Cuffing Season

by Danielle Allen

  “Serena, please. I—”

  I snatched my arm from his grasp. “Don’t ever put your hands on me again!” I hissed. “You misrepresented yourself, and then you flaked on me. I don’t play when it comes to my business. There’s nothing for us to talk about.”

  “I just came back here to apologize.” He lifted his hands in surrender. “That’s all. I’ve called and texted a few times, but I couldn’t get in touch with you. So, I decided I needed to do it in person.”

  I glared at him. “It couldn’t have waited until after the show? You could back out of a business arrangement via text, but on the biggest night of my academic and professional career, you decide to pop up uninvited and unannounced? Really?”

  He started using his hands emphatically. “Veronica wasn’t cool with the idea of us working together. She’s been getting a lot of heat from all this. People have been calling her dumb for staying with me since they think I cheated. She’s having a rough time—”

  My eyes widened at his audacity. “She’s having a rough time?” I scoffed.

  “I know things haven’t been good for you either, but I just wanted to explain the reason why she wouldn’t like it if everyone saw me interacting with you. She was fine with the fact that we… you know. But she doesn’t like people rubbing her face in it. She’s my girl, so I had to do what would make her happy. I’m sorry if that messed up your show.”

  “Got it. Thanks.” I gave him a thumbs up. “You’ve said what you wanted to say and I have less than an hour to get things together, so can you show yourself out? I need to focus on what’s really important. And that’s not what you two have going on.” I pointed toward the exit. “Go.”

  He started walking backward. “She was trying to save face and was caught off guard. I’ll figure out a way to make it right.” Turning, he continued toward the door.

  I didn’t know what he was talking about and I didn’t care. I had more important things to think about.

  “Haru!” I called out to one of the models as I walked back into the organized madness of backstage. Since she was going to open the show, I needed her to be perfect. Pointing to her hair, I asked, “What happened?”

  She looked in the mirror and gasped. “I’m not sure. I’m so sorry!”

  “No worries.” I glanced at the clock—thirty-seven minutes until they had to line up for inspection, fifty-seven minutes until the show officially started. “You have time and all they really have to do is fix that part.”

  I tried to busy myself with other little tasks, but I was so overly prepared that everything seemed to be flowing smoothly. I didn’t have anything to do but walk around and make sure everyone was okay. Over the sounds of hair dryers, conversation, and laughter, I heard the music from the event space and I smiled.

  It’s happening. This is really happening!

  I started making my way to the back entrance, so I could talk to security.

  Do I have everything? Am I ready for this? Did I bring my business cards?

  “Are you okay?” Jess asked from behind me, bringing me out of my own head.

  I turned to face her, flashing a smile. “I’m just ready to get this show on the road.” I studied her face. “Your makeup looks good.”

  “You know what else looks good?” She looked over my shoulder and wiggled her eyebrows. “I think someone is waiting for you.”

  I know Marcus didn’t bring his ass back.

  “Are you serious?” I asked, rolling my eyes.

  “Yeah…” She winked at me. “I’ll give you a minute.”

  I turned around ready to curse Marcus out and froze.

  My heart stopped and then quickly sped up. I was immobilized, held captive by his gaze. The backstage noise faded away, and all I could hear was my heart beating a mile a minute. In black pants, a fitted white shirt, and black boots, Luca stood in the narrow walkway that was supposed to be closed off to anyone who wasn’t part of my show.

  Who is in charge of security?

  Swallowing hard, I forced my legs to move toward him. Glancing over my shoulder, I checked to make sure no one was able to see us. I stopped a few feet in front of him. “What are you doing here?”

  The way his long-sleeved shirt hugged his muscles was a little distracting. He pushed up his sleeves, showing off his forearms, and checked his watch. “Can I have five minutes of your time?”

