly go into Trudy’s drawer, Vogue didn’t know, but it was a possibility. Her mum used to be constantly moving her stuff around when she lived at home.

  ‘Leave this with me, Trudy. We’ll get to the bottom of things. Have you got another copy of the designs?’

  Trudy shook her head. ‘My work’s original. I never make copies.’

  ‘Well, maybe this is a sign that you should. Just as a precaution.’ Vogue smiled again. The outer calm belied the apprehension inside. ‘And I’d prefer to keep this between us until I find out what’s happened.’

  ‘Of course,’ Trudy said, her expression still maintaining a look of helplessness.

  Vogue glanced at her watch to give the impression she was short for time. Trudy took the hint and rose to her feet.

  As soon as Trudy closed the door behind her, Vogue picked up her phone. It was an additional expense that she didn’t need but she would not let this situation spiral out of control.

  ‘Nick,’ Vogue said when he answered the phone. ‘I want four desks with locks on the drawers delivered today.’

  ‘Today? But—’

  ‘I don’t want to hear any buts. I just want it done.’ This wasn’t said in a demanding, throwing her toys out of her pram, tone. It was said in a way to convey the urgency the situation required. There was no way on earth Vogue was going to travel down that same road again. She had done it once with Bev and that was more than enough.

  ‘Okay.’

  ‘Thanks, Nick.’

  Vogue disconnected the call. She could only sense what lay ahead if anyone found out designs were going missing. That their workspace wasn’t safe. Up until now, even after what Bev had put Vogue and her team through, there was still a sense of trust between them all. Another case of dishonesty could push them over the edge.

  Vogue took the lift down to the floor below on the pretence of checking the office out.

  What am I doing here?

  It only took a glimpse of Amelia sat at her desk in deep concentration, for her to admit the truth to herself.

  It still amazed her that Amelia had come into her life and turned it upside down. Especially at a time when she needed to have her full attention on getting her business back on its feet. The last thing she needed was a distraction, and such an attractive one at that. She liked it best when Amelia wore her hair in a ponytail, like she did today, as it showed off the perfect symmetry of her face

  As if sensing Vogue was thinking about her, Amelia looked up.

  Caught, with no way back, Vogue did the only thing she could – awkwardly waved at her.

  Amelia waved back, smiling broadly.

  Vogue turned around and walked back down the corridor, left to wonder what the hell she was going to do.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Amelia gazed at Vogue as she walked away, and her heart sank. What did she think she was doing waving so enthusiastically at her boss? Had she lost her senses? She must have looked like a grinning idiot. Amelia cringed.

  Playing it cool has never been my strong point.

  It was too late to do anything now. Her thoughts returned to Melissa. She’d advised Amelia to keep her distance but how could she? To do so would only make Vogue suspicious, especially if Amelia was to tell her she was having issues with her designs. While Amelia had no reason to doubt Melissa’s intentions, she couldn’t help but pit her gut feeling against Melissa’s revelation that Vogue was not to be trusted.

  At no time during any of their interactions did Amelia sense that Vogue was dishonest. In truth, she found her to be very open and upfront about things. But then there was Cecile’s opinion to add to the mix. It was one thing doubting Melissa, as she didn’t really know her that well, but she had known Cecile forever and she trusted her implicitly. As such, she had absolutely no reason to lie to her.

  Why does everything have to be so bloody complicated?

  All Amelia wanted to do was work at a job that she loved more than anything. All of these complications and dramas only served as a distraction.

  ‘Hey, how’s it going?’ Jordan appeared out of nowhere with a wide smile on her face. This wouldn’t have been so surprising if she’d made any attempt to talk to Amelia in the weeks that they’d been sat opposite one another, but she hadn’t. Jordan had ignored any attempt Amelia made to befriend her, so she was a little perplexed as to why she was suddenly being so nice.

  Amelia had genuinely thought Jordan disliked her. Not that it bothered her in the slightest. Not everyone was going to take to her. In the end, she had put it down to professional competition and left it at that.

  ‘Yeah, things are good thanks,’ Amelia said. ‘You?’

  ‘No complaints.’ Jordan paused. ‘Yet, anyway.’

  ‘You say that like you’re expecting trouble.’

  ‘Not really. But I’m sure you know how these things work, once the pressure’s on, things are going to get pretty heated. Dog eat dog, if you know what I mean?’

  Amelia nodded in agreement despite feeling uncomfortable that Vogue still hadn’t told anyone that she was going to use Amelia’s designs. It made her feel dishonest to watch her colleagues hard at work on a project that wasn’t going to come to fruition. Unless Vogue’s plan was to use them for another collection.

