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Kyle Hamilton seemed to bring out the worst in her.
But then again, Zoe already knew that.
Chapter 3
“What did you do to Zoe?” Nelson inquired as soon as she was out of hearing range. “She acted as if she couldn’t bear to be around you.” He chuckled. “I guess you were right—there is at least one woman who is immune to your charms.”
Kyle was in no mood to laugh about Zoe Sinclair with his cousin. “She used to work for RHD, but Guava made her an offer she couldn’t refuse. I don’t think she really liked working for me.”
Nelson shook his head. “I feel like there is something more between you two. I got the feeling that her interest in me was only to garner a reaction from you.”
“No,” Kyle insisted. “There’s never been anything between me and Zoe.”
He saw no need to mention that they had once shared a kiss one sultry night more than five years ago. Zoe’s undeniable charm had been too much for him to ignore in a weakened moment.
“I don’t know, man,” Nelson said, looking as if he didn’t completely believe Kyle. “There was just too much tension in that elevator. She wasn’t fired, so what happened?”
Kyle shrugged. “I’m not sure. She’s always had a chip on her shoulder.”
“What’s up with you?”
“Excuse me?”
Nelson repeated his question. “I’ve never seen you react this way around a woman.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Kyle would never admit it, but seeing Zoe bat her eyelashes and flirt with Nelson had really bothered him. He wasn’t sure if she was really interested in his cousin or if Nelson’s suspicions were correct. Regardless, he did not like it one way or the other.
* * *
Zoe walked into her office and closed the door behind her. Her purse fell to the floor as she leaned against her desk, then sat. She closed her eyes as vivid images churned through her mind of her time at RHD working under Kyle.
There was a part of Zoe that wanted to hate Kyle for turning her world upside down with a scorching kiss and then acting as though nothing had ever happened between them, but the fact was there was much that she admired about him, such as his love for family. Although her Baltimore upbringing was not privileged in the way that Kyle’s was, Zoe was raised by loving parents with whom she remained close. She had inherited her love of fashion from her mother. Some of Zoe’s earliest memories were of playing in her parents’ closet, trying on her mother’s high heels and scarves. Her mom claimed that the first word Zoe ever spoke was shoe.
Zoe and her mother used to go shopping together almost every weekend as she got older. They never bought much because her parents made just enough money to make ends meet and had very little extra. Still it was fun trying on clothes and putting together outfits. By the time Zoe was in high school, she had started making her own clothes and earning extra money by designing for her friends.
When she was studying at FIT, Zoe devoured fashion magazines and articles on trends in the industry. Although she could not afford a subscription to Women’s Wear Daily, she read every copy in FIT’s library and kept abreast of the industry. That was how she heard about the RHD internship. Zoe had leaped at the chance to work for such a prominent design house.
From the moment she’d first walked through the doors of RHD, Zoe had felt as if she had finally arrived where she was meant to be. Like a sponge, she’d soaked up every detail of the business. Everyone at RHD worked hard, but Zoe worked harder. She was intent on proving her worth, and her efforts did not go unnoticed. There were three other FIT interns at RHD that semester—girls with sterling pedigrees and family connections—but Zoe was the only one who was offered a job upon graduation.
Most of Zoe’s coworkers had embraced her from the beginning, praising her work ethic and her creativity, but Kyle had seemed unimpressed by her talent. He wasn’t insulting or dismissive—he just accepted her accomplishments at face value. Zoe was determined to make Kyle Hamilton acknowledge her.
Maybe that was what led to tension between them.
By the time Zoe was twenty-three, her star was rising at RHD. Kyle had frequently requested Zoe for projects and Zoe took every opportunity to work closely with Kyle, despite their constant bickering. But working in such close proximity to the sensual designer had ignited a smoldering desire within Zoe that she didn’t know how to handle.
Things had come to a head during Fashion Week 2008. After a successful show in Bryant Park, Kyle had invited Zoe to join him and his friends at a party. She wasn’t sure if it was the cosmos they were drinking or the excitement of the evening, but Kyle had kissed her.
Zoe had matched him kiss for kiss, each one more passionate than the last.
