Page 41 of The Model

How had I let him convince me he was a good guy?

17

Lexie

Leavingthe bathroom on the first floor, I swiped my mouth with the back of my arm as my stomach continued to twist and turn. I headed toward the stairs to finish setting up on the roof before the models were ready. After being up all night, I’d overslept that morning and couldn’t take any more time for myself. Raine had been moving the last of her stuff into her new apartment in my old building and was on her way with lunch for the team. As I walked by the hair and makeup room, Brad and Annalise gave me worried looks that I ignored.

For the last two weeks, everyone had been walking around on eggshells, afraid that at any moment I might go off. After learning about Ryder, I’d been on edge. The one time he called, I exploded like a two-year-old having the temper tantrum to rival all temper tantrums when his number flashed across my screen. It would have been different if he’d manned up and confessed that he was into Lana. Instead, he waited an entire week to contact me after Lana posted the photo of them together, so I didn’t want to hear a word he had to say.

Not now or ever.

The air was stifling; I was already ready to be out of the heat, and we hadn’t even started the shoot yet. Pulling the fan out of the little shed I had built, I moved it into the canopy I had set up for the team and me to stand under as much as possible during the day. The cabana was filled with all the fake tropical food and drinks, and all the pillows were fluffed. Everything was perfect as I headed downstairs for lunch until the smell of the food hit my overly sensitive stomach. Instead of making it downstairs, I flew into my bedroom and barely made it to the toilet before I started dry heaving. With the heat and the smell of the curry someone had ordered, it all got to me.

I waited upstairs until I knew I had given them enough time to eat their lunch. Once I heard everyone go up the stairs, I made my way downstairs to my desk to grab my camera.

“Are you still sick?” When my only answer was a nod, Raine continued. “You need to go to the doctor.” Her face was a picture of worry as she looked at me with her down-turned mouth. “It’s been two weeks, and I’ve asked around. No one has the flu.” She paused. “If you want, I can make you an appointment, I don’t mind.”

“You know I hate going to the doctor.” Every time I stepped inside a doctor's office, I came out sicker than I was when I walked in. The last time I got strep and had to cancel all my appointments for a week. Otherwise, they never knew what was wrong with me and continued to charge an outlandish amount while asking me to make multiple appointments. Fuck that shit.

With her hands on her hips, Raine’s face grew serious. “If you’re not better by the end of the week, I’m making an appointment.”

“Fine,” I huffed, giving in.

“Great,” she clapped. “Also, I picked up your new business cards with your new phone number,” Raine handed the box to me from across my desk. “I took a peek to make sure they didn’t mess up, and I love the new look. Should I email everyone in your contact list your new phone number tonight?” She bit her bottom lip and chewed on it.

“You don’t have to stay late.” I sat the box down on my desk. “You can do it tomorrow when you come in. Now, let’s get to work before the natives get restless.”

“We’re going to melt out there. It’s so hot.”

“Too bad we don’t have a mister. Can you tell me why we don’t have one? It would make life so much easier.”

“I can take a spray bottle and spray it in the fan when it gets too hot.”

“Or we can take a dip in the pool,” I cocked my head to the side. “I guess that wouldn’t be very professional, would it?”

“Probably not, but I don’t think anyone would fault us. You are planning to have Sebastian and Kamilah get in the water at some point, right?”

I grabbed my extra battery pack off the charger. “So, what are you saying, we should all jump in the pool together if we need to cool off?”

Raine shrugged as she picked up my clipboard with my notes for the shoot. It helped to be organized and to know ahead what you and the client wanted, especially when you weren’t feeling well.

Two hours later, I was close to ruining the shoot. I felt like at any moment I would projectile vomit all over Sebastian and Kamilah as I squatted down in front of them while sweat trickled down my back. If I had been able to shoot in the morning or evening, I would have, but the lighting wouldn’t have been right, so we were all suffering.

The shoot was taking longer in part because I was swallowing back the bile that was sitting in the back of my throat, everyone was taking multiple water breaks and getting their makeup and hair retouched due to all the sweating.

“Lexie, are we almost done?” Kamilah whined. Her straight black hair was sticking to her back, and she looked utterly miserable in between each setup.

“As soon as I get this shot, we’re done. I guess I should have held out on doing the water shots until now, huh?”

“If it was up to me, the entire shoot would have been in the water,” Sebastian added.

We all nodded in agreement. We were afflicted by the unseasonable heat along with the humidity, making the time seem to drag on and on. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I found fun in any shoot I was doing, but not today, and my mood was reflected back at me.

“Get the misery out of your eyes and pretend you’re in the mountains with snow all around you. Feel the cool breeze against your skin. Imagine goosebumps erupting on your skin. Now arch your back and bring your face closer to Sebastian’s, Kamilah.” She did as directed, and I could finally feel the shift. “Turn your head toward me, but keep looking out into the distance.” I took the shot and knew it was flawless. “Sebastian, shift your hand on her hip.” Moving his hand, his long digits gripped her inner thigh. His fingers were close to touching the purple underwear that I was trying to get customers to buy. I applauded Kamilah for keeping her composure. I wasn’t sure I would have been comfortable having some stranger’s hand that close to my most private parts for the last hour.

“Perfect. That’s a wrap. Now go cool off,” I ordered. I was already stepping back under the canopy and positioning myself in front of the fan as Kamilah and Sebastian jumped into the pool. The relief from the heat was instant. I sagged in my seat and closed my eyes as I felt the nausea slowly seep away. Taking in a deep breath, I let it calm my racing heart and slowly let it out. When I opened my eyes, Raine was standing in front of me with a concerned look.

“Are you okay? It seemed like you were struggling the whole day.”

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