It was just the rest of the world who couldn’t always make ends meet.
I wasn’t wrong for helping out Mr. Roth. Dammit, the guy had been a tenant for almost a decade now. I didn’t just kick people like that out. Shit happened—life was fucking hard. Even when we could afford luxury apartments. Even when we had more than enough money to be considered rich.
We weren’t excluded from the shit that life handed out sometimes.
And Mr. Roth deserved a fucking break.
I picked up my phone to check for texts, but Emily still hadn’t replied.
Fuck.
That pissed me off even more.
I turned my attention to my laptop to get some work done, but I couldn’t concentrate.
I kept thinking about Emily.
9
EMILY
“Mr.Richmond,”Isaidwith a smile, walking into the large living room. I looked around at the space. We were going to tackle this room next, and I was excited about the way the light came in through the large French windows, the way I could use it to play with color. “How are you today?”
“I’m not happy,” Richmond said.
He was a thin, tall man with gray hair, balding on top. He wore expensive tailored suits in varying shades of gray, and his expressions usually matched his ensemble.
Tony Richmondalwayslooked like he wasn’t happy.
But he’d never actually said it.
“What?” I asked. I took a deep breath. “How can I fix it?”
“Veronica doesn’t like the direction you’ve suggested.”
I blinked at him. Who the hell was Veronica? I had a feeling I was supposed to know, so I didn’t ask.
“You’ve shown her the concepts?” I asked carefully.
“I did, and she’s not interested.”
“Let’s change it then,” I said. “I’m sure we can find something that will work for the both of you. We just have to—”
“I’m sorry, Emily. Veronica’s friends with Bill McIntosh, and he’s going to call in a favor.”
“McIntosh ...” I gasped. William McIntosh had the biggest name in luxury design in LA. If Richmond referred to him as Bill, they were on nickname terms. Which meant the connection wasn’t just a business one.
Even if it was, I couldn’t compete with McIntosh. His name was so big that he didn’t have to name his company. His name was enough to get him business.
“Do you think he’ll be able to bring your vision to life?” I asked in a small voice. I wanted to fight for this contract. Ineededto keep Richmond on. But I was losing. God, if it was about McIntosh, I’d already lost.
“He’s going in a new direction,” Richmond said. “I’m sorry to do this, but I’m terminating our contract. I’ll pay you for what you’ve done already, of course. But we won’t do any more business.”
“Can’t I change your mind?” I asked.
Tony Richmond shook his head. “Miss Jenkins, there’s one thing I can teach you about doing business—never beg. It doesn’t become a business with a future.”
I stared at him. My heart beat in my throat, and my breathing was too fast. My mind spun—I’d canceled a lot of other contracts and turned down new clients, all so I would have the time to take care of Richmond’s projects. He had so many rooms he’d wanted me to do, and the price had been enough to cover my expenses and then some.