Moments later after removing every stitch of her clothing, she stepped under the cool spray of the shower and tilted her head back. The water drenched her face, body and skin. She sighed as she washed away some of the day’s stress, but none of the temptations that had plagued her body. For some reason she couldn’t let go of the images of Blake’s smile tonight.
When she turned off the shower and stepped out to towel off, she knew she had to think about the reason her mind and thoughts were still filled with thoughts of Blake. Maybe it was time that she “lightened up” and continued with her plan to check out a brother for something short-term and fun.
Over the past week or so she’d been trying to convince herself that she should, and now that the opportunity had presented itself, maybe it was time she took full advantage of it. In a way it made perfect sense. There was no doubt in her mind that she needed a fling – badly, so why not turn her attention to Blake while he was in town, which meant something short-term? And there was no doubt in her mind that she would have fun. Things would be harmless as long as the both of them knew what they wanted -- what to expect and what not to expect. Tonya had made it pretty clear that he wasn’t interested in a serious relationship and neither was she.
But she was definitely interested in a nonserious one.
She smiled and decided to just let nature take its course -- and if it led a path straight to her bedroom, then so be it.
“Y
ou’re early.”
Justice blinked at Blake’s statement. The man had been playing havoc with her common sense as well as her emotions for the past two days. This was the second time he had surprised her and opened the door at someone else’s home.
She tightened her grip on her shoulder bag, trying to ease the tingling sensation that suddenly swept through her body. “Where’s Tonya?” she asked when he stepped aside to let her in.
“She had a couple of errands to make but said for us to go ahead and get started. The scenes I’m supposed to be shooting today are for the bridal collection. She left everything laid out for you in the basement bedroom.”
Blake decided not to add that he’d taken a peep at the outfits, all five of them, and already his libido had kicked into gear.
“I need a few moments to change,” Justice said, following him down to the basement.
He smiled at her over his shoulder. “Of course.”
A few moments later, alone in the bedroom, Justice checked out the outfits she was supposed to be photographed in that day – bridal lingerie. With no plans to ever marry, this was probably the closest she would come in wearing such attire. The first piece of lingerie that caught her eye was a black three-piece pegnoir set. It was a downright sexy, intimate ensemble made of Chantilly lace and consisted of a baby doll top, a sheer short coat and G-string panties.
She smiled. This particular piece spelled seduction with a capital S and would definitely capture Blake’s attention, which is what she wanted.
As she began undressing, she was swept with a sudden case of nervous tension, and wondered just what kind of woman would plan the outright seduction of a man? She quickly decided it was a woman who was intensely hot and suffering with a bad case of unrequited lust.
Namely her.
And it was a woman who had finally decided to be brave, bold, and uninhibited. Men took the initiative and came on to women all the time, so what was wrong when a woman felt empowered to do the same thing? Besides, there was something about Blake that summoned her on a primal level, a level she hadn’t known existed until the first day she’d seen him. It had certainly never come through with Harold or any of the guys she had dated in college.
Reclaiming her courage, she slipped into outfit number one and was determined that by the time she was down to outfit number five, there would be no doubt in Blake’s mind just what she wanted.
***
“I’m ready, Blake.”
He glanced up from loading film in the camera and met her gaze. His own gaze took a slow, thorough sweep of her outfit. “Yeah, I can see that,” he said. Although his tone was light and teasing, she had a feeling he was dead serious. “This set of photos ought to be interesting,” he added.
She smiled.
Interesting was definitely the word
.
“Yes, I’m sure they will be.” She should have felt uncomfortable with the way he was looking at her, although he was trying to pretend not to by fiddling with some gadget or other, but she didn’t. By no means was she a woman who made it a habit to parade in front of a man wearing such skimpy attire, but neither was she a woman who was ashamed of how she looked in it. She was a full-figured woman, tight and stacked. Although she wasn’t into any type of fitness program, she did make a habit of going walking every day and always concentrated on eating the right foods. She never worried about how she looked since she always made it her business to look good. And from the way Blake was looking at her, he evidently thought the same thing.
“Sorry if my staring makes you uncomfortable,” he finally said, breaking eye contact and looking down to adjust something on his camera. “But you look good in that outfit.”
His compliment pleased her. “Thanks. I’m not uncomfortable.” Struggling with her good judgment to take things slow – well, at least as slow as she could handle -- she inhaled deeply. At the moment she felt a little bit dizzy, as if just being in the same room with him was making her feel hot.
She cleared her throat. “So what do you want me to do today? I noticed the bed is gone.”
Was that disappointment he’d heard in her voice? Blake wondered. “I thought I’d use that loveseat over there for some of the poses and for others we can use the backdrop screen. We don’t want to be repetitious with the scenery. You and what you’re wearing should be the main focus.”
She nodded and walked over to the loveseat and immediately noticed a beautiful arrangement of cut flowers sitting on the small table next to it. “Oh, these are beautiful. Are they part of the scenery?”
“Yes, they can be but that wasn’t their intent. They’re yours.”
Justice’s attention jerked from the flowers to Blake. “Mine?”
His dark head lifted from whatever he was doing to his camera and met her startled gaze. “Yes, yours.”
“From Tonya?”
At first his lips twitched. Then white teeth flashed in a sinfully handsome dark face when he said. “No, they’re from me.”
Disbelief, surprise then pleasure flashed across Justice’s face. She picked up the vase and sniffed the flowers’ scent. She loved flowers. “Thanks, Blake.”
