Etoile (The Mannequin Series)

by Olivia Besse

  Elodie had been slumped in a corner with her three roommates, all of whom had the same terrible posture and were just as antisocial as she. When he came over, their eyes widened and they pushed her towards him as if she were a sacrificial offering. While they may have looked like they would be chic and nonchalant, the beautiful girls were still, after all, boy-crazy teenagers.

  Tyler was also a new face, but he was already one of the bigger names at the agency. His classic good looks and boyish charm had won over many people and earned him countless high-profile jobs in a short amount of time. All of the girls, even the ones who shunned male models, wanted a piece of him. Hell, a lot of the boys in the agency wanted a piece of him, too.

  While the rest of the models left the party soon after the free alcohol had dried up, Elodie and Tyler remained in a secluded corner with the bottle of Perrier-Jouët that they had pinched from an unattended cater waiter station. From afar, they looked like they could have been in the middle of a hauntingly glamorous photo spread in Vogue. The dramatic paned windows above allowed the soft glow of the moon to shine on them in their dimly lit hiding spot. Tyler looked impeccable in a fitted Dior Homme suit and Elodie looked ethereal in a beautiful white Stella McCartney dress that her agent had pulled for her to wear that evening. The two pretty young things were sitting intimately, seemingly whispering secrets to each other with mischievous looks on their faces.

  "I love your accent. French accents are my weakness," he slurred adorably as he played with her hand. His cold fingertips tickled the soft skin of her palms as he traced light circles on them.

  "Really? Can you even understand me?" she asked as she laid on a thick accent that belied all of the years that she had spent speaking English. She batted her long eyelashes as she gave him a long, seductive gaze. They locked eyes for what seemed like eternity, and she could see the corners of his cherry red lips turn upwards as his eyes lightly shook as they searched her own.

  "Are you flirting with me?" he asked jokingly in a soft voice as he moved his hand slowly onto her thigh. The sudden coldness against her warm flesh made something inside of her stir. He continued to trace circles ever so lightly on the tender skin of her inner thigh, the indecent movements of his hand hidden underneath her dress. As he alternated between small swirls and large, exaggerated patterns that ventured closer to her body, she took deep breaths to steady herself.

  Though unsure of if it was due to the fuzziness from the many cocktails that she had indulged in, Elodie decided then and there that she would become a woman that night. And she was sure that Tyler was the absolute best candidate for the job.

  They continued to look into each other's eyes intensely, and Tyler's gaze slowly moved down towards her tiny lips. "You look like a little doll," he whispered as he observed her wide-eyed expression. He stopped the movement of his fingertips and gripped her small thigh in his hand as he gave her a one-sided smile. Elodie swallowed hard to get rid of the suffocating lump that had formed in her throat. Her mouth was so dry from the champagne that she was sure that he could hear her press her parched tongue against the roof of her mouth.

  He gently craned his neck and began moving his lips towards hers at an excruciatingly teasing pace. She closed her eyes as her heart thudded loudly in anticipation.

  "There you are! You kids didn't leave yet?" Ed, the owner of the agency, had sauntered over and was boisterously interrupting their special moment. He had brought along three other older gentlemen, all of whom were oblivious to what had just happened. Tyler and Elodie both shot up and straightened their expensive outfits with their sweaty palms.

  Ed emitted a cloud of whiskey fumes as he grabbed Tyler's cheeks. "Look at this boy! Isn't he pretty? This is the one I told you about!" Ed continued to babble nonsense as he shook Tyler's pinched face at the stuffy old men in suits. They nodded appreciatively as Ed showed off his shiny new toy.

  Sigrid, Ed's supermodel girlfriend who was fifteen years younger and two inches taller than him, soon came over to retrieve him. ”Babe," she drawled out without even wincing. "Baptiste wants to say goodbye. Leave these two alone, yea?" She shot Elodie a knowing smile. Ed gave a cocky laugh and crudely placed his hand on her ass, while Sigrid continued to smile prettily like an ornament. After slapping Tyler on the back roughly, he and his entourage made their way back to the other side of the room.

