London by Carina Axelsson Read Free Book Online Page A

I’d met her in Paris, while solving the mystery of missing French fashion designer Belle La Lune.
    After Paris, our friendship had continued to grow. While I’d been in New York City to find a famous black diamond during Fashion Week, Ellie’s understanding of the fashion business and nearly encyclopedic knowledge of vintage clothing had been a huge help. Plus, what I loved about Ellie was that she was as excited helping me track down clues as she was shooting magazine covers. We’d become good friends, and she had proved to me that I could trust her with anything to do with my detective work.
    â€œBy the way, why are we meeting here? What are you up to?”
    I laughed. “I’ll explain once we’re across the river.”
    She untied the running jacket from around her waist and pulled it on as we walked up the stairs from the Embankment to Westminster Bridge. My idea was to see this bank from across the river, in the hope that I might notice something I’d missed from up close.
    Up close. Close-up.
    The name of the folder on the flash drive echoed through my mind. What had Gavin meant by it?
    As we walked across Westminster Bridge, Ellie and I stuck close together so we could hear each other above the sounds of the wind and the busy late-afternoon traffic. Apart from a short break midway over the bridge to take a selfie for her Instagram account, Ellie brought me up to date on what had been going on in her life. I heard all about her latest advertising campaign—one that would soon grace the pages of Marie Claire , Love , and Chic magazines, among others—and about some of the more unpredictable aspects of modeling, including a shoot she’d done the previous week before flying to Miami.
    Ellie had been booked by French Elle magazine for an editorial spread that was to be shot on the Italian island of Pantelleria. But somehow the many suitcases packed with the clothes the magazine’s stylist had pulled for the story had gotten lost in transit.
    â€œSo what did you do?”
    â€œWe ate lots of pasta and relaxed by the pool for two days and then ended up shooting the whole story in twenty hours straight—no break. At least I slept well on the plane back.” She laughed. “So how about you? Has Charlotte been keeping you busy?”
    â€œUmm-hmm.” I nodded as I tugged Halley away from the attention of a very large male boxer. Charlotte represents me and about five hundred other models, covering women, men, and new faces, not to mention a slew of famous personalities including various supermodels, actors, bloggers, television celebrities, and musicians.
    She and her brother Charlie started their agency about twenty years ago. Driven, savvy, and fiercely protective of their talent, they’d built Thunder into a well-respected and prestigious modeling and talent force. They also worked a lot with Miriam Fontaine, my Paris and New York City agent—which was why Miriam had recommended them to me. She’d set up my first meeting with Thunder so that I could see if I clicked with Charlotte and vice versa.
    Of course, with my mom along, there wasn’t going to be much chance of us not clicking. My mom was shaping up to be a typical stage mom—or whatever the modeling equivalent was (runway mom or photo studio mom?).
    Ellie was also represented by Thunder in London (and, like me, by Miriam in Paris and New York City), so she knew how much work Charlotte and Charlie could find me.
    â€œSo who’s been keeping you busy since you finished your exams?” Ellie asked, as a red double-decker bus roared past us. “What jobs have you done?”
    I told her about the Teen Chic casting I’d had earlier, and the various fittings and options I had for the week. I also told her about the two lookbooks I’d shot, one for designer Alice Temperley and the second for Topshop, and the editorial I’d done for edgy and cool Dazed magazine.