Chapter 53
Amy
Amalfi
The sun was already hot when Amy turned up at Luisa's hotel mid-morning the next day.
Luisa had gone ahead much earlier, first to rise for a change and by some distance, and Amy was starting to appreciate that Luisa when she was working was serious about it, professional, a contrast to her normal relaxed persona but one that Amy found both interesting and reassuring.
Amy had done some work from her hotel room that morning and then checked out as soon as she got the message from Luisa assuring her that the room had been serviced and she was welcome to turn up whenever she wanted.
It felt weird to Amy walking back into that reception, doubly weird when the same receptionist greeted her and with a knowing nod and smile handed her the room key again. "I hope you got it right this time," he said with a smile, and Amy held up her hand, fingers crossed as she headed to the lifts.
This time there were no dramas, no random women in Luisa's bed, nothing untoward at all.
It all felt very normal, and as Amy went into the room she reflected that if this was indicative of a model's accommodation on a shoot then she'd show up randomly a lot more often.
.. a large room, classical styling but with a modern twist, a sitting area, a large, wooden framed bed with an ornate headboard that was far taller than it needed to be, and the balcony outside, a large balcony with an epic view. Very nice indeed.
Amy sat down on the bed briefly, her hand absentmindedly running over the smooth sheets, and the image flashed through her head, the one from the night before, Luisa in the throes of pleasure, Bel between her legs, the smell, the light, everything, but then she smiled and forced it from her mind.
.. time to make some new memories, she thought to herself, not dwell on the past.
***
A little later she went downstairs to explore, trying to track down where Luisa was, and finally found her mid-shoot on a terrace surrounded by marble Romanesque statues and wearing a black bikini with a gold chain around her midriff that seemed both impractical, but also like precisely what Amy would like her to wear when they got back to Luisa's room later.
That's fashion in a nutshell, she thought with a smile.
After a couple of minutes Luisa glanced over and noticed her, flashing a little smile that Amy responded to with a wave before she had to get into her next round of poses.
Amy watched, silently, unobtrusively, off to one side, fascinated to see Luisa at work.
It was a whole different side to her, serious, professional, in her element.
.. the way she interacted with the photographer and others on the shoot, the way they took her views into account, it was clear that in this world she had gravitas and people listened.
Finally, after maybe twenty minutes, they took a break and she came over grinning, giving Amy a big hug.
"Welcome to my world," Luisa said, turning and gesturing. "You've put your bag in the room?"
"Yes, all good thanks." Amy looked around. "Am I ok to watch? I don't want to put you off, and I don't want to get in the way."
"Of course, I want you to." She paused and lowered her voice. "I have to do some scenes with Bel later, both of us posing together. In case you want to... I guess, if you want to miss that bit?"
"Do you want me to?"
"No, not at all. But I wanted you to feel like you have the option and I wanted to be honest.”
Amy smiled. "Thank you, I appreciate that, but I'd like to watch as much as I can. I need to do some work too, but I'd really like to see more of you in this world, it's fascinating. Is it a problem if I’m sat on my laptop nearby?”
Luisa beamed in delight. "Not at all. Look, I need to get back to it but let me introduce you to one of the assistants. They'll take care of you when I'm busy." She led Amy over and made some introductions, leaving her in the assistant's safe hands.
***
It was late afternoon when Luisa and Bel were due to pose together, and while Amy waited to one side as Luisa got her latest outfit on and had her makeup touched up, she felt her tension rising.
Not for any particular reason, she realised, but simply because she hadn't seen Bel all day, she'd been doing scenes elsewhere, and Amy had missed lunch to catch up on her work, and, well.
.. it was only natural to feel a bit tense after what she'd walked in on the night before, even if it had all been rationalised.
She saw Luisa come back, looking stunning as ever, another bikini with a patterned shirt on top, open at the waist. And then she saw Bel emerge, walking from another direction, exchanging a brief smile with Luisa before talking to one of the stylists.
Amy watched her, getting her first real look at Bel, and at the very least couldn't fault Luisa for taste... Bel was stunning, absolutely stunning. Beautiful, yes, but it was the way she carried herself that made her so much more. There was an intensity and a confidence that kept on drawing Amy’s eye to her, even when she tried to look away… it was just there.
Her dark hair was long and straight, falling below her shoulders, and her body.
.. Amy had seen it the night before, all of it, but she hadn't really been focusing on Bel in the room back then.
In the bikini that she was wearing for the shoot Amy could see that she was slim and athletic, with a core that spoke to a lot of work.
She was fairly tall, an inch or two taller than Amy and Luisa, long limbed, stunning.
This is ridiculous, Amy thought as she watched both Bel and Luisa get ready.
