Claudette Reed

"Ms. Greene! Ms. Greene!" The paparazzi hollered my name as I walked into my office building, my Jimmy Choo heels clicking on the ground with each step.

Being the daughter of two successful designers has its perks, but you better believe that I worked my ass off to become who I am today: Stephanie Greene, CEO of Claudette Reed, one of the hottest brands that New York has ever seen.

My dad, Matthew Greene, CEO of Greene Designs, spoiled me as I grew up. I was his little princess back then. I still am, but now I rather that he calls me "queen" instead. He said the only queen in his life is my mom, Emma.

My mom told me that I needed to earn everything, that I wouldn't get anywhere if I was handed everything on a silver spoon. Dad and mom bicker about it a lot, but I'm very much my mother's daughter and decided to go to college and work for the position of CEO in the family company.

Claudette Reed started as a little boutique when I was young, I was even there for the ribbon-cutting, and it's soared to unimaginable heights in the past two decades. I took over officially less than a year ago and brought in more high-end designs.

Mom loved ready-to-wear, and it was her specialty, but my father's forte was red carpet, and the glamour of it always made my eyes sparkle.

I would spend all my free time going through my dad's portfolio, asking him about this and that, he would tell me stories about celebrities and gossip about some clients. He's my favorite person in the world, but he has his flaws.

I only learned about his reputation of being a womanizer once I took over my mom's position as CEO of Claudette Reed after she fell sick. I was less than thrilled to learn the things my father had done, or moreover, who he had done. The list seemed neverending and I had to put my hands over my ears when my assistant wouldn't shut up about it.

The elevator dinged indicating I was on my floor and I stepped off of it into my favorite place in the world - my studio.

Yes, it's not just an office floor with cubicles and phones to answer, I turned the floor into an actual studio with machines, mannequins, patterns, fabrics, notions, you name it, we have it.

I didn't want to be the CEO who is all talk and no play, I'm the type of person who likes to get their hands dirty with their work and be a part of the process from start to finish.

"Good morning, Ms. Greene."

"Good morning, Louisa. What is my schedule today?"

Louisa looked down at her tablet as we walked together to my office.

"Let's see, for starters, you have a progress meeting with the investors in an hour, then you have lunch with the CEO of Knightingale Suits, and-"

I groaned and rolled my head at the mention of Knightingale. Dominic Knight, the "Master of Suits," as the magazines call him. He's got an ego the size of New Jersey and the money to give him the right.

"Steph," she said in a gentle tone as she hugged the tablet, "You need this partnership with him. Claudette Reed needs this partnership."

"Remind me why I'm doing this again?"

She sighed and pursed her lips as she closed the door to the office. She then turned to me, "The business took a big hit when your mother fell ill and you were yet to take over. To put it simply... we need his money. And we've never done menswear before, so this could be a real boost for us."

I plopped down into my cushy chair and sighed, "Alright fine. What do I have after that?"

"Nothing. You wanted to keep your schedule clear in case you had to spend all day convincing him that a partnership would benefit him as well."

"Right," I set my lips into a thin line.

I made this appointment a month ago after the business's accountant gave me a call to inform me that we wouldn't have enough money to put on our annual showcase.

"Thank you, you can go now."

She nodded her head and left my office.

My office is almost entirely glass. I hate feeling trapped somewhere, I get claustrophobic and feel like I'm being suffocated. This way, I can see what everyone in the office is doing and how progress is being made throughout the day.

They say I'm controlling, but I don't care. Dominic Knight may have the dumbass title of "Master of Suits," but I have the title of "Baddest Bitch in Fashion."

I'm pretty sure it was a backhanded compliment, but I also thought it was a strong title for a strong woman and I decided to roll with it.

Like my mother, I take no shit from anyone, but when it comes to my creative vision, I'm a control freak like my father, and everyone knows it. Claudette Reed is not the company to work for if you aren't professional. Everyone here walks with their heads high and their outfits on fleek.

Our dress code here is simple: Dress in what makes you feel confident.

Thanks to the glass windows, I noticed Louisa hurrying back to my office and stepping halfway through the door.

"Ms. Greene, your aunt is here."

