Part 9 (1/2)
”Show me your lingerie.” He sounded dead serious.
”Huh?!”
”You need something to do, and I need a model. I tried looking on Craigslist but everyone I found was pretty trashy and wanted too much money up front.”
”You want to take pictures of me in my underwear?”
”Yes.”
”And what would you do with these pictures?”
”Put them on my website, blog and Facebook pages.”
I gasped. ”Yeah right! I'm not an underwear model, Jake!”
He sat down on the ottoman in front of me. ”Look, it is my job as a photographer to make you look good. I won't even show your face. But I wouldn't be asking if I didn't think you were good enough.”
Hmm. If he could Photoshop me to look good and no one could see my face, what was the harm?
”For every boudoir session I book in the next two weeks I'll give you half the session fee.”
Even better! ”Okay,” I said uncertainly. ”Do I have time to get ready? I'd like to at least get a pedicure and a haircut.” And definitely a wax, but I didn't mention that part.
He laughed a little. ”Yes, please do. Because there isn't much I could do to make you look good right now.”
I playfully punched his arm. ”Thanks!”
”No problem. We'll do the shoot tomorrow. Indoor pics at seven and we'll go outside about eight. I get the best natural light an hour before sunset.”
”I don't really have any lingerie though. Not like corsets or garter belts or anything like that.” I threw away all of that stuff before I left New York. I didn't want to hang on to any reminders of how hard I had to work to get my husband to have s.e.x with me.
”That's fine,” he said. ”Just some s.e.xy underwear and stilettos will work a few different sets. If you have thigh-highs or long necklaces we'll use those, too.”
”I guess I better start making some appointments then.”
I turned off the TV and stood up. He smirked at me and ripped the banner off the wall.
”See ya tomorrow, Little Girl.”
I really got my a.s.s into gear after he left the room, and I meant that literally. I showered, shaved and exfoliated. I then headed to a salon and got a Brazilian wax, a spray tan, a manicure and a pedicure.
The next morning I washed all my bedding and cleaned my room up just in case he wanted to use my room for the shoot. I got my hair cut, dyed and styled and had a professional smoky-eye make-up application done at the salon. Even though I did have some cute underwear of my own, I stopped at a s.e.x store after the salon to pick up some really cute underwear with ruffles on the b.u.t.t. I used to have a pair of ruffled underwear back during The Summer of Jake and Roxie and he had loved them so I figured he'd appreciate this pair, too.
Jake sent a text that said he'd meet me in my bedroom at seven. I would be a liar if I said that didn't light the dynamite in my belly again.
I wore my kimono robe over my underwear. For my first outfit I wore a white bra and the white ruffled panties. I thought the color looked good with my tan. I added several long black necklaces of different textures and a pair of nude patent leather peep-toes. Even though he asked for thigh-highs I thought white would look too bridal and black would look tacky so I kept those in the lingerie drawer.
He arrived at seven as promised. He was very professional. He came in and started rearranging my furniture and bedding and curtains and setting up lights until he had the look he wanted. He took some test shots of me with my robe still on. I lied on the bed with my feet towards the window and he took the pictures from behind my head.
When I took the robe off he never missed a beat just kept clicking away. There wasn't any eye contact between us because of the angles he was shooting from so, while I couldn't be sure, he didn't seem to be filled with desire. He could have been photographing a fruit bowl instead of a barely dressed person with whom he used to have awesome s.e.x with.
There was a small, very tiny, like practically microscopic, part of me that was hoping he'd drop his camera as soon as I dropped my robe, throw me onto the bed and rip those ruffles right off my b.u.t.t. And even if he didn't, I wanted him to want to. Just because it had been so long since anyone had wanted me. I thought it would be a nice feeling. But no, nothing like that happened.
When he was done with the first outfit, I went into the bathroom and changed into pale pink cashmere panties and a matching sweater. He said he wanted elegant and what's more elegant than cashmere? Besides, I paid a fortune for the set years ago and never had an occasion to wear it, so I was very excited to start getting some of my money's worth.
He took a lot of shots from behind in that outfit. Standing up in front of the window, lying on my belly, kneeling on the bed, all from behind.
”Try turning around and leaning back on your elbows,” he suggested.
I did as he said and he took a few shots. It was the first time we'd been face to face since he'd arrived. I could tell he was really into his job because he had the most intense look in his eyes. For a second he even stopped clicking and smiled at me.
”How would you feel about taking off your s.h.i.+rt?”
I bit my lip. If he wanted to touch me, then maybe. But for him to stare at me and take pictures that were going all over the internet, no way. ”I'd rather not.”
”Your face won't be in these shots. No one will know it's you except me.”
”No, it's not that. I just ...”
”You just what?” He sounded patient as always.
The truth was no one had seen me naked in a long time. Except Caleb who wouldn't have noticed if I'd sat right on his face. There's a big difference between twenty-one year old b.o.o.bs and twenty-nine year old b.o.o.bs, and I wasn't ready for anyone to see my newer/older figure yet, especially Jake. He had seen the better version, and he would know what he was missing.
I knew nothing was less attractive to a man than a woman who lacked confidence in her body, however, there was something about Jake that made me comfortable telling him just about anything.
”I'm not twenty-one anymore, Jake.” I bit my lip and looked down at the subjects of our conversation. ”They aren't as perky as they used to be.”
”Are you being serious right now?” he asked. His expression was one of disbelief.
I nodded shyly.
”You don't need to worry about that, Rox. b.o.o.bs don't start to sag until you're thirty,” he said with a smirk. ”You still have ” he paused while he silently counted the months on his fingers, ”nine months left to show them off.”
”That's nice you remember my birthday,” I said honestly. ”But I'm still not going topless.”
He shrugged casually as he changed the lens on his camera. ”All right. No big deal. Are you ready to go outside?” he asked. ”You're gonna look great on a chaise lounge.”
Mom and Dad called the next morning to check on me. I was surprised it took them so long. h.e.l.lo, parents, my world was shaken up like a snow globe, thrown onto the ground and smashed into pieces and then ran over by an semi-truck and, besides the flowers they sent during my first week home, I hadn't heard from them in weeks!
”Hey b.u.t.tercup!” Mom said. She sounded way too cheerful for 10am. I was still in bed and she was probably on her third latte. ”How's it going in A-Squared?”
”OmiG.o.d, Mom! You know n.o.body says A-Squared except people who don't live here.”
”I don't live there anymore, so I can say it.”
True.