“Jesus Christ!” Harper let out a long sigh and plopped down next to her: “Listen to me Chloe, the two of us haven’t just been close friends for a day or two, right?” Chloe swallowed a gulp of almond milk: “Seven years.” “The Chloe I used to know wasn’t like this.” Harper looked at her friend seriously: “The Chloe I knew was straightforward, strong, and open-minded, not someone who shrinks back when facing issues, feeling aggrieved but not daring to speak up.” The two were college roommates, sharing the same mindset, and in their senior year, they founded the GY brand together.
Back then, Chloe could be called a true “hustler”.
Her personality and Chloe’s complemented each other perfectly.
If Harper was compared to an impulsive cannon, then Chloe was undoubtedly the queen of diplomacy.
For GY to stand firm and develop so rapidly in the New York market in its early days, no small part was due to Chloe’s top-tier networking.
It was just that Harper never in a million years expected that this very strength of Chloe’s—enduring for the greater good—would turn Chloe into her current state.
The current Chloe, in this marriage, was completely an underdog, constantly worried about gains and losses, treading carefully with every little step.
“I…” Chloe parted her lips, her gaze uncontrollably drifting toward her left hand.
The emerald-cut diamond reflected the sunlight shining through the blinds, blinding her eyes.
She narrowed them: “Harper, I love him.” “I can’t stand you…
fine, you lovesick fool!” Harper frustratingly walked over to the cabinet, grabbed a thin cashmere blanket, and threw it onto Chloe’s lap, then walked to the door and pulled the handle: “Take a nap for a bit, I’m going out to the lobby to wait for our brand ambassador’s manager.” “But Julian doesn’t love me…” Chloe muttered bitterly.
Harper’s footsteps halted at the threshold.
“You’re right, it’s because I’m too afraid of losing what I currently have.” Harper suddenly felt a bitter lump in her throat.
She nagged so much only because she wanted her best friend not to continue losing herself, completely without any intention to judge!
Just as she was about to turn around to comfort Chloe, she saw that Chloe on the sofa had already pulled the blanket up to her chest and tightly shut her eyes.
By the time Chloe walked up to the second-floor studio set, two hours had already passed.
Having finished the croissant, drunk the entire carton of milk Harper gave her, and taken a short nap, her spirit had recovered significantly.
As soon as she entered the set, she saw Cecile bending over to adjust the parameters of the Medium Format camera.
Cecile looked up, saw Chloe, and immediately jerked her chin toward the oak door on the left.
Chloe nodded in understanding and pushed the door to enter.
The space inside the waiting room was not small at all, measuring over twenty square meters, but right now it was overflowing with clothing racks and equipment, so it looked a bit cramped.
In front of a large LED-lit makeup mirror sat a woman; at this moment, she was tilting her face up to let the makeup artist swiftly brush across it.
Harper was whispering and discussing something with Rachel—her personal assistant—at a large table in the corner.
Seeing Chloe walk in, Harper immediately waved her over.
“Come here, let’s get acquainted a bit.” Harper pulled Chloe over to the vanity table.
The makeup artist tactfully stopped her hands, and the woman opened her eyes.
“This is the co-founder and Creative Director of our GY brand, Chloe Quinn.
The ‘Eternal Love’ Fine Jewelry set—this season’s flagship design that you are about to wear later—is precisely her masterpiece.” Harper turned to introduce to Chloe: “Chloe, this is our new Global Ambassador for this season, movie superstar Ava Sterling.” Ava removed the cape protecting her outfit, gracefully stood up, and extended her hand: “Very nice to meet you, I have heard your name for a long time.” “Hello Ms.
Sterling, you perfectly match the brand DNA of our GY.
Being able to collaborate together in this campaign is truly a privilege.” Chloe reached out to shake Ava’s hand, delivering incredibly pleasing and sincere diplomatic praises.
“Director Chloe is so young.” Ava was somewhat surprised, her beautiful, large round blue eyes blinking: “Truly, talent does not wait for age.” The unexpected praise made Chloe space out for a moment.
She glanced at Harper, seeing that her friend also wore a bewildered expression.
This Ava Sterling, whose public image was always incredibly clean, dubbed ‘America’s Sweetheart’, rose to fame from Vogue magazine covers, participated in reality TV shows with massive ratings, and was now bombing the Hollywood box office with blockbuster movies; her overall aura radiated one word: A-List.
“Ms.
Sterling flatters me too much.” Chloe smiled gently, the standard sunny smile of the elite making the person opposite her feel incredibly comfortable.
Ava heartily burst into loud laughter, turned around, and sat back down on the chair to continue letting the makeup artist touch up her powder.
The chubby manager beside her let out a sigh of relief, seemingly having lifted a boulder off his chest.
It must be said that Ava possessed gorgeous beauty and a perfect personal image; her only flaw was…
having quite a severe diva complex.
Just now, this manager was truly worried that if this drama queen suddenly threw a tantrum and demanded to go home, wouldn’t he be the one breaking his back to handle the media crisis!
Fortunately, this powerful actress seemingly still knew how to read the room; knowing like the back of her hand who she could afford to offend and who she couldn’t.
Just look at how smoothly she poured honeyed praises into the ears of this young female billionaire; this clearly showed she understood that for next year’s red carpet season events, she would have to rely on the privilege of borrowing Chloe’s unique jewelry.