  Elodie looked at Tyler, whose cheeks were still flushed from the rowdy ambush. "Fuck, what a dick. Do you think I'm pretty?" he asked her with an embarrassed smile as he rubbed the back of his neck. She laughed at his oozing charm as he slowly slipped her hand into his.

  "Come on, let's get out of here."

  They made their rounds and said goodbye to a bunch of people who could care less, and he led her out of the gallery and into the elevator. Once inside, he cornered her and tilted her chin up.

  "The night is young. Whatever could we do?" he asked with an innocent expression.

  Three

  The company-expensed towncar ride back to Tyler's place was the ultimate test of Elodie's patience. Unbeknownst to their pleasant cab driver, the two could hardly contain themselves. Tyler softly grazed Elodie's bare legs with the back of his hand while sneaking her small smiles. She was about ready to explode when the driver cheerily announced that they had arrived after what seemed like hours. Unfortunately, that place was his tiny and cramped model apartment.

  Tyler held her hand firmly in his own as the doorman let them into the building. After leading her into the elevator, he abruptly spun her into his arms. "Where were we?" he whispered in a voice so quiet that she would not have been able hear it had she not been pressed up against his chest. He slipped his suit jacket off of her petite shoulders and ran the palms of his hands up and down her bare arms. She looked up at him with longing eyes, which he met with a teasing smile.

  The elevator beeped and he chuckled lightly as he grabbed her hand again to lead her out into the bright hallway. "This is it," he announced as they stopped in front of his door. But he didn't open it. Instead, he positioned Elodie between his tall body and the wall, looking at the young French beauty with quivering eyes. Her breathing become quick and shallow as he placed his hands gently on her bum and cautiously lowered his face to meet her own. His warm breath approached her lips and the two finally shared their first kiss, his lips barely brushing her own.

  A chill ran down Elodie's body as her eyes fluttered upwards to meet Tyler's own, which looked eerily translucent in the light of the hallway. The conflicting feelings of relief and anticipation flooded her as the butterflies in her stomach flitted tumultuously. He looked at her with a soft expression before taking his lips to hers again, but much more aggressively this time.

  The longing and urgency were tangible in the air surrounding them. Pushing his lower body unyieldingly against hers, Tyler slammed their tightly clasped forms against the front door so fiercely that the wood vibrated against her back. She could hardly stop sighing as he sensually kissed her neck and quietly opened the door behind her.

  "Gee, I feel like an ass bringing you back here," Tyler muttered in between long and deep kisses as the front door shut closed. Elodie merely giggled like a schoolgirl in response as the champagne bubbles continued to effervesce against her brain. His hands felt like silk as they grazed her cheeks while he lightly sucked on her lower lip.

  She could hardly think straight as she gave in to his touch. Due to her inexperience, she was unsure of how to proceed. Should she put her hands on his face? Touch his arms? Grab his butt? Thoughts raced through her drunken mind as she tried to think back on any experience that was remotely sexual. Suddenly, she remembered the time that her roommates in her model apartment in Milan had been watching a soft-core porno that secretly featured one of the male models that they knew. Elodie and her two flatmates, a Canadian girl named Elle and a Ukrainian named Julia, had laughed manically as they watched the French "art house" film while drinking cheap wine in their pyjamas, their faces adorned with cracked mud
masks.

  Mentally replaying the cringeworthy movie in her head, Elodie recalled a scene in which the young French actress in the film had performed a striptease for a gaggle of smarmy businessmen. Tyler continued to grab at her like a hungry predator and suffocate her with deep kisses as she began to pull away.

  Elodie gave him a coy smile as slipped out from under his grasp and walked backwards away from him, much to his lustful amusement. As the back of her thin calves hit the low coffee table in the center of the room, she began to playfully unzip her tiny white dress. When he began to move towards her, she lightly shook her head and pushed him away. "No touching," she whispered out, just as the French actress had seductively.

