Amy and Leila were still working with Jeremy, so I headed back into changing room three to pick up the bathing suit. As Tia promised, it was there hanging on a hook next to the changing screen, and I slipped it into my purse so I wouldn't forget it. I almost missed the pink travel mug with another note in front of it. "Your shots came out amazing, congratulations!" Underneath that was another file folder, and I opened it to see even more pictures in a mix of color and black and white that took my breath away. Picking up the folder, I stuck that in my purse too, though it was so big it stuck out the top of it.

               I knew it had to have been Izzy, and I was shocked at how nice she was to me considering we'd barely spoken. I might be able to fix that though. Pulling my phone out, I thumbed down to the unknown contact that had begged me to come back to review the pictures. That had to be Izzy too, right? I added it as a new contact, then named it 'Izzy?' before deciding if I should thank her or just confirm it was her first. It would be pretty embarrassing if I thanked her, and it was Paulina or Amy's phone.

               So, I just typed out a quick 'Is this Izzy?' and let it go. I could always thank her later if that was it.

               With nothing to do, I wandered back out to the beach studio to watch the girls do some of their modelling work. They were doing a lot of team things with volleyballs and beach balls that looked like it would be more fun than doing the posing on your own. I guess it's always been my experience that you have more fun with a partner than alone. And yes, you know exactly what I mean.

               "That isn't how you hit a beach ball you fucking idiots!" Jeremy bellowed, causing both girls to look at him in shock while I tried and failed not to laugh at the stupidity of that statement. Jeremy whirled, his lip curling when he saw me. "Shut up, we don't need any comments from you!"

               "Oh, I can tell," I shot right back. "Though according to the International Beach Ball Fun Federation, they were hitting it spot on. I thought they looked like pros!"

               Now they were all looking at me like I was an alien, except Izzy who had her mouth covered by her hand while she tried not to giggle. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

               "Nothing Jeremy, nothing. I'll try to keep my tongue in cheek the next time I hear something ridiculous from you." Yes, I knew very well that I was antagonizing him. But I was trying to take the heat off the girls, so they didn't have to deal with him. I no longer cared about anything he said.

               "What is going on out here?" Tia asked, her voice raised to cut through the arguing.

               "This new girl you got shows zero respect for me!" Dickhead replied.

               I scoffed aloud. "Respect isn't given, it's earned, and you haven't done shit to earn anything from me other than scorn. Stop acting like a toddler and maybe you'll get some!"

               Well, that shut the room right up. I saw his eyes running over my body, though not in a sexy way, more of a 'let me find something to pick on way' and I just cocked a hip and waited. He opened his mouth finally to retort when Tia cut him off.

               "Jeremy. Stick to taking pictures. Maybe I should start being here for more of the shoots, since there seem to be issues lately. I don't need to lose any more models. We've already gone through too many as it is, and we're not so big that we can afford the turnover."

               His mouth flapped open and closed a few times before he turned back around and lifted his camera with a big huff. Amy and Leila had giant grins on their faces while Izzy shot me a hidden thumbs up. I felt great! If it meant that Tia would be out here for more shoots, that was a win in my book.

               I kept my mouth shut after that. I had the victory I wanted and there was nothing to be gained from doing anything else. Instead, I watched Amy and Leila work. Maybe I could learn something from seeing how they approached the poses and how they angled their bodies. They were both gorgeous, and I could see that they also knew Izzy took a lot of the photos, but they were more circumspect than I had been because they constantly shifted their gazes from Jeremy to Izzy. I guess I could try to do that, it would probably smooth over a few ruffled feathers. But did I care?

               The rest of the shoot took almost an hour, with a couple of swimsuit changes, and it was very quiet. Well, quiet on Jeremy's side anyway. He just took pictures while Amy and Leila had fun in the sand. But even the girls got quiet after a while when they started to run out of energy.

