Novels by Salphina

Stella was 5 years and 3 months old when she started real school. Not Lane-Knight Academy — real school, with uniforms that were not Starlight, with teachers who did not know she was Chief Star Officer.We bought her a backpack that was bigger than her. She insisted on packing it herself: one sewing kit, one star sticker sheet, one business card that said STELLA KNIGHT — CHIEF STAR OFFICER, and one photo of Baby Jian in his drawer-crib."For when I miss him," she said seriously.Hope, 4, did not start school yet. She stayed at the Academy with Chloe and Mom, drawing stars. But she cried when Stella left."Who will stamp APPROVED now?" Hope asked, holding Stella's hand at the gate."I will stamp from school. I will come back at 3 PM and stamp," Stella promised, like a CEO promising a client.Alexander drove her. He wanted to walk her in, but Stella said, "Daddy, CEOs walk themselves in."So he parked outside, in grey sweater — because Stella demanded grey sweater for first day — and wa

Three days after Baby Jian was born in sewing room, I got an email that made me forget I was supposed to be on bed rest.Subject: *Dior — $200M Collaboration — URGENT — Reply in 24 hours*From: Paris. Dior CEO. Not assistant. CEO himself.He wrote:> Sophia,> We saw Stella's fall video, Chloe's redemption arc, and Baby Jian's birth in sewing room. Our team loves your story. We want Starlight to co-design Dior x Starlight — 100 looks, real tailors, not factories. $200M order. Must start tomorrow. Can you do it with newborn?> — Bernard$200M. Same number as my whole company worth. Double my company in one order.And I had a 3-day-old baby in a fabric drawer, swollen feet, no sleep, and a 5-year-old CEO daughter who fired suppliers.I called Alexander. He was doing dishes with baby Jian in sling, as usual."Mr. Knight, Dior wants $200M. Tomorrow."He dropped plate. Plate broke. Second plate broke this week because of my news. First was $1B deal hung up, now plate."Tomorrow? With Jian

I thought Stella was a tyrant at 6 months old. At 5 years old, she was a CEO tyrant. And I was 8 months pregnant with a boy who kicked like he wanted to sew his way out of my belly.It was Monday, 2 PM, Lane-Knight Academy, third floor sewing room. I was supposed to be on bed rest. Doctor said bed rest because my feet were swollen like bread. Alexander said bed rest because he read on Google that 8-month pregnant CEOs should not sit at sewing machines for 8 hours. Mom said bed rest because she said Lane women always have fast birth and I should stay near sewing machines, not office.But I had a $200M company. $200M does not do bed rest. So I was in sewing room, sitting on floor, surrounded by fabric rolls, trying to fix the gold star patch Stella sewed on Alexander's butt-tux. The tux that ripped when he fell on runway 5 years ago. He still wears it every year for vow renewal. He says it's couture now. I say it's excuse to not buy new tux.Stella and Hope were with me. Stella, 5 years

Five years later.Lane Garden was different now.No longer just garden. Now it was Lane-Knight Academy — first floor is free fashion school for girls who can't afford design school, second floor is Stella and Hope's playroom, third floor is still sewing machines that go click-clack day and night.The garden still had red thread curtain, but now faded to pink by sun. We never replaced it. Because some things should fade and still stay.Today was not a fashion show. Today was vow renewal. Second vow renewal — we did one every year as promised in Clause 4.1, but this year was special. Fifth year. And second baby.I was 33 years old. CEO Lane-Knight, $200M brand now, 120 employees, TIME cover twice. But today, I was just Sophia, 7 months pregnant again, in same red qipao from first wedding, but let out 3 inches at belly. Stella herself sewed the extra fabric — crooked stitch, but I wore it proudly.Stella was 5 years old now, not baby tyrant anymore, but mini-CEO tyrant. She had her own t

One week after Stella's viral fall, I was in sewing room at 7 AM, alone, trying to fix Alexander's tux that ripped when he fell. The rip was small but it was right on butt — poetic.Door knocked. Not Maya's knock. Maya knocks like CEO — three fast. This knock was slow, scared."Come in."Door opened and Chloe stood there.She looked different. No Instagram makeup. Hair in ponytail, no extensions. She wore a plain white T-shirt, jeans that were not designer, and old sneakers. She held a small bag and a paper.And her belly. Her belly was big. 6 months pregnant, maybe 7.For a second, I thought I was seeing things. Last time I saw Chloe was at the copycat show, crying, wearing fake velvet."Can... can I come in?" she said, voice hoarse.I didn't say yes. I didn't say no. I just looked at her belly."How many months?" I asked."Seven," she whispered, hand automatically going to belly. "Seven months.""Whose?""Ethan's."The sewing room went silent. Only the clock ticking.Ethan. Of cours

Stella was 6 months old and already a tyrant.She had three nannies quit in one month because she only wanted to be held by two people: me, and Alexander — but only when Alexander was wearing his soft grey sweater, not his suit. If he wore suit, she screamed like we were torturing her."She has taste," Alexander said proudly, throwing his $5,000 Tom Ford jacket on the floor and putting on the $40 grey sweater from Uniqlo that Stella liked. "She knows quality.""She knows you look less scary without suit," I said, trying to work on Spring collection while Stella tried to eat my charcoal pencil.Mom said, "Sophia, you need to take Stella out. She stays in office too much. She needs to see other babies."So I had an idea. A terrible, brilliant, GoodNovel-reader-will-love-it idea.Starlight Baby First Fashion Show.Not for adults. For babies. 20 babies from our staff, all wearing mini Starlight outfits sewn by me at 2 AM while breastfeeding. And the finale would be Stella — 6 months, 18 p