Page 45 of Plus Size Player
“Guess who is hosting…”
My mouth dropped. “Oh shit!”
He leaned down and kissed me. “I’ll see you in a minute.”
The DJ lowered the volume fractionally. “Put your hands together for your host, the winner of the open mic new-comedy showcase, James Stansfield!”
The crowd clapped and yelled out in support as James jogged up to the stage.
“What’s up? What’s up? What’s up?” he started as the applause started to die down. “How many of you out here are on dates?”
Half of the crowd seemed to raise their hands, yelling their affirmative answers.
“The thing about dating is that shit is unpredictable. I’m a good-looking dude. My mom tells me all the time, so fuck what you think, I know that shit is true. So anyway, I’m on these apps, swiping left and right, and these bios are terrible.Must be over six feet to ride this ride—then you look and she’s four feet eleven inches tall herself. Ma’am, five feet five inches is plenty.” He pointed into the crowd at a man laughing and clapping hard. “We see you, short king.” When the crowd finished laughing, he continued. “Looking for the Jim to my Pam—ma’am, Pam is a cheater, so now you’re telling on yourself…”
Laughing, I looked around at the crowd cracking up. When my eyes went back to the stage, my heart swelled. I was so happy and proud of him. If I didn’t have a potentially life-changing meeting in the morning, Imight’vestayed for the entire show.
7
Dressed in a black pencil skirt and a white blazer with black piping, I felt interview-ready. Even though the email said it was a meeting and not an interview, my nerves were telling a different story.
“I got this,” I whispered to myself as I got out of my car.
My outfit was stylish, my makeup was flawless, and my hair was kinky, coiled perfection. I looked good. I just wished I felt as good on the inside.
I was more nervous than I’d ever been. All I could think about was the contract.
I would be getting a lot, but I would be giving up a lot, too.
I shook off the thought the moment I stepped off the elevator.
“Hello?” I called out as I entered the business suite on the third floor.
“I’m here,” a voice called back. “One moment.”
I swept my eyes around the mostly empty space until I heard footsteps making their way toward me. When she rounded the corner, I smiled at the familiar face.
“Nina, hi,” Lori Smith greeted me.
The fashion scout that had stopped me in the networking event extended her hand to shake mine. She was followed by a woman with oversized oval-shaped glasses.
“Hi,” I replied, smiling at both women.
“Sasha Beaman, this is Nina Ford,” Lori introduced us. “Nina, this is Sasha. She’s with HR, and I asked her to join us so we could discuss this opportunity with you and answer any questions you may have.”
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you,” I said to the woman.
“It’s a pleasure,” Sasha replied.
Lori beckoned to us as she turned to the right. She startedwalking toward a large glass-encased conference room at the end of the hall. “Follow me.”
We fell into step behind her, and I listened intently as the two of them chatted about the space. We passed several offices on the way. I glanced behind me, wondering what was down the other hall.
“The RLF brand has continued to grow,” Lori informed me, pulling my attention back to her. “Our unofficial headquarters has always been here in Richland. Our founder started the business here while in college. But the action was in the big city. So, RLF grew its wings in New York, but it was birthed here. And as we’ve grown, we’ve needed to accommodate that growth. And since real estate in New York is tight, it was decided that we’d just open a dedicated space here in Richland”—she opened her arms—“so this is our new corporate office.”
“Well, that’s amazing that the company is doing so well. The fact that it’s growing so fast that you needed to expand is a huge deal,” I responded as we had a seat at the conference table.
“It is,” Sasha agreed. “Thank you. I’m proud to be part of this company. RL Fashions is built on integrity from the top down.”
