Body Shop Repair (gxg)

Chapter 4

Before I signed the modeling gig for the swimwear company, I'd done a little research on the brand to make sure I wasn't going to hate them. Xochi Swimwear was a new company, barely ten years old, that was named after the Aztec word for flower, and coincidentally a shortened version of the Aztec goddess of love and beauty, Xochiquetzal. The founder was the daughter of a Mexican immigrant, and they'd started out big by selling to the locals in San Diego, many of whom were descended from Central Americans. It didn't take long before they started shipping across America, and getting a lot more notoriety, and I loved the look of their suits because they weren't all designed for stick thin girls. They were proud of the fact that their suits were made by immigrants, and they tried to give a lot of them jobs.

But now they wanted to go worldwide.

When I'd talked it over with my manager, Madison, we were impressed by what they were offering. The cover of the catalog, a new line of suits inspired by my shark experience, and a twelve month calendar. I was shocked. They didn't care that I wasn't a trained model. According to them, they preferred it because they wanted to connect with real women that would wear their suits. I was thrilled to be a part of this, though mildly terrified that I wouldn't be cut out for the camera.

But if it worked, then it could be the beginning of even more for me. I had to suck it up and just do it!

I had a nice coffee and a bagel on the way to the office, sitting and enjoying the fragrance of the coffee as it seemed to warm me from the inside out. It was a nice day, and with food in my stomach I felt relaxed and ready to take on whatever was coming my way today. With a renewed sense of purpose, I left the little coffee shop and made my way to my trusty Honda Civic and finished driving to the Xochi office.

Once I'd parked, I went inside, hoping to find out where I was supposed to go. "Can I help you?" asked a beautiful young woman with dark hair and brown eyes sitting at a receptionist's desk. Damn, even the receptionist is hot? This is going to be torture.

"Hi, I'm Trish Poole. I'm supposed to have a fitting today. I have an appointment at 10am with Ms. Navarro," I told her, while trying to remain confident.

"Hi Trish! I'm Paulina, and it is so nice to meet you!" the receptionist gushed. I had to admit, I loved the attitude already. "I'll bring you to Ms. Navarro, though I think they're still in the middle of a shoot, so it might be a bit."

"Oh no, that's fine. I can wait," I assured her.

"No way, come on! You might as well see what's going on here." Paulina stood and opened a door to a hallway that led deeper into the building. I followed her eagerly, thinking that the door was like a portal to the beginning of my modelling career.

The building wasn't huge. A few offices and storage rooms. Half a dozen dressing rooms and a pair of conference rooms and a break room. All of that seemed pretty straight forward. But in the back of the building was an artificial beach that was pretty amazing. A huge glass ceiling let in the sun, and a ton of sand lay on the floor behind a small barrier to keep it from going all over. I imagined that they could make the beach look however they liked, and it would suit their purposes. Behind the beach was a giant projection screen that currently showed what appeared to be a surf competition while a beautiful black haired Hispanic girl struck poses in the sand. Moving around her was a tall man with dark hair and a brooding look that kept snapping her picture. What looked like a teenage girl with shoulder length ginger hair was hovering around him with her own camera, taking pictures as well.

Paulina walked quietly until we were next to a girl that looked like someone who walked in off a casting call for a California surfer girl. She was fit, tall, blonde and very sexy. She glanced at me as I stood next to her, then did a double take and looked me over with a little more care. "Hey, I'm Amy. That's Leila on the beach. Are you the new model?"