CHAPTER TWO

A week later Jaxxon found herself standing outside Westwood Studios

shaking her head and wondering what the bloody hell she was doing there.

Her a model? Compelling character? Entrancing eyes? What a load of old

shit. That Richie bloke had to be some sort of fruitcake if he really believed

all that. She was just a person the same as everybody else. She didn’t see

anything special when she looked in the mirror. For the life of her she

couldn’t figure how being a ***** would land her a job. Particularly a

modelling job.

Even if Jaxxon had thought ‘big’ in terms of her future, modelling would

never have held any appeal for her. Nor would fame. Fortune might be nice.

Or at least enough for her to move out of that shithole that Don had the

nerve to call a flat and to escape the crap situation that she was currently in.

But modelling…She couldn’t see how she could pull it off.

So then why was she stood there?

Two simple reasons: Firstly, curiosity. Wouldn’t it be nice to just go in

there and have a peak into that world? Secondly, she had never been one to

miss an opportunity, even if the outcome wasn’t likely to be in her favour.

Jaxxon was pretty certain that when she got in there and dazzled Richie’s

friend with her lack-of-charm she would be thrown out without so much as

a pat on the head. But the fact was that she needed to get out of that mangy

flat so why not go for it?

Had Leah ever been to a studio like this?

No, she wouldn’t think about Leah. Just like Leah didn’t think about her;

she couldn’t possibly think about her considering that Jaxxon hadn’t seen or

heard from her since that day Leah left her at the foster home alone. Shrug.

Sometimes people who you loved just didn’t love you back, even if they

were supposed to. Thinking about it or dwelling on it only wasted minutes

out of your life. What was the sense in doing that?

With a clear mind and a loud sigh, Jaxxon allowed her curious side freereign, and was soon stood in a stylish, bright reception area facing an

extremely pretty redhead. Jaxxon would have shot her a brief smile if she

wasn’t staring at her as though she had walked in with dog shit on her

shoes. It seemed that the redhead didn’t approve of Jaxxon’s casual look; a

simple black t-shirt and dark blue denim jeans. It was a proper Ugly Betty

scenario.

“Whoa, tone down your cheeriness,” said Jaxxon with heavy sarcasm.

The redhead forced a smile, though it seemed to kill her.

“Good morning and welcome to -”

“Yeah, thanks, I’m supposed to be meeting Richie Moore at nine.” Which

was ten minutes from now. With a twist of her over-glossed lips, the

redhead consulted the fancy computer which Jaxxon knew cost more than

triple her own yearly expenditure, including food, rent and clothing.

“Mr Moore and Mr Miller,” muttered the redhead to the computer.

Jaxxon thought she sounded a mixture of impressed and bitter. Mr Miller

had to be the friend Richie talked about. Hang on a sec…Miller? Miller as

in Ollie Miller, the make-up artist on all the commercials for Storm

Cosmetics? Bloody hell. Jaxxon wasn’t big on make-up and only really

bothered with mascara but even she knew who he was. Not that she’d ever

been able to afford any Storm stuff so she couldn’t say whether they were

any good or not, but God they were international best-selling products. She

hadn’t realised Ollie Miller ran the company. Well this might turn out to be

an interesting morning.

“Jaxxon Carter, I presume?” said the redhead. “If you take a seat,

someone will be down shortly to escort you to see Mr Moore and Mr

Miller.”

Jaxxon nodded and slouched into one of the seats, which was really

comfy she noticed. She also noticed that apparently her attire wasn’t

appreciated by the girls seated around her either – particularly the one

beside her who was wearing something that may as well have been a

flannel. They all looked at Jaxxon as though she was a failed science

experiment or something, though they were quick to look away if Jaxxon

even half scowled at them. Inside, she was smiling. If her casual appearance

made them feel uncomfortable then they had to lead very sad lives.

It was something like five minutes later when she heard her name being

called by a familiar voice. Lifting her head, she saw Richie heading towards

her grinning. She could only guess from the whispers and looks of shock on

the other girls’ faces that it wasn’t commonplace for him to come and

personally greet whoever he had an appointment with.

There was an incredible amount of awe and devotion on the face of the

girl seated beside her but Richie didn’t spare her a glance, just as he hadn’t

the others. Jaxxon murmured to her, “You should have worn your jeans.”

