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EMMA
SAN FRANCISCO
Instead of booking a hotel, I stayed with Aleah at her gorgeous San Francisco condo with a distant view of the Golden Gate Bridge. Her place reminded me of my apartment in New York and had a clean and airy ambiance, with bright white walls and cabinets. It was the perfect place to relax. I wished I could’ve stayed longer.
Now, we were on our way downtown for the photoshoot for her magazine. She wouldn’t tell me who the article was about, only that I had to pose with him. Modeling with strangers was something I was used to, so it didn’t bother me.
Catching up with Aleah was something I didn’t realize I needed. We went out on the town and grabbed some sushi before staying up all hours watching Bridgerton. After the week I had, it was fun being able to go out and let loose. The guys wanted someone to travel with me, but I refused. I’d been surrounded by them all week, and I needed a break. How did I manage to keep from seeing Carter? I don’t know.
The main thing was staying away from Fightanium. Most of my days were spent hanging out at my parents’ house until my mom got home from work, and then we’d go shopping while Reagan and Ethan trained at the gym with our father. Our nighttime routine was my favorite of all. After dinner, my dad and I would sit by the pool and talk every night. We reminisced about all the fun times we had at the mountain house and how I used to love four-wheeling with him when I was younger.
There were times when I’d try to bring up his past just to get a little insight on what I could be dealing with, but he’d close himself off. I knew it was because he thought he was protecting me, maybe even scared I’d see him differently. People make mistakes and do stupid things all the time. Hell, I know I had. Nevertheless, nothing would ever make me love him less. I knew he was a good man, and he’d do anything to protect his family.
“We’re here,” Aleah announced, drawing me out of my inner thoughts.
She tucked her dark hair behind her ears, and a smile jotted across her lips. Aleah was a year younger than me and talented in many ways, especially with words. When both of my mother’s parents passed away, she wrote the most beautiful eulogies for them and the sweetest poem I’d ever read. My mom had it framed and displayed in her office; I’ve looked at it over a dozen times this past week.
Aleah pulled into the parking garage of a massive building and parked. We took the elevator to the main lobby, and from there, we rode another one to the top floor where her office was located. When we walked inside her corner paradise, I gaped in awe at the vision that greeted me; she had the best view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the bay.
“I could stand here for hours and just look out this window,” I gushed.
Aleah chuckled as she closed her office door. “I’ve done that a time or two.” She walked over to her closet, pulled out a large white bag, and set it on her desk. “Your wardrobe for today, my friend.”
Peeking inside the bag, I could see a pair of black spandex shorts and a black sports bra with a pink band underneath the breasts that wrapped around the back. Aleah pushed the bag toward me. “You’re going to look gorgeous as always. Get dressed, and then I’ll take you to hair and makeup. The photoshoot will be on the roof with the bridge in the background.”
“Nice,” I exclaimed excitedly. I unbuttoned my jeans and slid them down my legs, earning a snort of laughter from Aleah. “What?” I asked, standing before her in only my underwear and tank top.
Aleah’s gaze fixated on my underwear. “You need to take those granny panties off. Can’t be having underwear lines.”
“Seriously?” I countered with a smirk, posing for her in my “granny panties”, as she called them. “I kind of like my underwear. It’s comfortable.”
Aleah clasped a hand over her mouth to drown out her riotous laughter. “Yeah, I bet they are. They practically swallow you whole.”
Rolling my eyes, I took off my panties and slid on the black spandex shorts. “I constantly have to model in underwear that rides up my ass. It hurts my sensitive butt crack,” I joked, making her laugh harder.
Aleah waved a hand in front of her face to dry her tears. “You’re killing me, Emma. But no, I get it. I have my own granny panties at home.”
She busied herself with papers on her desk while I slipped into the sports bra. “On my days off, I wear things for comfort. Sadly, I haven’t gotten much of that recently. So it’s been refreshing this week to lay low.”
Aleah nodded in agreement. “I understand that.”
Now that I was dressed, I twirled around for her. “Am I good?”
She beamed. “Perfect.” But then, she went back to looking through her papers.
“So, you never told me what you’re writing about to go along with this photoshoot,” I said, curious to find out who I’d be modeling with.
A smile lit up her face, but she had yet to look at me. “I didn’t?”
“No. Care to tell me?” I coaxed. “Am I modeling with someone else?”
Aleah giggled, and I didn’t know if I liked the sound; it was playful yet sneaky. “You’ll see. There are actually two men you’ll be taking pictures with.”
I gasped. “Two? Oh, this should be fun.”
With a twinkle in her honey-colored eyes, she winked. “I hope so. Now come on. You have to get your hair and makeup done.” I followed her down the hall to an office where a woman and a man were inside, standing by a dressing room station complete with rows of various makeup palettes and hair products. The woman had an angelic face and very short platinum blonde hair, reminding me of what I’d imagine Tinkerbell to look like. And the man had perfectly coifed dark hair and was wearing a snug purplish-gray T-shirt with skinny jeans, and was holding a hairbrush.
Aleah flourished a hand from me to them. “Emma, this is Starr and Danny. They’ll get you beautified and ready for the camera.”
