“How many models does Darius normally sign after a day like this?” I asked.
“One or two. Maybe three if he’s in a good mood.”
“Wow.”
She grinned. “That about sums it up.” The printer beside her desk whirred to life and spat out several pages. She collated them into two piles and stapled them. “Two copies of the contract. One for you, one for us. Take your time to read it. It details what percentage McKay’s will take for getting you jobs, as well as all the legal stuff. What’s expected of you, what we’ll do, et cetera. Let’s make an appointment for next week so you and Darius can get them signed.”
By the time I left McKay’s, my head was spinning. I walked around the corner onto a near-deserted street before jumping and punching the air. I didn’t know who to call first. Before I’d left Leeds, I’d promised that Dillon would be the first person to know if I got signed, but Xander was my boyfriend. Surely I needed to tell him first? Unable to make a decision, I created a conference call so I could talk to them together. They picked up at almost the same second.
I couldn’t keep it in. I just had to scream. “McKay’s wants me!”
“I knew you could do it,” Xander said.
“That’s amazing!” Dillon sounded as ecstatic as I was.
“How are you feeling?” Xander asked.
“I’m not sure it’s sunk in yet. I wanted to be signed by them. Today. But I kept telling myself it wouldn’t happen this soon. And it has. And…and…wow!”
“I’m proud of you,” Xander said.
“We both are,” Dillon chipped in.
“If you lived here, you could join us for a celebratory meal,” Xander pointed out.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m thinking about it,” Dillon said.
“Think harder.”
I laughed at their banter. “I’m on my way home.”
“I’ll see you soon,” Xander said. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“Ugh. Save the lovey-dovey stuff for when I’m off the call,” Dillon said. “Congrats, Jae.”
“Thank you.”
A click told me Dillon had dropped off the call.
“Hurry home,” Xander said. “I’ve got a surprise for you.”
CHAPTERTWENTY
XANDER
When Jae got home, I jumped up and got into position at the top of the stairs. Everything was ready. The lights, the music, and my hastily made, easily removable suit.
“Hello?” Jae called.
“Upstairs, lover boy.”
His laughter floated up the stairs. “Lover boy?”
I struck a pose and waited for him to appear.
He stopped the moment he saw me. “A suit. Is this the surprise?”
