Angela nodded slowly. “Yes. But before I do, there’s something I want.”
Marcus waited.
Angela turned, scanning the dining area. “Find Nikki,” she said.
Marcus blinked. “Nikki? David’s…”
“I know who she is,” Angela said. “Find her.”
Within minutes, Nikki returned, hesitant, coat pulled tight around her like armor. Her eyes were red. She looked smaller now, not because she had shrunk, but because the room no longer treated her like a prize.
Angela stood a few feet away, giving Nikki space.
“I’m not here to punish you,” Angela said.
Nikki swallowed. “You should.”
Angela’s expression stayed calm. “Punishment doesn’t fix what made you choose this.”
Nikki’s brows knit, confused.
Angela continued, “You enjoyed the idea of being chosen over someone else because it made you feel valuable.”
Nikki’s eyes filled. “I didn’t think… I didn’t know…”
Angela nodded. “You didn’t know my title. But you knew my humanity. You saw a woman working and helped a man humiliate her.”
Nikki flinched, shame flashing across her face.
Angela’s voice softened. “Listen to me carefully. I’m going to say something that may change your life, if you let it.”
Nikki looked up.
“You don’t need to win against other women to be worth something,” Angela said. “And you don’t need a man’s attention to prove you belong in a room.”
Nikki’s lips trembled. “I don’t know how to… I don’t know who I am without that.”
Angela nodded, understanding. “Then learn.”
Nikki stared at her, disbelief and hope tangled together.
Angela added, “If you want work, real work, I can offer you a position in our guest relations training program. Not as charity. As a choice. But there will be conditions.”
Nikki whispered, “What conditions?”