“Ah, you two bosses.” The manager rubbed his hands with a flattering expression and approached: “In a few days, our Ava will be attending the Academy Awards.
I feel this is a fantastic media opportunity for a new collaboration, what do you two think?” Chloe glanced at Harper; Harper tacitly understood, nodding and blinking.
Harper pulled the manager into a corner to negotiate the contract terms.
Chloe stayed behind to supervise Ava’s makeup.
She was the investor, the jewelry was the soul of her design, and she possessed full authority to decide on the ambassador’s makeup concept and outfit.
After finishing the dewy foundation base, the makeup artist appeared flustered in choosing an eyeshadow palette.
She held two Tom Ford palettes, a warm earth tone and a smokey gray tone, hovering them back and forth in front of Ava.
Ava pointed her French-manicured finger at the earth tone palette: “How about using this Nude tone?
It matches my tanned skin very well, and it’s also the trending Quiet Luxury aesthetic this year.” “Yes, great idea.” The makeup artist showed agreement, murmuring while picking up the eyeshadow brush: “This campaign’s visuals will be bought for a full inner page in Harper’s Bazaar magazine; trendy elements are still the top priority.” Suddenly, a pale white hand with long, slender fingers reached out from the blind spot, decisively snatching the earth tone eyeshadow palette from the makeup artist’s hand.
Chloe reached for a shimmering peach-colored eyeshadow palette on the table and shoved it into the makeup artist’s hand, leaving her too stunned to react in time.
Chloe was only seen retracting her hand, slightly tilting her chin up haughtily: “Use this peach palette.” “Pardon?” The makeup artist blankly looked at the palette in her hand, then cautiously cast a glance at Ava.
She had worked with Ava on many projects and had witnessed this actress fly into a rage and throw things because of an unsatisfactory makeup layout.
She was so anxious that she audibly gulped: “Director Chloe, I’m afraid this is…” Sure enough, the smile on Ava’s lips instantly vanished; the makeup artist silently took a step back to dodge the storm.
Chloe smiled slightly, full of confidence: “The concept for GY’s collection this season is a dreamy romantic flair.
The designs mostly carry an undertone of sweetness and youthfulness, but being crafted from diamonds, they are intertwined with royal nobility.
The reason we signed a contract with Ms.
Sterling is also because her aura matches perfectly.
Radiant and alluring, yet exuding an unreachable haughtiness.
This Peach tone eye makeup would look cheesy and tough to pull off on an ordinary person, but with Ms.
Sterling’s perfect facial features, it will definitely create a visual explosion.” It was truly a peak-level flattery, pushing Ava’s ego straight to the clouds.
Hearing this, the corners of Ava’s red-painted lips instantly curled up into a satisfied smile, the tension on her face vanishing immediately.
She spoke in a sugary sweet voice to the makeup artist: “Just follow the Creative Director’s words, honey.
She is a top-tier expert in the luxury goods sector; her aesthetic eye is definitely impeccable.” “Yes, ma’am!” The makeup artist hurriedly nodded in obedience.
After that, Chloe delicately suggested a few more details about the naturally tousled hairstyle and adjusted the cut of the Haute Couture dress.
Not only did Ava not throw a diva fit, but she also appeared incredibly pleased, nodding continuously.
This made the manager, who had been standing with pursed lips watching all this time, widen his eyes in sheer admiration.
“This Co-Founder Chloe of yours is truly a master of communication psychology.” The manager lowered his voice, secretly giving a thumbs up in praise to Harper.
This was a rare project where the queen of trouble, Ava, collaborated happily and smoothly, obediently following artistic directions without demanding any alterations.
“Of course, she is a genius.” Harper grinned triumphantly.
No kidding, just think about how picky the society ladies on the Upper East Side were, yet every time they met Chloe, they were as eager as a mother-in-law seeing her favorite daughter-in-law.
That was enough to understand.
Chloe’s soft power lay in her refinement; it was nothing to joke about.
The manager stroked his slicked-back gelled hair, silently thinking that if this beauty crossed over to become an Agent for Hollywood stars, she would definitely manipulate the entire showbiz.
Famous designers usually suffered from a high degree of megalomania; flying into a rage was just par for the course.
Take Harper here for example; just negotiating a few contract clauses, and he could already see she was as straightforward and fiery as a Tequila shot.
At the slightest disadvantage in negotiation, she was ready to use the F-word to intimidate the partner immediately.
Keeping a cool head and a soft, aristocratic demeanor like Chloe was truly a rare find.
Keep in mind, Chloe was a star student who graduated with honors from Parsons School of Design, and she came from a tycoon family; her background was by no means ordinary.
The reality afterward proved that Chloe’s decision to change the makeup concept was a perfect move.
Ava’s raw shots on the Mac screen were beautiful beyond imagination: both sexy and captivating, yet overwhelmingly luxurious.
Most importantly, the superstar’s beauty did not overshadow the brilliant light-catching sparkle of the million-dollar jewelry set.
For a commercial advertising campaign, this was the absolute perfect balance.
Ava herself was a method actress based on true capability, not a walking flower vase like that girl Madison.
To climb to the peak of glory in Hollywood, her working attitude was extremely professional.
The studio set no longer echoed with photographer Cecile’s swearing and cursing.
The entire crew coordinated rhythmically, so they wrapped up a whole hour ahead of schedule.