Chapter 130 Moving up in the World?
Emily was in the middle of brainstorming a new line for next spring when Katie strolled into the design studio, humming a jaunty tune.
“Well, if it isn’t the lady about town!” Emily greeted her. “Are things going well?”
“Excellent,” Katie reported. “I’ve gone on a date with each candidate, and I’m still undecided… but the dates were fun.”
“That’s the spirit!” Emily said. She stuck to her resolve not to try to influence Katie’s decision, trusting her protégé to figure out the best path forward on her own.
“Carter took me for a motorcycle ride—don’t tell my parents! It was so awesome. I do think Carter is lacking in the career department, though.”
Just like Emily expected, it had not taken Katie long to realize that Carter was not the sharpest pencil in the box. “Carter is a free spirit. He values his freedom over career obligations.”
“I have an idea to help him move up in the world,” Katie said brightly.
“Now this I’d love to hear.” Emily folded her arms as she leaned back against a table. “If you can make Carter take his career more seriously, I will award you a medal for ingenuity.”
“Here’s what I was thinking: we create a men’s fashion line, and Carter could model it!”
Emily let out a peal of laughter. “Now that’s clever. Modelling is something he could be good at. But we’re not creating a line just for him.”
“Why not? We could call it ‘Carter’.”
“Even if we create a men’s line,” Emily said, “we’re definitely not calling it ‘Carter’.”
“It almost sounds like Cartier,” Katie argued. “Very sophisticated.”
“While Carter is about as sophisticated as a box of nails.”
Katie giggled, the corners of her eyes crinkling. “He’s just different.”
“That’s for sure,” Emily said. “Okay, let me think about it. I’ll have to run it by Michelle.”
“I already did,” Katie chirped. “And she loves the idea.”
Emily was slightly annoyed but impressed. “Okay Miss Business-Pants, let me consider some options. I don’t have much experience with men’s fashion, but we could probably find some designers to assist on this.”
Later that evening when Byron accompanied her on an evening walk with the dogs, she was still shaking her head and giggling incredulously. It was a cold and soggy outing, but Emily had some spring in her step as she held an umbrella in one hand and Shandy’s leash in the other.
“I can’t believe we’re going to do all this for Carter,” she concluded, after telling Byron about Katie’s plan.
“It is very good of you,” Byron said. “And in my humble opinion, it makes sense business-wise to branch out into different things.”
“I’m glad you think it’s not crazy.” Emily didn’t want to be one of those women who checked with their boyfriend regarding every decision, but when the man had built a successful billion-dollar empire, his opinion was worth considering.
They paused for a moment while Rupert sniffed at something seemingly exciting in the wet grass.
“I could see Carter being good at modelling,” Emily added, “He’s good at martial arts, so it’s pretty likely he can walk gracefully and strike a pose or two.”
“Have you ever considered me?” Byron asked suddenly.
“Huh?”
“For modelling,” he said, raising one eyebrow.
Emily was kind of surprised to hear this. “I’ve considered you for many things, but modelling was not one of them.”
“Why not?” He flashed her a confident smile and handed her Rupert’s leash. “I can do it.”
He strutted down the sidewalk with graceful flair, keeping his face frozen in that dramatic, slightly arrogant look that models often had. It made her blood rush faster throughout her body. Sometimes she forgot how sexy he was, but it was always good to be reminded. Even Rupert stared at him as if detecting a different energy in his human companion.
“Wheh! That was… impressive,” Emily said. “I didn’t know you were a natural model. With a little bit of polish, you could actually find some work. But obviously you don’t need it as much as Carter.”
“I know,” Byron said, slicking his hair back as raindrops fell from the ends. “I just wanted to see if I had what it takes.”
Emily tipped her umbrella back, letting it rest on her shoulder and stepped towards him. Their lips met in a wet, rainy kiss that lit a spark in the chill evening air. “You’ve got what it takes, baby,” she said.
