“Really… one night very soon, I want the full experience.” Luisa winked, really very keen on the idea. “I know we’ve played but I mean the full experience... so I’m going to ask you the same question you asked me. Do you want that to continue? Because I reckon we can make room for that too, if we’re open and honest with each other.”
She saw Amy think hard about this one. “If you’d asked me a couple of months ago, I'd have said yes. It… she needed some home truths about the impact of what she was doing. She’s married, has kids, and she’s done what she’s done with other women at work some of whom it hasn’t worked out well for. But she’s done something about that, and she’s started to embrace who she is. I think now, we should think about it.”
“She sounds like a mix of Bel and Julian.”
Amy laughed. “Yeah, I guess so. But look… don’t just go along with that because you feel like if you don’t you might lose me. Walking in on you and Bel earlier.” Amy hesitated. “It made me realise, I mean really realise, what you mean to me.”
Luisa smiled, relieved and curious about where this was all going. Any tension between them had dissipated, and they’d both visibly relaxed.
Luisa looked at her watch… nearly midnight.
“I think we need to pick this up more tomorrow night. Would that be ok? I’ve got an early start tomorrow and I have to remember I’m here to work.”
“Oh, of course. Look… I’m sorry I just showed up. I basically turned up at your office and expected you to be waiting around for me. I should have told you I was coming.”
Luisa shook her head emphatically. “That, Amy, is the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me. Ever.” She couldn’t help but grin. “Maybe knock first next time though?”
Amy laughed. “You want to stay at my hotel tonight? I'm not sure your room would feel right until it’s been cleaned.”
“Yeah, I’d like that. Let’s settle up and go.”
***
They chatted easily as they walked hand-in-hand for the five minute walk back to Amy’s hotel. When they got there they ignored the quizzical look from the night receptionist who’d presumably seen Amy check in alone, acting like they had everyright to be going back to Amy’s room which, Luisa reflected, they really did after all.
Luisa had nothing with her so stripped naked for bed and Amy joined her, but for once that night they simply lay there in each other’s arms, Luisa conscious of her early start in the morning and Amy exhausted from the emotional rollercoaster that evening.
As she drifted off Luisa smiled to herself… they’d just had their first crisis, and what a crisis, and she knew they were already out the other side, their bond stronger than ever.
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 hopeyou 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?"