               Tia was kind enough to order a late lunch for everyone since all the employees were at the office for a change, and by the time Amy and Leila were changed back into their street clothes and the cameras were all put away, there was a nice array of Thai food for everyone to dig into. I was happy to fix a plate of dumplings, spring rolls and pineapple fried rice with shrimp and sat down to eat. Amy and Leila were even hungrier with the energy they'd expended, but Tia and Paulina were more reserved with what they'd eaten. I noticed that for all of him calling me a whale, Jeremy had about double my food, and I just snorted to myself until I noticed that Izzy wasn't around. I guess she never came back from putting away the cameras with her dad?

               "Isn't Izzy eating?" I asked aloud.

               "She wasn't feeling well, so I sent her home," Jeremy replied with a smirk that made my blood boil.

She had been perfectly fine for the shoot, so I obviously missed something. I pulled my phone out, but the potential Izzy number hadn't replied yet. Why was I suddenly so worried about her?

               But I kept eating, even as a feeling of unease fell over me. Everyone else was laughing and joking, but I just couldn't participate. Maybe I had caught whatever Izzy had, because now I didn't have an appetite either. Before long, I made my excuses and headed back to the apartment. I ate my leftover arepas when I got hungry, and sipped a glass of wine with the sunset once more. But I kept my phone close, hoping for a reply from Izzy.

I almost jumped for joy when it finally came in around 10pm. It was pretty simple, just a "Yes, this is Izzy."

I didn't know what to do next. Do I keep texting? Do I ask if she is feeling okay? I had to at least thank her for the coffee and the photos, right? As a minimum, I removed the question mark from her contact.

Me – Izzy, I can't thank you enough for the warm welcome you've given me the last few days. The coffee and notes were very sweet and a surprise both times I've been there. And the photos were stunning, I can't even believe you did such an amazing job with them!

Izzy – You're welcome

Well, that wasn't encouraging. You're welcome? What kind of reply was that?

Me – Are you okay Izzy? Your dad said you weren't feeling well.

There was no reply for nearly 20 minutes, though several times I saw the three little bubbles as she was obviously typing and erasing.

Izzy – I'm okay. Feeling better now actually. Thanks for asking. Goodnight.

Me – Goodnight.

I didn't know what to make of that conversation, though I desperately wanted to call her and talk to her. It still seemed off, and I felt horrible. Had I gotten her in trouble by mouthing off to her dad? But I didn't say anything, her goodnight had been an obvious conversation ender. I finally got to sleep, though it was a fitful one as I worried about a kid that I barely knew.

The next few days I wandered the city on my own. I did have lunch with Amy and Leila once, where Amy apologized for the naked ginger. At this point I was fine being her friend, and with Leila too, but I didn't think I'd want anything more from her at this point. Leila was very straight, though she was still single which seemed to make her sad. She was gorgeous, and seemed nice, so I had little doubt she'd find someone.

I didn't hear from Izzy though. I texted a few more times, but she never replied. Yes, I was nervous. Even Leila and Amy didn't help, as they said they hadn't seen her around either. There wasn't anything I could do though, so I started making other plans for the future.

Because I liked it here so much, I decided to stick around, not even worrying about potentially loving San Fran. I started making calls and looking at properties for potential apartments. As much as I liked the place I was in, it was just an Air bnb, and would be hideously expensive to live in full time. I needed something more economical, but prices were crazy. Don't get me wrong, Los Angeles was a lot worse, but this was the first time I was renting out here without Lylah, and I was a bundle of nerves.

I checked six different places and hated them all. Some wanted crazy deposits, one guy was hoping to share a one bedroom with me, one was just too far away, and several were just dirty. I was losing hope when I found Erin's listing.

Erin Lane was a tiny girl maybe a couple inches taller than Izzy with thick black glasses and a pair of the cutest dimples when she smiled. She had a two bedroom apartment that she was renting from her aunt who owned property all over the place and just wanted a roommate because she was lonely. The place was great, the corner of the top floor in a three floor apartment complex that had a balcony facing west for the sunsets and a nice kitchen. The bedrooms shared a wall, but I wasn't bringing anyone over, so as long as she didn't get too loud if she had someone over, we'd be fine. The rent was very affordable, and I told her I could move in as soon as I got back from San Fran. I was in business!

The next day, I hopped in my trusty car and headed north.