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From what little I know of him now; he doesn’t mix business with pleasure. The pleasure he gets from torturing and teasing me is likely off the table.
He holds out his hand, helping me up onto the tall runway as I stand next to him. I try my best not to let it show—the shiver that runs down my back when his fingers and mine make contact, that is. Fortunately, it is cold enough on the runway that I can pass the blame to the chill in the air.
"I need an honest second opinion,” he says as he pointed toward the back of the stage.
For a moment, I freeze, wondering what he could possibly want my opinion on. Parker isn’t the kind of man who usually seeks the opinion of others.
"I want the band to perform on a rolling stage that would be positioned just there,” Parker says, as he frames a spot behind him with the thumbs and pointer fingers of his large hands. "The models would exit left after turning in front of the spectators, while the band moves forward and comes into the middle."
"It won't work,” I say immediately, picturing what he describes.
The idea wasn't bad, but it would cause too much interference with the fluidity of the show.
"If you do it that way, the musicians might collide with the models. It's better if you put a rotating podium in the center. You can cover it with mirrors, so it's not obvious, and then you have a surprise element at the beginning of the show that won't affect how smoothly the rest of it runs."
Parker silently tracks the directions I described, probably creating a visual in his mind.
"I like it,” he says with unexpected ease. I’m expecting him to bash my ideas but instead he seems receptive of them.
"We can use some dry ice to create a fog effect and make the whole thing a little more dramatic.” He nods to himself before looking at me and quirking an eyebrow.
"Yes, that's a good idea,” I say. I considered how that can play to my advantage in the fashion show, as it will highlight certain gowns. "Just make sure it's not too much, or the models might have trouble concentrating.”
"I'll keep that in mind," Parker says, taking notes before slipping his hands into his pockets.
He watches me with that confident pose so characteristic of him, and for a moment, I feel my legs tremble under the weight of that look.
"Thank you. My assistant is on medical leave, so I need a little help with these things. Sometimes one perspective isn’t enough and I tend to think too big."
"You're welcome,” I say, trying to play it cool. "I hope she's doing well.”
"Very well. She's having a baby soon. She wasn’t supposed to be off yet but I think it’s important for her to rest as much as possible, so she doesn't have any setbacks.”
"That's very kind of you,” I say, frowning slightly.
It’s strange to think that he might have a good side. Although, it’s only me that he ever seemed to pick on. Maybe he isn’t so horrible to the rest of the world.
"Parker, there you are!" cries a familiar, annoying voice from behind me. I turn around just in time to see a beautiful woman, probably the prettiest I had ever seen, approaching us.
Blonde, with a superb gait and a body that even Aphrodite would envy, the girl throws herself against Parker's solid body, making my stomach churn with embarrassment.
She wraps her arms around his neck as a smile spreads across her bright red lips and her deep green eyes fix on me.
"Well, if it isn't Pennywise! What a pleasure to see you again!" the blonde says, saccharine sweet even though we both know she is more of a viper.
This time, I scowl. It’s bad enough that I’m reunited with Parker without having to face his co-star in my nightmares. Before me is the beautiful and insufferable Brittany Cole, the second source of torment from my adolescence.
She has risen from my worst memories just to make me think that I’m wrong to hope things can actually go well between Parker and me.
Once a venomous viper, always a venomous viper. She will sink her fangs into whatever she can and poison it to death.
Chapter seven
Penny
Brittanyhadbeen,tosay the least, the terror of the entire high school. The typical cliché of the pretty girl who dominated over all the others fit her like a glove. She had always been the all-around perfect girl. She was the prom queen and star cheerleader who stole the eyes and attention of all the boys, no matter what anyone else did.
Personally, all that had never mattered to me, but for a while, Brittany had been determined to make my life miserable. Presumably, the reason for this was that she had a crush on Parker, just like all the other girls in high school did, and since he and Grayson were very close, and Parker was at our house all the time, Brittany had mistakenly suspected that Parker and I were a thing. Nothing could have been further from the truth. I may have found myself in love with him, but other than taunting me, Parker had never bothered to pay attention to me.