Then she rose and made her way to Richie. “Hi.”

“Very nice to see you again, Jaxxon.” When she simply nodded rather

than return the sentiment, he grinned. “I like that you don’t tell people what

you think they want to hear. It’s very refreshing. Now, let me introduce you

to my newest business partner, Oliver Miller.”

After a short elevator ride and a series of lefts and rights that made

Jaxxon feel as though she was in a labyrinth, they finally reached a small,

modern office. Ollie looked up from the computer as they entered. Up close

he resembled Bob Hoskins. Used to Richie’s gentle, eloquent voice, it was

slightly surprising to hear Ollie’s rough and deep cockney accent.

“Alright, luv, you must be Jaxxon.”

Unlike Richie who was all suited-up, Ollie was dressed in a pair of jeans

and a thin jumper. Oh yes, she and him would get along just fine. “Yep.”

“Odd name,” he mused, “but I like it. Unique. Memorable. If someone

was to refer to ‘the model, Jaxxon’, there wouldn’t be much mistaking who

they were talking about.”

Richie and Jaxxon both took a seat opposite Ollie as he leant forward in

his chair, fiddling with his pen. A lot of girls had walked through that door

but none had done so without looking a bag of nerves. The one in front of

him was as cool as a cucumber; someone who had nothing to lose. For her

not to be twitchy and jittery at the thought of what she could gain she had

obviously entered that door believing the answer was a resounding no.

“So,” he finally said, “you want to be a model.”

“No,” she replied honestly. “What I want is a better job and better life

than what I’ve already got so I can get out of where I’m living before I end

up bashing my landlord’s head against the toilet that he denies needs fixing.

Richie just happens to have come along at the right time. I’m not one to

look a gift horse in the mouth, even if I’m not all that keen on the horse.”

Ollie smiled approvingly at her before looking at Richie. “You were

right, she’s very different.”

“I’ll give you the same warning I gave Richie Rich,” said Jaxxon. “I’m

not easy to have around, you’ll never find me full of the joys of spring, and

I don’t mince my words.”

Ollie’s smile widened. “Then I think you’ll find that you and I have a lot

in common. How old are you?”

“Twenty-two.”

“Older than I usually like, but not too old. Especially since you look

around eighteen anyway and our range is aimed at young women. Ever

done any modelling work before?”

Jaxxon shook her head. “In fact, I don’t really like cameras much.”

He laughed silently as he made his way around the table to stand in front

of her. Just as he raised his hand to touch her face, Jaxxon reflexively raised

her own to block his move.

“Jaxxon has a slight aversion to touch, especially when it comes to

strangers,” explained Richie quickly.

Ollie supposed by the kind of background that she had that she hadn’t

known much gentleness in her life and perhaps had also encountered much

roughness. It would make any touch seem too intimate. Dropping his hand,

he said, “Could you please slowly move your head from side to side for me.

That’s it. Like that.”

Studying her face very closely, he was pleased to see that it was almost

completely symmetrical. Not too long, not too round. Full, sensual lips.

Well-proportioned nose. Perfect lashes and brows. No blemishes, moles or

spots. Her skin was practically flawless and her bone structure made her a

photographer’s dream. It was a wonder no one had snapped her up before

now.

“Lovely. Now, what we’d like is to take you down to one of the studios

for a few test shots. Richie told me that he explained to you that he and I

have joined on a project together and are bringing out a whole new range of

cosmetics. We intend to call the range Allure. If today goes well, it may be

that your face will be what sells those products.”

Jaxxon couldn’t imagine her face inspiring anyone to buy anything, but

let these poor sods figure that out for themselves after the test shots.

“So let’s get you down to make-up and then after that you’ll be brought

to one of the studios where we’ll be waiting.”

It sounded so much like an order that she could only reply, “Copy that.”

After an hour of being handled by make-up artists, hairstylists and

wardrobe assistants Jaxxon was ushered over to a mirror. She had expected

to look extremely different, to not look at all like herself, but that wasn’t the

effect at all. She was still in jeans and a t-shirt, although both were skintight and the t-shirt showed off her cleavage. Her curls had been smoothed

with some kind of serum which didn’t take the wildness away but hid the

split ends and made it look as though it had been polished. Her face had

been treated with a minimum amount of make-up apart from her eyes which

had been mascaraed to death and her lips which had been heavily coated

with a rich cherry gloss.