Abruptly, Kyle had pulled away, leaving her to try to figure out what had gone wrong. Her humiliation did not end there, however.
The next morning, Kyle pulled her into his office and apologized for crossing the boundary between employer and employee. To add insult to injury, he also had the nerve to say that she was too young for him.
She had to admit that the man was one incredible kisser, but the sting of his dismissal still felt as fresh as the day it had happened.
It bothered Zoe that she had been foolish enough to believe that Kyle Hamilton was tied to her destiny...and that she had allowed herself to fall in love with him.
Jerry stuck his head inside her office, interrupting her turbulent thoughts. “I have a lunch date. Can you review the list of candidates for Fashion Week internships? I sent them to you via email. We need a couple to start as soon as possible because two quit on us yesterday.”
“Sure,” Zoe said.
He was gone in a flash.
She leaned back in her chair and sighed. Zoe had a lot on her plate already, but she checked her email and found the list Jerry had sent.
When she came across one prospect who had interned at RHD last year, Zoe paused. She briefly wondered why the young man had decided not to go back there. It really did not matter, she told herself.
The important thing was for Zoe to put RHD, and Kyle Hamilton, out of her mind once and for all. She had bigger things to worry about than the man she had once been in love with.
* * *
“Have you seen Brianna or Bailey yet?” Kyle asked Nelson as they left his apartment for the weekly Sunday dinner hosted by his parents. “I know Daniel came by to see you a couple of days ago.”
Nelson shook his head. “I talked to Bailey, but Brianna and I have been playing telephone tag. I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone.”
They stepped inside a waiting elevator.
“Miss those family gatherings, huh?” Kyle asked as he pressed the button for the eighteenth floor. Kyle’s whole family lived in separate apartments in the same building co-owned by Kyle’s parents on Central Park West, which had its advantages, particularly when it came to getting together for Sunday dinner.
Nelson nodded. “I do. I enjoy being around family.”
They rode three floors up and knocked on the door when they reached his parents’ apartment. His mother rushed out to give Nelson a hug. “Welcome to New York.”
He laughed. “Hello, Aunt Lila.”
She slipped her arm through his. “I cooked some of your favorites.”
Kyle followed them inside. “Don’t spoil him, Mom.”
Lila looked much younger than her fifty-eight years. Although she no longer modeled and had given birth to four children, she still maintained her slender figure. Today, she wore her long, dark hair in its natural kinky/curly state.
Lila looked up at her son and said, “Nelson’s the guest of honor today. He deserves a little spoiling.”
Kyle’s youngest sister Bailey walked into the room. “We have been graced by a celebrity. How are you, cousin?”
Even in a pair of faded jeans and a black tank top with silver beading, the young model looked like a star, Kyle thought to himself. He had a strong feeling that this year’s Fashion Week was going to launch Bailey’s career, and Kyle was excited for her.
Nelson chuckled. “I’m no celebrity, that’s for sure.”
Kyle’s other sister Brianna, a budding designer in her own right, joined them, followed by a man in his early sixties, bald with a salt-and-pepper beard and mustache. He pushed his designer eyeglasses up the bridge of his nose. “Nephew, it’s good to see you. Although I thought you would’ve come to say hello before now.”
“I’m sorry, Uncle Roger, I know how busy it’s been for you all.”
“There’s always time for family.”
Kyle sat down beside Nelson on the overstuffed sofa. “Family comes first—that’s what my dad always says.”
Roger gave Nelson a firm pat on the shoulder. “So you decided to venture on a different path than your father, I hear.”
“Law is not in my blood. I think I inherited my mother’s creative spirit instead.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Kyle interjected as Roger nodded in agreement.
“I wanted to be an actress once,” Brianna confessed. “When I was twelve.”
“Then she wanted to become an astronaut,” Kyle’s brother, Daniel, said as he came into the room with a chuckle. “But she changed her mind when she realized that the space suits were not fashionable.”
Brianna laughed. “I figured I could just design my own. When I found out that I couldn’t, I decided that being an astronaut just wasn’t for me.
