Chapter 2

Sienna clapped. Her knuckles were white, but the smile never dropped.

"Ruby, I'm so happy for you. You deserve this."

She turned to Leo, voice still warm. "Just one concern—the 'Ingredient Breakdown' series is still in pilot stage. It's a tough build. Ruby just got promoted, and brand partners usually want to see a track record before committing real money. I worry about setting her up to fail."

Leo tilted his head. "What do you suggest?"

Sienna looked at me. All sunshine.

"We've got two brands reaching out for exclusive streamer partnerships right now. Why don't Ruby and I each take one? Whoever lands the stronger deal by month-end—higher commission rate, longer exclusivity, bigger promo budget—gets promoted to Creative Director with profit-sharing."

She paused. "Ruby? What do you think?"

"Healthy competition. I like it." Leo nodded. "Two brands on the table. Velour Cosmetics—established, premium, big media budget. And Bare Theory—indie label, new to market, founder's got a reputation for being difficult. Pick your sides."

Sienna jumped right in. "Ruby's just stepped up—she needs something manageable. Bare Theory is a smaller brand, and the founder's supposed to be pretty straightforward. I'll take Velour. Their marketing VP is a nightmare, but someone has to do it."

Dylan leaned back in his chair. "Bare Theory doesn't even have a flagship store yet. Sienna's really looking out for her."

A couple of heads nodded around the table.

I looked at Sienna's face. Perfect concern. Perfect generosity.

"Sure. Bare Theory is mine."

Sienna smiled.

The next two weeks went exactly the way everyone predicted.

Bare Theory's founder, Nate Wilder, was brutal. Before he'd even discuss terms, he made me pass a written test on how ingredients actually work—stability, absorption, the whole thing. His first offer was below market. No upfront promo budget. And he wanted to personally approve every frame of content before it went live.

Sienna's side was a different universe. Velour rolled out the red carpet—higher commission tiers with every meeting, a two-year exclusive window, full production backing on joint videos. By the second week, she'd already received their entire upcoming product line for early access and review.

The mid-term review was ugly.

"Leo, here's Velour's latest offer." Sienna stood at the front of the conference room, glowing. The numbers on screen were clean—nobody could poke a hole in them.

Dylan started clapping before she finished. "Sienna's deal-making is insane. Velour never gives terms this good."

Someone behind me muttered something about "some people wasting time on brands nobody's heard of."

Leo studied Sienna's numbers. He was nodding. Actually smiling.

Sienna moved to stand beside him. "Leo, Velour's terms are already this strong. I think we should call it early. No point waiting around."

She turned to me with careful sympathy. "Ruby, it's nothing personal. But the company can't sit around while one side has nothing to show. Every day we wait costs money."

"Exactly," Dylan said. "Time is money."

The room went quiet. Everyone was looking at me.

Leo's expression shifted. "Ruby, Sienna has a point. You can't force a deal that isn't there." His tone was firm but not cruel. "I've seen the Bare Theory numbers. The gap is real. If it's not coming together, step back. Support Sienna on the Velour rollout instead."

Sienna's voice went soft. "Stepping back isn't losing. You can work with me—still contributing, still learning."

I stood up.

"We agreed on one month. It's been fifteen days."

I placed a report on the table in front of Leo. Thick. Tabbed. Highlighted.

"Bare Theory's terms look weak because they're in the middle of a big product upgrade. Their next-gen formula is almost done with testing."

I tapped the numbers I'd marked in red. "Once it passes—and it will—their costs drop, hard. The deal they'll be able to offer us will make Velour's numbers look small."

Leo picked up the report. Flipped a page. Hesitated.

Dylan snorted. "Anyone can make promises. What if the product launch tanks? Who eats two weeks of wasted time?"

"I do."

I looked at Leo.

"If I can't deliver a better deal than Velour by the end of the month, I'll give up the Creative Director spot, pay back every dollar the company spent on Bare Theory, and work for free for three months."

The room erupted. Dylan's mouth hung open. Even Leo's pen stopped moving.

Sienna said nothing. But her eyes went sharp.

Inside her bag, the setting spray lost it—high-pitched, frantic, barely holding together.

"I'm almost empty! She's been burning through me all week—those dark circles just keep getting worse. Out with Victor again last night, that club, didn't get home till two. He's the one doing the whole Velour deal for her, she can't even read a contract on her own! And when I run out? Those dark circles on camera? Horror show!"

Victor. The lipstick had mentioned him this morning too.

I didn't know what he was to Sienna.

Leo stared at me. Nobody spoke.

"All right," he said. "Two more weeks."