Model Behavior

by Claire Highton-Stevenson

  “Oh, for me?” Hilary gushed. “Wow. I am honoured.” She took the drawing and held it up. A picture of a woman wearing a white dress, with long blonde hair and a big necklace, was drawn in the middle of the page and the word “Congratulations” was scrawled around it, with bigger letters at the start, all running together into a squished ending.

  “That’s your stefascope,” Gracie said proudly, pointing to the necklace.

  “Oh my, it’s amazing. Thank you so much.”

  Gracie shrugged. “You’re welcome.”

  Dinner was going swimmingly. Everyone was having fun, and the antics of Ava were well and truly forgotten when Michael clinked his glass to make a speech. Hilary groaned with a smile as Olivia nudged her to behave.

  “So, I just wanted to say a few words about my little girl, Hilary.”

  “Dad!!” She laughed again with just a hint of pink to her cheeks.

  “Hilary, you will always be my little girl. From the day you were born you were the perfect baby. You barely cried, you were always smiling, and that, that’s still the same now. You have a beautiful smile, which of course, you got from your mother.” His voice cracked as he choked up. Hilary felt the tears prick at her own eyes, and smiled gratefully when she felt Olivia’s hand slip into her own. “She would be so proud of you, and I know she is the reason you wanted to be a nurse in the first place. Anyway, enough of your old man. To Hilary, the best darn nurse there ever was.”

  They all raised their glasses and chinked them together as they repeated, “To Hilary.”

  Surprisingly, Cynthia announced she would like to say a few words.

  “As we are all giving speeches.” She smiled and continued. “I wanted to say how proud I am to have you as part of the family, Hilary. I know the pair of you have only been dating a matter of months, but I have never seen my daughter happier than she is when she is with you.”

  Now it was Olivia’s turn to blush as Hilary squeezed her hand under the table.

  “Well, I am glad you think that way actually, Cynthia, because I have been feeling that way a lot myself lately.” She turned to look at Olivia directly. “Liv, you have enriched my life beyond any measure I had before, and I know that I am happier now than I have ever been. I feel like the girl that has almost everything.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a small box, bigger than a ring box, so Olivia could at least breathe again. “Liv, I wouldn’t dare embarrass you with anything more than the idea of staying over more often, but when you’re ready, I would like to live with you, if you will have me?”

  As Olivia opened the box to reveal a key, she couldn’t help the grin that marched across her face as she nodded furiously.

  “I will.” She laughed and kissed her quickly as their parents looked on.

  “Can I stay too?” Gracie said, chomping down on a broccoli stalk.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  They were barely able to keep their hands off each other. Hilary had taken her home and completely ravished her the moment they pushed through the door. Already kissing each other, Hilary moved her hands along the curve of Olivia’s thighs, lifting her dress in their wake as she got closer to her prize.

  Since being given the go-ahead several weeks before that this kind of thing was okay now, she had made the most of it.

  When she had the dress up high enough, she dragged Olivia’s panties down those same slender thighs until they pooled on the floor. Her hands were everywhere, and just when Olivia expected them to explore her pulsating core they were gone, pulling down on her dress now to free her breasts, cupping and kneading them as the kissing continued. She forgot all about breathing. She forgot all about the bedroom. Nothing else mattered to Olivia by then; just Hilary and the need to be fulfilled in the place she most ached.

  Everything was just perfect.

  ~MB~

  Hilary pulled up outside the Can You Do That? mansion ten minutes earlier than Olivia needed to be there the following morning, which meant they had ten minutes to make out.

  “Mm, God, Hils,” Olivia moaned, pulling away as she caught her breath. “I have to go to work.” But Hilary just pressed her lips against Olivia’s once again, tongues duelling instantly until, gasping, Olivia pushed her away. “Hilary.” She laughed. “I need to go. Call me later. I can’t wait to come home tonight.”

  Hilary sat back and stared at her, back in the present, her brain processing.

  “Does that mean what I think it means?” she asked as Olivia laughed and smiled while nodding her head.

