Chapter 7

Waking up the next morning Heloise was lying asleep beside Andrew. He slid out of bed and got dressed in his running gear. He quietly did his exercises and then left Heloise a note saying where he was before stepping out into the crisp Spring morning air. Andrew ended up back at the Tuileries where he was able to run for 40 minutes before walking back to the hotel. Quietly opening the door he found Heloise peeking out from beneath the covers.

“Have you been out running?”

“Yes, for about 40 minutes. How are you this morning?”

“I can’t believe that you have already been out for a run.”

She looked over at him and bit her bottom lip.

“Did you not want to take advantage of my naked body this morning Andrew?”

“I have no need to. You are going to come and take advantage of my naked body in the shower. I promise to wash those hard to reach parts for you.”

Andrew stripped naked in front of her but then walked into the bathroom. He was sure he heard a ‘harrumph’ sound come from the bedroom before the door was flung open and Heloise stalked into the shower.

“I thought it was the model that was supposed to be in control, toying with the student and bending him to her will?”

Andrew kissed Heloise passionately and then stepped behind her and kissed her neck.

“We both know who will be bending don’t we?”

Her gasp made him smile, Andrew couldn’t tell if it was feigned or not, but it didn’t matter. Heloise was the perfect height for him, no need to bend his knees, semi lift her off the ground, nothing like that. Heloise grabbed the shower control and bent over. Andrew fell to his knees and fought the shower spray to kiss and caress her petite pussy. Heloise had a distinctive flavour, pungent but not unpleasant. Once he had her prepared he had to step out the shower, dripping water everywhere to find a condom. Rushing back into the warmth of the shower, he was all wrapped up and ready for action. As with the previous evening Andrew had to take his time on initial penetration as Heloise was very tight but patience and a turned on French model finally had him all the way in. Everything about this fuck was different for him. He had to constantly stand up straight, he was conditioned to bend his knees and instead was on the verge of tiptoes. The other significant difference was Heloise. She had a tiny arse and very slim hips, she was by far the skinniest woman Andrew had ever screwed. This is what Tanvi would have been like, only a foot taller. Now Heloise was looking over her shoulder at him, pushing back into him as he fucked her and looking adorable, sparkling eyes and dishevelled hair everywhere, so Andrew was close to popping just from the visual of her in the shower, never mind her incredibly tight pussy. But it was at moments like this that he realised he couldn’t change who he was. Andrew loved womanly curves, that wonderful visual as the waist flares wider to the hips and the bum. Was it Moira, was it Suzanne or was he just wired that way? He didn’t know but when he thought back about Heloise later he realised what he was missing, and what he needed.

All of that was for the future, the present was more than sexy enough and more than enthusiastic enough that the strength of Andrew’s orgasm caught him by surprise. Just as he stopped grunting and trying to push Heloise through the shower wall, her rapid fingering of her clit brought Heloise to a noisy orgasm of her own. Andrew slowly pulled out of her, carefully holding the base of the condom, before leaning against the wall of the shower letting the world swim back into focus. Heloise did the same, continuing to hold onto the shower control, even as she straightened up. A minute later Andrew was holding her in his arms just letting the warm water splash over them basking in the moment. When they did start washing each other it was pleasurable without going over the top. They both needed a while to recover before anything else was going to happen. When they left the bathroom they lay on the bed in the hotel robes.

“Manon was sure you would be a good lover, she will be very jealous that I got to play with her big Scottish toy.”

Andrew snorted in surprise, he had been called many things but that was a new one.

“You seem very unaffected by the life you lead Heloise. You are witty, self-deprecating and refreshingly honest. Why are you so normal?”

“I never set out to be a model, so I don’t worry about it lasting or any of these crazy things. Okay, I do want to continue to be successful now but at the start I wasn’t worried about it. It is fun, most of the time, and a part of me is honest enough to admit that I have come to adore the attention. What I have found difficult is men, I have a horrible record of being drawn to jerks. Terrible men, only interested in themselves. I have been able to be more relaxed with you, only here for a couple of days, a cute young man, you are a dalliance, a very pleasant one but a dalliance none the less. As for everything else, I am trying to plan for life after modelling. I think my father will help but I am trying to do this on my own rather than with his help. I am sure that everyone thinks he got me this job.”

Andrew realised he had no idea what Heloise’s surname was. So, he asked. She looked at him.

