Chapter 32
CROSS
Ibent to straighten Joey’s tie and smooth back his blond hair. The hairdressers had put gel in it, to my dismay. But I had to admit, it was pretty freaking cute. I took him by the hand and led him, in line with the other models, to the backstage curtain where we were to wait for our cue. I crouched down to his level.
“Okay, little man. What are we gonna do here?”
“Hold Daddy’s hand,” he said, holding out his arm to prove he knew what he was doing.
“Good boy. And you will not let go, right?” I asked.
“Nope, no, no. Daddy’s hand.”
He shook his head, knocking a few gelled strands of hair out of place. I hoped the hairdresser wouldn’t notice—he looked even better a little mussed.
The audience went silent, and the stage lights dimmed. The music cued, and Kealy ran over to me, clipboard in hand.
“Are my guys ready?” she asked, flashing Joey and me her brilliant smile.
I looked down at my guy, who just gazed back up at our girl. He adored her just like the rest of us did.
“Okay.” She gave me a quick peck on the cheek and went down the line checking in with the other models.
The stage manager pulled back the curtain and waved at my Joey and me. My boy and I walked hand in hand to the opening, and when the lights came up on the runway, we started to walk.
I’d never done a show before with a kid, much less my son, so it was a good thing we practiced. The little dude could only walk so fast, but his smile was bright and his poise impeccable. When the audience began its oohs and aahs at seeing him dressed just like me, only in smaller clothes, he started to wave back at them like he was in a freaking parade.
I guess to him, that’s what it was.
When we got to the end of the catwalk, the camera flashes were like nothing I’d ever seen before. I was a seasoned model, used to being photographed. But I’d never seen the fashion press go crazy like this before. Nervous about how Joey would react, I bent to pick
him up, smiling the whole way, and carried him on my hip, with one arm, the rest of the way back up the catwalk. I stopped in the middle as we always did to turn to give the audience one more look, when I decided to ham it up a bit. I gave Joey a quick kiss on the cheek, and he nestled his head onto my shoulder.
It was fucking perfect, and the crowd went wild.
It had been Forest’s idea to do a daddy-and-me collection of mini duds for Kealy’s debut show. Who knew if there was a market for them, but we sure as hell were the darlings, if only for a moment, of the fashion industry.
Forest had been one of Kealy’s biggest supporters when she told him she wanted to go out on her own. I had to hand it to him. A lot of other bosses would have been dicks about something like that.
“Oh, my god, it was just perfect!” Kealy said, jumping up and down like a kid. “Did you like it, Joey?” she asked, crouching to his level.
“Joey is model,” he said shyly, ducking behind my legs.
“Guess it runs in the family,” Kealy said to me.
One of her staff tapped her on the arm. “Kealy, we have a broken zipper over here. We need you.”
She gave me another kiss on the cheek and sprinted off, probably to try and fix something Rand had made a mess of. He was always busting buttons and zippers at these shows. I loved the guy but he had all the finesse of a rhino. Off the runway, that was.
Shane and Marlon returned from their strut on the catwalk and rushed to their changing stations for their next get-up. I had no changes in this show, I guess because they wanted to keep Joey and me in matching outfits. It was fun to watch the backstage hustle and bustle for a change, rather than being in the middle of it. I brought Joey over to the snack table, which was always a waste because models barely ate, and let him chow on a donut. He normally wasn’t allowed sweets, but I knew it would keep him happy and quiet, at least for the fifteen minutes or so left in the show.
Marlon waved me over after he exited the stage. He was done with his outfit changes, so just had to wait until the last walk when we all went down together, before he got back in his street clothes.
“Dude, you and the little man rocked it,” he said, wiping some sugar off the corner of Joey’s mouth with his thumb.
“Uncle Mar,” Joey said. “Donut.” He patted his potbelly, and Marlon gave him a kiss on the cheek.
Joey might be without his mother, but there would be no lack of love in his life.
“Never thought I’d hit the runway with my kid, but I loved every second of it. I can’t wait to do it again.” I took in the controlled chaos surrounding us. “It’s amazing, Marlon. I mean, look at all this,” I said, gesturing at the room.
Racks full of Kealy’s new designs, the fashion press, makeup artists and models, photographers—she’d not only pulled it all off, but she had done so to major accolades from industry movers and shakers.
A thunderous applause erupted from the audience, signaling the end of the show. We hustled up to the curtain where Kealy and the other guys waited for us. She extended her hands to Cross and Marlon. I positioned Joey between Shane and myself, and we each took one of his hands.
The stage manager pulled back the curtain to let us on the runway, and we joined Kealy as she bowed, waved, and threw kisses to an audience giving her a standing ovation.
It was the first time she’d appeared in public with the four of us guys since she’d agreed to let us share her.
And it wouldn’t be the last.