Free Halfway Perfect by Julie Cross Page B

Alex’s hands, pulling his arms around Elana’s waist. When he stiffens, I lift my eyebrows subtly to remind him that everyone is watching, and he really needs to be on. “Elana, put your arms here.” I wrap her arms around Alex’s neck. “Now, lift her up.”
    After Alex does as he’s told and Elana is off the ground, I grab her fancy boots and lift them up toward her butt so we can see the shoes.
    â€œDon’t move,” I order. Then I walk back beside Janessa and look them over. “What do you think? We can’t see the front of her. That might be a problem.”
    Janessa lifts her camera and looks through the lens. “It is a problem.”
    My stomach drops, and I feel like a complete idiot for even opening my mouth.
    â€œBut,” Janessa continues, “you gave me an idea. We can do three different shots. Back this one up two steps and do a strip of three pictures, like we’re getting her walking into his arms.”
    â€œThen we’ve got the outfit, the shoes, and the chemistry between the happy couple,” I add.
    Janessa nods, her lens still glued to her face. “Not bad, Eve.”
    I catch Alex listening to Janessa’s praise. He smiles at me. I feel guilty all over again and make a promise to apologize later for snapping at him.
    While bringing this new vision to life, Janessa quizzes me on the correct ISO, lens use, and sun position. Some of it I answer easily, but most of it, I’m listening intently to her answers. I really do have a lot to learn.
    After we’re finished for the day, Janessa and I are walking up the steps to the RV when I hear Hugo’s loud voice project to New Jersey and back.
    â€œCome on, you have to remember her?” Hugo says. “You mean Wes has never once mentioned her?”
    I freeze on the top step, my heart pounding. Janessa sighs and throws me a look that’s either angry or sympathetic. I can’t tell. But I can tell that she knows. She must have heard Alex at the Seventeen shoot. She was right behind me when he made his very loud proclamation, you’re E ve Castle!
    â€œLook at how tall she is,” someone else says. “And gorgeous.”
    â€œI think she’s put on a few pounds. That’s why I didn’t recognize her right away. Plus size might be her best option now,” another person says, and group laughter follows.
    â€œAre you sure Wes has never brought up the subject?” Hugo says, probably asking Alex.
    Great. Just great.
    â€œWes’s former clients are none of my concern,” Alex says. “Just so long as he keeps booking jobs like this for me, I don’t give a shit who else he’s worked with.”
    â€œSpoken like a true diva,” Hugo says. “You know, I might have done her makeup once, now that I think about it.”
    Oh God. I’m so not going in there now. No way.
    I turn my back to Janessa. “I forgot one of the bags. I’ll just go grab it.”
    Janessa catches my arm before I have a chance to run away. “Come on. Let’s get this over with. You can’t hide out all week, and frankly, I’m going to get sick of hearing them whisper about you for the next four days.”
    My eyes must be huge right now, but my feet move in the direction Janessa’s tugging me. As soon as we enter the RV, Hugo’s voice cuts off. He’s standing in the middle of the nearly packed room. Alex and Elana are standing together on the far side of the room, and the producer, Russ, is near the door.
    Janessa’s hands land on my shoulders, pointing me toward the center of the room before releasing me. “I’d like all of you to meet Eve Nowakowski. My assistant. She’s a student at Columbia. She takes decent photos, though her approach is a bit unconventional. She has a lot of technique problems to work out, but I’d say she has potential as a photographer. So whatever else you’ve heard