“You don’t know who I am?”

“I am afraid not, until the fashion show started I didn’t even know we were going to meet other people last night. Manon introduced you without a surname and it never came up in conversation.”

Heloise studied him closely.

“What a blow to my ego. I thought everyone knew who I was. Of course, you are from Britain so maybe it is not a surprise after all. Well good, it is not important.”

As they got dressed Heloise changed the subject and by the time they were in the restaurant eating breakfast he had forgotten about it. They chatted away, looking round regularly to see if there was any sign of the other two. As they walked into the lobby ready to head out and face the day the concierge came over to where they were standing to explain that Pedro and Margaux would not be joining them that day. They would see them at Hermès at 5.30. There was no indication as to what they were doing instead so Heloise and Andrew looked at each other, shrugged and played tourist. The wind had picked up and so they hurried to the mercifully short queue at the Louvre and spent the whole day there. Yes, they fought the crowds to see the Mona Lisa, in fact Andrew ended up with a decent picture of it, able to see over the sea of heads in front of him. After that though they stayed far from the madding crowds. Andrew was pretty sure they didn’t take in much of the art that they saw that day but they escaped a bitter March wind and enjoyed each other’s company.

Heloise was the youngest child of seven and although she loved her family it had not been easy for her. Being very tall from a young age, and the fact that none of the rest of the family were anything more than average height, had isolated her from both her peers and her siblings. It was only in secondary school that she was able to feel better about herself as there was a woman’s basketball team at the school and she quickly became the star. But all that changed when her parents were approached by a photographer and he explained to them the opportunities for Heloise. For her it was a chance to escape life in northern France and finally be appreciated for her height. As Andrew listened to her it was clear that being an abnormally tall girl and then woman had left scars on Heloise. Her relationship was not as bad with her family as his was but there was a distance that would take a long time to close. The thing that impressed him about her was how nice she still was in the face of all the issues that Margaux and she had outlined the previous evening. When it came to talk about him Andrew had to decide which parts of his life to emphasise and which to either minimise or ignore. Studying, school and Cambridge were easy starters as were field hockey and the OTC. All these parts of his life, both at school as well as at university, Andrew talked about but then Heloise derailed the conversation completely.

“Have you ever thought about modelling Andrew? You have the body for it.”

Andrew laughed inside but just for a moment thought about the gender role reversal. If you are a tall woman, a beautiful woman, a busty woman, then that was society. You were judged by what you looked like, facially or physically, and are treated as such from 14 years old onwards. He still remembered the comments Suzanne endured that first term at Heriot’s. So now it was him, Leslie had told him the way he looked was the equivalent of big tits. Andrew didn’t think it was as bad as that but there was some truth to it, as that moment proved. Without Pedro around there was no harm in being truthful. He really should remember to think before he spoke.

“I do model Heloise, for some female art students. It is just local amateur work.”

“Really, I was sure you would say no. Look at you, just like me.”

Andrew leaned in closer.

“Oh no, it is not like you. I am a figure model.”

Heloise laughed and clapped her hands with excitement.

“Oh Andrew, this is too much. You pose naked?”

“No, underwear or swimwear. I try and maintain some mystery.”

They were both laughing now.

“Oh, and here I was thinking you were there this intellectual, solving the problems of the world, and I find out that in addition to all that you take your clothes off for women.”

The way she said it was hilarious, it sounded so tawdry.

“The things I have to do for art!”

The fit of the giggles lasted for a long time before they calmed and the conversation continued. Andrew explained to Heloise how it all started, being approached, finally agreeing to pose for the students and how often he posed.

“You pose and study at the same time?”

She sounded incredulous. He nodded.

“I have a music stand and I rest a textbook or notes on the stand and then study as I am standing there. If they want me to be stock still then there is a first-year student who is brought along to turn my pages for me. I am not sure I could do it without the ability to study. It is not the same as sitting comfortably at the library but there is no noise or distractions just the four of them working away.”

“Did you not worry about posing in your underwear?”

“The woman who first noticed me was at the swimming pool at the same time I was. Most of the time I am in swimwear and it is no different than being at the pool. It is also painting and sculpture not photography, the statues that have been sculpted or cast, and the paintings that have been drawn, have elements of me but you could never tell it was me, most of them show my back, as if I was climbing out of a pool rather than a portrait.”

