The next shoot was for Fashion Today. It was a new magazine that was being launched and they needed someone of Adrienne’s stature to give them credibility. They must have deep pockets and thought that they really needed her because she was able to add both Kara and me to the shoot. Moreover, they were paying us a collective fortune. Kendal about choked when she read the contract.
Based on this one job, I’d be able to pay for my mom’s cancer treatment until the summer. Adrienne was completely caught off guard when I gave her a bear hug and thanked her. I hurried off to makeup before I got too emotional. Over my shoulder, I saw Kendal quietly explaining why I reacted the way that I had.
The concept of the shoot was fun. They were doing a Victorian look with a high-fashion twist. The girls were wearing these huge gowns with tons of makeup and two-inch eyelashes. I was put into a stylized butler’s outfit and a big white wig. When I came out, the girls’ eyes got big.
“Uhm, David, uhmmm ...” Adrienne mumbled.
Kara came over, unbuttoned my pants, and made adjustments. The pants were ultra-tight and the wardrobe guy said I couldn’t wear underwear because the lines would show. I went bright red.
“Is that all him?” asked Adrienne.
“Yes. Nice, isn’t it?” Kara responded.
“Oh, my. I have a newfound respect for you,” Adrienne said with a twinkle in her eye.
I just wanted to crawl under something. The photographer saved me before it all got too graphic. He looked me up and down.
“Nice, they did a good job on you,” he said. “Come on, let’s get this done.”
The set had a giant white tarp draping down, giving the background texture. They had an antique couch, a coffee table with a marble top, and a matching end table. There was an ornate chandelier to help frame the shot. I was handed a serving tray with two crystal glasses of red-colored water.
“Okay, David serves them the wine and then steps back ... good ... now take the glasses from him ... good ... stand at attention and girls, act like you’re having fun ...”
It went on like that for thirty minutes. We took a break so the photographer could see if he had what he wanted. Kara jumped up.
“I have an idea: let’s do the romance-novel picture.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“That’s where you look all manly and we’re draped around your waist,” Adrienne told me.
I liked that idea. They told the photographer what they wanted to do. I was sent back to get a new long black wig and my makeup changed to make me look tan. I lost the jacket and they put on a shirt with ruffles that was open to my waist.
I found the girls in toned-down makeup and their dresses pushed off their shoulders. They were showing a lot of cleavage. Mr. Happy noticed and caused a noticeable bulge.
“Is this going to be a problem?” I asked the photographer.
“Nope, kid, that’s actually a plus for these kinds of shots.”
We had fun with these. None were used for the magazine, but I subsequently learned that over the years, several were sold for book covers.
WHEN I MADE IT TO THE final shoot of the day, the twins cornered me as soon as I was in the door.
“We broke up with our boyfriends,” Abby told me.
My eyebrows went up. I was sure they were bullshitting me.
“Is that so?” I asked.
“Yes, and we want to have a little fun with you,” Andi said.
I decided I didn’t need them pissed at me before the shoot, so I stalled them.
“Sounds like fun, let’s talk about it after the shoot. Do you know what we’re doing?”
“It’s for a lottery ticket called ‘Double-Double,’”
The twins were easy to work with. Once we started, they were all business. The photographer had this fixation on having them look exactly the same in each shot. That’s harder than it sounds, even for twins. The shoot turned into a grueling four-hour marathon.
I think they handled it better than I did because I’d done the two other jobs before. Adrienne, Tyler and Kara turned up in the middle of hour three. Kendal finally had to tell the photographer ‘enough.’ I personally felt he had what he wanted in the first hour. It took Kendal a half hour to go through all the shots to approve them, so it was going on 11:30 p.m. by the time we left.
Everyone wanted to go out but me. It was almost midnight, and I had to work the next day. I made Chuck stay with them, and I caught a cab and went back. I took a long hot shower and did some stretching before going to bed.
Sunday February 2
I WOKE UP TO A MESS. Chuck was in custody at the local police station, and Tyler had the beginnings of a black eye. And no one was talking. I pulled Kendal out of bed and made her get a shower because we had to be at the studio in forty-five minutes.
On the cab ride, I made her tell me.
“We went to a club and the twins were a little out of control. They were talking about all the naughty things they were going to do to you when we came back. Kara was not happy.”
“I noticed that she slept on the couch last night,” I interrupted her.
“Well, there’s more. I finished my drink and went to the bar. I guess words were said and Kara stormed off. Adrienne and Tyler went and talked to her. The twins went and danced with some guys. When they came back, the twins downed their drinks and went to the bathroom.”
She sighed.
“Tyler went looking for them after they didn’t come back, but she didn’t find them. She heard them in the men’s room crying for help. She yelled for Chuck and he found four guys getting ready to rape them. The twins had been drugged and they were out of it. We think it happened when everyone left the table.”
“Where was Chuck?”
“He was watching Kara and Adrienne.”
“Okay, why’s Chuck in jail?”
“Because he beat the crap out of those guys.”
“What about the twins?”
“We took them to the emergency room where they pumped their stomachs. They were kept overnight for observation.”
“So why did Kara sleep on the couch?”
“She was mad at herself. She thought she was responsible for the girls being drugged. I think Tyler talked her down by about four this morning. By then, she didn’t want to wake you.”
“Do we need to call anyone for Chuck?”
“It was taken care of last night. His company will have him out this morning. He’ll be joining us at one of the shoots.”
“Man, I’m glad I didn’t go last night. Today must suck for you.”
“I feel like I pulled an all-nighter. I’ll get some sleep while you’re working.”
We pulled up to the first studio. The shoot turned out to be Internet work for a clothing line. It was just like what I did for Mr. Hill, so I was able to soldier through.
The other two shoots were about the same. They did pay more than Mr. Hill. I’ll have to give him a hard time about that. By the end of the second shoot, Chuck was back. He had all our stuff. Tyler was going to ship me most of the clothes.
By the end of the day, I had changed clothes and been photographed I don’t know how many times going to or from our car. Kendal and Chuck kept their distance until the photographer was done. I was able to save my favorite outfit for last. It was a Tommy Hilfiger Easy Rider Leather Jacket. It was a tight crew-neck fitted jacket with twin light-yellow stripes going from the shoulder outside the arm to the wrist. I looked good in the black jeans that went with it. I had an inspiration, and Chuck loaned me his bodyguard sunglasses to complete the look.
On the way to the airport, I sent a text to Kara to see if she was okay. She called me and we talked about what all happened. It just reinforced her concerns about security. I was happy she was going to stay safe. She said Tyler had talked to the twins and they were okay. Kara told me she’d see me at the Valentine’s Day Dance. I had almost forgotten about the deal Adrienne had made with her and Sunny Skye.