ransvestia

She stopped, fascinated by the feminine fingernails that he had not as yet attended to. "What do you mean?" she frowned?

"Are you going to tell your mother about me, or the other ladies, or even the newspapers?" His eyes searched the young face anxiously. Erica sat down on an overturned box. "I don't know," she said.

There was a loud knock on the door, followed by three rapid ones. Barbara Cooper burst into the room. "Dave," she said. "What did you do with the print? I've got a buyer, one of the older sister-things. Ah, there it is." She had entered the room enough to see Erica. "What's she doing here?" she said tensely.

Dave shrugged and began to coat his nails with a transparent lotion. "She walked in on me, as I was partly undressed. She used your knock."

"What are you going to do when you leave here?" asked Barbara quite belligerently.

Erica was taken aback. "I probably will inform the ladies how they have been deceived," she said haughtily.

Dave looked miserable, and Barbara Cooper nervously began to fidget with the dress she had picked up. "I'll probably come out of it all right," she said, "but I'll lose the best model I've ever had." She looked directly at Erica. "You can't do it," she said. "I need Dave for the March Collection. It's going to put me in the top flight in the country, but I need everything going for me."

Erica was dazed. "I don't know," she murmured.

"Can't we make a deal?" asked Barbara. "I heard from your mother how badly the other girls at your school treat you and your designs." She snapped her fingers. "How about if I lend you my team of models?"

Astonishment was written over Erica's face. But then her eyes became guarded. "Does that include him?" she said.

Barbara hesitated. "Do you want it to?" she asked, staring at the young girl.