Chapter 246 The Center of Her Universe
As things were, Anastasia was rather pleased with how things had turned out in the end.
Ten minutes later, Felicia received a call from a customer who specifically asked Anastasia to design a men’s necklace for him, and he was willing to pay ten million for the final product. He also mentioned that she had free rein over the design.
Felicia just about collapsed in her seat when she heard this. The commission that she would get from two consecutive personal orders alone was staggering enough to make anyone’s jaw drop. She went to Anastasia’s office and said, “Anastasia, make sure you give this project your all. Forget about the other regular designs you’ve been working on and focus on this order. Don’t hesitate to come to me for any input.” With that, she left.
Anastasia waited until Felicia had gone out of earshot before picking up the phone to call the man’s extension line. A low and husky voice drawled insouciantly on the other line, “Hello?”
“I can’t believe you actually placed the order,” she said in bewilderment.
“Well, now that I have, I expect you to work hard on it.”
“Do you have any specific designs in mind? What about the style of the necklace?” she asked further, treating him like how she would any other customer.
“You have free rein over this,” he said. He had to stop himself from adding, I know thay I’ll like it anyway.
Anastasia considered this for a moment and suggested, “Why don’t I come up with a rough sketch and you can tell me what you think about it?”
“Okay,” Elliot replied easily. After a pause, he continued, “Just put your heart into it.”
Like I’ve never done that for all my other designs, she thought dryly. “That’s sort of like an entry-level requirement for a designer, you know,” she pointed out witheringly.
“No, it’s different.” He chuckled. “You could picture me as your husband or boyfriend and really throw your heart and soul into the design. Think of the necklace as a token of love.”
She was rendered speechless by this, but she pretended to be serious as she countered, “Don’t worry, President Presgrave, you are the center of my universe, which makes you far more important than my future boyfriend or husband!”
“Don’t get cute with me,” he warned darkly on the other end and immediately ended the call.
Anastasia was already used to this. She set the phone down and glanced at the time, only to see that she had to head over to pick Jared up from school now. It looked like she was going to have to dig deep for inspiration for the rest of the night if she wanted to come up with the perfect men’s necklace for Elliot.
When she picked up Jared from school that afternoon, he asked if Elliot would be dropping by the apartment later. She took the chance to tell him solemnly that the man would no longer be visiting them, and the little boy was so disappointed that he didn’t speak throughout the entire car ride home.
Since she had to work through the night, Anastasia waited until Jared had fallen asleep before she started pondering on the design of the necklace. However, she found herself thinking about Elliot’s handsome face and his domineering expression from time to time. As night fell, she no longer had to keep all her emotions bottled up, and the lights above brought out the dazed look in her eyes.
The feelings that she had suppressed during the day suddenly welled up in her, reminding her of their presence. She wondered why she had felt so uneasy when Hayley had given Elliot the necklaces and why that feeling disappeared when he declined the woman’s gift.
Perhaps Anastasia was only happy to see Elliot turn down the necklaces because she didn’t like Hayley. She adamantly believed that her hatred for Hayley was the only reasonable explanation for this.
Presently, Anastasia did not spend too much time thinking up complicated designs for the necklace. Knowing Elliot, he preferred something understated and disliked anything gaudy. With that in mind, she decided that the necklace would have to be simple and sturdy. Moreover, it would have to be something that could complement his masculine charm.
The recent trend for men’s necklaces gave Anastasia inspiration for an elegant herringbone-chain necklace that would flatter the man’s chiseled and alluring collarbone, which, if left unadorned, would be a great disservice to the jewelry industry.
He had set the budget at ten million, which offered her great flexibility given that she was in charge of picking out the materials for the necklace. As for the design, it was up to her to imbue her personal flair into it. She gave a rough sketch and let inspiration take control. She imagined the way the chain would drape just above his collarbone, and if she added another chain to it, the visuals would be stunning.
The tip of her pencil gently sketched over the paper as she drew the man’s broad shoulders and the curve of his neck. She then added the chains, which nestled just slightly above the dip in his collarbone. She paused and leaned back slightly to see how the design looked.
It was only then that she froze in her seat, and her mind went blank for a moment. Why does this drawing look so much like Elliot? Anastasia couldn’t believe what she was seeing. At that moment, she realized just how clearly she could picture every part of Elliot in her head.
