Page 38 of Picture Us

“I think the goal here is to capture Lauren’s connection to nature.” Rose explained as her nerves grew. “She’s having this baby by herself and loves the faerie vibes. Lots of people will have judgments about a woman raising a baby on her own, but we want her to look carefree and in her element.”

A smile was growing on Drew’s face.

Do they hate it?Rose tucked a strand of her red hair behind her ear.

Drew’s eyes caught on one image, their long index finger tapping it. “Does this one look too angelic for the forest elf vibe?”

“I mean, it may end up being cut, but I think the setup is so clean that it won’t cost us much to get the shot.” Rose shrugged. She couldn't figure out why she wanted to impress Drew. They were a talented photographer, sure, but so was Rose.

Her body tensed as she nervously explained her vision. “To me, it reads as free. The whole sky…”

“Opening up to her and her child. I see that.” Drew nodded. It was near impossible to read their feelings on the shoot. Maybe they hated it. But if that was the case, they were doing a good job of keeping their mouth shut.

Rose let a smile leave her lips. “Exactly.”

Drew gently slapped the table with a flat palm, and Rose could almost feel the sharp sting it would’ve left on her ass. She wanted nothing more than to feel Drew’s hands on her again.

“If this is your vision, then I think it’s a good place to start.” Drew nodded.

“What kind of film do you want to shoot on?” As Rose's green eyes met Drew's hazel, she knew she was fucked.

Something about Drew’s sleepy-eyed gaze and their newfound ability to compromise made Rose want to rip their fucking clothes off.

Drew raised an eyebrow, the question alone making them excited. “I normally would say black and white. But I think I want grainy color for this. I think it’ll give moreMidsummer Night’s Dreamthat way.”

She couldn’t help but return Drew’s smile. Watching them get excited over something as dorky as film choice was endearing. And hot.

“Okay, I trust that.” Rose nodded. They locked eyes, electricity beginning to grow between them.

Rose felt like she could see Drew’s chest rising faster. But before she could really get a good look, Drew turned toward their kitchen to make more coffee.

“So, how are we getting to this mystical forest? Are we taking a witch’s broomstick or a magic carpet?” Drew peeked over their shoulder at Rose’s blushing face and winked.

“Very funny.” Rose shook her head. The corny dad joke should have been expected, but Rose couldn’t help but be surprised by the soft side Drew was suddenly sharing.

“Oh,” Drew asked, “have you checked for any scheduled events on those dates, wherever we’re shooting?”

Rose turned her stool toward Drew, watching them make coffee. Their arms flexed as they made slight, controlled movements. It still surprised Rose to see just how strong they were. She hadn’t seen any workout equipment around their apartment. And it felt nearly impossible that they could be so muscular without even going to a gym.

Rose nodded. “There’s a place just across the river to the north that has a perfect national park. It’s pretty quiet, I’ve never seen anyone have an event there. Plus, I can always ‘Shop them out if someone slips into the background.”

She looked down at her hands. It wouldn’t hurt to check with the venue later, but Rose wasn’t about to surrender her hard-earned upper hand by admitting she should have asked.

Drew hesitated as they poured water into their coffee machine, clearly debating challenging Rose. But instead, they kept pouring and nodded. “Sounds good. So we’ll drive?”

“Yep.” Rose made a mental note to book a car rental.

But before she could pull her phone to check rental prices, Drew turned around. “Cool, I can borrow a friend’s truck and take that. Save us the rental fee off our profit.”

Rose smiled. “That would be great. We can leave from here, say at 10 am? That gives us two hours to get there, and plenty of shoot time. Since we’ll be in late June at that point, we won’t have to worry about the sun setting too early..”

Drew nodded. “Okay then.”

Silence settled over the loft. Drew returned to the worktable with two coffees, taking a deep breath as they set one next to Rose.

Rose lifted her eyes to meet Drew’s gaze as the cup settled in front of her. Her body responded before her mind could, excitement growing in her chest.

She knew the kiss had been risky. They hadso manyjoint projects coming up, and if this went wrong, their careers might be collateral damage.But goddamn, look at that smile.Rose lightly licked her lips as she took a sip from the mug.

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