When we reached the first floor, we found the place a flurry of activity. There were makeup stations all along one side of the large open-plan room, and on the other side were racks upon racks of clothes. Some girls sat having their faces done by makeup artists, and others were standing about as stylists handed them clothes to wear. Music played from speakers set into the corners of the ceiling, and by the windows was a white, black, and red set where the photos were going to be taken.

It was all very chaotic and exciting.

King placed his hand to the small of my back, and I was just about to ask a passing girl where I could find Bradley when my friend suddenly appeared.

“There you are,” he said, grabbing hold of my wrist. “I need you in makeup ASAP.” Glancing over my shoulder, he saw King and gave him a quick perusal. He reached his other hand over to my boss for a shake. “Well, hello, I’m Bradley. And you are?”

I resisted the urge to snicker at the sweet, flirtatious lilt to his voice. Unlike the last time I’d seen him, when that girl had been rutting all over him on the dance floor, now Bradley was the one barking up the wrong tree.

“Oliver,” said King, shaking Bradley’s hand. “Thanks for letting Alexis bring me along.”

“Oh, it’s my pleasure. Alexis is one of my dearest friends.” He was teasing now, because Bradley never called me by my full name; I had always been just Lexie to him. He took my bag and coat from me, then led me over to hair and makeup. A curvy, light-haired girl came and began talking me through the “look” they were going for, while Bradley asked King if he’d like any tea or coffee.

“A coffee would be great,” said King, emitting his usual master of the universe confidence. He might have been a duck out of water in this situation, but it didn’t show for a second.

“Coffee it is. Come with me while Alexis gets her face done.”

They were already walking away when I suddenly realised Bradley didn’t know about my lie. And he was chatty – too chatty. That meant he’d start grilling King on the nature of our relationship. And during that grilling it’d become pretty obvious that I didn’t, in fact, bat for the other team. The makeup artist was smoothing on a base foundation when I began rummaging in my bag for my phone. My fingers glided fast over the screen as I typed out a message to Bradley.

Alexis: He thinks I’m a lesbian. Play along.

His response was almost instantaneous.

Bradley: And he thinks this why...?

Alexis: We’re friends. If he thinks I’m gay, it eliminates the possibility of him coming on to me.

Bradley: And you don’t want him to come on to you why…?

I snorted a laugh, the makeup artist getting cranky when I kept looking down at my phone. I told her I just had to send one more text and then she’d have my full attention.

Alexis: Because he’s also my boss.

Bradley: No way! :O

Grinning, I finally put my phone away and let the girl do my makeup. She’d moved on to my eyes when King reappeared, holding a mug. He sipped on it, gaze grazing me, lingering on the curve of my chest. Those eyes of his were so…consuming. Then his attention wandered to another of the models who was passing by. I swear I’d never seen anyone with such perfectly proportioned junk in their trunk. King had noticed, too. The woman caught him looking at her and gave him a sassy little smile.

Bitch.

Okay, so I knew I had no right to be jealous. This was a predicament of my own devising. I’d had King’s attention from the beginning, and it had been my decision to deflect that attention with a fib. Yes, I’d made my bed, but it seemed I no longer wanted to lie in it. I hated feeling like this, so I tried to shrug it off with a joke.

“I call dibs,” I mouthed at him, allowing my eyes to flick to the model just before she disappeared behind a rack of clothes.

He took a step closer and leaned down to whisper in my ear. “I’ll thank you for the lovely visual, but how do you know she’s that way inclined?”

His words made me shiver. I turned my face to him, startled when I found our lips a mere inch apart, and tapped the side of my head. “Top-notch gaydar.”

King chuckled and stood up straight again. “Whatever you say.”

For the next few minutes we were both quiet as King took in his surroundings, i.e. the other models. The place was jam-packed with bootilicious females. When my makeup was done, I peered at myself in the mirror, liking the results. She’d outlined my upper eyelids with black liquid liner, and used a golden-brown eye shadow to create a smoky effect. It made my usually black eyes seem brighter, like a deep chocolate brown. My lips were a glossy peach colour, and my cheekbones had been highlighted with a shimmery blush.

A moment later a thin blond guy came and used a curling iron to style my hair into glossy waves. It took him less than five minutes, and right after he’d suffocated me with hair spray he was off, setting to work on the next model.

I turned my head from side to side, admiring my ’do, then looked up to see King standing behind me. His focus was completely on my face. I’d been so preoccupied studying my reflection that I hadn’t noticed him watching me.

“You look….” he began, but then paused, shaking his head. “Never mind.” He glanced down at his watch. “When do you think they’ll start taking pictures?”

Before I could answer, Bradley sauntered over, carrying a clothes hanger. “Soon-ish. Here, Lexie, go put these on.” I took the clothes and went behind one of the nearby privacy screens to get changed. King followed but remained standing on the other side of the screen.