The studio she was then escorted to was not anything like she had

pictured. It was massive and almost perfectly square. Everything in it was

either black or white. The walls, floor, seats and even the small, simple

kitchenette were white. The ceiling, cameras, lighting equipment, laptop,

shelves and the mirror frames were all black. Weird, but not in a bad way.

Standing near the kitchenette was Richie, Ollie, a tall, shaggy-haired

bloke and an equally shaggy-haired teenager. All turned and appraised her

from head to toe and toe to head. “What?” she snapped, uncomfortable

under their scrutiny.

“Perfect,” said Ollie. “It’s you, but with everything enhanced.” Seeing

the surprise on her face he added, “I don’t want to turn you into someone

else, Jaxxon. I want your identity just as much as I want your appearance to

represent the new range. Now, meet Tony. You’ve probably worked out that

he’s a photographer going by the fact that he’s holding a camera. He also

has massive shares in Storm Cosmetics so he’s who I use. The young lad

behind him is his son, Ant. He’s sort of like his apprentice.”

“Very intense,” commented Tony as he once again appraised her.

She was getting a little sick of being called that. “Can we get this over

with? I’ve been pampered and groomed like a bloody poodle so I’m not in

the best of moods.”

Richie smiled in amusement. “If you’re already frustrated this should

make things go quite quickly and smoothly.”

As directed by Tony the pushy photographer – who she was pretty certain

was instructed to purposely irritate her – Jaxxon stood on a small platform

with her back straight, one shoulder slightly down, neck arched, head tilted

to one side, lips parted, and glaring into the camera. He was talking at her,

not to her, and it was cheesing her off. His barking earned him a lot of

expletives from her, which seemed to amuse them all no end.

“Well as I live and breathe,” drawled Tony as the three blokes and the

teenager examined the test shots. “Would you look at those eyes. The heat

in them. It’s like the look of primal lust you see shooting out the eyes of like

a jungle cat or something.”

Richie pointed at him, smiling. “Exactly. I couldn’t think of any words to

describe it.”

“I’ve truly never seen anything like it.”

Ollie was shaking his head in disbelief. “The look shoots through you

like a spear, doesn’t it.”

Tony nodded. “What’s amazing is that it’s all eyes. Her face is

completely expressionless. She’s not scowling or snarling or even frowning,

it’s all coming from the eyes.”

Jaxxon was getting rather sick of being spoken about like she wasn’t

there. “Well?” she demanded, hands on hips. “Can I get down from this

sodding platform now or what?”

“Congratulations,” said Ollie in a smooth voice as he shot her a wide,

excited smile. “You are now the face of Allure Cosmetics.”

Two Months Later

At forty years of age and after twenty-four years in the cosmetics

industry, Ollie was no stranger to campaign launches…but this was like no

other. Oh everything was normal in terms of schedule: there had been no

delays and the reporters were waiting patiently in the elegantly prepared

convention room of the five-star-plus hotel for the speakers to introduce the

face of Allure. Everything was normal in terms of the preparations; the

presentation platform was all set up, the impeccably packaged Allure

products were on display in a neat yet arty arrangement, everyone was

where they were supposed to be, and everything was ready for the Launch

Party that was due to start shortly in the ballroom of the hotel. But what he

saw when he walked into the upstairs suite where Jaxxon was being

‘groomed’, as she called it, knocked him for six.

Usually he would have to make an entrance with a booming voice to

attract the attention of all the people nervously fussing and busy-bodying

around while obsessing over every little detail of the model – hair, make-up,

clothes, posture – but in this suite was total silence. Not only that, but there

weren’t make-up products lying here there and everywhere. Not one soul in

the room was standing. His instinct was to seize up; something had to have

gone wrong. But it wasn’t a mortified or nervous silence.

His eyes were drawn immediately to the stunning young woman perched

on the arm of a bulky chair. She was dressed in the stylishly casual D & G

outfit that was designed especially and exclusively for her: a pair of seablue, skin-tight jeans that were a kind of velvety denim, and a light-lemon

V-neck top that casually drooped at one shoulder. They hadn’t wanted her in

an extravagant dress; that just didn’t suit her character – which was just as

well because she was refusing to ‘look like an ornament’ anyway. As casual

as her outfit was designed to be, it was still chic and cutting-edge and it

highlighted each of her sinful curves. That along with the subtle yet eyecatching use of Allure products on her face and Jaxxon looked as

glamorous as all hell.

