Chapter 58

The meeting room was buzzing with chatter and noise. This was one of those quarterly meetings where higher-ups reported on their work—and sometimes, not-so-subtly threw shade at each other. Maria was attending for the first time. She’d been prepping her slides for a week. As the Styling Director, she didn’t manage much on the daily, but with a title like that, she had to show something. Tina was tagging along to assist. Most of the faces were new to her. People huddled in groups, caught up in small talk, which honestly saved her the trouble of awkward introductions. Tina waved across the room. Maria walked over and dropped into the seat next to her. They double-checked the presentation. Everything was in order. Now, just waiting for James to arrive. As soon as James walked in, perfectly on cue, the room dropped silent. He gave Cody a subtle look; he started arranging the presentation order. A routine everyone was used to. Honestly, most reports were repetitive—same spiel with slightly