Page 4 of Baller's Surprise Baby

“I think this way is better,” he repeats. “You’ll get a twist in the torso and a great profile.”

Wonderful. The man thinks he should be dictating the shoot now. I take a breath and walk directly up to Ryder where I lower my voice for privacy.

“Everything okay here?”

“Yeah, just peachy. Why?”

“You seem a little tense,” I hazard. Some people don’t like being told they don’t have it all together, but honestly, I need him to be more relaxed about this or we’re in for a rough ride.

“I’m not tense. You’re the one who’s being uptight about the pose.”

Okaaay. I decide on a different tactic.

“Let me walk you through what I have in mind,” I offer. I step forward to circle around him when he suddenly turns away from me.

“You know what? This is a waste of time.”

“Look, Ryder. I know we haven’t gotten off to the best start today, but I think the photo shoot has been going pretty well,” I start as I check the time on my phone and glance around the room. “Why don’t we take ten minutes and when you come back, we can start fresh?”

“You got it.”

His response is so quick it’s almost insulting. Swinging away from me, he stalks to the corner near a few privacy screens while I stand there wondering what just happened. Minutes later I locate the nearest exit and step outside of the building to call Rachel. She picks up immediately.

“Hey girl, everything going alright?”

“Yeah, everything’s okay here, it’s just...”

“Just what?” Her bubbly voice is so full of life. Rachel and Ryder both have personalities that exude boundless energy. For Rachel, it’s always been light, happy, curious, and on the move. Ryder comes off more focused and edgy, a bit of the fast and furious, something that no doubt serves him well on the basketball court.

“Remember how I was a little nervous going back into the workforce again?”

“Yeah, absolutely! But now you’re in it, so you can tell me that I was right now and everything’s going fine.”

“Well, I would… but, I kind of barged in on your brother while he was making out with one of the models.”

“What?! Ewww! My brother’s there today? That man whore!”

I just nod my head and roll my eyes, because – exactly! But also, still so hot.

“I know, right? Wish I could wash my eyeballs with bleach.”

I’m one hundred percent going to hell for lying to my bestie, but what else am I going to do? It’s not like I’m going to tell her I literally grabbed his dick, and it was the most shockingly stimulating experience of my life. Instead, I hear her laughter trickling through the line, and somehow, I find myself chuckling in response.

When I step back into the photoshoot, I feel like a new person, perhaps not entirely relaxed, but definitely ready to start fresh. Ryder’s already there, waiting, and I step forward with a smile when he spots me and speaks in a voice that snaps.

“Are we gonna shoot or what?”

Awesome. We’re still dealing with Mr. Cranky. He doesn’t stop there though.

“The break ended five minutes ago.”

I don’t even bother checking my phone, because what the hell?

“Let’s get to work.”

Turning back to my camera to check the angle and lighting again, I stiffen at his next words.

“You sure you’ve done this before?”

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