  That made sense when she thought about it. It wasn’t as if Styles could afford to only have one collection.

  ‘How’re your designs coming along?’

  Jordan tapped her nose. ‘Now that would be telling, wouldn’t it?’

  ‘I was just wondering, that’s all.’

  ‘I’m not a sharer, unlike yourself it seems.’

  ‘I haven’t got anything to hide.’ Amelia turned her drawing around for Jordan to see. She was confident that her own style was unique and wasn’t worried about anyone trying to steal her ideas.

  ‘Pretty impressive,’ Jordan said, taking the drawing in with widened eyes. ‘Oh, what the hell, can I make a small suggestion?’

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘That collar would look better like this.’ Jordan picked up a pencil and added a small adjustment to the drawing.

  Amelia turned the paper back around to face her and almost gasped. ‘You’re so right. Oh my God, I didn’t even think of that. Thank you.’

  ‘You’re welcome, but don’t expect too many favours, we’re competitors,’ Jordan said with a wink.

  Though Jordan was trying to make light of her comment, Amelia knew she was deadly serious, but she didn’t care. The fact that Jordan had helped improve her design when she could have simply said nothing, spoke volumes about the woman’s generous nature.

  ‘I owe you a drink.’

  ‘Did I hear someone mention a drink?’

  Amelia looked past Jordan just as Melissa came into view. At first, she was happy to see her, but then had a sudden thought. Melissa was Vogue’s personal assistant. What if when this so-called bombshell landed, Melissa was part of it too. Amelia’s temples pounded and she felt herself wishing she was back in Bournemouth where her life had been so simple. She knew where she stood with the people around her, unlike at Styles. Suddenly, she didn’t know who she could trust and that actually scared her. This kind of environment was not what she had expected when happily taking on the job.

  ‘Yeah,’ Amelia said. ‘I was just asking Jordan to join me for one so we can discuss our work.’

  ‘Oh,’ Melissa said with a look of disappointment. Melissa remained standing there, as if waiting for her invite. When it wasn’t forthcoming, the penny seemed to drop. ‘Good idea. Glad to see two women getting along without letting the competitive edge come between you.’

  If it was one thing Amelia couldn’t understand, it was the scarcity mentality that some people seemed to have. The way Amelia’s mind worked, she was happy to lend support to whoever needed it. Competitor or not.

  ‘Maybe we can hang out another time?’ Melissa said to Amelia.

  Jordan looked at them both with an enquiring gaze.

  ‘Yeah, sure,’ Amelia said. She knew she was doing the right thing being non-committal until figuring out who she could trust.

  So why didn’t it feel that way?

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  ‘This is not my problem, Vogue.’ Melissa stood by the window in her office, her back to Vogue who, when she’d walked in minutes earlier, looked like she was on the verge of a meltdown. This gave Melissa a high she’d never experienced before. For the first time in their relationship, the scales had tipped in Melissa’s favour. Now she was the one with the upper hand.

  ‘Not your problem?’ Vogue looked at her incredulously. ‘Do you know how hard it is to ask for your help?’

  Melissa was well aware of the difficulty Vogue had in showing any weakness. She was rattled – badly. It was like the Bev incident all over again. Only this time Vogue had a lot more to lose, as she no longer had enough money to keep going.

  ‘That’s where you’re wrong. You aren’t asking for help to improve a situation. You’re asking me to help you drag up the past. Something that should be left exactly where it is. Buried and forgotten.’

  Melissa turned to face Vogue, hands on hips, her stomach filled with butterflies in anticipation. She had to play her part in this right. If she gave the slightest hint that she knew the reason behind Vogue’s plea for help, it would cause suspicion and that was the last thing she needed if her plan was to succeed.

  ‘What’s caused this sudden change of heart? I thought you never wanted to hear her name ever mentioned again?’

  ‘I know, but I need closure.’ Vogue’s tone was absolute as she raised her fingers to her temple.

  ‘But why now, after all this time?’

  ‘So I can finally move on.’

  How many times had Melissa heard herself saying those exact words to her therapist? Too many to count.

  ‘I’ll ask again, why now?’ Melissa pressed. ‘You could’ve had closure when this all happened.’ But you decided to run and hide instead of facing it head on.

  Melissa savoured the moment, seeing the uncertainty in Vogue’s eyes. The fear of being faced with something she had zero control over. It exhilarated Melissa to know that such a small act on her behalf, could have made such a big impact. In fact, if Vogue wasn’t standing right there in front of her, Melissa would have given herself a congratulatory pat on the back. After all, she had managed to execute her plan to trigger Vogue, down to perfection.