When Day Breaks

CHAPTER 21

THE shoot was a lot more relaxed this morning. Either the director had taken his meds or perhaps he’d gotten laid the night before, but at any rate he wasn’t the barking asshole he’d been the day before. He was even complimentary to Eden, praising her poses, the sultry looks she turned on like a switch being flipped, but as time wore on Swa

That he was the recipient of those sexy, seductive looks, and the director was eating them up with a spoon.

“Loving it, Eden!” the director called. “And Aria is going to love it too. You’re the perfect face for their new product. They’re going to make millions.”

“She’ll make millions as well,” her agent muttered. “A model at Eden’s level can afford to pick and choose her assignments. She’s in such demand that her schedule is insane. I keep telling her she needs to slow down, but she’s determined to work as long as her stock is on the rise and in a way she’s right. Strike while the iron is hot. There’s always new competition coming up the ranks, so it’s smart of her to bank what she’s making now so when she does retire she won’t have to worry about money the rest of her life.”

“You think she’s too old to be modeling?” Swa

Her agent shrugged. “Models have short career spans. Not all, but most do. Some of the more popular supermodels continue to be famous and in demand well into their late twenties and even early thirties, but for the most part it’s a younger woman’s field, and Eden’s breasts are larger than most, which is a strike against her. They like tall and lean. And, well, a year ago she gained a few pounds, so it became necessary for her to hire personal trainers to keep her fit. In her career, even one pound can make the difference in landing a contract or not.”

Swa

“There is not a fucking thing wrong with any part of her,” he snapped. “She was forced to hire personal trainers because God forbid she gained a few pounds? And her breasts are definitely not too big, and I can’t believe some jerk once told her she should consider a reduction. If I’d been there I’d have ripped his goddamn nuts off and shoved them down his throat.”

“She told you about that?” her agent asked in surprise.

It didn’t take much perception on Swa

“Yeah, she did. I haven’t gotten over that one yet, and then you hit me with forcing her into an exhausting workout regimen on top of an already grueling modeling schedule. Are you people even human? Because you sure as hell don’t treat her like a human. More like some trained animal forced to obey your every whim. I’ve sure as hell been around her enough to know she’s not some spoiled diva and doesn’t expect everyone to obey her every desire. What gives you the right to do that to her? Do you forget that she’s the boss and you work for her? That she signs your paycheck?”

Skylar, who’d walked to Swa

“Seems to me that Eden does a hell of a lot of the work without reaping many of the benefits. She’s directly and indirectly the source of income for a hell of a lot of people. You said yourself that she’s your most important client. And if this Aria deal is so fucking important and they want Eden, then one would think they would have their noses up her ass on a regular basis. Not allow her to be treated like some fucking lapdog to be patted on the head, say ‘good girl’ and then toss a treat her way.”

“I hardly think millions of dollars would be considered a mere dog treat,” Nigel snapped.

“You’re her agent,” Swa

“I protect her best interests,” Nigel said icily. “And this shoot definitely qualifies as being in her best interests even if it means dealing with a moody, temperamental director, who if you notice is a completely different person today.”

“And they accuse women of having PMS. Let me tell you what PMS really stands for,” she said with heavy sarcasm. “Putting up with Men’s Shit. That’s what PMS means. And while we women are afflicted once a month, guys have their own brand of PMS every fucking day. They’re moody and difficult and act as though they’re bipolar. One minute they’re all smiles and the world is good. The next moment? They’re pissed at the world and start snapping at everyone around them.”

Swa

“I’d love to give him a permanent attitude adjustment,” Skylar muttered.

“Who you threatening, Sky?” Edge rumbled out as he walked up to where Swa

“Him,” Skylar said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder in the direction of the director.

Edge shrugged. “Maybe he’s back on his meds today.”

The rest of the team chuckled, and Nigel, either disgusted or scared shitless by being surrounded by the entirety of Eden’s security team, hurried away, quickly finding something to do that made him “look” busy. He pulled his phone to his ear, but Swa

“This is boring,” Joe mumbled. “I never thought I’d say that about my job, but right now I feel like a glorified babysitting service.”

Skylar nudged Joe’s ribs hard with her elbow, but Swa

“I don’t consider the safety of a woman completely vulnerable to some asshole seeking revenge to be something as minor as a babysitting job,” he said in an icy tone.

“I don’t believe I said it wasn’t important,” Joe said mildly. “Just that it’s definitely a change of pace and well, boring. I’m more used to being able to blow up shit.”

Nathan chuckled.

Edge shrugged. “I’ve never been to Paris. Pretty cool to get to see the city, even as little as what we are seeing.”

“Isn’t Paris supposed to be the city of loooove?” Nathan asked i

Swa

“I think it would be amazing to fall in love in Paris,” Skylar said wistfully. “So romantic. Think of the stories you could tell your children and grandchildren about how you met.”

“Can someone explain to me why the fuck we’re talking about falling in love when we’re supposed to be focusing on a job here?” Swa

“Chill man,” Nathan said. “It’s obvious there’s some serious chemistry between you and Eden. I’m happy for you. We’re just giving you shit. She’s a beautiful woman, not to mention being genuinely nice and not fake in the least.”

Swa