Page 49 of Dirty Shots

“Sorry.” She wiped her eyes. “I guess you might find out soon anyway.”

Nadine shook her head in bemusement. “Find out what?”

“The guy I’ve been seeing is Eric Rutherford.” She waited for a reaction, but Nadine was majoring in English and had no connection to the art world. Her expression remained blank.

“He’s a photographer—a very successful photographer—and I’ve been doing some modeling for him.”

“Anya!” She received an elbow in the ribs. “That’s awesome. You go, girl!” Then she must have realized her reaction was inappropriate to Anya’s tears. “So what’s the problem?”

Her cheeks heated. “The photographs are a little on the sexy side.”

Her friend’s dark, perfectly plucked eyebrows shot up her forehead. “You’ve been doing topless shoots?”

“Not exactly. It’s erotic photography.”

She frowned. “Erotic? But not topless?”

Anya sighed. How was she going to explain this to someone who clearly had no experience with the genre? “The photographs are intimate. He likes to use props to create a scene, like with ropes or handcuffs, or toys.”

She gasped. “Anya!”

“Stop saying that!”

“I just never expected it of you.” A twinkle appeared in her eye. “It sounds like fun.” Then her face grew serious again. “So why the tears? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

“No, of course not. He’s not like that. He’s completely respectful.” Just the thought of Eric made her heart sing. “The problem is that he’s having an exhibition of the photographs at the Blanc Art Space in a week, and my parents are going to be around.”

“Oh, shit. But aren’t your folks really strict?”

“Yeah, that’s the reason I’m upset. They’ll probably disown me when they find out.”

“Why would they find out? Can’t you just distract them with something else? Buy them tickets to a show they haven’t seen, and make sure they’re nowhere near the exhibition.”

She gave a weak smile. “It’s a great idea, but even if they don’t make it to the exhibition, they’ll find out about it. My parents are art critics, and run in those circles. The work Eric’s been doing is completely different from anything he’s ever done before, and it’s likely to stir up a shit-storm in the art world. It’ll be everywhere, especially because Eric is refusing to sell any of the shots. It’ll only make them more desirable.”

Nadine was looking at her in a completely new way. “Holy shit, Anya! How can you have been doing all of this and not tell me?”

She shrugged. “It wasn’t something I could just drop into a conversation.”

“And what about this Eric? Are you sleeping with him as well?”

Anya blushed. “It’s more than that. We have something special. A connection. He wants to meet my parents when I go to tell them about the exhibition.”

“You’re actually going to tell them?”

“I have no choice. I’m seriously considering erotic art as my future, so they’re going to need to know at some point.”

“Wow, Anya. I don’t know what to say.”

Anya gave a half-smile. “Just wish me luck, I guess.”

Her friend enveloped her in a hug and squeezed her tight. “Good luck, sweetie. Sounds like you’re going to need it.”

***

Anya stood on the streetcorner right around the block from her college campus, the same spot where she’d gotten into Eric’s car after he’d punched Gavin. Though she still didn’t want him anywhere near campus, this time, when Eric had offered to pick her up to take her for dinner with her parents, she’d said ‘yes.’

She’d dressed in her most sophisticated outfit—a smart, navy blue skirt suit. It was the same suit she’d worn to her interview for her college course. She wanted her parents to see her on Eric’s arm, and view her as the adult she was, rather than the little girl she was sure they still thought of her as. The smart outfit and the entry with Eric—a mature, sophisticated man—was supposed to make them realize she was a grown-up now, capable of making her own decisions.

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