Amber could never have imagined what was in store for her. Positioned in front of Emma, she couldn’t see her expressions. She was also feeling very confident, so when she heard the photographer and his staff clapping and cheering, she actually thought they were applauding for her.
The shoot went on through several poses, each one with Amber in the foreground. In many of them, she was partially blocking Emma. Despite her position, Emma managed to steal everyone’s focus with her incredible ability to convey just the right emotion.
After the final set of photos was complete, the photographer and his assistants once again applauded Emma’s amazing performance. Amber, smiling and nodding her head in acknowledgment, accepted all the cheers as if they were meant for her.
When she left the studio to change, Danilo finally had a chance to talk to Emma. “Amber is really annoying to work with, but I won’t say anything more about that. But once the magazine’s front cover is released and everyone sees you two, the difference will be obvious. She’s not going to be able to hide from the truth. That’s going to be quite a slap in the face for her. You, on the other hand, are phenomenal.”
Danilo had been around a long time and was well respected in the industry. Emma took his opinion seriously. “Thank you,” Emma smiled. “I really appreciate that coming from you.”
“No need for thanks. You really are the most skilled model I’ve ever worked with. You’re definitely as good as any of the international superstars,” Danilo gave her a thumbs up. “The issue will be released next Wednesday. I’m looking forward to it. I think you’ll be igniting quite a trend.”
“That’s not something I can control,” Emma said seriously. “All I can do is give it my best shot.”
Emma knew the industry had no shortage of hard-working people. So many artists had talent and skills, but most of them never got very far in this field. You also needed a lot of luck.
Back in the dressing room, Amber jumped into Nathan’s arms as she excitedly told him about how the photographer and his staff had actually applauded her. Nathan wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. He knew now that she would succeed. Unfortunately, he had no idea that all the applause had been for Emma.
Just then, Emma entered the room, and the stylist and makeup artist gave her big smiles. “You really are the best model I’ve ever seen,” the stylist said in Spanish. Amber didn’t understand the words. After all, her Spanish was non-existent. But Nathan understood that Emma was receiving praise.
The stylist knew that Amber didn’t speak Spanish and assumed that Nathan didn’t either. She gestured toward Amber and said, “I really can’t believe that woman is your colleague. She can’t possibly call herself a model. She has no professional skills at all and thinks way too much of herself. She even thought we were all clapping for her. I think there’s something wrong with her.”
After the stylist left, Nathan said, “Amber, are you sure the photographer was applauding for you?”
“Nathan, don’t you believe me? Go ask him. Take my word for it. I’m going to be the savior of Secret magazine.”
Nathan just stared at Emma for a moment. He couldn’t stop thinking about what the stylist had just said. He felt uneasy. But the front cover had already been shot. There was nothing more to be done. Even if Amber hadn’t stood out, at least she would still be appearing in an international magazine. That had to help her chances at the Top 10 Model Awards.
Now Lisa entered the room and said excitedly to Emma, “Do you know what Danilo just said? He said that during her solo shoot, Amber looked like she was trying to get it on with the camera. No matter what he asked her to do, Amber wiggled.”
Out of Nathan’s embrace, Amber stormed over to Lisa. She raised her hand to hit her, but Emma reacted quickly and pulled her out of the way, then grabbed onto Amber’s wrist.
“What do you think you’re doing? If you have the guts, tell her to repeat what she just said,” Amber said threateningly as she shook her hand loose from Emma’s grip and pointed at Lisa with a sneer.
“Emma, I know you weren’t satisfied with having to stand in the background today, but you’re wearing black, so that was your only option,” Lisa swapped positions with Emma, standing in front to protect her.
“Amber, I’m not gonna waste my time with you anymore. It doesn’t matter if the photography team was impressed by you or disappointed by you. We’ll all find out what the public thinks next Wednesday.”
“Fine. When that day comes, you’ll see who’s the real professional here,” in her rage, Amber swept her hand across the makeup table, swiping bottles, lipsticks, and brushes onto the ground. Glass shattered and bounced on the floor, with a few shards raising and hitting Emma in the legs. In an instant, her legs were covered with small dots of blood.
Lisa erupted, “Amber, are you crazy? You’ve injured Emma’s legs! Do you know how much you’re worth? You better apologize right now!”
“Apologize?” Amber looked at Lisa like she’d said something ridiculous. “You’re dreaming, Lisa.”
Emma held her back. “Call my insurance company and ask them to come see the evidence. There’s no need for Amber to apologize, but the insurance company won’t let this matter go so easily. I’d say it’s likely they’ll sue the person who injured me.”
Nathan’s face turned pale. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about my legs. I now have an extremely expensive insurance policy for them. If Amber doesn’t apologize, that’s fine. I’ll just let the insurance company handle it.”
“Emma, I never thought you could be this malicious,” Nathan said to Emma. Hearing him call it an accident, Emma grabbed a bottle of makeup remover and smashed it right in front of Amber. Now Amber’s legs had small cuts all over them.
“You’re right, this was totally an accident too. My hands must have been slippery,” Emma responded with a slight smile.
“Who do you think you are? You want me to retreat from modeling because of you? Wow, you really think a lot of yourself,” Amber stood for a moment in shock, looking down at her legs. Then a sly smile came over her face as she said, “Let’s make a bet. The magazine will be out next Wednesday. I’ll let the public go wild for me, and when they do, you’re gonna retreat from the modeling industry and never come back.”
Emma responded with a slight smile, “Who do you think you are? You want me to retreat from modeling because of you? Wow, you really think a lot of yourself.”
Emma turned and left the room with Lisa right behind her. As the door shut behind them, they heard Amber scream with rage and frustration.
“Emma, I’m so sorry. I obviously misjudged the situation. I should never have repeated the photographer’s comments,” Lisa said.
“That’s all right. Even if you hadn’t mentioned what Danilo said, Amber would still have found a way to make trouble for me. Let’s just wait and see what happens next Wednesday. I’m feeling pretty good about what’s coming.”
