Lately, I had none.
“I’m sure they’re going to be great to work with.” And for the money they were paying, combined with the flexible hours, I wasn’t going to argue.
His smile turned into more of a smirk. He knew he was downplaying the drama. “Some more than others, but they all have rabid followings on the site and have helped take the company to the next level, so I appreciate even my moreinterestingmodels.”
I just had to keep reminding myself that it wasn’t forever. A year, tops, and I would have everything planned out. I could go back to photographing things I actually enjoyed. But before I could even start thinking about rebuilding my career, I needed to land the job.
From everything that Preston was saying, I thought he was going to offer it, but I wasn’t sure. Our previous conversations had led me to think he would be giving me the job right away, but when I’d walked into his office, he’d just started talking. He’d said he wanted to get to know me more before he made his decision.
I hadn’t really known what to expect when I’d walked up to the building. I’d looked up the site online and had done some basic research on the company, but I was starting to think I should have gone through the blogs and videos on the site in more detail. When I’d first started exploring the site, after I’d seen the ad for a new photographer online, I’d mistakenly thought they were looking for real photographers to give the site a more traditional look.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.
One year…that was all I had to put up with. One year to build up new clients and to figure out how everything would look. One year to make sure I had a savings account no one could touch. One year of crazy, and I would be set.
“How about I show you around?” Preston still hadn’t said that I had the job outright. However, he wouldn’t waste his time showing me around if I was off the list completely. So I held on to that bit of hope.
“I’d like that.” Standing, I followed Preston to the door. His office looked professional and comfortable, less banker and more relaxing therapist’s office, but still like it was a real company and not a new internet startup. “You have a great building.”
It looked almost like a warehouse from the outside and was fairly unimpressive. But as I’d walked in, that was where it’d started to shine. The lobby looked like it could have belonged in any bank, but when he’d walked me through the back offices, that was where the cold comparison stopped.
Oversized pictures of models and lingerie were mixed in with photos of the building and the local scenery. There were also very candid shots mixed in that looked like company parties or social events because the people in them were all standing around talking.
As I’d browsed the site, I’d been surprised at the different body types and men who were shown. Most were clearly fit, but there was everything from tall, broad, butch guys in lingerie to twinks in panties. And that was just the clothing side of the site.
Preston had been very upfront with the fact that it would only be the lingerie models that were photographed in the studio. He’d said very early in the conversation that the models for the fetish wear were generally in relationships where their partners took the photos. He’d said that it made for more intimate shots and a more accurate representation of the lifestyle.
I hadn’t cared either way, but it had let me narrow down my research on the site, so I’d appreciated the information. I couldn’t help but think that he’d probably run into some weird issues with new photographers if he had to spell it out that clearly.
Which was hypocritical, from my way of looking at it. Taking pictures of guys in panties was fine, but they crossed the line when it was some guy with a plug shaped like a tail up his ass? It was all photography.
Judgmental morons.
As he led me through the cubicles and offices, I was surprised at how busy it was. “Looks like you have a lot going on.”
Preston looked around. “This is actually quiet for us. Most of the marketing, buyers, and the back-office staff work on this floor.” He pointed over to a bank of cubicles that were toward the far wall but empty. “Those are full a lot of the time with the models. Most of them have individual blogs on the site that they update from here, or even second jobs. We have one guy who writes several different blogs on a variety of topics and most of it he does here.”
That had to be a circus.
Luckily, all I would have to do would be take the pictures on site, and then I could edit them from anywhere before I sent them back. Working with all the chaos and drama would be a nightmare.
Thinking up a positive response was hard. “It’s great that you’re so flexible.”
Preston shrugged, not willing to accept the praise. “We’re more like a family here, so it just makes sense. And we have a lot of room, so not making use of it to help them out would be petty.”
As we walked through the offices toward the stairs, he introduced me to people and waved at others who were on the phone or engaged in conversations. There was none of the usual tension that most people had when they were talking to the boss. It was casual and easy. I wanted to poke one and make sure they weren’t pod people or the kinky version of Stepford Wives.
I behaved myself, though.
By the time we’d walked up to the second floor, I’d met a variety of people, and most were tolerable. Some would probably get on my nerves if I had to work with them much, but they were in departments I wouldn’t see very often. So I wasn’t worried.
No, my worries were all at the top of the stairs.
I could hear the chaos before we even reached the second floor. Models were everywhere. Naked ones bunched in one corner and trying on clothing, lingerie-clad men sitting on couches and talking, and even a handful of women who seemed to be directing traffic or trying to control the chaos.
I could not work under those circumstances.
Preston must have seen something on my face because he chuckled. “It’s usually only about half this many people, sometimes less than that. We got a shipment in this morning of a line that we’re thinking about adding to the site, so the guys are picking things they want to try out.”
