Casey’s eyes rounded. Her mouth curved in an O as she gazed at Lexi. “Hand. Sewn. ”
Lexi grinned. “Thousands of Swarovski crystals in six different colors to create the ombré effect in the pattern. ”
Casey’s eyes grew wider. Her mouth rounder. “Thousands?”
Lexi nodded. “They cover the entire bodice and blend into the top of the skirt. ”
“I think you should do that for your final project,” Beth told Casey with a teasing look. “If you start now, you might finish by the due date. ”
Casey choked out a laugh. “Yeah, a year would be about right. ”
They must have been talking about some kind of final design project they had to complete before they graduated. Both women were juniors at Parsons the New School for Design in New York. The leading powerhouse in the fashion industry, Parsons had been Lexi’s fantasy college once upon a time. She’d been five or six when she’d realized she had as much chance of getting to college as her mother had of holding any job longer than three weeks, sobriety longer than three months, or a husband longer than three years.
At this stage of her life, Lexi wasn’t exactly jealous of the other women. She sure didn’t want to go backward. Lexi had paid heavy dues from a very early age to get where she was now. Had swept floors, delivered coffee, organized offices, cleaned lunchrooms. She’d pinned patterns until she needed a freaking blood transfusion from all the finger pricks. Had cut fabric until her hands ached so bad she couldn’t hold a toothbrush. Had sewn piecework until she thought her spine had fused into a permanent C. She’d also taught herself by reading and asking questions and researching. And designing, sewing, ripping out stitching, and doing it all over again.
But while she was at least ten years ahead of these women in experience, their degree from Parsons would always carry more weight with some people. Beth and Casey would always be considered better designers because they had that piece of paper from an institution. And Lexi would always be looked down upon because she didn’t. Which was another reason this partnership was so important to her. Because with hundreds of students like Beth and Casey graduating from programs like Parsons every year, if Lexi didn’t continue to move forward, achieve, and grow, others would trample her as they passed. And the longer she waited to do it, the more competition—educated competition—she’d have.
Lexi didn’t know how to do anything but design and sew. She knew a little about bookkeeping, a little about marketing, a little about customer service. But she didn’t know enough about anything to make a career out of it. And sewing for other people barely paid enough to eat, let alone rent an apartment in Los Angeles.
Besides, LaCroix Designs wasn’t just Lexi’s sole financial income. It was her identity. It was her happiness. It was her life. And sitting here with Martina Galliano, Beth, and Casey brought out every insecurity Lexi tried so hard to hide…and deny.
Casey turned narrowed eyes on Lexi. “How long did this take you?”
“The whole dress…four months. ”
“And you know how much it cost?” Beth asked but didn’t wait for an answer. “Thirty thousand dollars. ”
The look on Casey’s face made Lexi laugh. She looked at Martina. The woman was watching Beth and Casey with the affection of a mother.
Her gaze shifted to Lexi without moving her head. “Still not enough for all that work. ”
Lexi shrugged. But she knew Martina was right.
“This partnership will change that, Lexi. ”
Lord, finally. It had taken her long enough to get to the point.
A waiter appeared and set salads down in front of each of the four women. Lexi took the time to break from her intent train of thought. She glanced around the restaurant again, fatigue settling in. She thought of Jax and hoped he wasn’t tired. Hoped he wasn’t distracted. Didn’t like thinking about something happening to him because she’d kept his mind and body too busy with sex to get the rest he needed.
She reassured herself he was fine and smiled at the thought of stopping at the gorgeous lingerie shop she’d seen on her way here when she was done with this meeting. She wanted to pick up something special for tonight. After their amazing time together this morning, she just might be ready to turn on the lights.
He was so much more than she’d ever expected.
“Pepper, miss?”
Lexi looked up at the waiter standing beside her, an expectant look on his dark face. He was a slim man in his fifties and held a pepper cracker poised over her salad.
“Oh no,” Lexi said, “thank you. ”
He moved on to Beth sitting on Lexi’s right. The young woman, Lexi guessed to be in her early twenties, enthusiastically accepted.
“I can’t wait to hear what you have planned,” Lexi said, waiting to pick up her fork until the waiter had peppered Casey’s salad and left the table.
Martina beamed. Her bronze skin glowed from within
as her smile overtook her features. She set down her own fork and clapped her hands over her plate. “Oh, I just love talking about this. Poor Beth and Casey. ” She sent both young women an apologetic smile. “They’ve had to listen to me nonstop for months. ”
Lexi chewed a small bite of lettuce as Beth said, “We could listen to her talk forever. ”