Razel
Dazzle
A
modern twist on a long haired tale....
By
Elizabeth Morgan
Blurb:
Will
she let down her hair for the man of her fantasies?
Famous
for her long, golden hair and beaming smile, Razel D’Punz is the
hottest model in the industry. But although most women would kill to
get ahead in this profession, Razel lives an isolated life; one she
has learnt to accept...until she meets Matthew Prince, a new
photographer in the business.
Refusing
to let her mother/agent’s strict rules stop her from spending time
with the man of her fantasies, Razel quickly discovers that one night
with Matthew isn’t enough....
And
neither is the life she is chained to. Something will have to change
if she is ever to get her very own Happily Ever After.
Warning:
This title contains explicit language and graphic sex.
~
* ~
Excerpt:
Prologue
They
were two beautiful people. Both strong and healthy, exactly what she
was looking for.
The
male was at least six foot, slender, but his body was firm. His light
brown hair was slicked back, making his jaw-line and chiseled
cheekbones more defined. His eyes were firmly fixed on his partner as
they attempted the triple spin.
The
female—such a petite thing with snow-white skin and a dazzling set
of white teeth. Her blue eyes shone as she gazed up at him from a
slanted dip. Her golden hair was tied up with stray curls hanging
around her face.
Such
a beautiful couple. They will do perfectly.
She waited for the show to end.
*****
Gabriella
stood in front of the dressing room door. The small copper star
resting against the worn wood had lost its gleam; the scratched metal
had seen better days. She moved her attention to the two sheets of
paper pinned below it, one reading: Robert Burton; the other: Nina
Hewson. The dancing couple from Arizona. A couple whose lives were
about to change.
She
knocked sharply upon the door, which opened immediately, bringing her
eye to eye with the polite, green-blue gaze of Robert.
“May
I help you?”
“You
may indeed.” She walked past him into the small room.
The
dressing room, like the rest of the broken-down theater, wasn’t
anything special. The general necessities were there; a mirror,
vanity table, railing for costumes, and two chairs that looked like
they had been stolen from a high school classroom. And from what she
could guess, the hideous, moth-eaten red fabric hanging from the wall
toward the end of the small space was the door to the restroom. The
faded floral wallpaper peeled in many places, and the room stank of
sweat and cheap perfume. Her nose wriggled almost uncontrollably as
the rancid smell swamped her. At the sound of the door shutting, she
turned and focused her attention on Nina, who was standing and
pulling her faded, pink silk robe shut.
She
drank their beauty in almost hungrily, reminding herself why she was
in the hellhole of a theatre in the first place. Robert moved and
stood beside Nina, who had folded her arms across her chest.
Happy
with her choice, Gabriella dusted one of the chairs and sat, making
herself as comfortable as possible. This was the last place in the
world she would ever choose to be, but for her plan to work, she
would need working class people. Individuals hungry enough for fame
and fortune that they would sell their souls to the devil himself
just for a taste. Who could be more famished than a struggling
performer; or in this case, a couple of performers?
So
she’d had to drag herself downtown, forced to sit for two hours in
the dump that somebody had a nerve to call a theater. No one in their
right mind who cared about their career or their bodies would even
consider what she was about to propose, but the information she had
found on these two loved-up dreamers was enough to assure her that
her money would be welcomed, even if it took quite a bit of
persuading. And she was, after all, very good at persuading.
She
placed her red purse on her knee and folded her hands. “May I just
begin by saying that you are both simply marvelous dancers?” Her
fake and flattering smile slid into place, and satisfaction stirred
inside her as the compliment sank in.
Nina
blushed as Robert nodded.
“Why,
thank you.” His broad smile fluttered across his lips. “What can
we do for you, miss?”
“I
was wondering if you would like to make some extra money.”
They
glanced at each other.
“I
was thinking along the lines of ten thousand. How does that suit
you?”
Excitement
sparked in their eyes. She could see the slight twitches running
through their bodies at the offer, and she imagined they either
wanted to embrace each other in sheer delight or fall at her feet and
kiss her Prada shoes.
Nina
beamed. “We would be very interested.”
“Yes,”
Robert agreed, although hesitation quivered in his words. “But
firstly, who are you?”
“My
name is Gabriella D’Punz. I am—”
“Gabriella
D’Punz, the founder of Ivory Tower Modeling Agency?” Nina dropped
her arms to her side and took a step forward.
Gabriella
cleared her throat and purged the surge of irritation that pulsed
through her at the girl’s interruption. “That is right, my dear.”
“We
accept.”
She
fought the slight urge to smile at Nina’s conclusion. “You do not
even know what I am proposing.”
Naturally,
the girl would presume they were being offered a contract for
modeling; why else would a modeling agent come to see them?
“But
surely there is only one reason you would want to see us—”
“I’m
afraid you have mistaken me, my dear.” Nina’s brow creased under
her words. “Or should I say you jumped to conclusions. I am
Gabriella D’Punz, founder and agent of Ivory Tower, but I have not
come here to offer either of you a modeling contract.”
“But—”
“Although
you are both beautiful—I openly admit it—and you are at a
reasonable modeling quality, well, you are such wonderful dancers.
That is where your hearts are, and I wouldn’t dare drag you away
from that passion.”
“Then
what do you want?” Nina asked, slumping down in the chair facing
Gabriella.
