Chapter 27 #2
“Yeah,” Julie said. “We’re having dinner, if you want to join us.”
Linyue scoffed, storming past us into the apartment. “I’ll put on some water.”
I stared dumbfounded as Linyue marched into the kitchen, turning on the kettle and, as far as I could tell from the sound, rummaging in the fridge, probably having decided our food wasn’t quite enough and needed something extra. Julie shrugged at me, dropping her voice.
“She’s in a better mood than I’d expected.”
“You call that a good mood?” I said, and she shrugged again.
“I don’t know, I think that’s how she does a good mood.”
“She told you to go with her so she could kill you.”
“Yeah, with her own two hands. The personal touch. I’m flattered.”
I laughed, pinching the bridge of my nose. Julie Branch, truly, operated on her own frequency. I couldn’t complain. It seemed to work.
Maybe it was that… king’s mindset of hers.
Linyue had dinner with us, where she spent most of the time yelling at Julie, and Julie took it all in stride, even offering up more ammunition for Linyue to yell at her about, describing the situation in more detail.
Apparently it was what the situation needed, because eventually, Linyue got all the yelling out of her system, and then, suddenly, she slumped against the table.
“So, what are the parameters on this new event plan of yours?” she said. “I will have to review your OKRs. We’ll be working on an expedited timeline now, and I don’t like expedited timelines.”
I got a rush, a whoosh in my chest as something released, relief flooding me, but Julie didn’t even blink, her phone out.
“I’ll send you the project documents,” she said.
“We’ll touch base and make sure this goes through smoothly, or else it’s going to kill me, and then you won’t get the chance to. ”
“These are laid out terribly,” Linyue said, having looked at the documents for three milliseconds.
“Well,” Julie said, “we have approximately zero time to make them better.”
Linyue waved her phone at me. “And you?” she said. “You’re the business planner now, Ms. Warrick. You also have to answer for this.”
I felt a strange, fizzing feeling in my chest, and I almost laughed. It wasn’t really real until Linyue acknowledged it, and then, just like that, I guess it was. “I appreciate your coaching,” I said. “I have a lot to learn from your systems.”
She scowled in that way she did when she was trying not to smile. “Don’t try to flatter me. I’m very angry right now.”
Just like that, we were on the same page, and Linyue worked with us well into the evening, brutally assessing our timeline and strategizing the most we could possibly do with it.
By the time we finished, we had something serious, practical, workable, not just a pie-in-the-sky idea that was operating too much on hopes and dreams for being this close to the deadline.
Linyue sighed as we sat together in the living room now, massaging her temples.
“It’s a good thing you’ve gotten the network so solid and that the interest is high, but the logistics will be strained with this little time…”
“The biggest problem is Adesina,” Julie said. “She’s still dragging her feet, so if we have enough of a gap that it will make more sense for her to just step in and fill it, then she’ll be able to do a lot of that.”
“And Adesina’s biggest holdup is financing,” I said. “We’ve gathered some sponsors, but it’s all a bit rough… piecemeal.”
Linyue took her glasses off to rub the bridge of her nose. “I will… see what I can do. I still blame you for this, Julie Branch.”
“Oh, yeah, that’s totally fair,” Julie said. Linyue waved her away.
“Then make yourself useful in penance! Go wash the dishes.”
“What—Linyue, don’t treat her like—” I started, but Julie hopped up to her feet, nudging my side.
“See, she knows how to let me help,” she laughed. “Not going to snatch the brush from my hand this time?”
“You do not need to—”
Julie nudged me again with a wink, and she headed for the kitchen, going around the corner. A second later, I heard her put on some music, and Linyue wrinkled her nose.
“She has bad taste in music. Are you sure about that one?”
Something fluttered in my chest. “She’s… very effective, actually. This has progressed as far as it has despite some significant outside setbacks and limitations.”
“You got your hardheadedness from your father,” she said. “That isn’t what I mean.”
I folded my hands in my lap, looking away. “Julie and I have a professional working relationship.”
“I am not a stupid woman, Helena Warrick. You set up a second bedroom, and it isn’t being used.”
I should have figured she’d see right through me. I sighed, standing up and leaning against the window, staring out the glass. I wanted to argue, or I felt like I needed to, but I couldn’t find the words, couldn’t work out how to, so in the end, I just said, “Yes. Very sure.”
“You’ve had a very good career in modeling.”
“I don’t want to give it up. I just want to do more than that.”
“Is this your teenage rebellion, much delayed?”
“Ha. My teenage rebellion was smoking pot and having threesomes. Neither of us are happy that you know about it.”
“Spare me, then. You intend to have a rebellious phase every decade.” She paused. “I will take poorly-scheduled business plans as rebellion over pot-fueled orgies.”
“Look, I love you and I love Mom and Dad, and I’m grateful for my life.
” I turned back to her, feeling nervous, small and vulnerable, as I sank back into the corner of the sofa.
“But I have my own dreams, too. I’m not giving up modeling, acting, any of it.
I just want to take a break from it, focus on other things.
And you know I’ll be better at modeling for it, too.
The same way you improved your relations with Shiyun Group in the end by moving to work for Shiyun America.
You have to fall to learn how to fly. You have to leave to learn how to stay.
I’m not turning into a different person.
Just… a better person. More of the person I want to be.
And I want you to be a part of it. To support me in that like you do in everything. And to share it with you.”
