Model Behaviour Read online

  Contents

  Cover

  About the Book

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  About the Author

  Also by Jo Cotterill

  Copyright

  About the Book

  ‘I’m going to be the only one with a rubbish work experience.’ Her eyes filled with tears again. ‘It is so unfair.’

  Lola Cassidy has it all. Model looks, fabulous friends – life is perfect …

  Until she finds herself Ugg-deep in mud at the local animal sanctuary, that is.

  But will the week show Lola that there’s more to life than handbags and highlights? And could the mysterious Harry, a boy with his own special talents, change the way she looks at the world?

  For everyone at the Oxfordshire

  Animal Sanctuary, with thanks

  Chapter 1

  such an opportunity!

  ‘I CAN’T WAIT,’ exclaimed Lola, stepping into the crystal-clear water and letting herself sink gradually into its warmth. ‘Do you think they’d let me design something? I’ve got this idea for a new bag, you see …’

  ‘You don’t know which department you’ll be working in, though,’ her best friend Naiha pointed out. ‘You might be put in something really boring, like Pattern Cutting.’

  Lola floated on her back and looked up at her friend. They were both tall and slim and beautiful, but Lola was all English Rose with her pale skin and long blonde hair, whereas Naiha’s Indian heritage gave her skin the colour of chocolate milkshake and hair as glossy and black as treacle. ‘I wouldn’t mind. Pattern cutting is really important. But I hope Marisa lets me work in Design.’

  ‘It’s lucky your mum is friends with her. I mean, work experience at Mulberry is, like, really hard to get.’ Naiha kicked off her flip-flops and dropped her towel onto a bench. She was wearing a bright yellow bikini, in contrast to Lola’s red gingham swimming costume. ‘I hope the water is warmer today.’

  ‘It is.’ Lola grinned. ‘I shivered so much after our last swim, Corin thought I’d caught a chill. He came and turned up the thermostat straight away.’ The two girls laughed.

  ‘Your stepdad is a big softy,’ said Naiha, stepping carefully into the water. ‘He’d buy you the moon if you wanted it.’

  ‘I know. But it’s not just me. He’s soft with everyone. Mum says it’s a wonder that his health clubs haven’t all gone bankrupt because he’s not tough enough for business.’ Lola smiled. ‘He’s sweet. I can hardly remember what it was like before he came along, to be honest. Louder, I think – and Mum was a bit wilder. But he’s a great stepdad, even if he does bang on about having five fruit and vegetables every day. And exercise, of course.’

  ‘You are so lucky to have a pool in your house,’ Naiha said enviously. ‘I’ve been trying to tell Mum we need one too, but she just rolls her eyes and comes out with one of her Indian proverbs. “The money you dream about won’t pay the bills”, or something like that.’

  ‘I thought your dad sent money from India?’

  ‘He does. He’s rolling in it! But Mum’s always tutting and saying he doesn’t give her enough. Do you know how much his last film made? Millions!’

  Lola swam lazily around in a circle. ‘Bet you can’t wait to see him next week.’

  ‘I totally can’t. It’s actually happening, Lola. For, like, the first time ever, I’m actually going to see him at work! And he says he’ll introduce me to Mallika Shan!’

  ‘Who?’

  ‘You know, that amazing Bollywood actress? The one I said was like the Cameron Diaz of the Indian film world?’

  ‘Oh, right. Yeah, I remember.’ Lola wasn’t entirely sure she did, but she didn’t want to upset her friend. Naiha talked about her father’s films a lot, and sometimes Lola found it hard to stay interested. ‘When did you last see your dad?’

  Naiha pulled a face. ‘Not for ages. I was supposed to be going out there last summer, but …’

  ‘I know.’ Lola felt sorry for her. Naiha’s dad wasn’t the most reliable of people and her friend had been let down badly last year. ‘But it’s all sorted this time, isn’t it? You’re really going!’

  Naiha grinned. ‘Miss Bourne’s face when I said I was going to do my work experience in Bollywood! She nearly fell off her chair!’

  ‘I don’t think she’s used to glamorous stuff,’ replied Lola.

  ‘You can tell that by her hairstyle,’ said Naiha, rolling her eyes.

  ‘Naiha! Don’t be mean!’

