AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Planning a second career is common these days,” he said. “But usually not by someone who’s only thirty. That’s pretty young, especially if you still enjoyed modeling. Other models in your shoes have started businesses and run them at the same time they’ve remained in front of the camera.”
“Don’t forget that I’d been modeling since I was a baby,” she reminded him. “Three decades is a long career.”
“It was also a line of work you didn’t choose,” he said, avoiding pointing out that her parents were the ones who’d put her in front of the camera. “Did having a personal choice about running an agency influence your decision-making process? You said yourself that you modeled from infancy. It isn’t as if a baby says, ‘Yeah, sign me up.’”
Instead of immediately replying, Nicole took several sips of coffee. Unsure if she was road-blocking him or simply thinking, he drank from his own cup. Chelsea had been right, the Crystal Connection’s product was excellent. He hadn’t expected much from a coffee bar run out of a new age shop selling rocks and crystals.
Nicole had made it clear that she wanted her parents left out of the article. But his question was pertinent. He also didn’t think she’d mind as much if someone else was asking it.
Finally Nicole put down her cup. “Sorting out the motives for any decision can be complicated…and don’t think I didn’t notice that this is about my parents again and you’ve already asked about that. Although I had an agent, my folks made the final decisions for a long time. When I turned nineteen I took control of my career, which was a difficult adjustment for them. If I’d simply wanted to feel empowered, that would have been more than enough.”
“I wasn’t suggesting it was the only reason. PostModern wants a real examination of the complexities that lead someone such as you, who seemed to be living the dream, to make a change in her life. So I’m not looking for one-two-three explanations, because when it comes to the human psyche, there’s no such thing as simple.”
“I’ll think about it and we can discuss it another time.”
Jordan sighed. It had been ages since he had worked as a reporter. Even then it had been mostly about asking a few brisk questions and writing down equally fast answers. But Syd would never be satisfied with a standard story. This needed to be far more intimate and asking him to do it was just…
He scowled.
Okay, maybe he hadn’t been the kind of reporter who’d dug deeper. His professional goal had always been to write an op-ed column and everything else had become a stepping stone to his ambition. Syd hadn’t approved, claiming he needed experience to have something worth saying, not just a clever way of saying it.
Nicole cocked her head. “What are you thinking about? You’ve got a rather intense expression.”
“That I’d like to send my editor to Antarctica.”
“Should I be offended?”
“No. What it means is that I’m a completely normal person who, as it turns out, isn’t crazy about being pushed out of his comfort zone.”
“Few people are. Change can also be about growth, whether you like it or not. Maybe these articles are the fertilizer she’s spreading to stimulate your growth spurt. Or in your case, advancement on the evolutionary scale.”
Jordan laughed reluctantly. “Hey, I’m not the focus of this interview.”
“You are, in a way,” she said before adding, “for the blog.”
He might as well be honest with himself—at the moment he’d give a lot to have Nicole focused on him, with the rest of world locked out. She might be dressed in casual business garb, and didn’t appear to be trying to attract his sexual interest, but she wasn’t downplaying her looks. Her slim skirt and blouse showed her figure to perfection. It was a warm day and she wasn’t wearing stockings, but her feet were shod in elegant sandals. Her hair fell in golden waves over her shoulders, one lock curling around her left breast…
He definitely had to stop noticing details like that.
It still didn’t make sense to him. He’d seen Nicole pictured in dozens of ads that were far more provocative, with seductive poses, sultry angles, and simmering glances. Sometimes she’d been barely clothed, wearing scant bikinis or silk lingerie. If he was going to feel a personal attraction, wouldn’t he have gotten at least a hint of it when looking at those shots?