I’ve got a silly crush already on Bel, just from seeing her last night and now.
She knew that a psychologist would have a field day breaking down her head at that exact moment, developing a crush on the insanely hot model who you'd walked in on having sex with your girlfriend, but she didn't care.
She could understand, certainly, why Luisa talked about her how she did. And she hadn't even spoken to Bel. Yet.
She watched as Luisa walked over to Bel and talked to her, easy, confident, talking like the old acquaintances that they were.
There was some gesturing, Bel said something and Luisa laughed, and Amy really started to appreciate their dynamic properly.
.. it really was something that the two of them did and didn't take any further.
There was nothing, nothing whatsoever, to suggest that anything had happened between them last night, or that Amy had walked in on them, or that Luisa had spent the rest of the night in a deep conversation with Amy.
Nothing. They were two models who worked together, friends, and that was it.
The definition of friends-with-benefits.
At that moment Amy felt relief, a huge sense of relief.
It was proof, she realised, that Luisa hadn't been putting any spin on her whatever-it-was with Bel when they'd talked the night before.
Not that she didn't trust Luisa, but it was human nature to put a more positive take on something that you wanted or something that might portray you in a bad light.
Luisa said something and looked over at Amy, and Bel turned and looked too, their eyes making contact.
They held each other’s gaze for a second or two, but then Bel surprised Amy.
.. she smiled. Not a broad smile, it was a slight smile but it reached her eyes, and the expression it conveyed could best be described as respectful and conciliatory.
Not hostile, like she was a competitor for Luisa, not smug, like she'd claimed Amy's girlfriend from her, nothing like that.
It was much better than that. Amy smiled back, trying to convey the same emotions but well aware that, unlike Bel, she didn't smile for a living.
Then Bel looked away and the photos started, and Amy watched enthralled.
They'd clearly worked together enough times to have a sixth sense for what each of them was doing and how the other could complement them, and they worked well as a team.
Amy had to admit she felt more than a little jealous on occasion, when there was a hand here or a leg there that seemed to cross the boundary a little, but she understood that these were all professionals doing what they needed to do.
The shoot went on for a while, but Amy didn't care. She could have watched two professionals like Luisa and Bel performing like that all day long.
***
When they finished, Luisa came back over and greeted Amy again with a long hug. "Did you enjoy it?"
"I did... I surprised myself considering who you were posing with, but I really did."
Luisa smiled happily. "I'm really glad. I'm going to go and get changed, how about we meet back in the room and then we can go for dinner? I've got a recommendation for a really romantic place."
"That sounds perfect." Amy paused, looked around conspiratorially, then lowered her voice. "Do you think you could... borrow, I guess... the black bikini with the gold chain you had on this morning?"
Luisa looked at her grinning, her eyes narrowed. "Why...?" she whispered.
Amy blushed. "You know why... don't make me spell it out."
"Ok," Luisa replied, laughing as she walked away, her voice back to normal volume. "I'll see what I can do."
Amy watched her go, shamelessly enjoying the sight of Luisa in a small bikini from behind as she headed to get changed.
***
A few minutes later Amy was heading back to the room, mind not thinking about much at all, when she rounded a corner to see Bel stood near the entrance to the hotel, drinking from a bottle of water.
She was changed already, wearing a dress, but still looking impossibly beautiful.
.. there was no mistaking her profession.
On instinct, and also if she was honest with herself because it was the only way to get to the room, Amy headed towards her, stopping in front of her, close enough to be heard but careful not to be so close as to seem confrontational or aggressive.
Bel looked at her, a neutral expression that gave nothing away, nothing at all.
"It's ok," Amy said simply.
Bel arched a brow, silent but sceptical. A conciliatory smile exchanged at a distance was one thing, talking to each other something else altogether.
“What happened. You and Luisa. It was within the boundaries we set.” She paused. “It shocked me, I didn’t expect it, but maybe I should have. Either way, it wasn’t your fault.”
Bel looked at her as she took a sip of water. "You might want to tell Luisa that."
"Me and her are figuring it all out, that's all. She knows."
Bel studied Amy for a long moment, then inclined her head, a gesture that was respectful. "We're not rivals, you and I," Bel said eventually.
"Thank you, I appreciate that." A thought leapt into Amy's head and she acted on instinct before she could think about it any further. "Would you like a drink?"
She wasn't sure that anything could pierce the cool exterior that Bel portrayed, but it seemed that Amy had managed to surprise her. Her eyebrows shot up. “A drink?"
"Yeah... what harm can it do?" Amy replied with a shrug.
Bel thought about it. "Ok," she said, finally. "But we're not talking about Luisa. We don't talk relationships.”
Amy grinned. “Deal.”