“Kyle never wanted to be anything other than an RHD designer,” Brianna continued. “I would be in my room designing clothes for my dolls and Kyle would try to change my drawings. It used to drive me crazy. That’s why I bought him a doll one Christmas.”
Nelson threw back his head and laughed.
“It’s not that funny,” Kyle muttered, before chuckling.
“I should thank you,” Brianna said. “It’s because of you that I am the person I am. You taught me a lot about designing.”
Lila rose, checked her watch and announced, “Dinner is ready to be served. Shall we?”
Roger gave the blessing before they all ventured into the kitchen to prepare their plates.
“I’m really excited about the show,” Bailey said once they were all seated around a table large enough to seat twenty. “I’ve got several interviews lined up already. I feel that this might be my big moment.”
“I agree,” Kyle interjected. “Since you appeared in that series of commercials Daniel created for RHD, you’ve garnered a lot of interest in the industry.”
Nelson glanced over at Bailey. “You were so quiet and shy when we were growing up. I still can’t get over how much you’ve changed. You, too, Daniel. You were always playing pranks or joking around. Now look at you.”
“We used to have so much fun when we were younger,” Daniel said. “Then we kind of drifted apart as we got older.”
“We’re going to change that,” Nelson said. “Starting now. It’s inspiring to be surrounded by such creative people. And you surround yourself with creatives, too. Like that woman you introduced me to today, Kyle.”
Kyle looked up at his cousin and noted the twinkle in his eye.
“Who’s that, Kyle?” Lila asked.
“I ran into Zoe Sinclair at the Childs Hotel,” he announced, shooting Nelson a glare. “I was surprised to see her.”
“How did she look?” Lila asked. “She was always so chic.”
“Good,” Kyle and Nelson answered in unison.
Bailey chuckled.
“I hear she’s doing quite well over at Guava,” Roger said.
“She’s part of the reason their fall collection did so well,” Brianna interjected. “Women’s Wear Daily says that Zoe has a bright future as a designer.”
Lila agreed. “We were lucky to have her for the short time she worked at RHD. Wouldn’t you agree, Kyle?”
Kyle nodded without saying anything.
“Let’s go sit,” Lila said as they finished their meal.
“Why did Zoe leave RHD?” Nelson asked when they’d settled in the family room. Kyle had been hoping they were done with the topic of Zoe, but Nelson didn’t seem ready to let her go.
“Apparently she received a better offer from Guava,” he replied, trying to keep his voice as neutral as possible.
“We should have fought to keep her,” Lila said. “She worked under your supervision, Kyle. Why didn’t you convince Zoe to stay?”
“She had already made up her mind, Mom.”
“I think you underestimate your powers of persuasion.”
Kyle met his mother’s gaze. “Zoe is a grown woman. I’m sure she put a lot of thought into her decision to leave RHD. She’s been with Guava for five years now, so it must be working out for her.” When Kyle noticed his mother and Nelson exchanging a glance, he fought the temptation to leave the room.
“Did you and Zoe get a chance to talk about anything?” Lila inquired.
“Like what?” he asked, not enjoying where this conversation was heading one bit.
“Is she single?”
“We were only in the elevator for a few minutes, Mom. I didn’t have enough time for a full dossier.”
Kyle couldn’t help wondering why his mother was always so interested in Zoe and her social life. Maybe it was because Lila knew Zoe was confident where it counted and independent to an extreme. Zoe wasn’t afraid of going against the grain when it came to the achievement of her goals, much like his mother.
He had to admit that he admired those qualities in both women.
As Lila and his sisters gazed at him with a knowing look in their eyes, Kyle stopped trying to resist the urge to leave the room.
“I need something to drink,” he said as he walked out, ignoring the soft laughter of his loving family, who clearly had no idea what was good for him—and what wasn’t.
Chapter 4
“I saw Kyle at the Childs Hotel on Friday,” Zoe told Jerry as they stared at some preliminary shots of Zoe’s collection on her computer in her office. “He invited us to the RHD party.”
“Did he, now,” Jerry murmured. “I hope you reciprocated by inviting him to our cocktail party.”