  ‘It is awful, though – come on. That thick fringe.’ Naiha shuddered.

  Lola couldn’t help smiling. ‘It is a bit dire. I bet Shallika whatshername wouldn’t be seen dead with her hair like that.’

  ‘Mallika Shan. Honestly, Lola, you’re so dippy, you never remember anything.’

  ‘I remember things that are important,’ said Lola in a teasing voice. Then she giggled, and Naiha did too. ‘So, do you think you’ll get to be in a scene in your dad’s film?’

  ‘That’s what I’m hoping,’ agreed Naiha. ‘I thought I’d just hang around the edges and then, when they’re saying, Oh no, we need another person here, but there isn’t anyone … I’d step in and say, “I’m here! I can do it!”’

  ‘That would be the most amazing thing ever.’ Lola’s eyes shone. ‘I’d love to be in a film.’

  ‘Me too.’ Naiha sighed.

  Both girls silently contemplated their reflections in the shiny ceiling. The pool room was large, with a pair of white pillars at one end. Several reclining pool chairs took up the space along one wall, and two changing rooms and a sauna occupied the other end. Naiha sighed again.

  ‘If I could get on a model agency’s books, it would be a great way into films. Can’t you talk to your people again?’

  Lola pulled a face. ‘I did try, Naiha. It’s not my fault they said no.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘Besides,’ added Lola kindly, ‘it’s not as if I do much modelling work myself yet.’

  ‘Not as much as meee!’ came a voice from the steps leading up to the kitchen, and Sienna Cassidy, Lola’s younger sister, came bouncing down. ‘Did I tell you I’m going to do another H&M shoot?’

  Lola felt hurt. ‘Why didn’t they ask me?’ The two girls had signed with the same agency three years ago. It had seemed a natural thing to do, following in their mother’s footsteps, and it was good fun, trying on the clothes and posing for the camera. But recently, Sienna had been called for more jobs than Lola, and it was beginning to rankle.

  ‘You’re too old.’ Sienna stuck out her tongue. ‘They were looking for twelve-year-olds.’

  ‘Oh.’

  ‘H&M is all right,’ said Naiha. ‘They’ve got some good stuff.’

  ‘Yeah, it’s cool!’ Sienna beamed. Like Lola, she had straight blonde hair and long legs. ‘And last time they let me keep some of the clothes.’ She jerked a thumb towards the stairs. ‘Corin’s out this evening and Mum says she can’t be bothered to cook, so we’re having Thai takeaway.’

  Lola cheered up. ‘Brilliant. Can we have some of that raita bread?’

  ‘I expect so. Mum’s just bunged in the same order as we had last time, I think. She’s still working on the launch. Says the caterers are charging far too much and she’s mad at Cleo for hir
ing them.’

  Lola and Sienna’s mother, Helena Cassidy, had been a successful model in the 80s and since then had dabbled in almost every area in the fashion world, from shoes to bags, make-up to accessories. Her latest project was ‘Helena’s Whisper’, a new perfume to add to her range which already included ‘Helena’s Blush’ and ‘Helena’s Kiss’. The perfume was due to be launched in six weeks at a swanky hotel, and Helena was spending hours every day on the phone or computer in her study, alternately cajoling and threatening her personal assistant.

  ‘I’m coming in,’ Sienna announced, before disappearing into a cubicle and emerging seconds later clad in a sky-blue tankini with silver sequins on the straps.

  ‘That’s mine!’ exclaimed Lola.

  ‘Not any more,’ Sienna told her. ‘It fits me perfectly.’

  Lola frowned at her sister. ‘You should have asked.’

  ‘What for? You didn’t ask when you borrowed my straighteners yesterday.’

  ‘What have you got planned for next week?’ asked Naiha hastily, anxious to ward off a sisterly argument.

  ‘Shopping, mostly.’ Sienna shrugged. ‘Meeting up with my friends. Watching loads of TV and going to Pret.’

  ‘Boring,’ commented Lola, though secretly she was jealous of her sister’s plans for half term. It sounded like the sort of thing she’d have liked to do herself, if she hadn’t been going to work at such a prestigious design house. She felt her stomach flutter with excitement again. Mulberry! It was such an opportunity! She adored textiles, photography and art at school – surely the perfect combination for a future career in fashion? And she’d finally get to see behind the scenes; perhaps be able to decide whether design was more important to her than modelling … it was so hard to choose!