  “Yeah, I wanna move in. I want to live with you, but I think we might need a bigger place with Gracie. And I need to speak with her first.”

  “Yes.” Hilary moved to kiss her once more, but felt a palm flat against her chest before she had the chance.

  “I have to go. Behave.” Olivia placed a chaste kiss against her lips and quickly climbed out of the car, waving as she walked toward the building. “I’ll speak to Gracie as soon as I can.”

  ~MB~

  Olivia walked in on a complete meltdown. Tori Taylor was screaming at the top of her lungs at Greg, who in turn was shouting back just as loud. Jeff was nearest to her so she caught his eye, but he just shrugged and moved nearer to her.

  “Apparently, shit hit the fan this morning,” he whispered.

  “What happened?” she asked, looking around and realising the entire cast were locked down in the main living room.

  “All I know is that Jenny was fired and Ava has left.”

  “She what?!” Olivia exclaimed a little too loudly before whispering, “Why?”

  “No idea, but she stormed out in the early hours.”

  Just as Olivia was taking onboard what Jeff had said, she heard her name being shouted. Tori demanded she follow her to the office.

  Tori’s office was basically the pool house. They had moved a desk, as well as audio and computer equipment, in amongst all the pool items. Inflatables and garden chairs lined the back wall, separated by a makeshift partition that could be moved on castors. Tori had all of her ideas and papers pinned to it, along with photographs of each celebrity alongside a short bio or piece of information she might need.

  “Where the hell would she be?” Tori barked as she threw herself into her chair, throwing her pen across the desk.

  “I – I have no idea.”

  “Oh come on, you know her better than anyone. Where would she go?”

  “I really don’t know. We haven’t spoken in months before this project,” Olivia explained. “Tori, we broke up for a reason. I don’t know her the way you think I should.”

  “Fuck.” Tori sat forward and held her head in her hands. “What the fuck happened last night?”

  Olivia sat down and took a moment. She was beginning to wish that she had never taken this job on.

  “Last night, Ava decided she wanted to speak to my girlfriend. She asked Jenny to lie to her and tell her that I wasn’t ready yet and she should come inside to wait for me.”

  “Yes, I know all that. I’ve heard the audio. What I want to know is what your girlfriend meant when she accused Ava of—”

  “That’s private. Hilary didn’t know she was being recorded, otherwise—”

  “Fuck private, Olivia, my star has just walked out the fucking door and I need to find her,” Tori argued. “And if you can’t help with that, then…”

  “Then? I’m fired? Is that it?” Olivia suggested. “Okay.” She stood to leave.

  “What? You can’t just—”

  “Oh I think I can,” Olivia snapped. As she opened the door and left, she pulled her phone out and dialled Hilary.

  ~MB~

  “So, she just fired you?” Hilary exclaimed once Olivia was in the car. She had barely gotten to the end of the road when her cell had rung and Olivia had demanded she come back.

  “Well, she threatened it, and so I took her up on it,” Olivia acknowledged. “I don’t see why I should be taking the flack for the shit hitting the fan. This is Ava’s problem
, not mine. I can’t keep getting drawn into her issues.”

  “No, I don’t blame you.” Hilary reached across and squeezed her hand. “Though of course, you now have nothing to do all day.” She winked.

  “Really? Your mind is going straight back to bed?” Olivia laughed.

  “Actually, although I have no problem at all with that idea, that wasn’t what I was thinking.”

  “No? And what exactly were you thinking, darling?” She needed this. This playfulness and light-hearted way about her were exactly what she wanted.

  “We could go apartment hunting, pick up Gracie, and spend some hours at the pier, and then you can come to the club with me and get really drunk while I do my thing. Cos obviously now I am the only wage earner in this relationship, so I need to work it.” She laughed as Olivia spanked her arm gently.

  ~MB~

  Gracie climbed into her car seat and fidgeted around as Olivia attempted to buckle her in.

  “Sweetheart, will you sit still?”

  “But Mummy, I wanna tell you about what we did in school.”

