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“Of course not, and remember, I promised you’ll get to pick the ones I do offer them in the first place. I don’t know which five or six they’ll actually use. I have no control over that, but you’ll know upfront which shots will be possibilities.”
Derrick leaned closer and whispered in Melanie’s ear. Nathan waited as patiently as he could, hoping this wasn’t the moment that the whole idea collapsed around him.
The expression on Melanie’s face wasn’t giving anything away either. Except for her uneven breathing, which he’d noticed happened a lot during the photo shoot. Hell, his own breathing wasn’t much smoother. The chemistry in the room had been enough to make them all hot and horny.
Nathan hadn’t had a steady girlfriend for years. Love them—thoroughly—then leave them happy had become his motto. With his travel schedule there was no other way, and really, it wasn’t that bad a life, being responsible for no one but himself.
Melanie sat up and cleared her throat. “If you take a few shots today, can you develop them and show me what you mean? That way I can decide better what I’m agreeing to.”
Shit, yeah!
“Of course.” He stood and examined the walls closer. The perfect place to begin? “Stand in the corner and let me grab what I need.”
He deliberately turned away to let Derrick and Melanie have a moment without his attention. He forced himself to breathe and keep his body loose and relaxed. Sporting an erection right now wasn’t the way to keep Mel relaxed.
But the images racing through his brain were going to kill him. Just because it seemed he wasn’t going to get any action this trip didn’t mean his body was happy about the fact.
He called over his shoulder as he gathered his gear. “If you can roll the top of your pants down a little, but leave the harness on, that would be great. I want it to look as if there’s nothing on you but the climbing belt. If I shoot from the right angle, all we need is one small twist to your climbing top and a little assistance from Derrick.”
Nathan strolled back to where Melanie waited in the corner where there was a beginner’s climbing route. Back in the day, he’d seen her climb something like this freestyle, no ropes, laughing as she flew past the caution line and made her way to the top unprotected.
He wasn’t going to demand anything that wild.
She stood strategically again, the side of her body with the scars tucked to the wall. Derrick remained close, a fierce guardian. Fine—Nathan had no objection to using the guy to get what he needed. Nathan put the camera away for a moment, then stripped off his shirt.
Melanie’s bright laugh burst out. “Oh my God, Nathan, why are you wearing a bra?”
He grinned at her, thrilled to see the girl he’d been attracted to peeking from her shell. “Demonstrating what I want you do is easier with visuals. I need you to adjust your shoulder straps so that your shoulders are left bare. Like this?—”
Nathan twisted and squirmed until all the fabric in the sport bra lay across his chest in a narrow band. He’d picked up the thing at the thrift shop the previous day, and now stood in a ridiculous pose. Her giggle of a response delighted him.
Melanie smiled hard. “You goofball.”
“This must be big-city fashion or something,” Derrick teased, a low rumble of amusement in his tone.
Nathan grinned back. “You’re just jealous that you too don’t have a fine article of clothing such as this to wear.”
“Oh hell, yeah. I’m so envious I’m going to go get my feather boa out of storage.”
Nathan good-naturedly flipped him the finger. The easy banter between them smoothed the tension, and the next thing he knew Melanie had popped out from where she’d hidden behind Derrick, her bra now twisted in imitation of the one he wore.
“Like this?” She cleared her throat. “I don’t…” She blew out a slow breath. “This is tough, Nate. I never knew how tough it would be.”
He stepped forward. “If it’s too much, we can stop.”
She shook her head, but tucked in against Derrick’s side. “I’m okay, just, can I close my eyes or something?”
“Of course.”
Derrick kissed her temple. “Give me a second. I’ve got an idea.”
He snuck away, heading behind the front desk. As soon as he left, Melanie wrapped her arms around herself.
Nathan’s heart was breaking. He hadn’t expected her to be so fragile after all this time. He lowered his voice. “I mean it, monkey, if you want to stop, I have no objections. I’m not going to be pissed off or report you to Katy for banana stealing or anything.”
The pain in her shining eyes contrasted with the stiff determination of her mouth. “I said I’m fine. I want to try. I want to see what the pictures might look like, because I can’t honestly tell you yes or no otherwise.”
He nodded before turning away, removing the sports bra and replacing his T-shirt, trying to make the situation easier. He didn’t look at her until Derrick returned and held out a scarf to Mel.
