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“Bien. Meet me at the bottom parking lot of The Carousel in twenty minutes.”
“Oui. A Bientot.” He ended the call.
I let out a yelp. “I’m shadowing Hayden today.”
“At his show? Wow. That’s great.” Laurence hugged me.
“We need to be there in twenty minutes?”
“We’ll get there in fifteen.”
I told him where I had to go, and quickly got my backpack and we headed to The Carousel. It was the same place he parked the afternoon he showed me around Paris. A few minutes after we arrived, a Mercedes pulled in, and out came Hayden. He put on the jacket of a designer suit that was tailored to perfection. His tousled brown waves framed his chiseled face. He looked smart and sophisticated. Gorgeous even. Though I thought of him as my boss and sort of friend. Bossy friend. I also knew that even if he just arrived, he didn’t like to wait.
“I’ll call you later, Laurence.”
“Enjoy yourself,” he told me.
I left the car and went over to Hayden. His eyes flicked over me in my simple scoop neck and dark slacks. “It’s American office casual day?”
I let out a laugh. “We were told to wear minimal, dark clothing.”
“Minimal, plain? Oui. That’s what I’ll call it.”
I tried to grimace, but I ended up smiling. He grinned back at me.
Josephine appeared, her eyes widening. “Nadia? You’re here with Hayden—”
“Nadia’s shadowing me today,” Hayden announced in an authoritative tone as a couple of his assistants joined her.
“Très bien, Hayden.” She gave me the staff pass to wear around my neck, and we all headed inside the mall, passing retail shops along the way. We walked until we reached the space below the glass pyramid of The Louvre, and I gasped. It had been transformed into the glitz and glamour of Europe in the twenties, with a bit of modern steampunk brass and futuristic buildings set like a movie studio. There were stylish dancers in three-piece suits—which had Tomas’s stamp on them—and large, jeweled boots. Models were practicing coordinated rhythmic movements along a moving sidewalk. There were staff members placing name placards on the chairs while a group of press were setting up behind them near the edge of the lit runway.
“C’est spectaculaire, it’s spectacular,” I gushed and clasped my hands together.
Hayden didn’t respond, but led the way to the back area that was for setup. He put me straight to work with Wyatt, who was already there. We removed the garment bags. The clothes were the stars—every dress, pant, hat, and shoe were a work of art—and that thrill went down my spine with all the excitement of the show. I went to work steaming clothes, setting the models outfits on racks, and helping with their fit for Hayden to give his final approval.
“Nadia.” Hayden moved me to observe him in styling. “Nadia, this is Anais. She is our head stylist and has worked with me on cinq Parisian shows.”
“Bonjour, Anais,” I mumbled, completely in awe of the woman before me. She just looked so…suave.
“Bonjour,” she answered bluntly.
“I have instructed Anais and her team to have hair styled in short, uniform, colorful bobs, with invisible makeup.” It was an interesting way to style them, as it made them appear like mannequins. It brought the eye to the designs.
They looked sophisticated and sleek. I was thrilled as Tomas joined in to direct his team. The models were changing into the clothes. Everything was progressing. I had a jacket in place for one of the women, when Hayden appeared next to me again.
“Come,” he commanded.
I blinked at him but followed him over to hair and makeup again.
“I want you to style Nadia as well. Rita Hayworth curls and Elizabeth Taylor long lashes and penciled brows.” The look was nothing like what he chose for the models. It was as if he had thought about me, and I didn’t know how to respond to it.
“Moi?” I asked, my jaw unhinged.
“Oui…style Nadia,” Hayden said as if this change was every day.
“Wow, but…uhm…is this part of the show?”
His eyes narrowed at me. “I’ll decide when it’s done.”