  "You're going to make me go crazy," Tyler spit out as he fell backward onto the sofa, bracing himself for his private show. The corners of her lips slowly turned upwards as she moved closer to him at an excruciating pace.

  "Just sit and enjoy," she purred as she slowly shimmied the soft material off of her body while slowly making her way over. The dim moonlight revealed glimpses of Elodie's barely there lingerie that she had received in a totally inappropriate swag bag after walking an S&M-themed runway show when she was a 16-year old model in Milan. He gulped nervously as she put her hands on his knees and straddled his lap, placing her arms atop his broad shoulders.

  Just relax, she told herself as she batted her eyelashes at him. The only sounds that could be heard were their panting breaths and the distant sounds of cars driving past. Tyler could barely keep his head on straight as he watched her chest heave with each of her yearning breaths. With half-closed lids, Elodie leaned in at an intentionally glacial pace. She could feel him becoming aroused by the teasing as his hands ran up and down her back and pert bottom.

  Elodie grabbed gently at his shirt and slowly undid the buttons as she held her face mere millimeters from his. Looking deeply into her eyes, Tyler held his breath as she continued to taunt him, working at his belt and pants while not allowing her lips to come into contact with his. And, finally, he surrendered to the little minx.

  He growled in desire as he pushed his loose clothing off and drove their bodies into the soft cushions of the sofa. He pinned her thin arms against the scratchy surface with his strong arms as his body pressed against hers. They probed each other's mouths greedily, filling their lungs with the each other's hot, exhaled breaths.

  Each touch on Elodie's skin felt like it rippled for miles as she succumbed to the uninhibited rapture. She wanted to keep this moment with her forever. All she could wrap her mind around was how magnetic their attraction was and how warm their bodies were despite the frigid air around them. How he tasted of dry champagne and tobacco, and oozed of Yves Saint Laurent L'Homme and the sweet smell of sweat.

  They could have gone on pawing at each other forever, but they needed more. Tyler picked her up by firmly grasping her taut ass as she straddled his torso, and he carried her clumsily to his room as their gasps became more longing.

  As he gently placed Elodie on the lower bunk, he caressed the smooth skin of her inner thighs and she whimpered against his touch. He laid himself on top of her and she could feel him throbbing against her thigh as she throbbed against his.

  His kiss became more probing and Elodie moaned loudly in pleasure. Tyler began to move his kisses elsewhere as he kissed her perfect bosom before moving on to her toned stomach.

  Tyler abruptly stopped as their positions became awkward in that cramped lower bunk. He looked up at her sheepishly and firmly turned her entire body around so that her legs dangled off the side of the thin mattress. He got on his knees on the floor and ripped her flimsy underwear off as he shot her a hungry smile.

  He began navigating his luscious tongue around her swollen mound, and Elodie shuddered in joy. She had never felt anything like this before. He sucked hard with his pillowy lips and swirled his wet tongue against her as her body writhed and pleaded with him.

  As he had done with his fingertips earlier that evening, he massaged his tongue in alternating circular patterns as Elodie bashed her head about against the wall. Her legs involuntarily wrapped around his neck tightly as his hands grabbed roughly at her breasts through the thin lace of her bra. Waves of pure ecstasy crashed through her body, culminating in her burning hot toes.

  Exhausted, she stared up at the support railings of the top bunk as she gasped for air. The energy seemed to have left her body, but she was still eager for more. Elodie pulled Tyler back up with a coy smile and pushed him hard down onto his back. She straddled his chest and removed her bra, bringing his hands to fondle her pert nipples.

  He ran his thumbs over the sensitive skin as she shuddered in delight. Her skin felt as if it was on fire. As she rubbed her pulsating womanhood hard against his chiseled abs, she arched backwards and allowed the earth-shattering feeling to swallow her up as her golden hair flew everywhere.

