Lucky Number Four (37 page)

Several hours later, I’m exhausted, so spent
that I haven’t even the energy to walk on the moonlit beach like we
talked about earlier. Drew is sound asleep, and I curl up next to
him. I feel his arm drape around me before pulling me closer. I
feel my eyes growing heavy. I sigh as Drew plants a kiss on my
head.

I wish we could stay this way forever.

“But I want you to come with me. I don’t want
us separated for a minute,” Drew says sweetly.

“Okay, I’ll hang out with you today, but
tomorrow I’m going to the beach. I need to get a tan.”

“No way are you sunbathing on the beach. I’ll
have to beat all the guys to a pulp who get a glimpse of you.
Anyway, I bet you don’t tan.” He puts his hands on his hips,
looking me up and down.

“No, but they have umbrellas I can hide
under, and if I take it slow, I’ll get some color.”

“But I love your skin just the way it is. I
don’t want it burned.” He’s running a finger down my arm now.

“You’re just looking out for you. If I get
burned, it will be no more fun. I’m a big girl and I’ll make the
decision. Don’t worry, I won’t burn.” I lift his finger from my arm
and slide my mouth up and down it, watching his eyes go dark with
desire.

“Not fair. We have to leave, and I can’t do a
shoot all hard and horny. I don’t have time for a cold shower. I’ll
make you pay for this later.”

I giggle and move quickly away from him,
grabbing my bag and heading for the door. Let’s just say the
elevator ride down didn’t cure either of his problems.

The shoot is a beehive of activity, and I’m
suddenly really nervous being here with Drew. Moving down the sand,
I walk a few feet behind him. A guy with a clipboard has been by
his side since we left the limo. The sun is bright, even with my
sunglasses, and the sand is loose, so it’s really hard to walk on.
I’m praying I don’t fall flat on my face. That would be a total
fail and would probably embarrass both Drew and me.

I tug on the short shorts I’m wearing,
feeling self-conscious as a few people start staring at me. I left
my hair down and the wind is blowing the curls in my eyes. I dig in
my bag for a headband to keep it out of my face.

When I look up, Drew is far ahead of me and
clipboard boy trying to keep up with his long strides. The sight
would probably have made me laugh if I wasn’t feeling so
self-conscious right now. More people join the original gawkers as
I pass by them. I feel like there’s a spotlight on me instead of
the sun.

As if Drew can read my mind, he stops in
mid-stride and pivots, ignoring Mr. Clipboard. He jogs back and
puts his arm around me, making more people take notice.

“Sorry, Dora. I had to work out some problems
with the shoot. I didn’t forget about you, honest. Don’t worry
about our audience. They’re just wondering where I found such a hot
woman.” He squeezes me close, and my confidence rises by at least
ten percent.

“Drew, hurry. The lighting is perfect for a
morning shot, and then I think we’ll break until sunset to get the
rest. Alex is waiting for you in the red tent, so get a move on,”
an older woman with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth belts out
like she thinks he’s hard of hearing. Her hair looks like a bird’s
nest, and pencils are stuck behind both ears. The best part is that
she’s as short as I am, so I immediately feel a kinship with
her.

“Sandra, this is Dora Phillips, and those
things are going to kill you.” He points at her cigarette while
shaking his head.

“Hi, nice to meet ya, Dora, and no, these
won’t kill me. Angela will. I can’t believe Joe put her on this
shoot. She’s a fuckin’ bitch, and I refuse to be nice to her. I’ll
probably be handed a pink slip, but I’m fuck-nuts fed up with that
prima donna attitude of hers. She thinks that just because she’s
the hot thing right now, she can act like a complete twat.” Sandra
stops her tirade, takes a drag and then turns to shout at a man
nearby.

“Sorry, have to run. Red tent, Drew, and
Dora, hope you enjoy yourself.” She doesn’t wait for a reply as she
rushes toward the poor man she just yelled at. He looks
petrified.

“Don’t let the cursing like a sailor and
chain smoking fool you, she’s actually a really sweet woman,” Drew
says. “She’s been married three times, has four children, and six
grandchildren. She’s the director of this organized chaos, and she
won’t get fired because everyone is scared of her. We better get to
the tent before I get yelled at too.” He leads me to a row of huge
tents, all different loud colors. “Yeah, the prop man loves color.”
Again, it’s like he’s reading my mind.

Inside the tent, the air is cooler, and two
chairs that look like they belong in a beauty salon are sitting in
the middle. Surrounding the chairs are rolling carts full of
drawers and bins. A multicolored-haired young woman popping her gum
is standing by one of the chairs buffing her nails.

“Thank god you’re here. I thought Sandra was
going to have a heart attack. I know CPR, but everyone would hate
me if I brought her back to life. Now get your ass in the chair. I
have to make your ugly butt beautiful.” Her New York accent is
obvious, and I instantly like her feistiness.

“Alex, Sandra will outlive all of us, and I’m
not late. I’m so sorry I’m ugly, but you’ll make me handsome like
you always do, right?” Drew grins at her and then winks. She
ignores him and points to the chair.

“Drew, where are your manners? Aren’t you
going to introduce me?” Alex nods her head my way and smiles.

“Sorry. Dora, Alex. Alex, Dora.” He laughs as
we both roll our eyes.

“Hi, I’m Alex, short for Alexandria. I make
the monsters look pretty, which isn’t easy. It’s good to meet you.
Why are you are hanging around with this one? There really are no
words to explain him, but I guess you know that.”

“Nice to meet you, Alex. I’m Dora, short for
Pandora, and I don’t know why I am either, except for the fact he
feeds me.” We both laugh when Drew scoffs.

“Nice. I love the fact you’re both ganging up
on me. You better hurry, Alex. Sandra will be by soon to check up
on me.”

“Have a seat, Dora.” Alex points to the empty
chair beside Drew. “I have to go to work, but we must chat later.”
She grins wickedly as Drew groans while closing his eyes … but not
before he winks at me.

It doesn’t take Alex long to make Drew
“handsome,” and we move to the green tent, which is wardrobe. Rows
of swimwear line one wall and then gauzy cover-ups line another. A
willowy man is in charge and flips through the clothes like he’s
disgusted at what he sees.

“Ah, Drew, so glad you could join us,” the
man says. I look around, but there’s no one else in the tent. “Here
are the changes for this morning. Turquoise pair first. Chop, chop.
Time is flying as we speak.”

To my surprise, Drew undresses and pulls on
the trunks, which fit him like they were custom fitted. Duh, of
course they would totally fit, Dora. Can’t have too tight or baggy
drawers on one of the world’s top models.