She made a disapproving sound, and I could almost hear her shaking her head. “I’m sure you’ll change your mind when you meet the right girl. Most men do.”
And that right there was one of the primary reasons I didn’t tell her anything else about my life. I’d given up. Elijah wasn’t strong-willed enough to fight back with her, even if Eli thought it would be a great idea to lose it one day and tell her everything.
“I need to get back to work. I’ll talk to you later.” Making quick goodbyes, I finally hung up.
It wasn’t the worst conversation we’d had lately, so it was going in the win category for me even though she was frustrating. Usually, the first couple of weeks after I left were fairly quiet, but for the last few trips, it hadn’t worked out that way. Each time she got antsy sooner and wanted me to come and visit quicker.
I always put it off as long as possible because all she did was try to fix me up, but that was getting harder. Eli was also getting more difficult to shove into the closet with every visit. I’d actually found a pair of panties in my suitcase I couldn’t even remember packing the last time I’d gone out there. I was either losing my marbles or deliberately sabotaging myself…I just wasn’t sure which.
Trying to shove the frustration out of the way, I sat down in my chair and turned to start working on the paper that needed to be finished. As much as I wanted to dawdle and put it off, it was due that night, so I couldn’t find any more reasons to delay.
The two very distinct desks were facing away from each other, with my chair in the middle. My school desk had simple lines and reminded me a lot of Elijah. My work desk was all Eli. It had scrolling legs and all kinds of woodwork that was shiny and beautiful. They made the room tight, but it’d been the easiest way for me to keep everything separate. Living in the dorms, it had been almost impossible to find enough space to spread out.
That had been my first justification for buying the house. Having something that was just mine and that they couldn’t take away when it all blew up was the other. Yeah, financially it had made sense with where the real estate market was at that time, but the rest of the decision had been pure Eli-emotion.
Pushing back the conversation with my mother was harder than it should’ve been. I knew I only had Roman to thank for that. On days when I had to work with him, everything was more difficult. Something about being called a slut in that sneering voice dug its way under my skin.
By the time I finished the paper, I had a pounding headache and a short temper. It probably wasn’t the right headspace to write a blog post, but venting to my followers about everything he said was becoming second nature. Maybe if those weren’t my highest-read posts, I would have found a reason to stop.
But being able to rant against his judgmental bullshit made us all feel better.
They all had people in their lives that just didn’t understand who they were and what they were drawn to. But completely losing it about “that man” or “that ass” was a fun way for all of them to tell off the haters in their own life.
Ha, some of my psychology courseshadcome in handy.
Thinking that it might be another interesting master’s program, I jotted down a quick idea on a sticky note and put it up on the wall with the other odd ones. Plain yellow for school and pink for work, they dotted the office in a slightly uneven checkerboard effect.
When I couldn’t see the light gray paint under the papers, I knew it was time to clean up and reorganize.
Telling myself I’d get some aspirin as soon as it was finished, I turned to the work table and charged ahead. Once I was done, and not feeling bad about telling all the shit Roman had said earlier, I shifted my focus back to the pictures.
Most looked good. Even the ones that had to be cropped to keep my face out of the frame drew my eye, so I knew my followers would love them. They looked sexy, and I knew they were going to sell well, but some of the colors seemed off. Leaving the pictures up on the screen, I stood and stretched, then started pacing around the room.
The more I looked at the red ones, the less I liked how they were captured. Something about the lighting made them look almost pink. It wouldn’t be bad if they were actually a pinkish-red color, but they weren’t. Those pieces were very red and wouldn’t look good on every skin tone. Some people couldn’t wear a red that strong.
As a customer, I’d have been pissed if I thought it looked pink on the site and then ended up with red panties or any of the other pieces that came in the set. Glancing up at the calendar stuck to the far wall, I frowned. Between work commitments, school stuff, and some volunteer work I’d signed up for, my free time was rapidly dwindling, and I wasn’t going to let that ass take up any more of it than absolutely necessary.
The earlier shoot had taken twice as long as it should have since he’d argued with every step. Each new outfit had meant new arguments on how it should be lit and what angles I wanted captured for the site. Sexy, sweet, sassy, naughty…I wanted all different moods, but Roman couldn’t see past the end of his nose.
We weren’t selling finishing equipment or shoes. We were selling the fantasy of confidence and the idea that they could have a life where they could be whoever they wanted. Some guys would never come out and tell people what they liked, but that was fine, everyone was different. But I still wanted to show them how sexy and fabulous it was when they loved who they were.
Roman just missed the point.
Sighing, I looked down at the phone. It was getting late, but pounding head or not, if I wanted to be able to fit the reshoots in, it would have to be tonight. Other sessions were scheduled with a variety of models and photographers for the rest of the week, and there wasn’t room to fit in another screaming match with Roman. He would just need to suck it up and do it tonight.
Picking up the phone, I mentally geared up for battle. It was going to be a long night.
Chapter 7
Roman
“I’m not taking dick pics for you to send to online hookups! Just function like a reasonable model so we can get this done!” Watching the straining fabric of the lace panties that decorated his cock more than hid it was making me insane.
“If you wouldn’t argue about every little thing, we’d have been done half an hour ago! And who sends dick pics anymore, Grandpa?” Eli popped one hip out and gave a dramatic turn so his ass was facing me. “I’ve got all kinds of angles they want to see.”
As much as I wanted to throw my camera at him, something about the new pose caught my eye. Growling out the words, I started moving and trying to capture the light. “Don’t move. Just fuckin’ obey me for one goddamned minute.”
I’d never admit it to Eli, but he’d been right about the color of the fabric. Adjusting the lighting a little made a world of difference in the pictures. “Arch your ass out…there’s a shadow…right there…”