  ‘It sounds cool,’ said Naiha. ‘You know I’m going out to India to work with my dad, don’t you? For work experience.’

  ‘Yeah, I know, you’ve only told me about fifty times.’ Sienna grinned. ‘Have you started packing?’

  ‘I have, actually,’ Naiha told her. ‘But I’ve already filled two suitcases and I haven’t even packed shoes yet!’

  ‘Bollywood,’ said Sienna, shaking her head in wonder. ‘So cool. Much cooler than Hollywood.’

  ‘Totally.’ Naiha nodded. ‘Hollywood is so yesterday. Isn’t it, Lola?’

  ‘Hm?’ Lola blinked. She had been in the middle of imagining her first day at Mulberry. ‘What?’

  Naiha laughed. ‘Earth to Lola, come in, Lola!’

  ‘Sorry, I was miles away.’ Lola looked embarrassed. ‘What did you say?’

  ‘I said Bollywood is cooler than Hollywood, right?’

  ‘Oh – oh, yeah.’ Lola knew Naiha wanted her to agree, so she did. But she wasn’t entirely sure why Bollywood was better …

  ‘So you’ll be out there, mixing with the stars,’ said Sienna with a sigh, ‘while Lola jams herself onto the Tube in London and tries not to breathe in.’

  ‘The Tube isn’t that bad,’ said Lola defensively. ‘And anyway, it’s only three stops from Quinn’s place.’

  The eldest of the Cassidy girls, Quinn was twenty and lived in her own flat in London. Lola and Sienna envied her more than anything because Quinn was a successful model, sometimes doing shoots in exotic locations like Iceland or Antigua. She had agreed to put Lola up for the week while she was on work experience, and Lola couldn’t wait to stay with her sister.

  ‘I wish I was staying with Quinn,’ Sienna said.

  Lola felt warm inside. ‘She said she’d take me to this really amazing design gallery, where they show stuff by new designers – you know, graduates. Sometimes you can buy their creations too.’ The excited feeling in her stomach grew, like a bubble. She hadn’t told anyone, but Lola was planning to pack a couple of her own designs too – a bag and a belt – that she’d created all by herself. How amazing would it be if one of the London people liked her work! ‘You’re an undiscovered talent …’ they would say. ‘As soon as you finish school, you must come and work for us …’

  ‘Lola.’

  ‘Hm – what?’

  Naiha was shaking her head. ‘You’re doing it again. Didn’t you hear me?’

  ‘Sorry.’ Lola pulled a face. ‘I don’t know what’s got into me today. I’m too excited about next week, that’s all.’

  Naiha rolled her eyes. ‘Sienna was saying Quinn went to a Lady Gaga party the other weekend. For her latest single.’

  ‘Did she?’ Lola felt hurt. Quinn hadn’t told her that – or had she? Had Lola been daydreaming again and missed it?

  ‘She got papped,’ said Sienna importantly. ‘You know, photographed by the paparazzi.’

  ‘I do know what it means …’

  ‘And she said it ended up in a London magazine! Her, standing next to Marvin from JLS and she hadn’t even realized!’ Sienna did a half-hearted attempt at front crawl for a few strokes, and then turned to announce, ‘I might be a fashion journalist when I grow up.’

  ‘I thought you were going to be a model,’ said Naiha.

  ‘Yes, I am. Well, probably. But I’d like to write for magazines too. You know they get free stuff sent to them all the time? Just for writing reviews of things.’

  ‘You hate writing!’ Lola pointed out.

  ‘I hate writing at school,’ argued her sister. ‘That’s not proper writing, though, is it? I mean, I can’t do a review of Maybelline’s latest mascara for school, can I?’

  Lola grinned. ‘Don’t think the teacher would like it.’

  ‘No. Especially if it was meant to be about Romeo and Juliet.’ Sienna giggled. ‘I had to read the balcony scene yesterday with Rufus. It was sooo embarrassing.’

  ‘Hello!’ came a voice from the stairs.

  ‘Hello, Samir!’ the three girls called back. ‘We’re down here,’ added Lola. It was a nice surprise to see her boyfriend – Samir was always cheerful and he never failed to tell her she looked good.