  “I don’t have five minutes.” Anxiously, I played with the belt of my robe. When I’d ignored his calls and text messages on Thursday and Friday, it was easier to push my feelings to the side. Being in his presence was too much, and I just didn’t want to experience an emotional upheaval before my show. “The show is starting in like fifty minutes. Can we do this after I’m done, please?”

  “I’m heading up to Pittsburgh tonight. I have a shoot in the morning, and I still need to pack.” His voice lowered and held a pleading quality. “Please.”

  Crossing my arms over my chest, I shakily exhaled. “Five minutes.”

  “Well, then I’m not going to waste my time telling you how beautiful you look because I know you already know that. How are you feeling?”

  The knot in my stomach tightened. I cleared my throat. “About the show or about this conversation?”

  His jaw clenched. “The show.”

  “I’m nervous,” I answered honestly. “The models are great. The clothes look great. I’m nervous, but I’m good.” I glanced over my shoulder to see if anyone had come to the side of the room where we were. “I’ll feel better once it starts.”

  “I’ve seen your collection and your rehearsal,” he began, pulling my attention back to him. “You have nothing to be nervous about. You’re going to be great. You have an impressive line and a professional caliber show on your hands.”

  I licked my lips. “Thank you.”

  His eyes zeroed in on my tongue before flicking back to meet my stare. I could hear my heart pounding in my chest. He walked closer to me until there was no space between us. My breathing hitched, and I willed myself to look away. But it didn’t work. I tried to remind myself that I wasn’t dealing with him on a personal level. But it didn’t work. Instead, I allowed his scent to infiltrate my lungs and fill my spirit. The energy between us was electric, and my lips tingled with the memory of our kiss.

  Luca was as close as he could be without touching me. “You’ve been blowing me off and ordinarily, I would’ve taken the hint and walked away, but there’s something here. There’s something between us that I can’t shake, and I couldn’t go another day without telling you that, Serena.”

  His accented voice said my name in a way that spoke to the depths of me. It took everything in me not to be seduced in that moment.

  Putting my hands up to his firm chest, I gently pushed, creating the distance I needed to respond. “Let me guess… you want to sneak around? Keep whatever this is between us private?”

  “I’m willing to do whatever I need to do to spend more time with you.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t date men who want to hide me.” Feeling myself getting emotional, I turned to walk away. “I need to get back—”

  Moving quickly, he caught my arm and spun me back toward him. Seeing my face, he dropped his hand from my robe. “Hide you? What are you talking about?”

  “You’re clearly embarrassed for this to be anything.” My eyes stung, but since he’d brought it up, I realized how badly I needed to have the conversation. I needed the weight of his hurt off me.

  “What are you talking about? I’m not embarrassed for this to be anything!” He studied my face as if he were seeing me for the first time. “You don’t honestly believe that, do you?”

  “It’s what you said! You admitted that you didn’t want anyone to think we were together. You—”

  “I did that for you!” His voice was a little louder, a little rougher as he interrupted me. “That was for your benefit!”

  I rolled my eyes. “Listen, I need to get—”

  “You’r
e beautiful, talented, creative, smart, strong, and I can’t stop thinking about you. I’m not embarrassed to be seen with you or to be with you. I said I didn’t want anyone to think we were together because I was trying to protect you.”

  My heated face scrunched in confusion, trying to make sense of what he was saying. “Protect me? How?”

  “Almost all of the people helping with the shoot were connected to Hamilton in some way. I just kept thinking that if they saw us together, the rumors would’ve just continued. I saw the look on your face when you were telling me about the podcast. Seeing us together would’ve made it worse, and I couldn’t do that to you. Not without us at least talking about the risk. I wanted to protect you. I still want to protect you.”

  “I don’t know,” I whispered, unsure of what to believe or how I felt.

  It wasn’t that what he was saying wasn’t the truth. If word got out that Luca and I were caught kissing on set, it would’ve made everyone who was calling me ho, slut, and gold digger feel validated. So, on one hand, I understood what he was saying about protecting me from the rumor mill. But on the other hand, he didn’t protect my feelings when he chose not to communicate with me.

