Beauty & the Mouse

Chapter Six

"I'll be right down," Gina said into her office phone on the following Monday. She quickly left her office, rushing down the hall.

"Where's the fire?" Anna asked, her head popping up over the cubicle wall like a groundhog.

"There's a problem with the photo shoot downstairs."

"Good luck!" Anna called after her.

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"No, no. It's all wrong!" the photographer with his French accent was yelling to Chloe, the commercial manager.

"Well, maybe we need some different lighting or something," the frazzled brunette was chasing after the arrogant photographer as he picked up some bags full of equipment.

"What you need is different models!" He growled, sending a disgusted look at the two small little girls on the stage with tears streaming down their heavily made up faces.

"What's going on?" Gina demanded of both of them, sending the children a sympathetic glance.

The photographer whirled on her, his lip curled in disgust. "They don't do what I want!" He yelled, "The pictures are horrible because these children won't do as I say. I cannot work like this!"

"He's mean!" one of the girls yelled back, sniffling.

Chloe took a hesitant step towards Gina. "Ms. Parker, really, he was too demanding on the children." She offered Gina a "what could I do" smile with hope in her eyes that Gina would know what to do.

The photographer pointed angrily towards the two darling little girls, who looked on with wide, tear-filled eyes. "They want to be in the business, they need to learn how to act like models! Not demons!" the photographer snarled,"It's either me or them!"

"Them." Gina arched an eyebrow, daring him to argue with her. She'd fight for two little girls any day of the week. Especially when they'd apparently been treated horribly by this vile man. Gina crossed her arms to wait for his response.

He glared at her, "Good luck, you'll need it," were his parting words as he stormed out of the door.

"I can't reschedule the shoot, Gina. It was hard enough getting him. All the photographers are booked for the holiday season. And God, we're on a deadline! What are we going to do? Mr. Roberts is going to be furious!"

"I don't know," Gina replied, pacing the floor anxiously.

"This is supposed to be the cover, Gina. The cover!"

"I know!" Gina said, running her hands frustrated through her hair.

Gina glanced at the sniffling children, whom the makeup artist was trying to dry their wet faces with a tissue.

"I wish we had mouse," one of the girls muttered.

Gina spun around. "What did you say?"

"Mouse is nice! He never yells at us!" the girl cried.

"Mouse?" Chloe frowned.

"He's a photo gopher. A good one, a nice one," the other girl explained, sniffling.

"Photographer," Gina corrected.

Chloe looked up at Gina in confusion, "I've never heard of a photographer named Mouse."

"I have," Gina replied with a grin, reaching into her pocket for her cell phone.

Mouse stepped out of the shower to his phone ringing. He wrapped a towel around his waist and quickly walked to his bedroom. He grabbed his phone, "Yeah?"