Divorce Him, Then Dazzle novel Chapter 130

After dinner, Catheleen kept nagging Camilla to send those pictures over to Latonia.

Latonia opened them as soon as she got them. She scrolled through, forwarding each one with a grin. “Cammie, these are gorgeous! I honestly think your jewelry designs look better than some of the big names out there.”

“Right? I told you Cammie’s a genius.” Catheleen’s eyes sparkled. She sounded so proud, you’d think she’d designed the pieces herself.

Camilla ducked her head, blushing. “I just like drawing jewelry, that’s all.”

She had always loved pretty things, even when she was a little girl. Whenever she designed clothes, she felt like jewelry and accessories made everything come alive. After her college admissions exams, she’d gone through a huge fight with her parents about what she’d study. Lean and Adah had their hearts set on her doing something practical, maybe going into further studies, eventually ending up as a university professor.

“Being a teacher is respectable,” they said. “It’s a stable job. Brings honor to the family.”

But Camilla wouldn’t budge. All she wanted was fashion design. The arguments got so bad that Barbara finally had to step in and speak up for her. That was the only reason her parents agreed in the end.

What Camilla didn’t know was that Barbara wasn't exactly rooting for her future. Teaching was noble, well-respected, even admired. Barbara didn’t want Camilla’s life to turn out that perfectly, so she went along with the plan, looking supportive but thinking otherwise. Camilla had no clue. For years, she was genuinely grateful to Barbara, thinking she’d made her dream possible.

Luckily, Camilla really was talented, and she loved drawing more than anything. Once she started college and got some real training, she only got better.

A little later, Latonia forwarded the designs to a client. The client texted back almost immediately, asking for more info about the designer.

Latonia’s voice came through, teasing and excited. “Cammie, this looks really promising! My client’s a nightmare to please, honestly. If he’s asking questions, he must really like your style.”

She added, “He wants to know about you. What should I say?”

Catheleen started counting off on her fingers. “Age, gender, where you went to school, what competitions you’ve been in, any awards... those sorts of things.”

Camilla typed up her info and sent it over to Latonia, who shot it straight to the client. Another message popped up almost right away. The client wanted to meet Camilla in person, hear her thoughts about jewelry design.

Latonia sounded even more hyped. “This is your shot. If you hit it off at the meeting, this could really go somewhere.”

Camilla gave a grateful smile. “Thanks, Latonia. If I land the job, dinner’s on me.”

“Absolutely!” Catheleen cheered. “Cammie’s still got a couple more days of IV drips since she hasn’t been well. Let’s book the meeting for the day after tomorrow instead?”

Camilla nodded, that sounded fine, so Latonia set the meeting for three in the afternoon, two days from now, at a little coffee shop.

I’m downstairs.

Camilla quickly changed, waved goodbye to Catheleen, and headed out.

Latonia was waiting by the car. “Cammie, this way. Hop in the front.”

Camilla greeted her, sliding into the passenger seat.

Latonia buckled up. “Quick change of plans—Lambert’s riding with us. I’m dropping him off first, then we’ll head to your meeting.”

Camilla’s whole body tensed.

The man’s voice came smoothly from the back seat. “Cammie.”

It was low, refined, and kind of dangerous. Camilla whipped around and found herself staring right at the ridiculously handsome face of the man behind her.