Blake thought she made a beautiful picture standing there dressed in that outfit with her face tilted low, and he felt compelled to capture it on film. He lifted the camera to his face and stared into the lens and caught her, just as he saw her – beautiful and breathtaking. Her attention was so focused on the flowers that she hadn’t realized he had clicked his camera.
Moments later she glanced over at him and what he saw was a woman who was truly touched by what was a very small gesture on his part.
“I just love them but you didn’t have to get me flowers, Blake,” she said softly.
Blake shrugged. A part of him wanted to go to her and pull her into his arms and tell her for some reason, yes he did. Instead he said, “I know I didn’t have to but I wanted to.”
What she didn’t need to know and what he wouldn’t tell her was that she had filled his dreams all last night and had been the first person he’d thought about upon waking that morning. He hated admitting it but he’d been anxious to see her today. And when he’d seen the florist shop on the drive over to Tonya’s place, he couldn’t help but stop and make a purchase. Why he’d done it, he couldn’t exactly say, other than it had been an impulsive move. But then people who knew him would be quick to say he wasn’t an impulsive person. He usually thought things through thoroughly before doing anything. But not this time and not with this woman.
“You did real good on the other day,” he decided to add when the room got quiet. “I enjoyed working with you and, like I told you last night, I got some great shots. Tonya was pleased.”
Justice placed the vase of flowers back on the table. “She’s seen the proofs already?”
Blake gave her a throaty chuckle. “Yes, and luckily my favorites were also hers. The ones she picked are over there on the counter if you want to take a look at them.”
“Maybe later. I’m ready to get things started if you are.”
Blake gripped the camera in his hand and didn’t speak for a few moments as he adjusted the lens. “Busy day?” he asked. What he really wanted to know was if the reason she was in such a hurry to get things going was because she was meeting someone later.
A smile lit her eyes. “My days are always busy. But then that’s all a part of owning your own business. Since I was out of town yesterday my desk is loaded with paperwork today.”
“Yeah, I imagine it would be.”
Justice glanced over at him, trying to decipher his mood from the expression on his face and the tone of his voice. Even when she had thanked him for the flowers she hadn’t been able to determine if anything other than appreciation had motivated him to buy them. It had been a long time since someone had given her flowers and she was touched by such a kind gesture.
“You can stand in front of the screen for this first go-round.”
Blake’s words forced Justice from her thoughts and back to the situation at hand. “All right.”
The room got quiet, too quiet. Blake decided to make small talk, which would open the opportunity to find out more about her. “I understand you own a temp agency,” he said, pulling more film out of his camera bag. He had a feeling he would use every single roll.
“Yes,” she said. “I do.”
“Business going okay?”
“Yeah, for the most part. It keeps me pretty busy but I enjoy that.”
He lifted the camera and focused, checking out the lighting, the distance. Checking out her. “I bet your boyfriend’s not too happy about that.”
“I don’t have a boyfriend.”
Blake couldn’t stop the smile that touched his lips. “That’s too bad.”
He lowered the camera. “Okay, let’s get rolling. I think we should start off with various poses. We’ll take a few shots of you in a standing position before moving over to the loveseat.”
“All right.”
He lifted the camera again and focused. “Okay, Justice, do your thing.”
And she did.
With minor prompting from him she looked straight into the lens as she moved her body in a way that made it easy for him to capture the essence of what she was wearing as well as the full effect of the lighting that fell on her face.
He clicked the shutter repeatedly and felt intense heat with every shot. Moments later, he paused, wanting a close-up, and walked over and crouched a couple of feet in front of her. “Turn a little to the right, Justice. I want to focus in on how the outfit compliments your hips, breasts and thighs,” he said in a professional voice – which, considering the circumstances was hard to do.
Following his instructions, she shifted her body and placed a hand on her thigh in a pose that he thought was sexier than any pose had a right to be. Sexy and sensual. He felt the hand holding the camera tremble and noted the exact moment the pattern of his breathing changed.
A few minutes later he stood. His chest was heaving as he lowered the camera. “Now for the loveseat.”
“Do you want me to change outfits first?”
“No, I like this particular one and want to take at least two more frames. I don’t want you to sit on the sofa but lean against it.”
She nodded and did what he said.
“Okay, tip your head to the right,” he called out to her as the camera flashed once, then twice. “Now to the left”. A couple of more flashes. “Now give me the look of a woman who’s looking forward to her wedding night.”
Justice went rigid and a sudden frown appeared on her face. Blake picked up on her reactions immediately through the lens. He brought the camera down and stared at her. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
Justice gave a forced laughed. “If you’re trying to get a happy look out of me then you’d better think of something else since I’m not a woman looking forward to her wedding night,” she said then added. “I don’t have plans to ever marry.”
Blake lifted a brow. “Why?”
“I’m not the marrying kind.”
Over the years Blake had heard several men banter that fact but never a woman. Until now. He wondered what had happened to turn her against the thought of marital bliss. “I thought all women had dreams of a wedding day.”
Again she gave a forced laugh. “Not in my family, if you’re smart. Three seems to be everyone’s lucky number for marriages. And because I’m a person who doesn’t take failing at anything too well, I’ve decided the best thing for me is to remain single.”
He shrugged. “Who knows, you might get lucky on the first try.”
“Yeah, and I might not. I’m not willing to take a chance.”
He paused. His heartbeat thudded in his chest at the panic he heard in her voice. He met her gaze. “And what if you want kids one day?”