My eyebrows flew up and I looked past Louisa's shoulder to see the tall and slender figure of my aunt Isabella approaching. The woman aged with grace and her hair was still jet black without a single hint of gray.

"Stephanie," she smiled and put her arms out for a hug.

I stood up from my chair and approached her with a smile, "Aunty Iz, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?"

I motioned to the chair across from my desk and she took a seat before answering me.

"I heard from Isaac that he hasn't seen you in some weeks."

I grinned weakly and looked down with guilt. Isaac has been one of my best friends my entire life, and I practically bailed on him once I took the role of CEO and pushed him to the side.

Wow. I really am a bitch.

"I'm sorry, aunty Iz, I've just been really busy here."

"I can see that," she looked over her shoulder and toward the rest of the office. She then turned back to me, "You've done great work here since you took over."

"Thank you."

"Of course, your mother was genius as well."

"IS genius," I corrected her with a smile, "But like you say, I'm the perfect 50/50 of my parents."

She smiled at me and nodded her head slowly, "This is true. Your mother's wits and your father's talent."

"Makes for a successful business," I joked and aunty Iz smiled at me.

I didn't tell anyone about the financial crisis that the business was dealing with because I didn't want to stress anyone. I also wanted to avoid having my father throw a lump sum of money into my account overnight to help.

His business needs money just as much as mine does, and I wouldn't be able to keep my title of "baddest bitch" if I wasn't able to dig the company out of this little hole.

"You sure are making a name for yourself, kiddo." I smiled at her and she continued with a troubled look, "Just... don't forget about my son."

"I could never."

"Look, aunty Iz, it was great seeing you, but I have a meeting to prepare for."

"Of course, of course," she said with a smile as she stood from her chair, "I'll leave you be. Hug for the road?"

I smiled at her and walked over to hug her before we said our goodbyes and she left. I exhaled deeply and sat back down behind my desk.

Isaac has been making moves on me since we were kids. He's only a year older than me, and when we were 6 and 7, we had a "wedding" in my living room where I used a pillowcase as a veil and he wore a costume top hat. A teddy bear was the officiant.

I chuckled remembering it. We had been through everything together, even college. While I studied business and design, Isaac studied machinery like his mother.

My parents are his godparents, and Isabella is my father's best friend, so we spend holidays and birthdays together most of the time. Don't worry, we aren't actually related.

His advances toward me were always subtle and gentle. When we were kids, he would share his candy and Yoo-Hoo with me. In high school, he asked me to prom, and I had to turn him down because I already had a date. He was upset at first but quickly got over it, so I didn't pay it much mind.

He brings me flowers randomly, he checks in with me if he hears I'm under a lot of stress, he gives the best bear hugs and sometimes kisses my temple or the top of my head while hugging me and sways us side to side. He is an amazing guy.

At first, I thought nothing of his moves. I thought they were just sweet gestures between friends, but one night at a party he had kissed me, and everything was different after that.

I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong, and I love Isaac, I just don't know if I love him the way that he wants me to love him. That, or, I'm scared to admit that I do. Regardless, I'm focused on my career, and if anything went wrong between us and our friendship was ruined, I just don't know what I would do with myself.

I cleared my throat and shook my head. I have an investor meeting to get to and I cannot afford to be distracted by silly boys.

*

"Some of us investors wish to drop out."

"Why?"

The men in the boardroom all looked at each other with uneasiness. There were only three of them along with myself at the dark, oval table big enough to seat twelve. I was seated at the head of the table, and the men were across from me on either side.

I faced my palms up, "Well?"

The man on the right, Mr. Lennox looked at me and extended his hand an inch on the table toward me, "The business isn't bringing any money and hasn't for quite some time."

"And?"

They looked at me with raised brows. I acknowledge that a business that doesn't bring in money is a turn-off for investors, but these men have no idea what I am capable of achieving, and backing out now would be a huge mistake.

"We just sometimes question if a woman is the best choice for the position of a-"

"Gentlemen," I stood from my seat with my hands on the table and refused to let Mr. Lennox finish. "I understand your concerns as it pertains to the companies financial wellness, but I can assure you that we are about to land a huge partnership deal with Knightingdale Suits that will solve all of our problems."

"Knightingdale?" The man directly in front of me, Ms. Gallagher, asked with raised brows.

