11. The Heat is On #2
“Nice to meet you,” Elio says, shaking her hand and flashing his signature smile.
She bites her lip and ogles him from head to toe, not even hiding it. Move over, Veronica. I’m the world champ in the ogling category.
“And this is Lucy. She works for Pulse Sports, and she’s shadowing me for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look.”
“Ah, yes,” she says, her smil e faltering slightly as she takes me in. “Your agent told me about the feature.” She offers me a nod. “It’s fine. You can stick around. We’ll just need to approve any photos you plan to use first, and you can’t divulge any details about the campaign.”
“Of course.” I smile politely.
Patrick emerges from the tent at the same time, greeting us both.
“All right. Let’s get you ready,” Veronica says. She clasps her hands, exposing her inch-long nails. As beautiful as they are, I never understood that trend. I love being fashionable, but not when it’s a disservice to my day-to-day life. How can you do anything with those on?
Elio seems to think the same thing—that or he likes them, because his eyes follow Veronica’s hands as she explains what’s expected of him. I don’t think she’s Italian, because she doesn’t have the accent. But she does like to speak with her hands.
We get introduced to the rest of the team, and I try to make myself small, finding a spot on a bench behind the crew.
A solid hour later, Elio emerges from the tent in his tracksuit. His hair is styled back, the waves even more pronounced than usual, and I can tell he’s wearing a bit of makeup.
Lance, the director, steps in and shows him and Pat a video of what they’re expecting of him, and Elio nods.
Veronica struts up to him and roams her expert eyes all over Elio’s body, apparently to make sure he looks just right.
I resist the urge to roll my eyes, especially when he tells her a joke, and she places a hand on his torso to la ugh.
Who does that? He’s not so funny that you need to hold on for dear life when he makes a joke.
Why can’t she be a bit more professional?
We get it, he’s hot. Everyone with eyes knows that.
But the rest of us manage to do our jobs without flirting every five seconds.
She places the body spray bottle on the ground next to the car before handing Elio his helmet.
He then disappears into his car and gives them the thumbs up.
“Rolling,” Lance calls from the side. “Action.”
Elio hoists himself out of the car and yanks his helmet off, placing it on the hood.
He then grabs the bottle from the floor and shakes it.
Someone starts a smoke machine as Elio walks, removing the top of his tracksuit, and Veronica almost loses her balance.
It’s a good thing I’m seated because even if I’ve seen that sculpted torso before, the effect is still there.
Especially with that flirty look he’s giving the camera, and the touch of sexiness the suit adds.
“Cut,” Lance calls, totally killing the mood. I glance around, and it’s not just Veronica and me who look affected by that sizzling display, but every female present, including one who looks old enough to be his mother.
“How was it?” Elio asks.
“Perfect,” Veronica gushes, even though he was asking Lance.
“Yes,” Lance says. “That’s what we’re looking for. I’d like to shoot a couple more takes to see what we can do. The scene will be peppered in with videos of you racing and the body shot we’ll take later in a deconstructed kind o f look, so I’d like to get as much footage as possible.”
“Sure thing.” Elio nods. After jogging back to the hair and makeup tent for a touch-up, he gives it another try, and another one.
On the fourth take, Elio runs a hand through his hair, disheveling it just enough to look effortlessly rakish.
Then, he unzips his race suit in one fluid motion, shrugging it off his shoulders with a smirk.
As he steps through the smoke, he runs his thumb along his jawline, locking eyes with the camera, beckoning as if he’s about to share a secret.
The crew erupts into gasps and cheers, applauding his performance.
“That’s my Elio,” Pat says, chuckling in front of me. “Unexpected and spontaneous.”
“That’s a good tagline,” I say with a grin.
“It is.” He laughs. “That pretty much encapsulates his brand, but for this campaign, they’re going with ‘the heat is on.’ That works too, I think.”
“Oh yeah,” I say, my eyes back on Elio and his glorious torso. The heat is on indeed.
After many, many more takes, Lance is finally satisfied with the footage, and they move on to the last portion of the commercial. Filming Elio’s body up close as he sprays himself with the product. This shot is even more entertaining, and Veronica is pretty much drooling from her front-row seat.
All too soon, it’s over, and the crew members all applaud Elio for a fantastic performance.
“That’s it?” I ask, somewha t disappointed that it’s already over. Even if I’m glad it didn’t drag out too long, since I still plan to try my luck at the town hall, I was very much enjoying the show.
“For now,” Patrick says, nodding. “Once they’re done editing the footage, he’ll go in to the studio for the voiceover.”
I clear my throat. “Oh, cool. I can’t wait to see the final result.”
Elio goes back into the tent to change, and I take the opportunity to show Veronica the photos I took so she can approve the ones I plan to use for the feature.
Elio reemerges from the tent soon after, and he chats with the crew for a bit before joining Patrick and Veronica. I stand up from my seat on the bench and join them.
“ Certo . We’d love to come. Should be fun,” I hear Elio say as I approach, and my heart quickens.
“Great,” Veronica purrs, her hand now on his forearm. Can’t she keep her hands to herself?
“You are coming too, right, Lucy?” Elio asks. “Veronica and Lance offered to grab dinner together.”
I glance at Veronica, and I can practically see the daggers coming out of her eyes, telling me to say no.
And that’s all it takes for me to nod. “Sure. I’d love to,” I say, flashing a smile. The town hall will still be there tomorrow. What’s one more day?