“You alright?” Jaxxon asked Ollie, who seemed a little odd at the minute.

“Just wondering why there’s a deathly silence in here.”

“I haven’t threatened them with the loss of important body parts if that’s

what you’re wondering. They’re fine, watch.” Then she smiled as she sang

the nursery rhyme words, “If you’re happy and you know it clap your

hands.”

There was then laughter and clapping. Ollie could only shake his head

and chuckle.

“She told us to put everything away,” said Louisa as she gazed at Jaxxon

fondly.

Ollie found that he hadn’t been able to look at Louisa very long without

laughing since Jaxxon had pointed out that she had a Morticia Addams vibe

about her. Jaxxon hadn’t been poking fun or making an insult, it was purely

an observation. Louisa even agreed with her. Oh Ollie did love her

bluntness.

“Yes because there was a bloody self-correction epidemic going on,” said

Jaxxon. “They were all done with the grooming ages ago but kept

constantly coming back fixing what didn’t need to be fixed and seeing

mistakes that weren’t even there. Then Louisa nearly had a panic attack

when she discovered that I hadn’t been exaggerating when I said that no

matter what brush or gel or spray she used these curls of mine always did

their own thing.”

“That’s what I like about them. They’re wild like you and those eyes of

yours.”

Just then Richie appeared behind Ollie and experienced the same

confusion and panic. “Is something wrong?”

“Jaxxon insisted we pack up our stuff and just sit and relax,” said Kieran,

the chief make-up artist. “We’ve been talking about that new soap on telly

about Scousers. Did you watch the first episode last week?”

Richie stared at the young woman in awe. Dear God, he and Ollie in all

their years had never mastered the art of calming the team. She had won

people over so effortlessly, even the rather antisocial wardrobe assistant.

“Who sent the flowers?”

“Oh they’re from Tony and his wife,” she said. On the day that Ollie and

Richie had chosen her as the face of Allure, Tony had insisted on giving her

a lift home after the photo-shoot – then he had seen the block of flats she

lived in and turned right back around, refusing to let her go back there.

After much disputing Tony apologised for his daddy approach and, in a

much gentler tone, offered for her to rent – because she refused to stay there

for free – the annexe of his house. Only when he agreed for her to bring

Bronty was the deal sealed. Both he and his wife were trying to discourage

her from getting an apartment and to stay in their annexe but Jaxxon had

been looking forward to having something that was hers. Plus, as much as

she adored Lily and Tony, they tried to baby her through the process of

going from one lifestyle to another. The gentle approach wasn’t Jaxxon’s

way. She wanted to face all the sudden changes head-on and find her own

two feet.

“Now remember, Jaxxon,” said Ollie in a serious tone, “because your

name was leaked to the tabloids they’ll have done some digging and will

know a bit about you and there’s a good chance they’ll shoot some

questions at you that you might find uncomfortable.”

“You mean about my past. Personal stuff.”

He nodded. “If there’s anything you don’t feel comfortable answering

just signal to me by tucking your curls behind your ear and I’ll tackle the

question for you.”

Richie shot her a reassuring look. “I’m sure you’ll be fine but I know this

is all new to you so if at any time you feel overwhelmed just signal to me

by joining your hands behind your back.”

“Jesus, you’re making this sound like a covert operation,” said Jaxxon,

which received plenty of chuckles. “I take it you’re here to take me down

now.” She would never have admitted it, but she was so nervous she was

close to shaking.

“Indeed we are,” confirmed Richie, ushering her out of the room. He

waited while everyone from the team wished her good luck and told her

how amazing she looked, something he very much agreed with. Something

that he was sure the entire world would agree with.

Once they reached the convention room, Ollie – as Chairman of the

cosmetics house – and Richie – as vice president of it – took their places on

the presentation podium, keeping Jaxxon hidden behind the curtains at the

rear of it. The two men each made a speech about the innovative and stylish

Allure products themselves and revealed that the release date was exactly

three weeks from this day. Then, after indicating the free samples around

the reporters, Ollie introduced ‘the face of Allure’.

