Page 109 of The Bad Girl

“Why do you even care about us?”

“If you and Nadine procreate properly, I’ll eventually be a god-uncle, giving me an‘in’with divorced men.”

“Wait—you want to use Nadine’s and my theoretical child as a pickup tool?”

“Did you assume I wanted to change soiled nappies?” he says with a sneer. “Heavens, no! That’s what the help is for.”

“I almost felt bad,” I yell, grabbing a fist full of my own hair, “I almost felt bad about misjudging you, but that all just went out the window.”

“Well, we need to make like Nadine and logic this shit. What’s your next step, boss?”

“I guess I could call her. Or maybe I should show up at the apartment?”

“Negative. You can’t just go confessing everything. You need to find a reason to be around her. See how she reacts around you.”

“Well, what do you suggest then?”

“Your designer’s dressing that knocked-up friend of hers, so let’s call in a photographer and do a photoshoot. We can have it put in a magazine along with an accompanying interview. From what you’ve said, Nola Laybecks was calling you an ‘old’ brand, and you are. Pregnant women get married all the time, and you can use this as a PR opportunity.”

“I don’t know, I’m worried about alienating—”

“The older demographic? The people that are not buying wedding dresses from you? Do you think any twenty-year-old is going to care you’re dressing a pregnant woman on her wedding day? A sixty-year-old, sure, but let’s face it, you need to appeal to the younger generation.”

“God, do I have to move you to PR now?”

Harry chuckles. “I’ll start making the phone calls. I don’t think you should put this in your own magazine, but there are at least five other magazines that I know of that would grab it up. I think we should go with a newer one, like Exist or Promises.”

“Promises. Go for them, and run with Stacey on this. She’s good.”

“We’ll use Maizey as the photographer, she’s great with lighting.”

“The first dressing slash fitting takes place in two hours at Nadine’s, and I know Maizey is at the design center. See if she can get over there to snap a few pics,” I reply, liking the ambition Harry is showing.

“Got it! We’ll finish up the shoot next week, capturing the bride, bridesmaids, groom, and groomsmen. We’ll have a picture with the dressmaker, and one with you and the bride. We’ll have Promises send over someone to conduct the interview.”

“Sounds great, but do you think it can be done that quickly, with the dress and all?”

“Even if the dress isn’t completely done, they can clip the back and make it look like a dream.”

“Get on it.”

?

Nadine

“I like the fabric and how it’s cut, but I’m wondering if it can be tiered a little differently. It looks a bit twee,” I say to Alesso Grant, one of InStryde’s finest fashion designers and now the person heading Allison’s dress design.

The other bridesmaids nod their heads in agreement, not a single one of them daring to cross me now that I’ve brought in a world-renowned dressmaker.

A photographer named Maizey circles us, taking shots for an article Maxwell wants to feature Allison’s wedding in, which is both exciting and scary. I was literally told about this an hour before Alesso arrived, so I haven’t even had a chance to digest the information. Maizey has captured celebrity weddings, having her work featured in top fashion magazines. The fact that she’s right here, right now is daunting.

“Twee has seen a surge in popularity, and it allows us greater foliage to hide that growing bump, but if you want a more serious tone, we could go with a tight dress that will announce the pregnancy instead of hiding it.”

“No! I don’t want to look pregnant!”

Alesso exhales, biting her thin lower lip. “We’re going to have to let it out directly below the bust. Twee’s the best at hiding pregnancy, but we can try doing something fairytale instead, but if we do this wrong, it’s just going to look like you’ve gained a bunch of weight.

My phone vibrates, and I look down to see Harry calling.