Investors! She needed investors. She had to have some sort of contacts, didn’t she? She wasn’t completely alone in this world. She had friends, she had a good reputation. She had clients that depended on her!
But if her clients found out that she was no longer solvent, what would they do? She’d always been reliable, gaining inroads into the stores that bought her clothes because she was dependable and always came through on time with every order. She made sure of it! If her clients found out that she’d messed up so completely, she’d lose that reputation. Would they stick with her because of her designs? Were her clothes enough to keep them coming back for the next line? The next spring? The next fall? Or would they start to believe she wasn’t going to be around for the next season’s designs? Would they immediately start looking for other sources?
She couldn’t risk it, she told herself. She’d felt horrible when she’d left the bank, but she wasn’t going to fall into the hole. She simply wouldn’t let her staff go unemployed. Everyone who worked for her had families, responsibilities. She simply had to figure out a way.
Heading back to her loft, she went up the back way so she wouldn’t have to go through the showroom. She’d already sent an e-mail to Debbie asking her to keep things going while she visited the bank. Debbie would have no idea that she was back already.
As soon as she was back in her safe sanctuary, she pulled off the black suit, hanging it in the farthest part of her wardrobe so she wouldn’t be reminded of how humiliating her morning had been.
Pulling on her jeans and sweater once again, she paced back and forth in her loft, wracking her brain, trying to come up with a solution. Surely she had a long lost aunt who was on the point of dying and was about to leave her a huge inheritance, didn’t she?
But her mother had been an only child, her mother was on a fixed income, and even came to Zoe occasionally for financial help.
Slumping into the sofa, she put her head into her hands, her fingers itching to find that horrible man who had done this to her and….and….well, she wasn’t sure what she would do to him, but it would be really, really bad!
By five o’clock, she watched her staff of seamstresses, warehouse workers, assistants, cutters and various other personnel file out of the work room, joking, laughing and completely oblivious to the fact that if she didn’t find some way out of this, they would all have their own nightmares to deal with once they found out they didn’t have a job.
All because she’d failed by ignoring the side of her company she’d hated. Financials had always been a mystery to her, and sticking her head in the sand had definitely not been the right approach.
The phone ringing made her jump and she stared at her cell phone as the face swung in various colors announcing that the caller was unknown.
With dread, assuming it was one of her creditors, she answered it with a cheerful voice as if nothing was actually wrong. “Hello?”
“You’ve only been to one bank.”
Marco. How had he known she’d been to the bank today? And how did he know that she’d been to only one? “How do you know that?” she asked and slumped back onto her sofa.
“I have my sources,” was all he would say. “Meet me for dinner tonight at Ricardo’s. We’ll talk.”
Zoe knew of the famous Italian restaurant but was already shaking her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. I have other resources I haven’t tapped into yet.”
She heard the amused sigh. “So you’re still in denial. Is that just when you’re speaking with me? Or are you also denying it to yourself?”
Zoe couldn’t lie anymore. What was the point. “I’m only lying to you. I have no idea what to do or where to go to get my company out of this mess.”
“So you’ll meet me at Ricardo’s at seven.”
She hesitated for a long moment before finally giving in. “Yes. I’ll be there.”
“Good. Wear the dress I put out this morning. I’m sure you’ll look incredible.”
And then he hung up. No goodbye, no other sort of closing conversation or giving her a chance to argue or counter his command.
She stared at her phone, wishing she could call him back up and tell him to go to hell, but she couldn’t. He was her only lifeline and she had to get through this.
Moving slowly up the stairs, for the second time today, she examined her clothing options. Immediately discarding the idea of wearing the dress he’d chosen that morning, she sifted through her other dresses. She loved clothes, obviously, and had several possibilities. All of them were part of her new line that was already out in stores. Choosing a green, wool dress with a deep V that hugged her upper body, then flared out at her hips, she smiled at her silly rebellion. The man was helping her, the least she could do was wear the dress he’d requested. But something inside her wanted to assert some sort of control over her life, and choosing this green dress, with a necklace of dramatic green and black glass beads and killer black heels, made her feel strong and powerful.
She’d wanted to be late for dinner, wishing she could arrive after the designated seven o’clock. But traffic was too light that evening and the taxi was pulling up at the door to Ricardo’s immediately on time.
Amazingly, Marco stepped out of the restaurant and paid the cab driver for her. As the restaurant’s doorman opened her door, she took a moment to steady herself, and observe Marco in his elegant black suit with a snowy white shirt and red silk tie. He looked amazing, she thought and couldn’t have chosen a suit to fit him any better than what he was wearing. Interestingly, the cut of the suit actually diminished the breadth of his shoulders but the white of his shirt showed off his dark, tanned skin.
As he turned, his eyes took in her black trench coat and black shoes, all he could see at the moment. With a slight smile on his handsome face, he walked up to her, looking down into her rebellious eyes. “From the color of your shoes, I’m guessing you’re not wearing that gorgeous dress, are you?”
“No. I chose something that I like though.”
He chuckled, the deep sound making her skin tingle and her heart rate pick up slightly. “I’m guessing I’ll like it just as much,” he said and signaled to the doorman. Putting a hand on her elbow, he led her through the doors. His hands rested on her shoulders as she nervously opened the belt of her trench coat.