Fumbled (The Girls of Beachmont #1) (18 page)

“How do you do it?” I
asked. “The whole…sports thing and being apart?”

“You get used to it. You
talk every day, and if you’re able, you go to the away games. Training camp
starts this week and it’s going to be madness.”

“How long does it last?”

“About a month. A month
of them running their asses off, working out, and then calling you and
complaining,” she laughed.

“Ever since we started
dating, I’ve gotten used to seeing him almost every day.”

“It’s not so bad…you’ll
see,” she said evenly.

I nodded, but inside it
was nerve-wracking.

We spent about four
hours with his friends, and they were great. Wilson and Dee were adorable
together and made me laugh so much. The other women turned out to be very down
to earth, unlike my initial impression. The entire weekend had been spent with
Tabor’s friends and family, and I felt like I was exactly where I belonged.

By the time we got back
to my place, I was exhausted. Tabor unlocked the door with the key I gave him
and I started to walk up to my room when he reached for my hand and turned me
to face him.

“I didn’t think it was
possible.”

“What’s that?” I asked,
wrapping my arms around his neck.

He kissed me and then
stared into my eyes. “That I could love you more than I already did.”

I pushed onto my toes
and kissed him back, because it was the only thing I could think to do. I fell
for him more every time we were together, and knowing he felt the same was the
perfect end to a perfect day.

T A B O R

“How do these things
work?” Dani asked as she turned the page in the magazine she was reading.

“How does what work?”

“The shoot. Do they put
makeup on you? What is it you’re advertising?”

“This is for a menswear
company. I’ve only done shoes and sports drinks, so this one’s new to me.”

When we had left
Wilson’s house, I’d asked Dani to reconsider going to the photo shoot with me
and I was happy when she consented. I was a football player, not a model, so I
always felt stupid doing those things. The first photographer I’d worked with
had kept trying to get me to give him a certain smile when I sipped the
god-awful drink I was endorsing. Not only did it taste like shit, I was forced
to pretend I liked it. When he showed me the proofs, it was a little
embarrassing to see the pained look on my face. Luckily, he was able to make
one of them work and I vowed never to sign on to endorse something I didn’t
actually like.

A few months ago, my
agent was contacted by Radical Generation to model their line of casual and
dress wear. After I was signed by the team, my mom and Abbi took me shopping so
I’d look the part. My sister heard of Radical Generation because it had become
popular on college campuses. The owner, Damian, started the company from his
home in Chicago, and within a year it exploded into stores across the country.

“Is this it?” Dani asked
as I pulled into a parking lot. It was a nondescript brick building with
several cars in front of it.

“Probably,” I said, turning
off the engine. “Let’s go find out.”

She set the magazine
aside and stepped out of the car. Dani had insisted on taking her car when I
told her the majority of the shoot would take place on the beach. She said that
her Bel Air loved the beach.

We grabbed our things
from the trunk and walked into the office, which looked nothing like I
expected.

Stained concrete floors
were set against red brick walls with contemporary lights hanging over the
front desk. A woman wearing her hair in a high ponytail greeted us and said
that Damian would be with us soon. Dani walked to the waiting area and I sat
down next to her as she took it all in.

“This place is pretty
cool,” she said, still looking around.

“I’ve never been here
before,” I admitted. “My agent did the talking with the owner, so it’s a first
for me, too.”

“Are you nervous?” she
asked.

I scoffed and shook my
head. “Yes.”

Dani’s laugh made me
smile and I was glad that she had agreed to accompany me. My hope was that
she’d see how the things go and be at ease with them in the future if they came
up.

“JT,” a short, thin man
with blond hair said as he walked toward me. “Damian Salinger, nice to meet
you.”

“You, too,” I said,
shaking his hand. He looked at Dani and I noticed his smile grow. “This is my…”

“Assistant. Danielle,”
she interrupted, shaking his hand.

“I didn’t realize you
were bringing an assistant. Nice to meet you, Danielle,” he said, holding her
hand longer than I liked.

“So what’s the plan?” I
interjected, breaking the connection for them.

