And you can kiss your new position goodbye.
"Understood, sir," I assured him, half asleep on my feet and already ready to drop. Hell, it wasn't even lunchtime yet, but two hours of sleep a night was far from enough to properly function.
I hadn't been able to sleep well for a few days now. Probably another thing that was all thanks to the situation with Jun.
The meeting was cut short when the phone rang, and my boss waved me off, nodding for Andrew to follow me out the door. Of course, after he ran to tattle, he'd still have to finish his training with me.
Of course, as soon as the coast was clear, I turned around on a dime and gave him the most intimidating glare I could work up, all things considered.
"Listen, Andrew. You're new here, so I know you're not used to how things work. But let me give you a little piece of advice for the future." I pretended to flick an imaginary piece of lint off my shoulder, staring away from him intentionally. "If you can't fight your own battles, you'll find yourself reliant on the scraps of those above you. And if you ever want to go anywhere in this business, your relationships with your coworkers and expertise field will be invaluable. So ratting on someone for having an off day or two isn't likely to earn you any brownie points around here."
His grin faltered for a moment. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."
"And I'm sure you do." My lips tightened into a straight line as I regarded this young upstart as an adversary, a stepping stone in the way of me getting what I wanted. "You want to playstupid, that's fine with me, too. Just don't look my way when you realize how deep of a hole you've dug yourself by crossing lines and burning bridges."
I began to walk off, and this time, the boy had wisened up. His following distance was far greater than it had been, and the look in his eyes had changed from satisfied smugness to a sort of fearful awe and wariness.
Good. He should fear me. A healthy respect for the person who'd basically hand-selected you was a necessity in this industry.
What did it matter if I'd only picked him to be a pain in the ass?
"Ah, ma'am, are we stopping for lunch today?"
My heels clicked to a stop at the top of the escalator to the main floor, blocking the path as I glanced over my shoulder. "Why don't you arrange Mr. Kim's lunch and stop to get yourself something along the way while I drop in and visit the stylist and sweet talk the photographer?"
Andrew didn't look like he planned to argue, so I tossed him the keys to the company vehicle and nodded, stepping onto the descending staircase. At the bottom, I flipped my phone open and ordered a taxi, already running through the various ways I could kiss ass and promise favors without digging in too deep with Rico. He was known to extract a blood contract over the smallest perceived slight or insult.
* * *
I must've phased out on the ride over because the next thing I remembered was stepping out of the car, tipping the driver, and walking up the stairs to Rico's studio, tablet in hand, a throbbing pain in the side of my skull. Rico was in the middle of an appointment, so I was relegated to the waiting room like some common client, not a liaison for the biggest entertainment company in town. It didn't matter to Rico if I brought him overhalf his business. He had the talent, the reputation, and the black book to fill the holes I'd leave if I took our talent away. And he knew it.
Which was why he made me wait over an hour to see him, even though he'd finished his work twenty minutes ago.
The fucker strode into the office like he was a god in human form, his nose securely in the air, and I was fast developing a regret in the pit of my stomach that I'd fucked myself over by aiming to piss off Jun through inconvenience.
Rico splayed in his chair and stared me down like I was a bug under his boot, even though just days ago, he'd been singing my praises and flirting with me. It was always a shock to the system, how fast he flipped the switch. Made you kind of concerned for his general mental state, made you wonder if he might be more dangerous than he looked.
I knew his secret, though. He was all bark and no bite. The posturing was all a ploy, and it worked so well.
On everyone but me.
“So,” he began, his eyes cutting over my body, a slight curl of distaste teasing the corner of his mouth. “You’re here to beg me to take that degenerate fuckboi client of yours back, aren’t you?”
Subtlety wasn’t Rico’s strong suit. But his ego, if handled correctly, could be manipulated. I leaned forward in my seat and grinned like I’d already won the game. “Actually, I’m here to thank you.”
His brows climbed up his forehead in a hilariously cartoonish manner. “Oh?”
“Exactly. If it weren’t for you refusing to take him back, I wouldn’t have discovered Tatiana De La Cruz is taking on new clients.” I leaned back in my chair and spread my legs to match his posture, challenging his domination of the situation. “She’s not only willing to take him on with short notice, but she’s eager to take on more of our clients in the future. So I really mustthank you, because now, I have more options under my belt to choose from, and her artistic vision aligns wonderfully with our label’s plans and goals.”
It was a lie—Tatiana had reached out to tell us she’d eventually be taking on new clients, but she only worked with women. A bad experience with men in the past had soured her on them, and I couldn’t blame her for her decision. But there were still far more male artists and clients signed with kNight Entertainment than female, and that meant she wasn’t a viable option.
But shewasRico’s biggest competition. And just the act of dropping her name was enough to spur him to action.
His jaw dropped open like an old, oiled-up mailbox door, hanging there as he struggled to form words. “I?—”
“Of course, we’d need to formally end the contract with you, which you informed me you were ready to do, so I brought a copy of the dissolution form with me so that we could?—”
Rico shot to his feet, sweat beading on his brow. “Actually, Rizzo, maybe I was being too hasty in all this. After all, Mr. Kim is new to our culture. And I do sometimes let my emotions get the better of me.” Brushing his palms on his pants, he offered one to me, the skin still slightly clammy. “Maybe we can just forget this incident ever happened?”