  She slipped her hand beneath his underwear and began to massage his shaft vigorously until it was tall and erect in all of its glory. Elodie could feel him spasm as she gently fondled his velvety balls ever so lightly. The air trapped inside the constraining fabric was hot and dense around her hand.

  "Oh fuck," she heard him whisper as she ran her fingertips along the length of his huge dick.

  On the cusp of another glorious episode, she could barely contain herself. She wanted him in all his entirety in that moment, and she wasn't afraid to show it.

  "Fuck me," she whispered breathily as her legs tightened against his torso. "Fuck me now."

  "God, you're so fucking hot. I can't believe we're doing this," Tyler panted out as he quickly removed his briefs and put on a condom. Elodie smiled graciously at him before he gently guided his engorged member inside of her. She stared deeply into his eyes in that moment, her ears faintly buzzing in the deafening silence that shrouded them.

  She felt as if someone had stabbed her with a white-hot sword and she gasped in surprise as her brain went numb. Pain turned into an indescribable feeling of anguish and passion as she began to slowly move with him in and out of her. Tyler groaned out in joy as she longed for deeper exploration, moving her dainty hips up and down like a loaded spring.

  A glorious pain seared through her body and she began to kiss him fervently as he sat upright to become one with her. Each of Tyler's deep kisses and lingering touches felt like a thousand tiny needle pricks against her hypersensitive skin. The air around them was hot and thick with musky desire as they moved together in lust.

  He flipped Elodie onto her back and pummeled into her repeatedly while she yelled out loudly in bliss. Each shove knocked the wind out of her lungs and she had to gasp for air for fear that she would faint. She felt ravaged and sore, yet embraced the excruciating throbbing while wanting more. The entire bunk bed shook violently thanks to a relentless Tyler. She felt her blood boiling in her toes and fingertips as her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

  Her head seemed to erupt in explosions of light and darkness as Tyler pounded into her with one final thrust that sent off bursts of satisfaction throughout her. Elodie could see stars as her soul made its way back to her limp body. After he laid on top of her for awhile, kissing her gently, they both heard the sound of shuffling from above.

  "Dude. Not cool," Tyler's bunkmate, Jay, muttered sleepily.

  Four

  Tyler had texted Elodie the next day after their little rendezvous, but she had fought the urge to respond. Though she had developed somewhat of a crush on him, she forced herself to shut off her emotions. She wasn't going to let anyone stop her from reaching the top. After all, she knew from her previous heart-wrenching experiences that emotions wouldn't get her anywhere.

  Two weeks later, she was back off to Groupe Models in London for a two-month catalogue deal with a popular high street brand. She would basically be doing brain-numbing work, standing around in the company's garments three full days a week to shoot pictures for the online shopping site.

  She would be missing out on the Fall/
Winter shows for New York Fashion Week, but the gig was way too good of an opportunity for her to pass up. With just two months' work, she would make enough money to settle her mounting debts from the past year. Plus, she would still be able to work the London, Milan and Paris Fashion Week circuits, from which she would make actual money instead of receiving clothing like in most New York shows.

  Besides, what better a place to begin practicing her coquettish ways than in the liberal streets of Europe?

  "My little girl," Janet had greeted her with a warm smile when Elodie walked into the agency's office in Chiswick. "New York hasn't destroyed you yet, I hope. You just need to work at it until you get there. It's a whole different playing field over there, I'm afraid."

  "Oh no," Elodie told her with a firm nod. "I am going to make a name for myself. I want to make you proud."

  "That's the fighting spirit," Janet said with a hearty laugh. "I know you have it in you. I saw the gleam in your eye when you were but a tiny bird."

  Hearing Janet's encouraging words made Elodie even more determined to make it big. She owed it to her, especially since she had helped to change her whole life around. If this is what it takes, Elodie thought with a gulp as she had tea with her old agent and caught her up on her life in Manhattan, then I'll just have to suck it up and do it.