  Samir came down the steps, grinning. ‘I guessed,’ he said. His tanned skin and golden curly hair seemed to glow in the reflection of the pool. Walking down to the girls, he looked like a Greek god, even in jeans and a T-shirt. ‘Can I come in?’

  ‘Mum’s ordered Thai,’ Lola said. ‘I don’t know when it’s coming.’

  ‘OK,’ Samir said, pulling off his top. ‘Then I’ll have to be quick.’ He disappeared into a cubicle and within seconds reappeared in green swimming shorts. ‘Which part of the pool shall I bomb today?’ His mouth twisted into a mischievous grin.

  The girls shrieked. ‘Don’t you dare!’ Lola shouted. ‘I’ve got make-up on!’

  ‘I don’t want my hair wet—’ Sienna started to say, but Samir had already taken a leap from the side. Tucked into a ball, he smashed into the water, sending droplets everywhere.

  ‘You pig!’ screamed Sienna as Samir resurfaced, laughing. ‘I can’t believe you did that!’ But there was a lack of conviction to her voice. Everyone liked Samir. He was always welcome at the Cassidy house. Even Corin, who was noticeably protective of his stepdaughters, approved of Lola’s boyfriend.

  Samir swam over to Lola and reached out. The sweetie, thought Lola, he wants to kiss me! She offered her cheek, but only received a hearty splash instead. ‘Gaaah!’

  Samir laughed again. ‘Gotcha!’

  ‘You are such a pain, Samir.’ Sienna was giggling. She fancies him too, Lola thought to herself. Almost all the girls I know fancy him. But he’s going out with me! The thought that she and Samir were the ‘golden couple’ of their year made her happy. They’d only been going out for a few months, but Lola’s friends were already planning the wedding, and sometimes Lola found herself practising her married signature: Lola Hopestone had a nice ring to it …

  Sienna stood up at the shallow end and flicked her hair over her shoulder, gathering the long blonde locks in her hands and squeezing out the water. ‘Samir,’ she said, just to make sure he was watching, ‘what are you doing for work experience?’

  Lola and Nai
ha exchanged amused glances. ‘He’s working at Next,’ said Lola, her voice sympathetic. ‘Poor thing.’

  ‘It’ll be cool,’ said Samir, missing the undertone. ‘I’ll be in the menswear department.’

  ‘He’s going to be a shop assistant,’ Naiha elaborated for Sienna.

  Sienna gave Samir her most beaming smile. ‘It sounds great. Next stuff is classic.’

  Samir beamed back. ‘Yeah, it’s cool.’ At least I don’t have to worry about him fancying other girls, thought Lola to herself. He never seems to notice that they like him! ‘And it’s better than what my dad offered me. I’d rather work in a shop than sit in a boring courtroom all day.’

  ‘Isn’t someone at school doing that?’ Naiha asked Lola.

  Lola nodded. ‘Fenella. She wants to be a lawyer, though.’

  ‘Square.’

  Lola shrugged. ‘She likes that kind of thing.’

  ‘I think being in court could be kind of cool,’ Sienna interrupted, still smiling at Samir. ‘You know, all those murders.’

  ‘There are hardly any murders really,’ Samir told her. ‘So Dad says. It’s all boring stuff about not paying tax and stealing cars.’

  Sienna looked disappointed. ‘But you’re always hearing about murders on the news.’

  ‘Have you seen the new Glamour yet?’ asked Naiha, looking bored and changing the subject. ‘There’s a whole feature on dry skin in winter.’

  ‘Exactly what we were talking about last week!’ Lola said, wiping water from her eyes.

  ‘I know! We have to exfoliate more, that’s what it says.’

  ‘Boring!’ called Samir. As Lola turned to look at him, he gave her a cheeky grin. ‘Who’s first for a ducking?’

  ‘No, no, no!’ cried Lola as Samir dived under the water and headed towards her. ‘My mascara’s not waterproof!’

  But it was too late – Samir had already reached her legs and given a big tug. Lola slipped and sank under the water, her blonde hair floating out around her head like a halo. She surfaced, gasping. ‘You idiot! I’m going to look like a panda now!’

  Samir surfaced beside her. ‘You always look beautiful to me.’

  ‘Oh, shut up.’