“Martin should be here
soon, and then we’ll get you into makeup while I go over the set with the
director,” Damian said.

“I thought this was
taking place on the beach,” Dani said.

“It will, Danielle. But
we have some things to take care of before we get started,” he said. “Would you
like to see what the models will be wearing today?”

I started to object
because she was there for me—
with
me. She had no idea how much I hated these things, but before I could say
anything, she spoke up.

“Actually, I’m working,”
she said, stepping closer to me.

Damian opened his mouth
to speak, but the front door opened and a tall heavy-set man in all black
stepped through with two petite women following behind. He walked over to
Damian, shaking his hand, and exchanged pleasantries while Dani and I looked
on. She turned to me and raised a brow, questioning who it was, and I shrugged.
Of course I assumed it was the photographer, but I couldn’t be sure.

“JT, why don’t you go
with Martin so he can tell you what we’re looking for, and I’ll show Danielle
around.”

“I…” Dani said.

“Don’t worry, your boss
can give you a few minutes alone. He’s got some things to take care of,” Damian
said.

I hated him.

He had his hand on my
girlfriend’s back and I wanted to tackle him like the opponent he was.

***

D A N I

I squirmed slightly so
his hand fell away from my body. This Damian guy seemed to think that personal
boundaries didn’t apply to him, and it made me despise him instantly. When I
glanced over my shoulder, I saw Tabor looking murderous and I wished I could
ease his nerves.

“So tell me, Danielle,
how did you meet your boss?” Damian asked as he led me toward a narrow
corridor.

“Lucky coincidence,” I
said, not wanting to share the details of how we met.

“Well, I’m always
looking for a good
assistant
.” He
smirked, causing my stomach to churn. “If it doesn’t work out with Hunter, give
me a call.”

“Thanks,” I said
cautiously. This guy was sending my creep-o-meter off the charts, and I was
beyond grateful when the receptionist found us and said that Martin needed to
speak with Damian.

“We’ll be right there,”
Damian said, dismissing her and leaving us alone once again before turning to
me. “Are you free tonight?”

“I’m afraid not, Mr.
Salinger,” I said, pleased with myself that I didn’t apologize. “I’m actually
seeing someone.”

“That’s too bad,” he
said as he looked me up and down.

I cringed under his
obvious perusal, and if he noticed, he didn’t seem to care.

Damian began walking to
the front and I shivered openly, as if I had bugs crawling on me. He was so gross
and I wondered how many others he made to feel like they were in need of a
scalding shower.

“That was cute,” Tabor
smirked when I turned around.

“What?” I asked,
laughing.

“That little dance you
just did. Do it again,” he teased as he walked closer.

I wrapped my arms around
him and rested my head against his chest, listening to his heart beating
beneath his shirt. His hand rubbed soothingly up and down my back and I felt my
body relax. When I stepped away, he was looking down at me adoringly.

“Assistant, huh?” he
asked.

“I panicked…I didn’t
know what to say.”

“I’m just giving you a
hard time.” He kissed my forehead and put his hand on my back. “Let’s go see
what’s going on.”

***

T A B O R

“JT,” Damian said as we
rounded the corner. “Just in time. I’d like for you to meet Candayce Evans,
your co-star for the day.”

Dani’s mouth fell open,
but she snapped her jaw shut and smiled. I took a step forward and introduced
myself to the woman I’d seen on countless magazine covers. She was beautiful,
and the way she carried herself, she knew it.

“Candayce, it’s nice to
meet you. This is my assistant, Danielle,” I said, choking on the title.

“Hi Danielle,” Candayce
said, but didn’t look at Dani when addressing her. “So JT, are you ready for
this?”

“As ready as I’ll ever
be,” I said, and it was the truth. I didn’t like people fussing over me and
this was in the top five of what I hated about my status.

“I’ll go easy on you,”
she cooed, and I noticed Dani’s fist clench and release.

“I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
I smiled.

“Candayce, why don’t I
show you to makeup,” Damian said, stepping in front of me, no doubt wanting her
attention for himself. He could have it, for all I cared; as long as his focus
was off Dani, that’s all that mattered to me.

