Dare To Be Wild (30 page)

Aleesa swallowed a big gulp of “oh no” as her eyes went renegade and, against her wishes, thoroughly checked out the fine specimen before her. He looked to be in his early to mid-thirties and stood over six feet. He had the slim, lean musculature of a track star, and the way his jeans and untucked navy blue T-shirt clung to his body with an unspoken dare to reach out and touch, was borderline criminal. His long, thin locks were flowing free across his shoulder, giving a nonchalant sexiness to the man that left Aleesa's nerve endings perked up and on edge.

OH FUCK! OH FUCK! OH FUCK! WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE SO FINE?!!
Aleesa screamed at him in her head, all the while wishing she'd changed her clothes. Why hadn't she worn the form-fitting blue dress instead of the boho chic get-up she'd thrown on at the last minute?
Because if you'd worn the other, he'd know that you don't have any bra or panties on.

But he knows that anyway,
it occurred to her. He was the one who'd told her not to wear any so she wouldn't have elastic lines on her skin.

“You okay? Here, let me take that for you,” he said, reaching for the tote bag containing her cosmetic and hair products.

“I'm fine. Thank you,” Aleesa replied, embarrassed to be caught arguing with herself. She felt the butterflies in her stomach stir. Josiah was not only good looking, but apparently a gentleman as well.

“That shade of blue looks great on you,” he complimented her as she stepped inside, noticing immediately how the turquoise
color complemented her chestnut brown skin. Her ensemble was attractive and while fashion forward, completely covered up the body underneath. Josiah smiled to himself. His clients always seemed to fall into two camps—the wannabe
Playboy
pin-ups that arrived practically naked on his doorstep, and couldn't wait to get started; and the quiet, reserved types who required his special brand of coaching to coax the femme fatale out of them. Aleesa Davis
appeared
to fall in the latter category, but only time would tell which camp she truly belonged in.

She held the chuckle in her mouth, wondering if he could really read the thoughts running through her head. She hoped not because a few of them were totally inappropriate for a married woman, especially one who was truly in love with her husband, to be having about a man
nearly
young enough to be her son.

“Thank you.” Nerves caused her voice to spike, giving her words a Minnie Mouse quality. She was even more aflutter now. Getting nude in front of a stranger was one thing, but getting nude in front of a
fine-ass
stranger whom she obviously found attractive, when she was already horny as hell, was a completely different level of intimidation.

Josiah led her down the short hallway and into a studio space that looked like it was once a living room or parlor. She followed his well-formed butt wondering if, no frantically
wishing,
that he was gay, but knowing instinctively that he was not.

“So based on the questionnaire you filled out online, I've set up three scenarios for you today,” he informed her. “And as you can see, per your request, no ‘cheesy red velour or whorehouse set-ups.'”

Aleesa looked around the room, checking out the white, claw-footed bathtub filled nearly to the rim with popcorn standing against a white background in one corner, and in the other, a beautiful mahogany chair with heart-shaped back, placed on a white fur carpet
in front of sheer drapes. The chair's back reminded her of a woman's torso—a full bosom, tapering down to a tiny waist. Until this moment, it never occurred to her that furniture could be so sexy.

“There are only two,” she said, choosing to share her observation rather than her thoughts.

“There is a small bedroom down the hall that I use for shoots as well.”

“A tub of popcorn?”

“You said it was your husband's favorite snack food, so I thought we'd do something fun. Trust me; it's all going to be great. Now before we get you undressed and in front of the camera, let's talk for a minute.” Josiah extended his arm, inviting her to sit on a chaise on the opposite side of the room. “Tell me a little about yourself, Ms. Davis.”

“Aleesa. Well, I'm married. The mother of two grown sons—Aden and Ashri, 25 and 23. I live in Montclair, New Jersey, and work in Manhattan as the Sports Fan Network…”

“Very impressive, but tell me about you—the woman. What gets the charming and lovely Aleesa Davis's heart racing? What kind of music do you listen to? What do you like to eat? Where's the sexiest place in the whole wide world?” Josiah asked, leaning in close like he couldn't wait to hear her voice.

Damn this boy was good! Aleesa knew that he was just doing his job—trying to get a feel for her so he could bring it out in the photographs, but damn if it didn't feel like she was on a date. The alarming thing was she didn't mind as much as she probably should.

“Well, let's see. I love the full moon, the sound of the ocean. Champagne. My favorite food isn't actually a food. It's a dessert. I absolutely love ice cream. Plain old vanilla bean ice cream. Simple, satisfying and yummy.”

“Oh, I get that joke. I'm a coffee ice cream man,” he added.
“But I agree. I don't need any extra cookies or candy mixed in and getting in the way.”

“Exactly,” she concurred, feeling herself relax a bit. Josiah was a charming conversationalist.

“And let's see, musically I have pretty eclectic tastes. I'm still a lover of old school funk and R & B—Earth, Wind and Fire, The Commodores, Prince…”

“Teddy Pendergrass?”

“Absolutely. Now that boy could sing. I love me some Teddy P.”

“Before or after Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes?”

