Facade

comforting presence, but as they walked through the rows of clothes, make-up and hair stations with ungodly tall, anorexic models running around in near-hysterics, Jonas was happy he was quite a calm person himself. Somehow over all the noise, he heard Nicky’s voice, although he couldn’t see him anywhere.
    “Sybilla, if you burn a hole in one of my frocks with that cigarette, you’ll never work in fashion again.” Jonas smiled at Tanna, who was throwing him an apologetic look. “Nerves are on edge. Every show is a war zone. There is nothing more important for a fashion designer than a runway show, and he does about thirty of these every year. Paris, Milan, New York, Tokyo, London. Spring and fall collections, Couture, and Prêt-a-Porter. Men and women’s lines. It never stops.”
    “It’s a good thing he has you, Tanna.” Jonas bowed to her slightly.

    34
    Zahra
    Owens
    She smiled back shyly. “And yet, I’m not enough for him.
    Obviously.”
    Jonas didn’t have time to respond. A male make-up artist with two painted girls in tow accosted Tanna.
    “He doesn’t like the make-up,” the man stated arrogantly.
    “I’m not surprised,” Tanna answered curtly. “He asked for porcelain dolls. These girls look like Paris street walkers. Think transparent skin, long eyelashes and tiny, red mouths. You are the make-up designer; you should have done your research. Now get to work!”
    Jonas had to admit he was impressed with Tanna’s strong voice and determined words, and in that moment, he understood her strength.
    Her face softened when she looked at Jonas again. “The next hour will be chaos here. After that, we’ll have to move out quickly, but there are other people to do the clean up.”
    “Can I see Nicky now?” Jonas asked her.
    She shook her head. “Believe me, you don’t want to be anywhere near him now. He’ll snap your head off for no reason.” She looked a little ashamed of admitting it. “Afterward, he’ll be tired and needy. He’ll really need you then. Look, if you’d like to watch the show, I can get you a seat at the side. If not—”
    “I’ll stay in here,” he interrupted her. “Out of sight. Until the dust settles.”
    “Well, if you change your mind, right through there,” she pointed at a curtain, “you can sneak out into the show hall. Now I’m sorry, but I have some fires to put out.” Jonas nodded and watched her walk away. He sauntered between the chairs and make-up tables, picked up a flute of champagne along the way, and moved in the general direction of where he’d heard Nicky’s voice earlier. It didn’t take Jonas long to spot him.

    Façade
    35
    Tensions were rising as the stage manager announced that the show was about to begin and that everyone should quiet down.
    Nicky was moving between the models as they lined up, adjusting how the shirts and gowns were draped on them. His touches were professional, yet intimate. He bared their shoulders, glued garments to their breasts, told them to show more skin or less, and patted them on their non-existent asses as he sent them on stage.
    He wasn’t too shy to lift skirts or peer down trousers to see why they didn’t flow as he’d intended, and the models let him, their facial expressions vacant as they prepared to step out on the catwalk.
    At the end of the show, as all the models lined up to go back on stage one last time, Jonas walked through the curtain and found a place to stand near the back. He saw them all march onto the stage, spreading out across the space. As the applause broke out, Nicky stepped through them and walked out front. He had shed the white shirt he’d been wearing and was now just clad in tight leather trousers, his bare chest only covered by thin braces and several trinkets dangling from leather strips. His hair was long and messy and, with minimal make-up, he looked entirely sexy. Jonas saw him look out at the crowd, nodding to some of the people in the front rows and applauding his models as he accepted the standing ovation.
    As he turned around, he put his arms around two of the girls and wiggled his ass at the crowd.
    Returning to the backstage area was another thing, though, and it took Jonas a good fifteen minutes to make his way through all the people leaving the hall. It gave him a chance to hear them talking about what they’d seen, and he was secretly proud to hear words like
    “highly original,” “quite imaginative,” “innovative,” and other gushing