Page 15 of Dirty Shots

Chapter Six

Eric

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So she was seeing someone, Eric assumed, considering the cool introduction. He should hardly be surprised ... a beautiful, adventurous woman like her. Of course someone would have snapped her up.

She’s only a model. She means nothing to you.

But then why did he feel like someone had just punched him in the gut, punctured the skin, and ripped his insides out?

He made his way home, not bothering to catch a cab. Instead, he walked the whole way, needing the exercise to burn his emotions out and clear his head. When he got back, he sat down at his computer and looked at the images they had already created. Over and over again, he scrolled through them, judging each photograph with a critical eye. Only when the buzzer alerted him to someone at the main door of the building did he notice the light outside of his window had grown softer and he’d lost the whole afternoon.

“Damn it,” he swore softly. He’d forgotten to eat. Though his appetite hadn’t yet returned, he needed to be careful. When he’d hit his darkest point several years earlier, he’d lost nearly forty pounds simply by forgetting to eat. He couldn’t afford to slide back to that place.

The buzzer went off again.

Eric put his computer into sleep mode and got to his feet. Without bothering to ask who was there, he hit the button to release the door.

Within a minute, a tentative knock came at his apartment door. He closed his eyes and focused himself. He didn’t have the right to quiz Anya about who she’d been with or about their relationship. This was a job to her, nothing more.

He opened the door, a smile he saved for gallery owners and potential clients firmly on his face. She stood with what seemed to be a remorseful smile on her doll-like face. Her hands were clasped behind her back, a position which pushed her breasts toward him. Immediately, the thought of her naked in that stance flashed through his head.

“Anya,” he said, pushing the image from his head, and stepped away from the door to let her in. “Thanks so much for coming.”

“I’m sorry about earlier. My family’s very protective of me. I’m not sure how they’d react if they knew I was doing something like this.”

“It’s okay, Anya. You don’t have to explain yourself. What you do outside of this studio is none of my concern.”

“Really? Because you seemed upset.”

“I told you. It’s none of my business.”

“I’m not fucking Justin, if that’s what’s bothering you. He’s in town for a few days and I promised we’d catch up for coffee.”

She touched his arm lightly and his eyes flicked to the contact.

“That’s all we had, Eric. Just coffee.”

Was she telling the truth? She had no reason to lie to him, but he didn’t like the way his emotions were ruling his head. Even though he was telling her that her business was her business, he couldn’t escape the uncomfortable churning sensation in his stomach that told him he wanted more.

“You’re here to work, Anya. As I said, what you do outside of the studio is your own business.”

Anya turned and walked away, stripping off her clothes as she went. Nothing could distract him from his possessive train of thought more than watching her get naked.

“So what do you have planned for me today?”

“That would depend.”

She looked over her shoulder at him, one eyebrow arched. “On?”

“On how you felt about the shoot yesterday and if you’re up for more of the same.”

“I loved yesterday, Eric. All I’ve been able to think about is what you might have planned for me today.”

He couldn’t help himself, a smile tugged at his lips. “Very well, but just like yesterday, if at any point you feel uncomfortable and you want me to stop, all you have to do is say, okay?”

“Eric, I trust you.”

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