"This is where she works," I explained.
"Mon Dieu! The smell of the eggs makes me want to vomit!"
"Look, I'll take you to freaking Rousseau's, and you can binge on crème brulée until you gain two dress sizes. But for right now, I need you here, and I need you to focus."
She gave me that I'm-going-to-kill-you look and she did it convincingly.
I caught Justine's attention as she walked past our table. "Oh, Justine, I'd like you to meet Véronique," I said. Justine seemed a bit confused about the pronunciation of the name.
"You can call me Veronica." They shook hands, but Justine looked bewildered.
"Veronica owns the best salon in town," I boasted. "Have you heard of La Reine?"
"Oh my God, I love 'Lorraine'!" Justine gushed.
Véronique bristled at the mispronunciation. I beamed a stern glance in her direction and whispered: "Tais-toi!" Luckily, she regained her composure quickly.
"Mike tells me that you have done some modeling," Véronique said to Justine. "You are very beautiful. Do you work through an agency?"
"Oh, I haven't really..." Justine said sheepishly.
"We'd like to try to get you into the Allegro agency," I interrupted. "Do you have a portfolio?"
"I'm not really a model," Justine explained. "I'm not tall."
"You do not have to be six feet tall," Véronique explained. "I am five-foot-seven. I think that maybe you are a bit taller, no?"
"I'm five-eight."
"Modeling is not just about the runway," Véronique continued. "The agencies need many types of girls. They need your type for catalogs, advertisements, many things."
Justine processed the information.
"We've been in this business for a long time," I assured her. "You definitely have what it takes to make it."
"We would like to bring you in for a professional photo shoot," Véronique explained. "Hair, makeup, outfits. When you see the pictures, maybe then you can decide."
"Yeah, like this." I handed Justine the folder of head and glamour shots that I had hand selected. "But if this isn't something that you'd like to do, we understand."
We were approaching the moment of truth.
"They're beautiful," she exclaimed.
"They're beautiful," she exclaimed.
"Can we schedule an appointment?" Véronique asked going for the close. We were reacting off of each others cues seamlessly, just as we always had.
"Yeah, but I should probably get back to work," Justine explained.
"We understand," I said. "When do you have a day off?"
"I'm off tomorrow," Justine volunteered.
"We could get you in in the morning," I offered. "9 o'clock? We could have you out by 11 or 12."
"Okay!" Justine had a look of excitement in her eyes.
"Great," I said. "Here's the address. Veronica will take care of your hair and makeup, so don't do anything with it tonight or in the morning."
"Oh my gosh! Thanks!" Justine gushed. She looked toward Véronique. "Nice to meet you!"
"Why did you tell her that I would be there?" Véronique demanded when Justine was out of earshot. "That was never part of our deal."
"Well, someone has to do her hair," I said.
"I cannot just walk out and leave my business for the entire morning," she argued. "What am I going to say to Peter?"
"Look, it doesn't have to be you," I said. "Send over one of your girls."
"I am not sending one of my girls to work with you," Véronique proclaimed with a generous supply of attitude.
"Why not? Are you afraid that I'm gonna hit on her?"
"My girls are not stupid enough to sleep with a loser like you, first of all," she said.
"Okay, so what's the problem?" I asked.
"My girls like to get paid," Véronique said bluntly.
It was a dig, but I didn't mind. "I can pay them. I have money."
She thought it over. She was probably considering the risk of having one of her employees blab and tip off Peter.
"I'll be there at 8:30," she said. "But I need to leave at eleven, sharp."
"Eleven sharp," I agreed.
"And you had better not be drunk."
She thought it over. She was probably considering the risk of having one of her employees blab and tip off Peter.
"I'll be there at 8:30," she said. "But I need to leave at eleven, sharp."
"Eleven sharp," I agreed.
"And you had better not be drunk."
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