Valerie's POV:
"Take a seat." Michele instructed us. Taking a glance towards Lyndsey, she simply shrugged. "We need to have a serious talk." Her voice was strained as the older woman sat across from us.
"I figured as much seeing as how you called us in here at the ass crack of dawn." Lyndsey said, yawning. Tousling my hair, I sat awkwardly next to the Australian native. "Get to the point, Michele."
"You two have caused quite the uproar back in the states." Michele started, not looking up from her computer. "So, what's going on here?" She asked, rolling back to her printer and pulling a picture from it, sliding it over to us. Furrowing my brow, I watched as Lyndsey picked it up. Leaning over, I could see that it was a picture of us kissing.
"What does it look like?" Lyndsey asked, nonchalant.
"Don't play stupid, Lyndsey." Michele's voice was oozing with annoyance at this point. But that didn't seem to bother Lyndsey.
"I mean," Lyndsey laughed, leaning back into the chair. Lyndsey looked at her fingernails as if she was bored by this meeting, "What does it look like, Michele? Two grown women kissing. I mean I don't get what's so bad about kissing." I could feel a boulder find its place on my chest. Was she slipping back into one of her moods?
"There's nothing bad about it. It's just you're a model! You're in the public eye, Lyndsey. You can't just be going around kissing women!" Michele argued, but before anything else was said, Lyndsey pulled me towards her, kissing me passionately on the lips. I gawked at her, surprised she would so openly do such a thing in front of Michele. "Are you kidding me?!" Michele shrieked.
"What's the big fucking deal? It' is not the 1800's, Michele, who gives a fuck if people see? Listen, are we done here?" Lyndsey said abruptly, standing up from her seat, "Because I have some shit I need to take care of after this shoot, so I need to get to work." She said.
"Wait-." But I didn't get the chance to call her back as she was gone now. I gave Michele a glance from the side, not wanting to deal with her alone now.
"You have to talk sense into her, Valerie." Michele urged me. Looking back to the tired woman, I sat there conflicted with this situation.
"Why? I mean... what is the big deal?"
"It's bad for business!" Michele argued, her voice becoming high pitched now. I watched as she pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Listen, you guys can't be doing this kind of things in the public. We could lose funding and credibility."
"Then maybe you shouldn't work with people who would cut funding over two of your employees seeing one another?" I laughed, standing myself now.
"I could fire you." Michele spoke calmly, stopping me in my tracks. "Then what? You'll be jobless. We've made you who you are." I didn't bother looking at her to see the smirk on her lips. "How will you explain that to your family?" But I didn't get the chance to say a word as Brian made his presence known.
"Hey, they need Valerie for a fitting... everything alright?" Brian asked, a concerned expression appearing on his features. Shaking my head, I left the room. Did she really just threaten me? As I walked down the hallway, my phone sent me a notification tone; a new message. I pulled out my phone, smiling when I saw two words from my best friend: Come over. "Are you alright?" I was surprised to see Brian walking beside me.
"Yeah," I breathed a sigh, offering a small smile.
"Well, I wouldn't worry so much about Michele," He started, handing me a water bottle. I smiled, taking the refreshment, "Between you and me? She's just a grouch because her boyfriend dumped her last month." He said, casting me a wink. I laughed, shaking my head, taking a sip of the water.
"That wouldn't surprise me. Thank you." Motioning towards the water. He just nodded, turning back towards the office of the said woman.
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"What a fucking bitch." Randy's voice said as we pulled up to his house. "Who does she think she is to threaten your job? Like you literally saved that company single-handed!" He laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. I smiled, knowing full well just how right he probably was. I took a swig from my bottle, wishing I could make the bullshit of my life disappear as fast as this liquid.
"I did, didn't I?" I asked, stepping out of his car.
"Valley!" A small voice screamed from the porch. I looked over to see Caleb running towards me full force. Bracing up against the car, he collided with me. "I missed you!" I watched his grin spread from ear to ear. I couldn't help the feeling of love wash through me. Ruffling his hair, I leaned down to kiss his forward.
"I missed you too, little dude. How have you been? Been keeping your mother busy?" I asked, earning an eager nod in return.
"Yeah! Mommy says I've been such an amazing boy!" He smiled once more. God this kids smile was infectious. It didn't matter what mood I was in. "Oswald!" He screamed in delight, noticing I had brought my fur ball with me. Oswald jumped off my shoulder, running toward the home. "Come back, Ozzie!"