The other two men had equally intrigued looks and focused on me for elaboration.

"Yes. I have a meeting with Dominic Knight when we are done here and I am going to pitch to him a partnership between us. With Mr. Knight's partnership, Claudette Reed will expand into menswear."

"And how exactly are you going to pitch this to him?" Mr. Gallagher looked back and forth between the other two men and chuckled, "There isn't much to offer in return."

"Maybe not from you, but I have something that the three of you do not."

"Which is?" The man to the left, Mr. Reece, finally said as he rubbed his jaw.

"My name."

They all began to laugh, so I slammed my hand on the table to shut them up.

"Gentlemen." I spoke sternly, "My name is linked to several companies that are wildly successful. Greene Designs and Greene Repurposed were begun by my father, then he added on a children's clothing line-"

"Which was short-lived," mumbled Mr. Lennox, but I chose to ignore him.

"My mother began Claudette Reed separately and started with ready-to-wear. I have the experience of every aspect in fashion-"

"Besides menswear," interrupted Mr. Gallagher.

"Which is why we need him," I forced a smile to the old man. "He's the hottest suit designer since Armani. Our business will skyrocket with this partnership, and with my help and my name, I will help him expand his clientele and his knowledge in the industry."

"You sound rather confident, Ms. Greene."

"I am."

There was a moment of silence before Mr. Lennox spoke again, "What if this meeting with Mr. Knight doesn't go well and he refuses to partner with you?"

I stared at him for a moment before I inhaled sharply and answered, "No one says no to me. I will convince him that this is the right move for both of our companies. I will not take no for an answer."

"Mhmm," the men hummed, seeming unconvinced.

Mr. Reece swiveled in his chair and added, "If everything goes downhill, you can always offer your body-"

"Gentlemen." I interrupted them again, "If you wish to stop funding my company due to your lack of respect for women, then I cannot, and will not, convince you to stay. I will leave you with this, though: I am more than what some believe. I do not need to use my sexuality as a weapon because I have my parent's genes to make me a strong, fierce competitor in the industry. I have expansion plans, and leaving Claudette Reed now of all times would be a grave mistake for you to make."

I eyed each of them before finishing my little speech, "I can make each of you richer than you already are. I just need you to have a little patience, and the slightest bit of faith in my abilities. Thank you for your time."

I grabbed my stuff without another word and left the conference room for my office across the floor with my head held high and my steps strong, even though my blood was boiling. I ignored everyone who tried to grab my attention along the way - I am in no place to converse with anyone right now.

Once back to my office, I dropped my stuff at my desk and began pacing the floor, muttering incoherent words to myself about misogynistic men and how women are only seen for their bodies.

These old fuckers are such perverts. If I didn't need their funding, I would have called them out long ago and parted ways, possibly even looked into a restraining order for Mr. Reece. They were disgusting and reminded me why I ignored menswear. It wasn't much of ignoring the clothing, it was ignoring the buyer.

Men are pigs. I can't stand relationships because anyone I've dated tried to get into my pants on the first date. I am very conscious of my dating life and I try to steer clear of the same reputation as my father, but one of the downsides of having the last name Greene is dealing with the expectations of not only having the same successes as my parents but also the same failures.

I refuse to be a failure.

I stood at the window of my office and admired the city as I cooled down after my disaster of a progress meeting. I guess you can't have a good progress meeting with your investors if your company hasn't made any progress in months.

I sighed and focused on my reflection in the glass window. I'm almost the spitting image of my mother with her brown hair and luscious curves, but I have my dad's bright green eyes. Both of my parents are tall, so it makes sense that I'm naturally 5'9". My heels can never be more than 3 inches high so that I don't tower over men.

Having a bold personality and confidence is one thing for a man to see you as powerful, but to physically look down at them would be overkill, so I keep my heels to a minimum.

Today's attire was a body-hugging, pink dress with matching lipstick and nude heels with a black strap and buckle across the ankle. My nails are done with French tips and my toes are always a neutral color, so they go with anything I wear and I don't ever have to worry about clashing colors.

The afternoon sun brought out the highlights that were put in my hair. Wait. Afternoon sun? Shit. What time is it?

