The Photographer Read online

  She grabs the card, glances at me for just a moment, hesitant, like I might change my mind and snatch it back from her, and then bounces to her feet, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek before offering a quick “thank you” as she heads to the door. I reach up and touch the spot she kissed, unable to take my eyes from her curvy ass until the front door shuts, blocking my view. I smile, savoring the feel of her lips on my cheek. She doesn’t know it yet, but tonight’s equipment test will be unlike any she’s ever done before.

  Chapter 5

  Harper

  I smile at the man behind the counter. It’s the same guy from before, the one who practically robbed me. He looks at all the equipment I’ve set on the counter and arches an eyebrow. I slap down the black credit card beside the pile of equipment and his eyebrow arches even higher. “Someone’s had a change of luck.”

  “New job,” I say simply.

  He picks up the card and looks at the name. His eyes cut to me and then back to the card, and he shakes his head. “I was on that forum when he was looking for an assistant. Even applied for it myself.” He starts ringing up the photo gear and shakes his head again. “One lousy question.” He looks at me. “What was the correct answer?”

  My smile grows bigger. “It’s a secret.”

  He huffs under his breath. “Of course it is,” he says as I take the card back and start picking up the bags. “Well, good luck with it. That’s the kind of job that could change someone’s life.”

  I think about those words on the way back to Axel’s. It is the type of job that could change someone’s life, and I’m not going to fuck it up by fucking the boss. No matter how wet he makes my panties.

  I tell myself I’m committed to keeping things platonic with my new boss. I tell myself this several times during the drive back to his home-slash-studio. Do I believe it? I tell myself I do. And the plan to keep things platonic becomes a lot more believable when I pull up to his house just in time to see him locking lips with a tall gorgeous blonde dressed in nothing but a bright yellow bikini and heels. Her arms are wrapped around his neck and she’s pressing her body so close to his that I probably couldn’t even slide a piece of paper between them.

  Axel pulls away from her, glances in my direction, and grimaces. Yeah, buddy. You are so busted. All that talk about desire and passion while he was looking into my eyes, the panty-melting kisses. Just so much bullshit. That’s fine. Nobody said we were dating. It’s just a job. So I fucked my boss the other night. Big deal. Still just a job. Nothing but a paycheck and a big-name photographer on my resume. Definitely worth the hollow emptiness where my heart used to be.

  Blondie tilts her nose up just so she can look down at me, one corner of her perfect cupid bow lips turning up in a little smirk as she climbs into her little red convertible. I smile at her, nod, and keep walking, my fingers tightening their grip on the bags in my hands as I imagine them tightening around her throat.

  Axel smiles and steps aside, gesturing for me to enter before him. Damn that smile. It only makes him more handsome. But even if I hadn’t seen him playing tonsil hockey with Blondie I’d have to ignore that smile, because he’s my boss, and I’m not going to fuck this up.

  “I’m assuming you had fun playing with all the gadgets?” he says.

  “I had the list you sent me,” I reply stiffly. “There wasn’t any need to look around at other stuff.”

  He arches one perfect eyebrow and grins at me. I feel my cheeks heat up and I can’t help but smile back. “Of course. They have so many cool toys.”

  He chuckles. “It’s impossible for a photographer to ignore cool toys. It’s in our blood.”

  I nod and then force the smile off my face. While I was buying photo equipment, he was getting busy with Blondie. And he’s not even acting guilty about it. More proof that I’m just an employee. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind me being an employee with benefits, but I’m not that kind of girl. Except for the other night. Damn it.

  Axel points upstairs. “Down the hall. Third door on the right. Set up your equipment in there. I’ll join you shortly.” He starts to turn away and then looks back. “Oh, and the first door on the left is your room. I straightened it up so you can stay the night and get your stuff tomorrow if you’d like.”

  All my stuff is crammed into every bit of available space in my little hatchback, but he doesn’t need to know that. “Thanks but I don’t have any other clothes with me so I’ll probably just go back to the apartment tonight.”

