Page 14 of The Fire Walker
“Ow, what was thatfor?”
“Don’t have such a defeatist attitude. That’s anti-Dee. I don’t know whoyouare.”
“Ugh.” I rolled my eyes. “Let’s just get through this shoot. You know I’m my best on my own turf. I’ll win her through music.” I added a wink for goodmeasure.
We rode in two separate town cars over to the studio, and the closer we got, the more my stomach churned, and by the time we actually arrived, I was a quivering mess. The only thing that saved me from being found out was that everyone was excited about the gig lateron.
When we inevitably ran into Georgie, it was sans Jessie and disappointment flared, stabbing me right where ithurt.
As soon as we were all there, we were dragged in separate directions, and I didn’t have time to dwell. Apparently, we were on a tight schedule, and I just wanted to get outta there. An overzealous Georgie pushed me into a chair in front of a mirror, and I caught Zoe and Simone looking at me in the reflection, both of them stifling laughs. This wasn’t funny by a mile, and all it did was make my bloodboil.
The redheaded stylist grimaced as if she already knew what I was about to endure, and I offered her a thin smile. Hurricane Georgie was a category five, and there was no indication she’d stop anytimesoon.
“Now,” Georgie declared, “hair messy and slicked back.” She took this as an excuse to run both her hands through my hair, her gaze fixed on mine in the mirror. How the hell couldn’t she see that I was looking back with a mixture of horror andrevulsion?
“And this stubble has to go,” she said, running a hand over myjaw.
Shit, I was just sitting there like a deer caught in the headlights of the Georgie show while she pawed me like a horny teenager. I was way too nice to tell her hands off. A snort came from behind, and I glared at Zoe and Simone in the mirror. Frank and Chris had joined them, and they were all red faced, trying to keep their laughter in check. Fucking traitors. They were enjoying my suffering, and the jokes I would have to endure afterward would beepic.
“Okay, got it,” the stylist said, moving forward, and Georgie let me go.Sweet, sweetfreedom.
It went like that for much of the shoot. To my annoyance, Georgie only seemed to have eyes for me and not Frank as she took it upon herself to arrange us just so. Even the photographer seemed to be annoyed at her, but at least she got results. We only had a couple of hours before we had to leave for sound check, and she whipped everyone into top gear. Every other photo shoot we’d been on had lasted the best part of a day, and this was a whirlwind compared tothose.
“No, no,no!” Georgie walked toward us, waving her hands like some kind of banshee. “This isn’t working. Where’s the stylist? Zoe,darling, comehere.”
Zoe squeezed my hand as she was pulled across the studio, her eyes betraying the fact she was trying to hold backlaughter.
“We need to change her outfit,” Georgie was saying to the flustered woman who was styling theshoot.
The photographer sighed dramatically. “Okay, everyone. Take abreak.”
Sagging my shoulders in relief, I walked straight over to the pot of instant coffee that was set up on a wonky trestle table and filled a Styrofoam cup right to thebrim.
“You know Georgie is making sexy eyes at you?” Simone whispered in myear.
I groaned. “Don’t remindme.”
“Do I need to do something?” She was my friend, but she was still our manager and had a duty to look out for us professionally. There was no need to get worked up about it. We would be done with the face-to-face tomorrow, but Jessie was also included in that equation, and I wasn’t ready to be done withher.
“No. She’ll be gonetomorrow.”
“That’s pretty blatant sexualharassment.”
I snorted. Dobbing in the over-enthusiastic marketing manager? There goes mymanhood.
“Don’t sound soenthused.”
I raised my eyebrows ather.
“You and…” she began, but I clapped a hand over hermouth.
“Nothing happened,” I said. “Keep your lips zipped,S.”
Peeling my hand away, she laughed. “Okay, but keep an eye on the cougar. She’s on theprowl.”
“I don’t know if I should be flattered or scared shitless,” I replied. “Why doesn’t she go afterFrank?”
“Because he’s an acquired taste.” Simone winked and took a few steps backward. “Eyes on the prize,Cosgrove.”
