Page 112 of Mayhem
“Yeah, I’m fine. I miss them, but it isn’t like they aren’t coming back.”
Erin could admit that when she’d seen Paetyn off at the airport, she hadn’t wanted to let him go. The same way she hadn’t wanted to with Cruz, but she knew the sooner she lethim, the sooner he’d be back. He’d volunteered to fly back every weekend while he was gone, but she wouldn’t be that selfish. They were filming long days six days a week, and Sunday would be his only day to unwind. She wouldn’t ask him to spend eight hours between Saturday night and Sunday evening when he’d fly back on a plane.
There was also only a two-hour time difference, so he called her most nights around nine. If he didn’t because filming ran late, he’d call her the following morning. She’d also spoken to Cruz a few more times. So, she was fine. In two weeks, she’d be able to see them both. She took a drink of her wine. She was eager to see them in person again and wanted them to be just as enthusiastic.
“Chayse,” Erin called, getting her attention. “Are you busy after work today?”
“No. I have some photos to edit for one of the magazine spreads, but I have time. What’s up?”
“Can you meet me at around eight at Paetyn and Cruz’s? I want you to take some pictures for me.”
“Ooh,” Lawrence started. “Sending your beaus some naughty pictures.”
Erin smirked. “Something like that.”
“Yeah, I can meet you. Just send me the address. I’m not confident I remember how to get there and don’t want to get lost.”
Alijah looked at her phone. “I have to get going. Kieran has a meeting in a little over half an hour.”
“Go,” Lawrence stated. “It’s my turn to pay anyway.” He looked at his watch. “We all probably need to get back. We’ve been here over an hour.”
“I’ve got the tip,” Erin stated before downing the rest of her wine as Lawrence stopped the server to ask for the check.
Erin pulled out some cash for a tip, while Lawrence pulled some to pay the bill. He returned the envelope to the server, and the four exited the restaurant. They said their goodbyes on the sidewalk and went their separate ways.
Erin pulled up to the house at quarter past eight, and Chayse was already waiting for her. She had to go to her apartment and grab a few things, but she texted her to let her know she was running late. She placed her thumb on the keypad at the front door to allow them access.
She wasn’t sure when, but Cruz added her security profile to their panel at some point. She’d stopped by one day and, after knocking, placed her thumb on the pad playing around. She was shocked it unlocked. In hindsight, she probably shouldn’t have tried because she could have done something to the system were she not an approved profile.
“Where do you want to take your pictures?”
“We can go to Paetyn’s bedroom first and then Cruz’s,” Erin responded, leading the way upstairs. She figured taking them in their rooms would add a little extra flair.
While Chayse set up the couple of ring lights she brought, Erin changed into a dark blue teddy she’d gotten when they went shopping. It was Paetyn’s favorite color, and she hadn’t worn it yet. She hadn’t worn any makeup to work and decided she’d keep it that way. She might have put some on for an entire boudoir shoot but only wanted a few pictures.
“Will you rearrange his pillows? I don’t want to overstep any boundaries in his space,” Chayse stated when Erin exited the bathroom.
“Sure, how do you want me to put them?”
Chayse instructed Erin on how to put them and then told her to pose how she wanted to. However, she knew Chayse woulddirect her if something didn’t look right and if she had an idea to make it look better.
“I don’t need a lot of pictures,” Erin stated, getting into her first pose. “Maybe seven or eight in each room because I hoped you could touch them up when we finish. I wanted to try to send them tonight.”
“Yeah, I can do that.”
Over the next twenty minutes, Erin knew Chayse snapped far more pictures than she needed, but she’d learned long ago that her friend tended to get into a groove. She had to stop her and tell her she thought it was enough. She fixed Paetyn’s bed, grabbed the bag she’d brought, and helped Chayse carry her lights into Cruz’s room.
She left Chayse to set up the lights while she went to change. This time, she put on a dark green baby doll, another item they’d bought her that she hadn’t worn yet. When she exited, Chayse again asked her to rearrange the pillows.
They took just as many pictures as before, and when Chayse finished, Erin helped her pack everything up and volunteered to make them a late dinner while she touched up the photos. She agreed, and Erin went to change after fixing Cruz’s bed.
She decided on pasta—something quick and easy—and they talked about their upcoming trip and what they wanted to do while they were there. By the time they finished eating and Erin had washed the few dishes, Chayse had touched up all the pictures she’d taken, Telling Erin it didn’t take much to touch up pretty people. She emailed all the images to Erin before she needed to get going.
Erin walked her to the door and watched her enter her car before closing and locking the door. She turned off the lights and went upstairs to Cruz’s bedroom, where she’d left her bag. It was after ten, and she decided she would stay. It would be her fourth time doing so since they’d both been gone.
After her shower, she dressed in one of his t-shirts, turned the overhead light off, and slipped into bed. Going through the pictures, she chose five of each and sent the pictures to them separately. It was after ten o’clock, which meant it was after midnight for Paetyn and early morning for Cruz. She ensured her alarm was set before putting the phone on the nightstand. She pulled a pillow to her chest and soon drifted off to sleep.
Cruz wasn’t surprised to find Erin in the house. He’d gotten a notification when she’d arrived and when she’d locked the door, and he’d set the alarm from his plane a few minutes after that. It was a nice welcome home to find her in his bed, the lamp on the nightstand glowing softly.