  He looks at me and tilts his head. “Are you okay? Your voice sounds . . . different.”

  I try to force myself to sound less formal, less stiff. “Sorry. Just looking forward to trying out the new camera.” I smile, and it’s not even forced. I am looking forward to trying the new camera, but I hate that he’s going to be hovering near me. I glance up at his hair. It’s dry, and I have to force the smile to stay in place. I hope he hops in the shower and washes Blondie off before he comes to watch.

  With a nod, he turns and heads down the hall. Hopefully to shower. I enter the room he directed me to and look around. It’s a basic studio setup: a paper background hanging from a stand near the back wall, tape on the floor for different lighting setups. I set my bags down on a table along one wall and get to work setting up my new gear.

  By the time everything is ready, Axel still hasn’t shown up, and now I’m wondering what I can take pictures of. There’s nothing photogenic in the room. It’s all just photography stuff and a few pieces of furniture. Just as I decide to explore the house to find something to use — a vase, a pillow, something — the door opens and Axel enters, wearing a terrycloth robe that stops just above his knees and — I’m assuming — not much else under it. I’m able to pull my eyes away from the bit of bare chest showing to notice his hair is slightly damp.

  He notices where I’m looking and runs a hand through his dark locks. “Sorry if I kept you waiting long. I needed a shower after having Brenda crawl all over me.” He rolls his eyes. “The woman practically bathes in expensive perfume, as if that will help her land a modeling gig, or a guy.

  My mouth opens before I can stop it. “It didn’t look like it was causing much of a problem during the goodbye kiss.”

  He rolls his eyes. “Trust me. That was her kissing me, and completely against my rules.” He glances at me. “If I’m photographing them I’m not fucking them. It keeps things simple. Besides, she’s all silicone tits, surgically enhanced ass, and has an absolute willingness to fuck anyone she needs to fuck to get to the front of the pack. I was more than ready for her to leave.”

  He glances at my new camera mounted on a tripod. “Lose the tripod. They’re good for formal shots but this is about you getting in tune with the camera. You need to be able to move with the flow of the session.”

  Wow! First day and I’m already learning something I never thought about. I pull the camera off the tripod and gasp when he steps in front of the portrait background.

  He gives me that sexy grin. “Problem?”

  “I didn’t think I’d be taking pictures of you,” I manage to say through the shock that’s racing through my ice water in my veins.

  He arches an eyebrow. “Why not?” He puts a foot up on the posing stool next to him and it takes all my willpower to not look down at the hem of his bathrobe. “Do you not think I’m photogenic, Harper?”

  “No,” I say quickly. “You’re very photogenic.” I lose the battle and my eyes drop. Fuck me. Is he ever photogenic. The man’s thighs are carved out of marble and I have a sudden desire to lick them. Instead of doing that, I concentrate on the camera’s controls, but the thought’s there and I can feel a slow heat building between my thighs.

  He leans down, placing a muscular forearm on the knees that’s propped on the stool. It’s a very sexy casual look, that just happens to also make the bottom of the robe rise just a little higher. “This is all about you getting used to your equipment so feel free to give directions like you would any client.” He
grins. “I’ll do anything you say.”

  Am I panting? I think I’m panting. Not sexy at all. No! Not professional, I correct myself. Sexy doesn’t matter. I’m not trying to be sexy. I’m trying to be professional. I raise the camera and push the button, forcing myself to focus on the photography. The first few pictures suck. I know it without even looking at them, but I slowly get into the groove, and Axel actually behaves himself.

  After a few more shots, I decide the harsh glare of the strobe is all wrong. This is a sexy man wearing nothing but a bathrobe. I flick off the strobe and just use the modeling lights, capturing his form in softer, warmer light. He nods with approval when I make the switch, a small smile on his lips. I try a few different poses with him, even having him turn his back to the camera at one point and teasingly telling him to raise the robe so I can see his ass. Although I probably shouldn’t be surprised I am when he actually does it. He clenches his muscles, making his ass tighten, and I have to bite my lower lip to hold back the moan that wants to escape.