  He shook his head. “In everyone’s mind who believes that shit about you, being with me will confirm that rumor and people might say that means all of the rumors are true. I didn’t want to give them any fuel to throw on the fire. You deserve better than that.”

  “But you’re here now…on campus…with students all around. Almost all the models go here or graduated from here. My professor could walk back here any minute. Most of the audience is affiliated with Hamilton University in some way.” I threw my hands up in exasperation. “So, which is it? You didn’t want to make a move in front of the people you shoot with because you wanted to protect me or the better you think I deserve is sneaking around and hiding behind this partition?”

  A pained expression crossed his face. “It’s…” He sighed. “I want to do what’s best for you. That’s all. And I just wanted to let you know how I feel.”

  Something in me cracked. “So, why didn’t you say that Saturday night after the shoot?” I demanded, my voice hoarse with vulnerability. “Because you did everything you could to avoid me when you weren’t actually shooting. Then you ignored me for days. And then you told me that the reason for treating me like I didn’t mean anything to you was because you didn’t want anyone to think we were together.” I tilted my head to the side. “And now you want me to believe you were hurting me to protect me.”

  I wanted to call bullshit, but the way he looked at me caused the word to melt on my tongue. The way he looked at me brought my feelings front and center, and my eyes started to water. I looked away.

  “I’m sorry, Serena. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I guess I didn’t think about how it would come across. I was just so focused on not making anything worse for you.” With sincerity dripping from each word, he brought his hands to my face, cupping my cheeks and forcing me to look at him. “I could see how the rumors were wearing you down, and I didn’t want to add to the problem. I didn’t mean to make you think that I…”

  He shook his head as his sentence trailed off, bringing his face closer.

  Closing my eyes, I let what he’d said seep into me. Between his words and his nearness, I was overwhelmed.

  “I don’t want to take up too much of your time,” he whispered, his fingers flexing against my face. “You wouldn’t take my calls, and I just needed to talk to you.” He paused, rubbing his nose against mine. “Look at me, please.”

  My lashes fluttered opened, and he was so close that I felt emotional. I sucked in a deep breath. Seconds ticked by and his eyes implored mine, begging me to say something, but I was too lost in them to speak immediately. Bringing my hands up to cover his, I hoped he couldn’t feel the way I was trembling.

  “I just needed to see you,” he reiterated so softly.

  “You just needed to see me and talk to me?” I murmured, intoxicated by the way he looked at me. “Is that the only reason you came back here?”

  “Maybe one other thing…”

  My heart was pounding. “What?”

  Crashing his lips into mine, he kissed me with enough passion to take my breath away. Butterflies spread across my belly as his full lips overpowered my own. When his tongue grazed mine, it sent shivers up and down my spine. A flurry of emotions awakened my entire body and before I could fully bask in what was happening, it was over.

  Moving back a few inches, his eyes flashed with the same intensity as that fleeting kiss. We just stood there staring at one another for a moment.

  “What was that?” I breathlessly wondered aloud.

  Without taking his eyes off me, his hands slowly ran down my neck, over my shoulders, and then down my arms until our fingers intertwined. “That was me claiming you as mine.”

  That was the moment I realized that the man before me weakened me. I felt my face heat, and I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but the sound of Kate’s voice shattered the moment before I could formulate an intelligent thought.

  “You need to be dressed in fifteen minutes! Keep an eye on the time, people!” Kate announced loudly.

  I glanced at my watch. Shit! That means I’ve been with Luca for fifteen minutes.

  “I have to go,” I informed him, pushing down my feelings and mentally preparing myself for what I needed to do.

  “I know.” Dipping down to brush his lips against mine, Luca whispered, “You’ve been preparing your whole life for this, and I know how much this means to you. You’re ready. You worked your ass off for this. You sacrificed for this. Be in the moment.”

