Page 38 of All the Drama from New York

Camille was lost for words. Workable. Sufficient. That was high praise indeed from their father.

Not that he would ever speak them to my face.

Sophie sighed. “You do know he is secretly proud of you. Unlike me, who is just another person for Papa to shake his head at when the fabric doesn’t fall exactly how he wants.”

Her sister, as always, was selling herself short. Sophie was the one member of their family who had it in them to take over the haute couture business from François. She had the patience and temperament to deal with the exacting requirements of high fashion. Something which Camille had never possessed.

“Remind me of that when you eventually take Paris by storm, and the fashion elite whispers Sophie Royal in the same sentence as Saint Laurent,” replied Camille.

Camille was certain that her sister would eventually reach those dizzying heights. She just had to begin to believe in herself.

And push back on Papa when he won’t listen.

Her sister leaned in closer to the camera. “Speaking of whispers. News of you having landed a slot at New York fashion week has apparently reached some very important ears over here, and tongues are now wagging.”

Camille’s greatest hope was that if she managed to pull off the New York gig, then it might open some doors for her back home in France. She would love nothing more than to showcase her work in front of the world at Paris fashion week. New York was big, but nothing could beat the behemoth that was Paris.

She didn’t want to hear what those tongues were saying about her right now. The industry was a tough one, and there were plenty of people who only viewed her success through an imperfect lens. That without her Royal connections and family money she was nothing.

The fact that I work my ass off and might actually have some talent doesn’t come into it.

Camille understood her privilege. She’d had more opportunities than other designers, and had a safety net if shefailed. But she wouldn’t go changing her name or her heritage just to placate others.

I am who I am, and I’m not going to waste my life.

“Speaking of Paris fashion week, have you given any further thought to asking Papa to support your bid for a show?” asked Camille.

Sophie was a clever designer, the pieces she had put together on her own over the years were breathtaking in their craftsmanship. The one thing her sister lacked was the self-belief to strike out on her own.

“I will mention it to him, but you know how things are…” Sophie trailed off. Sometimes Camille wished she could reach through the computer screen and take her sister firmly by the shoulders. Shake some sense into her.

“Ok, but if I get this New York runway show to work, then you and I are going to talk about Paris. And if that means me having to fly home and the two of us facing down Papa together, in order to make it happen, then I will do it.”

The brief nod of agreement she got in reply from Sophie said it all. Her sister was ready to change the subject and talk about other things. Anything that didn’t involve her halfhearted attempts to move out of their father’s shadow.

Camille checked the time, it was now well after eight in New York, which meant it was already Saturday in Paris. “I’d better let you go, I assume you have a dance club to get to shortly. While my Friday night fun will be having a call with the button gnomes in Zurich.”

Sophie winced. Trying to discuss the nuances of color shades with the Swiss supplier was never easy. One summer in a fit of rage, their father had taken the family jet and flown all the way to Zurich to do battle with the button people over the official color code for gold. François had of course won.

“Alright. Take care. I’ll talk to you sometime next week. I’ll be interested to see how your new employee settles in and if you can move past your old crush on him.”

Sophie’s words gave Camille a moment of pause. She’d had a thing for Ryan when he’d been on the show. At the time she had put it down to needing something to anchor herself to in the middle of the stormy changes in her life. A harmless cute guy/Thor fantasy on the tv, which hadn’t been real.

But today, Ryan Collins had been real. He was working for her. The success of her New York fashion week show could well depend on how good a job he did over the next three months, and the weeks following the show.

This has to be about business, nothing more.

At the end of the four months she would review his performance, and if he had exceeded expectations, she would talk to Bryce about a possible role for Ryan within the Royal Resorts USA business.

“I’ve employed him to do a job. And I’d be a complete idiot if I let any attraction to Ryan get in the way of me succeeding at fashion week. I swear there won’t be any naked romps happening in my design studio. Come Monday morning, our relationship is going to be based purely on business.”

I have the whole weekend to get my libido and heart under control. I can do it. I have to do it.

“Purely business,” echoed her sister. Sophie’s mocking laughter rang down the satellite link as Camille hit END.

Ryan finished up the last of the emails in Hope’s inbox. For someone who was meant to have been super organized, Camille’s former PA had signed up to a ton of what he considered to be useless newsletter services. He now knew far more than he had ever wanted to know about Hope’s interests in cheap travel, festive food, and beanie baby collecting.

He was still silently judging her as he hit print on a recipe for Halloween cake pops. The apartment he and Liam lived in might well be a dump, but no kids out trick or treating ever left empty handed if they knocked on the door. October might be a few months away, but it never hurt to be prepared.

---