Aleesa looked at Josiah with surprised eyes. Baby that he was, what could he possibly know about these old school musicians? “I'm definitely in the solo, ‘Close the Door' and ‘Turn Off The Lights' Teddy fan club. But like I said, I also enjoy tango music, Latin salsa, Sade. I even like some of these new kids like Usher and Ne-Yo, and especially Maxwell. He has that same kind of smooth, sexy edge that Teddy had. Somehow, they both always manage to make me feel like they're only singing to me.”

“Only a true master can make a woman feel like she's the only one in the room. And hey, if you like Maxwell and Usher you should check out this British artist named Omar. I think you'd really get into him, too.”

“I will,” Aleesa replied. She quickly swallowed the millions of questions she was dying to ask. Ones that would clue her into his likes and dislikes, and give her more insight into him as a man. She hadn't realized until now how much she'd missed having a quiet, personal conversation with an interesting companion. But any further queries about Josiah would be unnecessary and borderline inappropriate. Besides, he wasn't interested in her. He was simply doing his job.

“And the sexiest place in the world?”

Aleesa thought for a moment, conjuring up past places she'd visited around the world. The thought that kept coming to the forefront of her memories were the rather unremarkable places she'd been when she either was inspired or was composing Walter's stories. “Hmm… that would have to be wherever I am.”

Josiah's eyes registered amused surprise. “I have asked that question over a thousand times, and you're the first to say that,” Josiah informed her. Her reply impressed and intrigued him. “So what brings you into my world, Aleesa?”

“Well, I wanted to do this as a, uh…you know…gift for my husband.”

“Lucky man,” he replied with a tone and admiring look that made her think he was speaking the truth. “Anniversary? Birthday?”

“A welcome home, actually. He's been in Afghanistan, running a dental clinic for the soldiers for the past couple of years and he'll be stateside again at the end of May, in about a month.”

“Nice. So you're thinking a standard, bedroom portrait?”

“Well, no. More like a book cover.”

Josiah's eyebrows lifted, the corners of his mouth registering surprise before quickly falling back into place.

“I've been keeping a book…well…more like a journal…of well, you know…thoughts…” Embarrassment blushed her cheeks and kept her from continuing.

“What kind of thoughts? Fantasies?” he queried, his interest piqued.
Still waters run deep.

“Uh…well…yes. You know…that I've had since he's been gone. It was a way of keeping him close to me and I thought it would be a nice welcome-home surprise.”

“Like I said, he's a lucky man.”

“Thank you, but I'm the lucky one,” she told him, truly believing her words despite being fascinated by Josiah's full and luscious
upper lip. “Anyway, my friend suggested that I do a cover shot, and recommended you. So that's why I'm here…in your world.”

“Welcome. I'm happy to have you,” he replied, flashing his dimples at her. “So, Aleesa, tell me how far you're willing go.”

“How far?”

“Robe? Lingerie? Full-on nude? Each is sexy and provocative in its own way. What's most important is your comfort level. Though, if you don't mind me asking, how risqué are your…uh…thoughts in this book?”

Aleesa could feel the flush of embarrassment mixed with arousal invade her body as she thought about the sexy and sometimes outrageous scenarios she'd written over these past months. All of her fantasies had Walter either actively participating or watching. Like the butler going down on her in the hotel in Phoenix; tying Walt up while she fucked herself on the hood of his car; masturbating in the window of the hotel directly across from Walt's Manhattan dental office; being titty and finger fucked by the guest of honor on her apartment balcony during a birthday party; having her feet licked by her favorite salesman at the Jimmy Choo store.

Aleesa felt the tingle of her clitoris back on high alert. Even recalling the fantasies turned her on. Risqué? Maybe not for the kink and fetish crowd, but for her married and maternal self, Walt's freak book was as blue as the sea, and hellishly racy.

“Your face says it all,” Josiah interrupted, with a flirtatious twist to his lips. “Oh, the camera is going to love you! So, since it's for his eyes only, do we match the cover shot to the contents or give him a sexy, beauty shot to admire? Completely your call.”

Aleesa said nothing. She simply bit her bottom lip as she pondered the options. Writing about sex was so freeing, even though most of the stuff she'd scribed she'd never dare try. Still the experience of opening up her sexual imagination this year had definitely made
her more curious and adventurous. She now felt that both risqué
and
sexy beauty were part of her sexual personality.

“Aleesa. Don't be frightened or nervous or feel like you're being judged,” Josiah said as he brought his head close to tell her. She knew he intended his voice to sound soothing, but the smooth timbre and tone of it only managed to further ruffle her feathers.

“This boudoir session is totally based on your desires. Every woman has her own idea of what sexy is, as well as what she is comfortable with. Don't worry; today will be part cute, part fun, part flirty and all sexy.

“You're safe here. I am going to take good care of you. I promise. So like you did when you wrote your book, you can drop your inhibitions and be free here as well.”

Aleesa continued to chew on her bottom lip as she looked into Josiah's brown, almond-shaped eyes. As gorgeous and sexy as he was, and as horny but married as she felt, dropping her inhibitions and being free was definitely not an option.

“Let's play it by ear, and see where the evening takes us.”