  “That’s great, but you can still do that and not wiggle,” Olivia said, tickling her and making her laugh and wiggle more. “Now, hold still.” She clipped the buckles into place. “Okay, so shoot, tell me about school.”

  Hilary chuckled to herself and turned in her seat to listen.

  “So, Nico is my new friend.”

  “That’s nice, it’s good to have lots of friends.” Olivia smiled and straightened up, standing in the doorway.

  “Yes, and we made sandcastles, and I was the prince and he said he was the prince, and so we were both the prince.” She held both her palms out and facing upwards.

  “That is perfect then!” Olivia stated. Bending down, she ran a hand through Gracie’s hair. “So, Hilary and I were going to ask you something.”

  “What, Mummy?”

  “Well, we wondered if maybe it would be fun if you and I lived with Hilary?”

  “At Nanna’s?” Gracie grinned at the idea.

  Olivia laughed. “No, sweetie, in our own place. Just you and me, and Hilary, in a new house.”

  Gracie frowned as she considered the idea. Olivia looked to Hilary, who pulled an ‘I dunno’ face and shrugged. They both turned back to Grace, who now had a raised brow and a thin-lipped grimace on her face. “No Nanna?”

  Olivia shook her head slowly side to side. “No, but we would still visit as often as you wanted, and you can stay over with Nanna.”

  “Okay then,” she said, turning to Hilary. “We can dress up. This time you can be Olaf.”

  Chapter Forty-Three

  The club was a throng of bodies all sweating and grinding against one another on the dancefloor. The music was loud as Hilary pulled her lover through the crowd. She spoke quickly with a friend behind the bar, who nodded and then waved at another guy out on the floor. He indicated Hilary and Olivia and pointed to the VIP boxes. Another nod from the guy across the room and Hils was dragging Olivia over to the booth. She thanked the guy and passed him a tip as they waited for the guys who had been in there to move out.

  “Oh my God, did you just have those guys moved for us?” Olivia asked, wide-eyed and laughing.

  “Well, they were only in there until someone else came along, and that someone else is us,” Hilary answered, pulling her down onto the cushioned bench. “I have forty-five minutes before my shift. You wanna order something to eat while I go get changed?”

  “Sure, just a snack and some drinks okay with you?” Olivia asked, grabbing Hilary’s collar and pulling her closer.

  “Yeah, nachos or—” She didn’t finish before Olivia was kissing her. “Mm, God Liv, when you kiss me like that—” Olivia’s eyebrows rose and her eyes twinkled.

  “I can’t help myself.” Olivia let her go, smiling up at her as she stood. “Go, get changed and get back here.”

  The waiter had taken her order and already had the nachos and margaritas on the table when Hilary returned. She wore a white bikini top with gold hot pants that looked as though they had been painted on. As she went to sit down, Olivia shook her head and pushed her back into a standing position while she herself sat back and looked up.

  “Dance for me?” Olivia asked, sipping her drink and not taking her eyes from the woman who did more than turn her on. “Just for me.” Hilary couldn’t help but laugh. The music was about to change, so with a smirk she nodded and took a quick gulp of her own drink before she began to move, her feet firmly planted on the floor as her hips undulated left and right, her arms rising high into the air before her hands slid down her own body, caressing her breasts and moving down her abs, then between her thighs, simulating something enticing as she squatted down and then up again, turning as she went. She bent forward and pushed her tight ass out towards her lover, who remained captivated in her seat. In the distance cameras flashed as someone the paparazzi were interested in arrived at the club, but neither of them noticed who, too wrapped up in the foreplay of their lovemaking.

  Turning back to face Liv, Hilary danced closer until she was straddling her lap, thrusting her hips back and forth as she fell forward and found the back of the wall. Her palms flat against the brick, she brought her mouth to within an inch of the brunette’s, breathing the same air. She felt fingers push inside the band of her shorts and looked down to see Olivia had placed a handful of notes there.

  “Worth every penny,” she gasped as Hilary finally allowed her weight to sit in her lap.

