The air crackled with a mixture of indifference and tension as Rina strode into the conference room. The long polished table shone under the overhead lights, just the way it did the last time she was in there, discussing the contract. She wasn’t supposed to have any interaction with the whole board until the expiration of her contract, but the person responsible for taking the picture and the publishing of the article expedited it.
Nut as Rina took her seat, taking in the faces around the table, etched with varying degrees of seriousness and concern, Rina knew it wasn’t the end of her contract with Pages of Claire. In fact, her reign only just started and there was no way she was going to allow Kayla, or whoever it was, to win this round. Claire watched her from the head of the table, her usually radiant face clouded with worry. But Rina knew it had nothing to do with the outcome of the meeting. Claire was worried about what the sudden publication would do to the reputation Rina was only just starting to rebuild. It could go both ways. Since Joel Osteen during his interview, had put Rina under the bus, everyone expected the same thing to happen now. After all, Zayn had no reason to protect her. He had nothing to lose.
But no one knew the circumstances behind their alliance.
Rina was a force of nature, a brilliant mind with an unwavering belief in herself. And knowing she was going to be subjected to a barrage of attacks and criticisms by some members of the board, Rina wasn’t going to allow them to get through to her. Zayn would have been long gone by now, but this wasn’t a huge problem that she couldn’t surmount without his help.
“We called this meeting, Ms. Power because some of the members of the board thought it important to have a conversation following the article released this morning, especially since your contract has only just begun.” Claire wove her speech tenderly, her eyes soft. “You can tell us what that is about and if we have any reason to be worried about the integrity of Pages of Claire. But I must put it out there that as far as I’m concerned, I don’t think there is anything to be concerned about. Ms. Power is a public figure with different opinions in the public around her. And it could be great for my brand because she would constantly be in people’s faces and on their minds, which would lead to wider publicity for us. She has always been able to handle her fans and anti-fans, so why don’t we leave her with this as well?”
Rina was genuinely surprised at how much of a fan Claire was. Never in her life would she have imagined that someone with that much prestige and fame would stand up for her and treat her like a friend rather than an employee. There seemed to be something else going on, another power at play that Rina couldn’t place her hands on. But it was there, strong and present.
“With all due respect,” Anthony started, clearing his throat noisily, his voice dropping with condescension. If he had hidden his hatred for her, Rina would have been disappointed. “You have only had one shoot with us, yet this has happened. Now, I am beginning to think that all of those accusations had truth in them. What are you up to, Rina?”
“Ms. Power,” Rina murmured. “It’s Ms. Power.”
“Do I look like I care what you go by?” Although he had a smile on his face, the venom in his tone was potent. “I don’t think you get what is at stake here. This is a brand that has been built right from the scratch, surmounting different hurdles to get to this point. We did not get blacklisted or boycotted by the fashion community because of some drama we couldn’t control. Now, you have brought the most powerful man in your country and one of the most formidable forces around here into the equation. Do you think he is going to sit down and do nothing? I don’t know how you managed to get him to your hotel room, but I am sure as hell that is one hell of a plot you wove, Rina, and I’m not in any way fooled by it.”
Claire’s lips fell open to caution Anthony, but before she could get around to it, the door pushed open and Zayn strolled in with all the authority in the world, like he had every right to be in there. He stopped at the edge of the table and looked at everyone present, his eyes stopping on Anthony.
“Again, as far as you are concerned, it’s Ms. Power.”
The room fell silent, save the sound of the chair scraping the ground as Anthony got off his chair, his head almost hitting the table as he bowed low. “Mr. Graham!”
“As much as I’m not supposed to be in here because honestly, it wasn’t my turf for quite some time, Claire here has given me the liberty to have a say in these matters, especially since I own 30% of the shares in this company. I wanted that to be kept hushed because making the trip down here for these meetings looked like a lot to me. But with Rina here in the line of your crossfire, you can’t expect me to do nothing.”
Anthony looked at Rina in surprise and then back at Zayn. Nico struggled to hide his laughter while Claire watched the scene like she had seen it coming from a mile away. The rest of the board were stuck between surprise and interest with their eyes glued to Zayn.
“I thought…” Anthony stammered “You can’t possibly…”
“Why are you still talking?”
“What?”
“Apologize to Rina so we can get this done with. I have a meeting to get to and you are wasting my precious time.”