  He gave me the pep talk I didn’t know that I needed and sealed it with a kiss. The beautifully talented and creative man looked into my eyes and could see my beautifully talented and creative soul, and he spoke to it. And while I saw his sincerity, felt his genuineness, and tasted his truth, the fact that he snuck in and kissed me in secret didn’t work for me.

  I bit my bottom lip to stop myself from crying. I had work to do. “Bye, Luca.”

  Fifteen minutes flew by and before I knew it, twenty models decked out in Simply Serena designs stood in front of me. In the order that they were to make their way down the runway, the models looked like a manifestation of my dreams. One by one, I inspected the overall look and had the makeup artist and hair dresser touching up things as we moved down the line. From head to toe, their entire look was exactly what I’d conceptualized. I was overcome with excitement seeing how perfectly everything had come together.

  “Five minutes!” Kate’s voice boomed, and a hush fell over the entire backstage area.

  “Is everyone ready? Everyone good?” I quickly checked in on the photographers and then I peeked out of the curtain to see a packed house.

  My stomach dropped.

  I didn’t even look to see if I could spot my parents or Vanessa and Derrick in the crowd. I had seats blocked off for them specifically, so I knew where they should’ve been.

  I took a deep breath.

  I went to one of the many long full-length mirrors and untied my robe. I let it slip from my shoulders, exposing my outfit. My hair was twisted and pinned with gold accessories forming a crown on the top of my head. A short, strapless, gold lamé dress covered my body, stopping mid-thigh. The sweetheart neckline showed off my cleavage, and the fluid movement of the material was sexy without being over the top. I stepped out of my flats and stepped into a pair of black four-inch stilettos with gold ankle straps and a gold heel.

  The catcalling started immediately.

  “Stop it!” I laughed, waving my hand dismissively. “But thank you.” I looked around the room with pride and excitement as I made my way to the curtain that led out to the stage. “This is it. You all look beautiful. Thank you in advance for being amazing.”

  I walked over to the curtain, took a deep breath, and I waited for my cue. When “None of Your Business” by Salt-N-Pepa started,
I smiled and patiently waited until the beat dropped. Squaring my shoulders, I walked out to wild applause from the mostly female audience. The song played through the first verse as I posed center stage. The music came to a stop, but the applause didn’t.

  Giggling to myself, I waved before bringing the microphone to my mouth. “Thank you. Thank you so much.” The crowd quieted, so I continued. “Welcome to the Fashion 699: Collection and Portfolio fashion show for Simply Serena. Fashion has always been an important part of my life, and to have this platform to display my heart and soul in this way means everything to me. Clothes are a way to define yourself and showcase your personality. Fashion is not only a way to exert your individuality but also your freedom. You are free to choose what you wear. You are free to choose what you do. You are free to live the life you create for yourself.”

  The audience applauded, and I took the time to scan the crowd. When I looked at the section I roped off for photographers, my eyes landed on Luca Romano. Standing beside the two photographers I hired, he lowered his camera to wink at me. I felt that wink to my core. Flushed, I ripped my eyes away from him.

  “We were asked to discuss our style story and inspiration for our collections. But I’d like to take it a step further with a message. No one’s approval or disapproval will affect us unless we grant it credibility and status. Stop validating the opinions of people who don’t matter. The last couple of weeks have been…interesting, to say the least. A lot of untrue things have been said about me that attack my character, but I never let it define me. I know who I am, I know what I’m about, and I know where I’m going. And it occurred to me that the way I’ve been overcoming the last couple of weeks is how I’ve always dealt with life. And the way I move through the world has been and will always be the inspiration for my collection. Simply Serena is about confidence, strength, and individuality. We aren’t defined by anyone other than ourselves. So, my style story, my inspiration, and my message to you is to be free. Free of other people’s expectation, other people’s opinions, other people’s shaming. Simply Serena gives you the freedom to be exactly who you are and to look good doing it. So, without further ado, I’m proud to introduce the Simply Serena Collection.”