  ~MB~

  From where Olivia sat, she could see Hilary doing her thing up on the podium in the next room. She had a few admirers, and Liv couldn’t help but feel a little smugness at how sexy her girlfriend was, and that it would be her she went home with that night. So lost in her admiration was she that she didn’t notice the intruder to her booth until they sat down right next to her and leaned in.

  “Hey gorgeous.”

  Olivia could smell the alcohol before she even turned around to push the interloper off of her, recognising the voice instantly.

  “Ava, get off me.” She glared at her ex, who just smiled at her.

  “Come on, baby. Okay, you made your point. I am a bad, bad girl and you needed to punish me.” She ran her finger down Olivia’s cheek.

  “Ava, you need to leave, you need to go back to the house and full—” Olivia had moved in her seat, putting further distance between them.

  “Nah, I don’t give a shit about that, I only did it for you.” Her eyes had that familiar glassy look as she stared at Olivia.

  “I don’t want you,” she answered firmly and looked over to see if Hilary was finished yet.

  “No? You don’t want me? But you want a god damn stripper?” Her voice was louder, and it slurred a little as she indicated Hilary dancing.

  “She isn’t a – look, just go.” Olivia really didn’t want to get into this. She wanted Ava gone, and she wanted Hilary to take her home.

  “I love you, Liv, why are you doing this to us?” Ava was slurring more as she swigged from a bottle of expensive champagne. Her eyes kept rolling as she tried to focus.

  “Ava? Are you-?” Before she could finish the question, the model she had once loved collapsed against her. “AVA?” She shook her shoulders and her ex stirred, slurring her speech and talking gibberish.

  A shadow appeared over her. She looked up and breathed a sigh of relief to see Hilary standing there.

  “Thank God, I don’t know what’s – she just turned up and – what do I do?”

  Hilary was already leaning over Ava, checking her pulse and putting her into a safe position. “She’s just drunk out of her mind. Let me get security and then I’ll get changed and we can get out of here.” She cupped Olivia’s cheek gently.

  “Hils, we can’t – I can’t just leave her.” Those big brown eyes were looking at Hilary now, pleading silently for help.

  Hilary sighed. “What do you wanna do?” She brushed her hand through her hair and sat down on her haunches
next to Liv.

  Shrugging, Olivia said, “I don’t know; sober her up, take her home.”

  “Home? Your home? You want to take her back to your—” Hilary was incredulous that her girlfriend would want to be anywhere near Ava, never mind take her home.

  “Just until she is sober, then I’ll call Tori and have her picked up.” She took Hilary’s face in her hands. “I know it doesn’t make sense. I know I am asking a lot of you.”

  “We can go back to mine. Let me get changed. If she so much as raises a finger to you!” she warned, looking back at the woman who had hurt Olivia so badly, a woman who didn’t deserve such compassion.

  “I know that what she did was so…I just, I’m not going to lower myself to her level. She needs help. If she were a complete stranger, I would help her.”

  “Would you take a complete stranger home?” Hilary spoke gently, but her words hit home. No, of course she wouldn’t.

  Olivia closed her eyes, lay her head back against the wall, and exhaled loudly, hoping to goodness that she hadn’t created an issue between them over this.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Getting Ava out of the club in the state she was in was not going to be the easiest thing to do. Paparazzi were out front and wouldn’t be leaving anytime soon because they knew which celebs were in the club and who was going to be the money shot! And that was Ava, due to her recent headlines along with the fact it was now common knowledge she had left the show, so they were not going anywhere.

  It also didn’t help that Ava could barely talk or walk. Olivia had tried to get her to drink water, but that had just resulted in a puddle on the floor as Ava had pushed the glass away.

  “Ava!” Olivia said sternly. “You need to get up.”

  “I don’t know how we’re going to get her out of here or up to my apartment?!” Hilary stood in the doorway of the booth, blocking the view from anyone who wandered past. She smiled tiredly. “I’ve called a cab and told them to meet us round back, but we have to get her out to it.”