“Shall we?” Candayce
asked me over her shoulder.

I looked at Dani, who
had a fake smile plastered on her face, and cleared my throat.

“I’ll be fine,” she
said, looking up at me, giving me the smile I knew to be just for me. “See you
in a few?”

“Okay,” I said,
reluctant to follow.

Candayce sat in a chair
like the professional she was and relaxed as the people began working on her
hair and makeup. We sat in silence as the experts worked and I was thankful for
their distraction. My senses were on alert for anything Dani-related, and I
wished that she was by my side.

I wasn’t sure how much
time had passed, but I heard some shuffling and hushed whispers, and when I
looked over, Candayce was gone.

“Everything okay?” I
asked.

“It’s fine,” Martin said
dismissively. “Just relax and let us take care of everything else.”

***

D A N I

I was flipping through a
magazine when the commotion started. First it was the woman I had seen earlier
standing next to Candayce talking urgently on her phone. She jumped out of her
seat and ran to the back, and moments later when she returned, Candayce was
following behind her and her red eyes and nose gave away her distress.

I had no idea what was
going on, but the way everyone was running around frantically, it wasn’t good
for the shoot.

“What in the hell are we
gonna do now?” Damian demanded of the photographer.

“Her mother is in the
hospital, she needed to go. But in the meantime we can always just shoot Hunter
and then add Candayce in later,” Martin said calmly. “I do it all the time.”

“No. Fix this. Now.”

“What am I supposed to
do, just pick someone up off the street? I’d probably be arrested for
solicitation and I don’t even date women,” he argued and I laughed.

“What?” Damian scolded
but softened when he realized I was the one laughing.

“I’m sorry,” I said,
looking at Martin, who smiled back. “That was funny.”

“Danielle, now is not
the time for laughing. I have a major campaign I’m about to spend a lot of
money on, and now I have no model to pair with your boss.”

“What about her?” Martin
asked.

I looked around and realized
he was talking about me. Damian sized me up and down again, but that time I
didn’t feel as disgusted.

“How tall are you?”
Damian demanded.

“What? Why?” I asked
defensively.

“How tall?”

“Five seven,” I
answered.

Damian turned to Martin,
who nodded, some unspoken discussion between them.

“Danielle, I need you to
fill in for Candayce. Can you do that?”

“Mr. Salinger, I’m a
teach—assistant,” I answered as explanation. “Thank you, but no.”

“Danielle,” Martin said,
drawing my attention to him. “If we don’t get this done today, we have to push
the entire shoot back and there’s a strong likelihood that your boss will be
unavailable. Would you please help us?”

I was uncomfortable with
the request, but I could tell he was being sincere.

Deny the request and leave Tabor without the endorsement he
seems excited about?

Accept the request and help out your boyfriend?

“Danielle, we really
need answer,” Damian said, less forcefully than before. “It would mean a lot.”

“Okay…I’ll do it.”

Damian’s smile was
victorious and Martin clasped his hands together and looked up to the ceiling
before grabbing my hand and dragging me to the back.

Tabor was still in the
chair when he saw my reflection in the mirror. Before he could speak, Martin
introduced me.

“JT, I’d like for you to
meet your partner for the day, Danielle.”

Tabor’s smile crept
slowly onto his face as I took a seat in the chair next to him. A woman walked
over and began brushing and styling my hair while I sat helpless.

“This is going to be
fun.” Tabor smirked.

***

T A B O R

We were driven to a
remote part of the beach the set director had located, near an old pier. Dani
was modeling the first of five outfits she needed to wear. Damian had Gertie,
one of his designers, come with us to make any last-minute adjustments to the
wardrobe because everything had been made to fit Candayce’s taller stature.

“Okay, so here’s how
this is going to go,” Martin said, moving me against one of the pilings. “JT,
you lean against this and Danielle, I’m going to have you stand against him
with your hand on his chest.”

He positioned me and
moved me around as if I were a mannequin and did the same to Dani. Once we were
in position, one of Martin’s assistants walked over and moved Dani’s hair out
of her face before stepping away.