Page 69 of Brutal Heir

“We can talk about this later. I don’t have time now.”

“So now you don’t even have time to talk to your⁠—”

“Love you!”

I ended the call just as Édouard entered.

This time, he wore a sheer, skintight turtleneck embellished with pearls arranged in a Baroque pattern, complemented by a matching beret and a shimmering gold scarf.

As he looked over my mood boards for the catalog, he raised his arm and snapped his fingers.

Yelena lifted her chin and nodded in his direction. “He means you.”

I smoothed my hair.

“How do I look?” I whispered to her as I ran my hand down my front.

She checked me over. “The Prada tracksuit was an interesting choice.”

I stuck my tongue out at her and then hustled over to Édouard’s side. “Yes, Édouard?”

I kept my head slightly lowered and pushed my hair forward to cover my cheeks.

He picked up a mood board and scrutinized it. “How long have you known Sebastian Diamanti?”

I rolled my eyes behind his back and sighed. Crap. “I don’t know him, Édouard. And I’m really sorry for the misunderstanding.”

His eyes widened and he searched the room, as if Sebastian were some sort of powerful demon capable of hearing him.

He waved his palm a few inches from my face. “Stop. We will never speak of it.”

I sucked my lips between my teeth and nodded.

Édouard studied my mood boards again. “This is good. Very good.”

He pointed to one drawing. “Not these shoes with that skirt. Use the mulberry ones.”

I nodded. “You’re right. That's a much better pairing.”

His wrist twirling, rings clacking, he glanced over at me. “Of course I’m right.”

He then pointed to another drawing. “This needs a purse. The clutch. Not the one I’m thinking of, the other one.”

I pulled out my phone and pretended to make a note. “Absolutely.”

Yelena caught my eye across the room. She mouthed, “Ask him.”

I waved my hand behind my back to make her stop. “So, these boards are actually my ideas for the website catalog spread, not the social media posts.”

His rings clacked again as he clapped his hands directly in front of my face. “Pay attention. Of course they’re for the catalog. I’m offering you the job—but only if you’re not going to be difficult about it.”

Holy shit. I did it. Purely on my own merit too.

I shuffled the boards back into place. “No, sir. I’m not trying to be difficult.”

He placed his hands on his hips. “What? Do you think you deserve more money because of your connections? Is that what this is about?”

I sighed, thinking of Sebastian. “No. I would never presume.”