  I apparently don’t do a good job of holding it back because he turns and looks at me, a wicked grin on his face and a lust-filled gleam in his eyes. His cock is hard, sticking out of the fold of the robe, pointing right at me. I shouldn’t look at it, but I can’t help myself. It’s like I’m hypnotized. I lick my lips, my mouth suddenly dry. On the other hand, my panties are now very, very wet.

  He stalks toward me slowly, like a predator. “See anything you like?” he asks, his voice deeper than it was before.

  I nod, and then catch myself, quickly shaking my head, but my eyes are still locked on to the throbbing shaft sticking up in the air. “It was just a one-night stand.” My voice is so breathy and soft I’m surprised he can hear me.

  He laughs softly. “Sweetness, I knew you were more than a one-night stand when I saw you out on the dance floor.”

  He gets closer and that gorgeous cock slides up my blouse, the mushroom head pointing straight up at me. I can’t see it because my breasts are in the way, but I can feel his heat through the fabric. “I think you knew it too,” he says. “That’s why you ran . . . but you don’t need to be afraid.”

  Still looking down, I whisper softly, “If I’m photographing them I’m not fucking them?”

  He puts a finger under my chin and tilts my head up until I’m looking into his hazel eyes. His pupils are blown wide open with the same passion I feel coursing through my veins. “That doesn’t apply to us,” he says, and then his lips are on mine, his free hand sliding behind my neck, cupping it, pulling me closer. His tongue teases my lips and I moan, letting him in.

  As Axel claims my mouth, I wrap my fingers around his thick shaft, the low fire between my legs becoming a raging inferno as I thrill at the feel of his cock. It’s like a bar of steel wrapped in velvet, soft and hard at the same time. And oh so hot. His shaft throbs against my fingers and I’m overcome with a sudden desire that’s too strong to resist.

  He growls when I break the kiss but a slow grin appears on his face when I sink to my knees. A bead of precum hangs on the tip of his cock. My tongue flicks out and captures it. I look into his eyes, seeing a hunger there that I’ve never seen in anyone else. Continuing to look up at him, I slowly wrap my lips around the head of his cock and take him into my mouth.

  “Fuck,” he growls, low and deep. His fingers tangle in my hair, his nails massaging my scalp as I take as much of him as I can. He’s too big for me to take all the way so I slide my mouth back and forth on what I can while stroking the rest of him with fingers that squeeze and loosen in a rhythm that soon has him thrusting against my face.

  My free hand slides between his legs, cupping his balls and giving them a gentle squeeze, and I slide my tongue along his throbbing shaft as I suck harder on him, my hand moving faster up and down his shaft.

  “Jesus, woman,” Axel gasps out. “You’re gonna make me . . . fuuuuck!”

  His thrusts become erratic and then he freezes and growls my name as he pumps his cream in my mouth. I swallow greedily — just a taste — and then pull his throbbing member from my lips and aim it down. Pure lust flashes in his eyes as he watches his pearly cum coat my black shirt.

  He pulls me to my feet and claims my mouth. I can’t help but moan as his tongue teases mine. I feel his hands grab the front of my shirt and then I hear numerous tapping sounds throughout the room as he tears my top open, buttons flying everywhere. He rips my shirt from my body and drops it to the floor. He just came but I can already feel his cock getting hard again against my belly. I purr into his mouth at the knowledge that I turn him on so much.

  With a sharp nip against my lower lip, Axel pulls away and looks at my body. My hands automatically cover my curvy belly as embarrassment dulls some of the lust rushing through me. Axel frowns and shakes his head, pulling my hands away. He kneels down, looking up at me. “Never hide yourself,” he says. “You’re too beautiful to hide.” He covers my belly with kisses and then stands, picks me up, and tosses me over his shoulder like I weigh nothing. I squeal, kicking my feet in the air as he takes me out of the little studio room and down the hall. He opens a door and carries me into his bedroom, tossing me onto what has to be the most comfortable king-sized bed in the whole world. Before I have a chance to move, he’s lifting my hips and tugging my skirt and panties down.