“I
want a child.” She paused as their eyebrows dipped in uncertainty
to where this conversation was heading. “You see, my husband is
growing old, and I am unable to have children….”
“I…I’m
sorry to hear that, but what has this got to do with us?” Robert
asked.
“Well,
I was wondering if you could help me.”
Nina
lifted her shoulders, her eyes widened a fraction. “How exactly?”
Gabriella’s
focus shifted to Robert; a small smile curled her lips as realization
blossomed over his face.
“Haven’t
you heard of adoption?”
“Yes.
But I want a surrogate mother and in all honesty, I have had my eyes
on you,”—she rested her gaze on Nina—“my dear, for quite some
time.”
Nina
shifted in her seat. “What do you mean?”
“I
want you to be my surrogate.”
“What?
No.” She shook her head. “No, I won’t do that.”
Robert
stepped forward. “Why her? What do you mean; you’ve had your eyes
on her?”
“I
saw a show of yours a year ago. I became interested in you. You’re
both beautiful and in good health. From what I have learned of your
education, you are both decently smart. All the qualities I need in a
child. I have considered adoption for years, but I never found a
child I liked.”
Nina’s
eyes grew bigger. “What, you…you’ve been spying on us?”
“No,
not spying. I just have an interest. I also have an interest in your
career. You’re not making very much money. You have no home. You’re
living out of Motels, travelling up and down the country—”
“How
dare you!” Robert thundered. “How dare you come in here and…and
poke your nose in to our business, to ask—”
“There’s
no need to get hysterical.”
“No
need? I...I...Get out! I want you out!”
Gabriella
sighed. “I see you are going to make this difficult. So, let’s
just get down to it, shall we? How much money do you want?”
“What?
This isn’t about money,” Robert snapped.
“Nonsense,
everything
is about money.” She reached into her purse and pulled out her
silver cigarette pouch. “Everyone has a price. So name it.”
“No.
This isn’t about money. This is about a complete stranger waltzing
into our dressing room demanding a baby from us!”
“I
have not demanded anything from you. Please keep calm.” She placed
a cigarette in her mouth and put the pouch back in her purse.
“I
will not! You have no right! No right to ask this! No right to go
digging around in our private business!”
“I
was not digging, and more to the point, I am offering you fifteen
thousand dollars to have a child for me; for a woman who is unable to
have children.” Gabriella pulled her lighter from her purse and lit
the end of her cigarette.
“And
that’s our problem?”
“I
do not see what the problem is.”
“You
wouldn’t, would you? You strut in here with your expensive clothes
thinking you can buy people. Thinking you can buy a baby?” Robert's
face grew redder with each word.
“Why
did you choose us?” Nina’s voice was soft, tentative.
Removing
the cigarette from between her lips, she blew out a cloud of smoke.
“Because with your looks,—” Gabriella’s lips twisted into a
smile “—you would give birth to a supermodel.”
“You’re
disgusting,” Robert replied through clenched teeth. “Get out!”
“You’re
making a big deal out of nothing. I get a child, and you get money.”
She slipped the lighter back into her purse. “Money that you are
both in need of.”
“Get
out.” Nina stood up. Her hands balled into the material of her
robe. “Please, get out.”
“Are
you sure you want to turn this offer down?” She kept her attention
on Nina as she stood. “Twenty thousand can really come in useful.”
Robert
walked to the door and opened it. “Your money isn’t welcome
here.”
She
laughed, and glanced in his direction. “My money is welcome
everywhere.”
“Get
out.”
“Why
are you so insulted?” She tucked her purse under her arm. “I am
offering you twenty thousand dollars to have sex and get pregnant.
Once you are pregnant, you will stay in my home as guests. My doctor
will see you, take care of you, and then when it is time, he will
deliver the baby. As soon as you are well, you may leave. You may
leave twenty thousand dollars richer than you are at this very
moment. You can get on with your lives, fulfill your dreams. Tell me
what is so disagreeable?”
“You
want me to get pregnant and sell my baby to you for twenty thousand
dollars?” Lines creased Nina’s forehead.
“Yes.”
“No!
It’s wrong.”
Gabriella
shrugged. “Who said it is wrong?”
Nina
shook her head. “I won’t do that.”
“Not
even for twenty-five thousand dollars?” Gabriella quirked her right
eyebrow. “How much do you want?”
“Get
out!” Robert demanded once more.
“Fine.”
She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a small ivory card,
which she placed on the vanity table beside Nina. “Call me when you
realize this is the best offer you will receive in your lifetime.”
She walked past Robert and out the door, turning right toward the
fire exit.
Gabriella
heard the door slam shut as she took another drag of her cigarette.
Then the shouting began. She pushed the fire exit open as her smile
spread to her ears.
~
* ~
Author
Bio:
Elizabeth
started life wanting to be an actress because she loved entertaining
people. She enjoyed nothing more than being able to make people laugh
and to help distract them from reality for a few hours.
She
studied Musical Theatre in college, but during her second year, her
mind started to overflow with story ideas, so she began writing
plays. Slowly, over the following three years, she wrote more and
more, channeling every ounce of her imagination into the written
word.
And
now, here she is, years later, hiding away like a hermit in her
little cottage in Cheshire, England, writing like crazy and loving
every minute of it.
Where
to find Elizabeth Online:
Nine
years, two lives, one love.