He watched as Jaxxon – in that natural catlike grace that she had – came

to join them at the front of the podium. She was as breath-taking and

mesmerising as always and received a massive, welcoming applause. She

didn’t smile and pose for the flashing cameras, just as he knew she

wouldn’t. But she wasn’t distancing herself from these reporters, it wasn’t

an act of ignorance. She somehow managed to make eye contact with each

person in the room, as if she was acknowledging them. Didn’t everyone

enjoy the idea of being acknowledged by a woman so entrancing and

captivating? More amazingly, all this was done on a subconscious level on

her part. She clearly had no idea of the kind of effect she had on others

around her.

It wasn’t long before questions were being shot at her from all angles.

The first few were benign and related to the campaign and her contract and

what was happening next and the designer of her outfit. Then, of course, the

subject of her past was brought up. First it was relatively simple questions

such as where she grew up, but then a particular question made Ollie tense

even though he had been expecting it.

“Is it true, Jaxxon, that you spent the majority of your childhood in foster

care?” one reporter asked.

“Yes,” Jaxxon answered simply and clearly. There was no shame or

discomfort in her tone, and she noticed that that seemed to have surprised

people. Why should she be embarrassed?

“And is it true that your mother committed suicide?” the same reported

asked.

“Yes,” she said just as clearly and, still, with no shame or embarrassment.

Then a question was fired at Richie from a different reporter: “The

rumour, Mr Moore, is that you discovered Jaxxon when she was working in

a run-down pub.”

Richie smiled. “It’s always a surprise when a rumour is true. In this case,

yes.”

After another series of questions at Richie a new male reporter: “Did it

not concern you that her poor upbringing might make it extremely difficult

for her to deal with a lifestyle that is at the other end of the spectrum? That

perhaps she might find the pressures hard to bear?”

“You know, I really don’t like it when people talk like I’m not there,”

said Jaxxon with a sigh. “Here’s something for you all to jot down on your

little pads: a crap upbringing doesn’t make someone weak, it makes them

strong or how else could they get through it? I’ve never liked that people

seem to think that anyone who’s been brought up in care are destined to

lead a life of poverty and crime. It’s postcode lottery.”

“I hope this shows those prejudiced people and those who are brought up

in care that it doesn’t always have to work that way,” said Richie.

“That they can find themselves a fairy Godmother” – the reporter

gestured at Richie, smiling – “and have a happy ending.”

“Oh no,” Jaxxon quickly objected as she heard the reference to

Cinderella. “If you were hoping to find that despite my background I’m

some kind of lovely young lady who birds tweet at, prepare to be

disappointed. I’m a moody cow and I know it. This isn’t a Cinderella story,

this is more like Harry Potter and the Gob of Ire.”

Ollie had to admire her straightforwardness; and it seemed like everyone

else did as well. They chuckled and smiled and were totally taken in by her

and how refreshing she was. More questions were fired at her but she

handled them all with the same ease and bluntness as the others. Oh he

could see she was still frustrated. The trouble was that her frustration only

seemed to please the reporters, bringing that feral gleam to her eyes. He was

truly proud of her and also relieved to see that she might just be able to

handle how being the face of Allure was about to catapult her to the peak of

success.

He hadn’t mentioned to Jaxxon that he was a little concerned about how

some might treat her at the Launch Party. There were some guests he knew

of who would enjoy flinging a few degrading insults at her, things aimed to

eat at her confidence or belittle her or test her responses; jealousy and

prejudice, of course, being the main motives. He couldn’t visualise her

crumbling, but he had to remind himself that this young woman came from

nothing and was about to enter a world where people competed over who

had the biggest yacht or wore pearls and sapphires. He wondered if Jaxxon

had any real concept of how famous this was all going to make her. As from

tomorrow, her life was going to be dramatically different.

“One last question,” a reporter quickly shouted as the presentation ended.

Jaxxon groaned internally. This was something like the sixth time

someone had launched a ‘last question’ while they were trying to leave and

she was getting cheesed off now.

“We’ve noticed that haircare products are included in the beauty range,

which isn’t usual. Any comments on that?”

“Yeah,” answered Jaxxon snappily. “Lather, rinse, repeat.”

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***