Page 2 of Love Like This

Hadley checked her watch. “Miranda should be in in the next thirtyminutes. Get her to help you.”

“Yay,” Daisy said, with a modicum of enthusiasm. Miranda not onlytook her job very seriously, she also took the rest of the world that way.Hadley had less confidence in her ability to succeed in the high-end retailworld, but time would tell. “You headed back to the office?”

“Yes. I have a meeting with a new designer in just a bit. SpencerAdair. When she arrives, will you show her back?”

“On it,” Daisy said, with a smile. Her focus was immediatelypulled away so she could awe at another new pair of gloves.

Hadley laughed. “One day, Daisy, we’re gonna be able to afford allthe gloves.”

“I’m holding you to that.”

Hadley excused herself to the small office at the back of thestore that she shared with Trudy. Given that Trudy didn’t clock many hours inthe store itself, Hadley had taken firm possession of the space. As she tookher seat behind the cherrywood sculpted desk, she smiled at the photo of herdads, the one they’d sent from Cabo on their most recent vacation. They lookedsun-kissed and blissfully happy. She then turned to the photo of her along withher three best friends, Gia, Autumn, and Isabel, snapped on the beach the yearprior. Isabel had her tongue out and Autumn was laughing at something offcamera. One of her favorites. Staring at those all-important people in her lifewas how Hadley preferred to begin her day. She moved on to email next,including purchase orders, delivery schedules, and ad updates. Just as she’dslogged her way through a slew of recent orders and receipts, Daisy knockedlightly on her open door. “Hadley, Spencer Adair is here to see you.”

“Perfect!” Hadley said, beaming. She stood and waited as thedesigner she’d been dying to meet appeared. Her smile dimmed slightly becauseSpencer’s online photos hadn’t done her justice. Spencer Adair was…striking inevery sense of the word. Her midnight hair was parted in the middle, but shewore it swept onto her right shoulder. She had large, luminous brown eyes,perfect brown skin that she must have dedicated some serious time to, and asoft smile on her perfect lips. There was something else there, though, andHadley had picked up on it during their earlier phone call: confidence. SpencerAdair carried herself with a ton of it for someone who was likely under thirty,as though she knew exactly what she was out to accomplish and would own thiscity in no time.

“Hadley Cooper?” she asked.

Oh, that was a smooth voice. Velvet-like and easy. Spencer wouldbe great on a nighttime radio call-in show. “That’s me. Nice to finally meetyou in person.” She extended her hand and Spencer accepted it with a firmshake. Hadley, for reasons she wasn’t clear on, felt the need to wiggle hertoes. Something about the warmth of the touch. She swallowed the unexpectedtoe-wiggling reaction. “As we discussed, I’m a big fan of your designs. Youhave so much talent.” She gestured to the arm chair across from her desk.“Please, have a seat.”

“Happy to,” Spencer said. She’d brought a hanging garment bag andher portfolio along with her. “I took a look around the store, which, ofcourse, I’ve heard a lot about.”

“And?”

“It’s a beautiful space. Impressive.” She hesitated. “I’mstruggling to figure out why you’re interested in meeting withme.”

“Well, to start with, because you’re good at what you do, and wewant the best designers we can find.”

“Thank you.”

Spencer had incredibly long eyelashes, which was beside the pointof the meeting. Seriously, though. Look at them. She did. Oh, how she looked!Hadley blinked and refocused. “And you bring fresh, new perspective to thefashion world.”

“I see.” She paused. “But if I may speak freely and possibly saveus a great deal of time.”

“Of course,” Hadley said, curious to hear what had Spencer soclearly hung up.

“Please don’t take offense, but the store seems a little…white.You may or may not have noticed, but I’m not.”

Hadley opened her mouth and closed it again, not sure what thecorrect response was in this scenario. She decided to just go with honesty. “Iknow exactly who you are, and I love what I’ve seen of your work online, fromthe runway videos, the shots of your customers wearing your clothes. All ofit.”

Spencer nodded and seemed to accept the compliment. “You think I’ma fit for this place? Because looking around out there…” She didn’t finish thesentence, but she didn’t have to. Her facial expression said it all, andhonestly? Spencer wasn’t off base. A good portion of their clientele were whitewomen over the age of forty, and their slate of designers could best bedescribed as…conservative, if not stuffy, to cater to that very market. But itwas one of the things Trudy was hoping to adjust when she charged Hadley withthe task of bringing in new lines, new designers. Their goal was to appeal to awider market so the store had longevity, an eye on the future, and an appeal toa wider, younger audience. Their price point wasn’t exactly universal, and thatwasn’t likely to change. But with real estate what it was on Rodeo Drive, theyhad to keep the lights on somehow. Spencer produced high-quality clothes thatcame with the sophistication that could command a high-dollar price tag.

“I understand why you would think Silhouette may not be a matchfor your work,” Hadley said, seeing the store through Spencer’s eyes. Sheplaced both palms on her chest. “I wholeheartedly understand. But I think ourinterest in your designs is a signal that we’re trying to move out of thatunfortunate and boring niche.” Spencer regarded Hadley with a dubious stare.She didn’t seem sold. But the reality was, they both knew this kind of retailexposure would be huge for an up-and-comer like Spencer who’d never venturedfrom online sales. Retail was a hard and expensive market to break into. RodeoDrive was where everyone wanted to be…eventually, when they could manage it.Spencer had a chance at thatnow,right off the bat. It would be career changing, and Hadley couldn’t imagine herpassing it up. No one would.

“Fair enough,” Spencer said, reaching for her garment bag. “Wouldyou like to look over my new line? None of these samples have been viewed byanyone yet, but you seemed so interested. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’tflattered when you called.”

“I’d love to.” Hadley laughed. “I’ve been staring at that bagsince you got here.” A minor lie. She’d been staring at Spencer herself, whichwas probably rude and obvious and not at all how she was brought up to behave.But the clothes had her doing a happy dance, too. Hadley stood and excitedlycame around the desk as Spencer hung a variety of pieces around her office.Hadley took her time exploring, studying the lines, which were classic in manyways, and the textures, which seemed to be a huge part of Spencer’s point of viewas a designer. However, it was the color combinations and the accents that madeeach piece pop. Spencer’s work was beautiful, unique, and as always, pushingthe envelope just a tad. Bare shoulders were in this season and her workshowcased them, a nod to the mainstream. But in little glimpses, nothinggratuitous. She also embraced a wider pant leg in the age of slim, which inHadley’s opinion was a breath of fresh air. A step away from the overt trend.But above all else, her color choices were bold and they worked. But were theyuniversal enough? Did they have to be? Those questions circled her brain.

“I love your use of green,” Hadley said, running her hand down thesoft sleeve of a peasant shirt. She wasn’t afraid of riskier choices. That wasclear and a hallmark of her breadth of work.

“The promise of spring,” Spencer said. “I’ve always looked forwardto that time of year when everything starts waking up again, and that sentimentwas my touchstone when designing this year.”

Hadley surveyed the room, catching the smallest elements of naturewoven in. “I can see it throughout now that you’ve pointed me to it. It giveseverything…a common texture. A link.”

Spencer smiled. “Yeah, well, I like looking back at my work andknowing exactly what inspired me at the time. It’s important to me.”

“I admire that.” Hadley took a top off the hanger and felt theweight of it. “What I also like? You don’t cut corners with fabrics.”

“No. I’m a fanatic about fabric. I only use the best, which is whymy price point is on the higher side. It hasn’t been great for my margins, butI’m willing to make less money for the sake of good clothes. I figure thebusiness side of things will take care of itself eventually.”

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