"So, how's Lyndsey?" Randy asked.
"I mean, she's alright..." I shrugged, not really sure of my answer. I looked at my phone to see that she hadn't texted me all day really. Opening our messages, I frowned. It was obvious that she had read it... yet hadn't answered the three messages I had sent?
Me: Hey, Michele lost her mind, huh?
Me: Work really sucks right now, are you done yet? Maybe lunch? We can go to that place you showed me months ago? Lemme know.
Me: So, I'm going to Randy's after work today. I'll be home later.
Frowning, I put my phone back in my pocket. Why was she doing this again? I thought we were finally moving forward...? She promised me she wouldn't do this again.
"That doesn't sound very convincing, Valley." He countered, shutting the front door behind us. I closed my eyes as the smell of home-baked goods hit my senses. 'I missed this...' As we walked deeper into the kitchen I saw Randy's mother, Heather, pulling out a massive number of cookies from the oven. "Mom, you look like a typical housewife." Randy teased, startling the older woman. She turned around to glare at him, but when her eyes landed upon me she squealed.
"You didn't tell me Val was coming for a visit!" She said, engulfing me in her arms. I smiled, wrapping my arms around her, loving the warm hug she offered me. "How are you holding up, dear?" She asked, a motherly tone in her voice. I knew she meant well though, she was only concerned for me after all. "I've seen a view articles about you and that beautiful model..." She said with a look. I couldn't help but blush now.
"I mean... we uh..." I couldn't really find the words to describe what we were, because we hadn't spoken about it either.
"Are you two dating?" Heather pried even further, a hopeful gleam about her.
"Will you let her sit down for a moment?" I knew that voice anywhere. I looked to my right to see Jared in his police uniform. I watched as the older man, gave me a grin. "How's my favorite kid?" He asked, pulling me into a bear hug.
"I thought that was my title?" Randy asked, a mocked hurt expression on his rugged face. His dad draped an arm around my shoulders as if to prove a point.
"I think we both know you're adopted and Val is my favorite." He said, kissing my temple. Randy rolled his eyes as we laughed at his expense.
"Let's go talk in the living room, my back is killing me from all this baking." Heather sighed, rubbing her back to show the pain she was feeling. "Who knew bake sales were so intense." She sighed, following her eldest son towards the living room. I was about to follow when the Sargent pulled me to the side.
"I have to get to work, but I wanted to see how you were holding up?" He frowned. As I looked at his exhausted face, I could see the sorrow in his eyes. Was it because of what happened to me? To my mother? His uniform was clean and kept, but his scruffy beard showed more signs of the fatigue he was enduring.
"I'm alright, but what about you?" I said, fixing the collar of his shirt. "You look like you're still not sleeping." I frowned, knowing it had to be because of my mother's murderer.
"I won't give up." His voice stern, "We have a new lead." He smiled, his mustache wiggling slightly as he caught me off guard. "I knew that'd make you happy!"
"What do you mean you have a new lead?" I asked, licking my lip in anticipation now.
"It's honestly not much..." He said, pulling his phone out as it rung. "Sorry, the LT is up my ass. But anyway, I have to get going, is it alright if I call you to tell you about it?" He asked with a frown. I offered him a half smile, wrapping my arms around him. "I'm sorry we aren't much help but don't worry, we are getting closer... I promise you." He said, pulling away. "I'll call you in the morning to tell you all about it, okay?"
"You got it, I look forward to hearing about it." I smiled, giving the older man a wink.
"Are you coming? I want to hear all about these kisses!" I heard Heather call from the living room. James wished me luck as he left the house. Once again, I heard my phone go off causing me to glance at it quickly.
Lyndsey: Hey... sorry. I've had a hectic day today. I hope you're having fun with Randy, let him know I said hey. I miss you... can't wait to see you.
I couldn't help but smile, maybe this news will finally lead to something good in my life. But as I put my phone back into my pocket, I could feel my stomach cramping. Furrowing my brows, I shook my head. But I quickly was starting to have my vision blurred. The pain in my stomach was just as powerful as the pain shooting through my skull. Before I even knew what was happening, I fell to the floor.
Author's Note:
I know, short chapter. But I kind of wanted to write tonight seeing as how I'm going to busy the next few weeks. Please VOTE and COMMENT.
Thanks!