They talked as they walked but had mistimed leaving the Louvre and arrived at Hermès 25 minutes early. Heloise led Andrew upstairs to show him around. After climbing the grand staircase and traversing the long gallery they came to a set of elegant doors and through them it morphed into a standard corporate office. Heloise signed them in, she clearly knew the receptionist based on the million mile an hour French going back and forwards, before heading to the lifts and up to 4^th floor where the design department was based. Manon had a tiny office and she greeted them warmly. But then Heloise started talking rapidly in French again although from the looks and then laughs it was clear she was telling Manon about his modelling at the Art School. Manon looked reproachful as she spoke to him.

“I cannot believe you have been keeping secrets from me Andrew.”

Andrew went for a Gallic shrug rather than his more mundane British shrug.

“Come with me, let’s go and meet some people.”

Not really knowing what was happening he trailed along behind Manon with Heloise right behind him. They went through a set of large doors and were in the studio part of the department. Again, he was a spectator to rapid-fire French this time between Manon and two photographers. They both repeatedly looked over at him while conversing with Manon. She turned and came back to him.

“Will you indulge me Andrew?”

What the hell kind of question was that? Andrew looked at her without saying anything. He was tag teamed as both Manon and Heloise took him by the arm, led him over to a couch and sat on either side of him.

“Heloise told me about how you model back in England. Several people last night noticed you, your height and your physique and asked me today if you were in the industry, if you were a model. I of course told them no, you are a student just visiting here. I gave it no more thought until 15 minutes ago when Heloise was telling me about your day. She tells me that you are a figure model and pose in your underwear, yes?”

Andrew nodded mutely.

“We want to take some test shots of you.”

He finally found his voice.

“Manon, I leave tomorrow.”

“Could you extend for one or two days? We will pay for your trip if you can stay until Friday evening. You would be on an early flight on Saturday morning.”

Andrew sat on the couch, his head spinning. He had originally planned to be away in Spain until the start of the following week, no one was expecting him back in Edinburgh until then as he had never bothered updating anyone on the change of plans. What was the worst thing that could happen? He could be useless, sent on his way and Vogue et al would survive and thrive without him. And if it was a success it wasn’t like he would be changing his life goals. This would be a hobby, like train spotting but with fewer clothes.

“Okay, if you want me to stay for a couple of days then sure I can do that. But please do not mention this to Pedro tonight. I don’t need all the exaggerations at Cambridge, okay?”

They both clapped their hands in delight and Manon went over to talk to the photographers. Heloise just smiled at him, they grabbed their stuff from Manon’s office and went downstairs to meet Pedro and Margaux. They were there talking to a man dressed in a business suit. This was Manon’s fiancé Phillippe Bernard who was an accountant within the French finance ministry. She joined them less than a minute later and they had a lively evening relaxing over dinner and doing the usual meet and greet style stuff. As far as Andrew could tell Pedro and Margaux were in lust with each other and Pedro told him they had barely left the room all day. Phillippe was a serious guy but over the course of the evening Manon got him to relax. She seemed to be the perfect counterpoint to his sober disposition and he was kind and attentive to her. As for Heloise and Andrew they talked up the Louvre and he was just a typical tourist, gushing on about the things that they had seen. The evening was fun and stress-free, not something to dismiss lightly. Pedro and Andrew knew each other but didn’t know each other well, Manon and Andrew were not even that close. Andrew knew a lot about Heloise but again it was a very recent and shallow acquaintance, and then there were Margaux and Phillippe who he knew very little about other than some dinner table conversations. Andrew had been at several parties or dinner tables where the evening was long and tense rather than relaxed and enjoyable. He didn’t know if it is his shyness, his tendency to secrecy or his increasingly obvious prejudices but as he had gotten older he had always found situations like that more of an ordeal than a pleasure. That evening in Paris with four comparative strangers stood out as an exception rather than the norm.

After dinner ended the party separated quickly. Margaux and Pedro left to return to the hotel, Pedro had a morning flight to Madrid so Andrew told him he would see him in the lobby at 7.30 to say goodbye. Manon and Phillippe left at the same time to catch the RER home. There was no need for grand farewells with Manon as they had agreed to meet in her office at 9.30 the following day. That just left Heloise and having given Pedro and Margaux a head start she and Andrew also strolled back to the hotel. Heloise became quieter as they got closer to the hotel and when they got to his room she looked unsure and even nervous.