  I gasp as he lays down on his stomach, lifting my legs to rest on his shoulders and back. “So beautiful,” he whispers before planting a soft kiss on my inner thigh. I shiver uncontrollably as he does the same thing to my other thigh, a low moan escaping me as he begins leaving a trail of kisses up my inner thighs, alternating from one to the other with each kiss.

  Slowly — so very motherfucking slowly — he works his way higher. By the time he’s reached my pussy, I’m panting heavily, my fingers clutching and twisting the blanket I’m laying on. “Please,” I manage to gasp out between heaving breaths. “I need you.”

  “You have me, Sweetness,” he says against my thigh, his soft breath making me tremble as it passes over my skin. And then he runs his tongue firmly up my slit, all the way from my ass to my clit.

  I suck in a sharp breath and hold it. I don’t mean to, but I can’t help it. I simply can’t breathe anymore. It’s like my body simply forgot how to do something it’s been doing my whole life. His tongue takes another long lick and then it traces a circle around my clit. Once. Twice. And then down, sliding inside me. I scream his name as the orgasm that’s been building is unleashed. He continues to tongue fuck me, his arms gripping me tight, holding me against his oh-so-delicious tongue. I dig my heels into his back, thrashing around as one orgasm slides smoothly into a second.

  And then he’s over me, his cock sliding up and down my slick mound. His mouth crashes on mine and I taste myself as our tongues dance together. He breaks away for just a moment, looking at me with a hungry gleam in his eyes. “You’re not a one-night stand, or a fling, or anything remotely casual. You’re forever.” He captures my mouth in a hungry kiss and I feel him slide into me. I moan into his mouth as he stretches me, filling me completely with his thick, throbbing cock. With one long, slow movement, he buries himself balls-deep inside me, and then he begins fucking me with a steady rhythm that soon has me gasping for air as he nibbles at my neck and shoulder, his beard scratching softly at my skin. I hold him close, one hand tangled in his hair, the other sliding down and holding one tight ass cheek that clenches every time he surges forward.

  I can feel another orgasm building, a fire growing steadily hotter, and then he pulls out, the sudden emptiness a shock to my system. Before I can come to my senses enough to complain, he turns me over, pulls me up on my knees, and buries his cock deep inside me once again, one hand smacking down on my ass at the same time.

  “Say you’re mine,” he demands, emphasizing the command with another smack.

  “I’m yours,” I moan, trembling as my orgasm begins rippling through me.

  Another burning smack across my ass. “Louder,” he
says firmly.

  “I’m yours,” I yell.

  “Good girl.” And then he takes my hips in a powerful grip and begins fucking me harder and faster, pulling me back against him with each forward thrust.

  I scream his name as I come, and then I lapse into gibberish, unable to speak coherently as wave after wave of pure pleasure rushes over me.

  “Mine,” Axel growls as his thrusts begin to stutter, his natural rhythm faltering as he gives in to his own pleasure. “All mine, Harper. Forever.” And his cock throbs and swells as he fills me with his seed, triggering another orgasm that leaves me panting and unable to move.

  He collapses beside me, both of us breathing heavy. His arm wraps around me and pulls me close to him. “Mine,” he whispers in my ear. “Forever.”

  “Yours,” I reply, snuggling back against him. I close my eyes, content and happy.

  Epilogue 1

  Harper

  The wedding is just as nerve-racking as I imagined it would be. I’m constantly worried about doing something to make a fool of myself while everyone celebrates the big event, and Axel’s intense eyes just make me more nervous.

  “Just breathe,” Axel says softly, barely above a whisper. “It’s just another wedding. You’ve photographed dozens of them.” He flashes me an encouraging smile and takes my hand.

  “Right,” I reply, just as softly. “Just another wedding. With one big difference.”

  His smile grows bigger, and I can see from the hungry look in his eye that he’s resisting the urge to kiss me. He knows he can’t. Not right now.