Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 26959 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 135(@200wpm)___ 108(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26959 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 135(@200wpm)___ 108(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
I pin her with a sorrowful look.
“There’s nothing comedic about swastikas,” I say in a low tone.
“No, of course not!” she hurries. “I’m just saying that you love Karl, he adores you, and the sex is good.”
“The sex is amazing, off the charts hot,” I acknowledge, looking down at my untouched cinnamon bun. “I’ve never come so many times in my life and Karl knows exactly where to touch, and how to stroke.”
“See? Perfect!” Kristie says with a big smile. “Men will look past anything if the sex is good. Besides, you’re not wreaking havoc on his life, Ains. Okay, maybe a little, but that’s only right now. Long-term, everyone’s going to forget this. It’s just a blip on the radar, and then it’ll pass.”
I shoot her a sad look.
“I won’t have a career anymore. I already kind of didn’t because no one wanted to book me after Justin and I broke up.”
“But that guy was nuts,” Kristie says. “Besides, it’s better that you’re broken up because Justin is definitely toxic now. No one will touch him with a ten-foot pole. Hell, a hundred-foot pole! I heard that Adirite’s dropped him, in fact.”
“Yeah, that’s what I heard too,” I say in a faint tone. “But he’ll find a way. Justin’s crafty, and commands a global audience wherever he goes. He’ll find another method of getting Prowler goods sold.” I sigh again before turning to Kristie. “But what about you, girlfriend? We’ve spent an hour talking about the tragicomedy of my life. Is anything going on with you?”
Kristie purses her lips for a moment.
“Well, Joseph’s not happy.”
I nod.
“That’s your agent, right?”
“Yeah, over at Busby Model Management. He’s pissed because I need to go home for a family wedding, so I’m taking three weeks off. Joseph says it’s career suicide, seeing that there are a couple important shows during that time.”
I shake my head.
“At least he’s putting you up for the castings. I don’t even have an agency right now.”
Kristie puts her hand over mine, giving it a gentle squeeze.
“I’ll put in a good word for you with my agency, although I wouldn’t recommend going with Joseph, seeing that he’s giving me hell. But yes, I’m taking off,” she says in a firm voice. “It’s a family wedding and I need to be there.”
“Of course,” I say in a sympathetic voice. “Geez, to think your agent would get so mad over something like that! But who’s getting married?”
“It’s my little stepsister,” Kristie replies. “I’ll be seeing her, my stepdad, and my stepbrother again.”
“Okay, cool,” I say. “But you see them regularly, right? At least over the holidays? Didn’t they come to one of your shows? I feel like I’ve met your stepbrother before.”
“Oh no, no,” Kristie says quickly, her cheeks blushing. “No one’s ever come. In fact, I haven’t seen them for two years because after my mom passed, I lost contact with my stepfamily.”
I stare at her quizzically.
“But they want you to attend your stepsister’s wedding?”
Kristie blushes.
“Yeah, and I can’t say no. Milly is my baby sister, and she’s begging me to attend, so I said yes,” she exclaims while throwing her hands up in the air. “I guess I’ll be the maid of honor if she insists.”
I nod slowly. Something here isn’t adding up, and I shoot her a curious look.
“So remember the man I saw you talking to at the Ultramarine show last year? That wasn’t your stepbrother? Or your stepdad?”
To Kristie’s credit, she knows exactly who I’m referring to.
“No, no!” she squeals in a rather too high-pitched voice. “That was just a random guy that I met who’s in the industry. I think he was a model scout and was speaking to me about switching agencies, but you know what? I lost his card immediately afterwards, and we never linked up.”
I know something’s not right because that man was gorgeous, and Kristie was all smiles while chatting with him. Her golden hair streamed down her back, and she was positively glowing. I know something weird is going on, but I’m not sure what it is. But I don’t want to push more because it’d be rude. Kristie obviously doesn’t want to talk about it, although any mention of her stepfamily seems to make her jumpy.
“Okay, just asking,” I say with a wan smile. Then I glance at my cinnamon roll. “Oh man, I didn’t eat any of this because it’s huge and I’m not hungry. Do you want it?”
Kristie shakes her head.
“No, because I devoured mine and it was probably a thousand calories, minimum. But don’t you love being curvy, Ains? People pay us to be the way we are, which is feminine and sexy, whereas other models have to starve themselves to fit into sample sizes. I feel bad for them,” she says with a shudder.
“I know, especially now that Ozempic’s on the market. I bet they force the girls to take that if they even so much as put on two pounds,” I say. “But okay, I’m going to pack this up and go home. Are you ready to roll?”