Jackie blinked. “He’s nervous? Why didn’t he tell me he was nervous?”
Antonio thought it was cute to see Jackie a little off her game. “First off, you’re scary. Secondly, he doesn’t want to disappoint you. Especially after the strings you pulled to get this deal.”
Jackie’s mouth opened, then closed. “I’m not scary. Just…honest.”
“Is that what you call it?”
Before Jackie could snap at him, the photographer began to yell. “Wonderful, PJ, darling! Let’s break for ten so we can reset, shall we?”
As the crew scrambled to get things in place for the next shot, PJ strolled over to where Jackie and Antonio were standing. As he got closer, Antonio noticed that not only was PJ shining like a brand-new penny, but he was also glittery. What the entire hell?
PJ dapped up Antonio, glitter flying everywhere. “You made it, man. So, what you think?”
“Uhm.” Antonio looked at PJ, and then at Jackie, who was scowling at him. “It’s different.”
PJ frowned, then turned to Jackie. “I told you this look was a bad idea.”
“Louis St. Jean is a visionary photographer, PJ! He doesn’t have bad ideas. The man has shot forVogue, Harper’s Bazaar. All the big magazines!”
“So, what’s the vision? Glittery unicorn?” asked Antonio.
“Here.” Jackie shoved her empty coffee cup into the hands of a crew member that was passing by, then turned to Antonio. “For your information, smart ass, a unicorn has one horn. PJ is dressed as Pan. From Greek mythology.”
“The goat man with the flute?” Antonio was officially and thoroughly confused. What the hell did a flute-playing goat-man have to do with the hottest shoe of the season? What did it have to do with PJ?
Jackie was looking at Antonio as if he was a dumber than a bag of rocks. “Yes! He is also associated with the sound of that flute, called a ‘Panic.’ Like PJ’s nickname. PJ ‘The Panic’ Dawson.”
“Oh, I see.” Antonio, in fact, did not see. He also thought PJ’s nickname was terrible: The Panic? It made it sound like he was a scary shooter or something, which was far from the truth. He looked around the studio. “But where is the shoe? Shouldn’t the shoe be prominent in the ads?”
Jackie sighed. “Louis said that he’ll add the shoes in post. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“That makes no sense,” Antonio said. “Ballers wear and advertise the shoes. What’s the point?”
“Listen.” Jackie put her hands on her hips. “New Balance had to pull a lot of strings to get Louis to shoot this. He doesn’t typically do ads. He’s a high-fashion photographer.”
“Well, that’s evident in his approach,” said Antonio. He turned to the glitter-laden PJ. “Are you cool with this?”
PJ shrugged. “I mean, I get it, I guess. I was kind of hoping to be in the shoe in some of the photos.”
Antonio looked at Jackie. He didn’t want to do this, and lord knew he was already skating on thin ice. But this was PJ. He did not have a lot of practice standing up for himself. “I’ll handle it.”
Jackie whipped her head in his direction. “No the hell youwon’t!”
But Antonio was already walking toward the photographer, with Jackie hissing at his back.
Antonio adjusted his tie before speaking. “Excuse me, Mr. St. Jean?”
Louis St. Jean glanced up from his seat. He looked Antonio up and down. “And who might you be, handsome?”
“Antonio Steele, Athletics Management Worldwide.” Antonio extended his hand, and Louis took it, shaking gingerly.
“I thought the fierce one in the white was his agent?” asked Louis, pointing toward Jackie.
“She is.” Antonio looked over his shoulder at Jackie, who looked like she wanted to knock his head off his shoulders. “I’m her colleague. Here to support the team. Your reputation precedes itself, Mr. St. Jean. That shoot you did last year—GQ, right?—was impeccable. Awe-inspiring, truly. New Balance is lucky to have you.”
Antonio had no idea if Lous had done a shoot for GQ last year. It just seemed like a magazine that this pretentious guy would work for.
“Thank you. GQ doesn’t pay me enough for the magic they expect from me. So little time. So little talent. But not with PJ! PJ is just wonderful, darling! The boy is a natural in front of the camera! Just look at him, gorgeous.” Louis beamed as he angled a digital camera toward Antonio.
