Free Portrait of Jealousy (The Art Models Club Book 2) by Amanda Meadows

probably spending Christmas there. But Kayla was acting as if she knew that Amber would not be there? How would she know? Amber wanted to simply walk away. But she didn't want to appear weak or afraid either.
    “Hunter and I'll have our own special celebration when he gets back,” she said, trying to keep emotion out of her voice.
    “ Oh, that's a shame!” Kayla said, her voice dripping with fake sadness.
    “ And here I was hoping that you and I could meet up in the city of love and do a little shopping together.”
    She smiled, her eyes hard. “I know all the exclusive little shops. With a good hair dresser and some decent clothes, I bet you're quite cute.”
    Amber laughed.
    “ Oh, I don't worry about clothing,” she said brightly, carefully watching Kayla's face. “Hunter and I like to play with no clothes on at all.”
    That got Kayla. Her eyes widened and then she smiled tightly.
    “I shouldn't be surprised. I suspected this was all about sex from the beginning.”
    Crap! Amber walked right into that one. She put down her bag and dragged over a stool to sit on. She needed to move around so that Kayla couldn't see how much she was unnerving her. Was Kayla really going to be in Paris for the holidays? Was something planned with Hunter's family? Or was Kayla simply lying again?
    “So, Kayla, what's the point here? With you and me, I mean?”
    Amber forced herself to sit upright. Sitting down was a huge mistake because now Kayla towered over her.
    Kayla uncrossed her legs and smoothed her skirt with her fingers. She flexed her feet and the sequins on her heels glinted.
    “ Oh, sweetie, you have me all wrong,” she said, with an exaggerated sigh. “I know I got off on the wrong foot with you earlier.”
    Amber squinted at Kayla in confusion. Where the hell was Kayla going with this? Was she really going to suggest that the two of them be buddies now?
    “Telling someone to keep their hands of their non-existent boyfriend tends to alienate people,” Amber said drily.
    “ Especially when it seems that there was never even a single date with the non-existent boyfriend in question.”
    Kayla winced at that part, Amber noted with satisfaction. Obviously, even Kayla herself had not imagined a real date at any point in time.
    “I said some things I shouldn't have,” Kayla said candidly. “Yes, I was jealous of Hunter's attention. You came out of nowhere and suddenly he was all over you.”
    Amber was starting to grow a little wary. She didn't trust Kayla as far as she could spit. What was she up to?
    “You should understand that I've known Hunter since middle school,” Kayla continued, continuing to palm her skirt as though she was nervous. Her foot was jerking up and down, making it hard to concentrate on her face.
    “ Hunter's dad hired my father to take over as the Chief Financial Officer. Naturally, we met at some functions. Our parents started hanging out and became good friends.”
    Amber sighed in frustration. “Nice story but what does this have to do with now? Hunter isn't even interested in working at his father's company.”
    Kayla's eyes narrowed. “Oh, don't be so sure about that. He is already on the board of directors there. So he has influence whether he talks about it or not.”
    Amber stood up. “So, you're telling me that Hunter is so interested in his father's business that he decided to get his degree in art? And then spends all his time drawing and painting?”
    She picked up her things, preparing to leave. She couldn't believe she had allowed Kayla this much of her time as it was.
    “ Be that as it may,” Kayla said.
    “ But I doubt if Hunter would ever do anything to bring down the image of his father's company.”
    She slid off the desk with a small smirk on her face.
    “Still not getting your drift,” Amber said, turning her back on Kayla, her big boobs, bloody talons, and ridiculous high heels.
    Who the hell wore high heels to class anyway?
    “Oh, I can see the headlines one