I checked my watch and saw it was almost noon. Shit. I have to get going to make it to lunch with Dominic Knight. Fuck. How did I get so distracted? I hurried to my desk and grabbed my purse and phone before rushing out of there, getting some weird looks along the way but brushing them aside.

I was lucky to catch the elevator quickly and hail a cab without the paparazzi bugging me. They always hang out around my building in the morning when they know I will show up for work, but then they disappear.

I made it to the restaurant where I was meeting Dominic with two minutes to spare.

"Hi," I greeted the blonde hostess with a friendly smile as I walked in, "I'm meeting a Mr. Knight here, has he arrived yet?"

"Yes, he has. Let me take you to his table," she spoke with a smile and grabbed a menu for me before showing the way.

We walked through the restaurant and toward the back where there were several tables with white table covers and tealight candles that were lit in the middle, even at noon.

The restaurant was only at half capacity at this hour and it appeared to be the place to go for business meetings. Everyone was in business formal wear.

We approached a table to the side of the room where a man had his face buried in his phone. He was looking down, so all that I saw was his black suit and matching hair that was combed to the side.

He noticed us approaching and looked up. He looked just like his photos from the red carpet, and I couldn't help my blush.

His eyes are a piercing blue like the ocean, his cheekbones were high on his square face and he grew out some facial hair that gave him a rugged handsomeness. His eyebrows appeared to be in a constant slant that almost made him look sad in a way, but his smirk when he saw me begged to differ.

He stood up and greeted me with a handshake, "Stephanie Greene?"

"Yes. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Knight," I said as I shook his hand.

"Please, call me Dominic."

I noticed once he stood that he had a medium size build with a respectable amount of muscle and was at least four inches taller than me, even with my heels on.

He motioned to my seat across from him before we both sat down at the table for two. Chivalry would have had him pull my seat out for me, but I'll let it slide this time.

"Thank you for meeting me," I said casually as I set my purse at my feet. "I hope you weren't waiting long."

"Not long at all," he responded as he checked his phone one last time before putting it in his pocket and placing his hands on the table. "What is it that I can do for you, Ms. Greene?"

"I wanted to propose to you a partnership between our companies. I think we can both benefit from a collaboration."

He lifted his bushy, yet neat, eyebrows and blinked, "A collaboration?"

"Yes. My company is yet to do menswear and I thought that you were the smartest person to come to for such a thing," I was kissing his ass a little but didn't care, I needed him, or rather, I needed his money.

He smiled a big, toothy smile at me, "I'm flattered."

I waited for a minute. Was that it? Was that all he was going to say? He's flattered?

"What do you think about working together? It would just be one collection, nothing too crazy."

He sat back in his chair and looked at me for a minute as he thought. I felt awkward under his gaze but I didn't let it show on my face. I remained composed and calm throughout and stared right back at him.

"What's in it for me?"

"I can give you my knowledge of the industry and offer you more resources."

He snorted and took a sip of his drink while keeping his eyes locked on mine. "I have more knowledge than you would expect."

"As do I," he challenged with a chuckle, "I thrive at my business. Why would I collaborate with a company that specializes in ready-to-wear?"

"Because my business is expanding and I believe yours has the potential to as well, with my help."

"My business can expand without your help."

"Perhaps, but wouldn't you like to have it expand sooner rather than later?"

He thought about that for a minute and tapped his finger on the glass that his hand was wrapped around, making a continuous soft clinking sound.

Our eyes didn't part for a moment as we both silently challenged each other, wondering who would back down first.

His eyes narrowed for just a second before he finally answered, "I'm sorry, Ms. Greene, but I don't think my company and yours would be simpatico."

"I have to disagree," his eyebrows shot up and he had an amused smirk when he heard me, obviously thinking I would simply thank him for his time and we would both move on with our lives. "My father is Matthew Greene. I'm sure you're familiar with him, yes?" I tilted my head an inch.

"I have heard of him, yes."

"So you understand that I have a strong background in the high-end side of fashion, along with my knowledge of ready-to-wear."

"I suppose you're right," he slowly nodded his head.

"So I'll ask you kindly not to underestimate me, Mr. Knight. I have more tricks up my sleeve than you would think."

He lifted a single brow at me and let his finger wander the rim of his glass.