She stared at me for a long time before, with a soft sigh, she pushed her glasses up, wiping at one eye. “Yes, that is better than the pot-fueled orgy.”
“Orgy is still a strong word, they were threesomes.”
“I think your parents will be proud of how it’s come along.” She looked back at the kitchen. “And I think they’ll be fond of her. She has a strong personality.”
“I got really lucky, with her.”
“You don’t worry she’s hiding anything else? Planning to disappear again?”
I shook my head. “She might have faked a name, but she never faked caring. Never faked belief. I know this is the actual her.”
“Perhaps Shiyun America will need to explore branding opportunities in the music industry. You are still a part of the family. Even if you try to sneak behind our backs.”
I laughed, wiping my eye too. “Everywhere I go, Shiyun branding follows? Shiyun-branded marijuana orgies?”
“Spare me.” She put her hands up. “Ah… I’ll talk to your father. And I’ll make sure we can find a way to get this event to run. Or die trying. Well, at this juncture, I suppose it’s more of the latter, but we do what we can.”
She left the apartment not long before Julie finished up in the kitchen, coming into the room and looking around. “I see where you learned the escape tricks from, Freckles. Is she gone?”
“Off to secure the Jewel funding or die trying,” I said, standing up slowly. “Once again, you seem to have won her over.”
She scratched the back of her head. “I mean, yeah. Just look how charming and likable I am.”
I put my finger under her chin, tilting her up to meet me. “I’ll say.”
She blushed. “Buh.”
“I’ll say.” I kissed her. I started slow and deepened it more and more, my heart beating faster in my chest, thinking about all of Estelle’s insistence, Linyue’s insistence.
Hell, even fucking Kingmaker’s insistence. Although I wasn’t inclined to take his advice too seriously.
I took my time with her, kissing slowly, going between soft and tender things to deep, languid kisses, on and on, as Julie melted into me with the sweetest little noises, her hands caressing my sides.
“You know,” I started, speaking against her lips.
“Probably not. My brain is all gone once you start kissing me.”
“Linyue was talking about you.”
“Oh, I’m sure she was.”
“Saying… I don’t know.” What was I even saying right now? I didn’t do well with things like having a girlfriend. And especially in the middle of everything like this? But…
“Oh, did I kiss the words right out of you? You see how it feels? You see what it’s like to live my life?”
“Listen,” I laughed, and I kissed her again just to buy a second while I tried to work out what I was even supposed to say in a situation like this, but the universe must have sensed my hesitation, because I heard a buzz, and I looked back at where my phone was lit up on the coffee table.
Estelle’s name. Of course Estelle was calling me at a time like this.
You tried to kiss one girl and she was there asking for details.
“All the girls want you right now, huh?” Julie said, pouting, and I laughed wryly as I picked it up.
“Relax, darling. Estelle’s not my type.”
“You made out with her once, though!”
I stopped with the phone halfway to my ear. “She told you that, huh?”
She looked away, pouting harder. “Said it was the ultimate proof she wasn’t gay.”
I smiled. “Did it make you jealous?”
“Yes.”
I ruffled her hair. “If she asked now, I’d say no.”
She mumbled something that probably didn’t need to be audible anyway, and I answered the phone.
“Estelle. To what do I owe the pleasure while I’m trying to have a nice evening?”
“You can bring her along and kiss her here,” Estelle said brightly. “It’s a fancy loft party in SoHo! Come on, bring your girl.”
“I’m—Estelle, it’s a quarter to midnight.”
“So? We’re young and wild and free. And besides, I… have a secret surprise.”
“You talked to Mr. Cheng,” I said flatly, and she squawked indignantly.
“What? How did you know?”
“Because Linyue knew, and she came storming in to demand vengeance. Asked my girl to come meet her alone in the building lobby, so it was a bit tense.” Julie squished into herself at my girl, so I decided to add some fuel to the fire, putting an arm around her back and pulling her into my side.
Estelle laughed. “Oh… whoops. Well, I assume it went well, or you’d already be booking it over here to get your hands around my throat! So, you’re welcome.”
“Uh-huh…”
“Now come over here and say hi to him!”
“You have him with you?”
“Yeah, he’s flirting with a bartender right now.
Anyway, financing one little tech project is going to be pocket change for a guy like him, so come help me convince him of his chance to be a part of the New York music and fashion industry and give a speech at the Cheng-Jewel Talent Mixer so he can feel like the most badass guy alive. ”
“Estelle—”
“I already told him you and your girl were going to come and make the formal offer to him soon, and he’s having the time of his life!” She paused. “I think it made it sound like Julie is your girlfriend, but she kind of is, so it’s fine.”
“I guess this is working, because I am on my way there to strangle you,” I said casually. “My family is going to disown me for how much I’ve screwed up the plan with this man.”
“Aw, don’t worry. I’m the one who’s screwed up the plan. And it’s screwed up now, so we might as well just run with it! Okay, I’ll talk to you soon! Love you, babe! Tell Julie I love her too!”
“Estelle—” I started, but she hung up. I sighed pointedly, dropping the phone on the sofa and looking at Julie. “So, how much of that could you hear?”
“Enough to know we don’t really have any say in the matter?”
“The Cheng-Jewel Talent Mixer… if Linyue doesn’t kill me, Krysten will.”
She beamed. “Well, Krysten’s gonna kill me, too, so let’s go together.”
At least I had good company, then.