“You teach high school English?” she asked once we got out of the elevator and were walking through the lobby. She continued holding my arm, and some of the people around us did a double take once they recognized who she was. Then, they pulled out their phones and pointed them our way.
“Yep,” I answered in a tight tone, feeling suddenly nauseous. I wasn’t used to the attention.
When we got outside, there was a car waiting for us. The windows were tinted and a driver stood on the sidewalk, moving to open the door to the backseat. Veronica got in first, then me, and Corbin last.
Once inside the privacy of the car, Corbin rested his hand on my knee. He said something to Veronica, and she answered, but all I focused on was the comfort of his touch. It was as if he knew I was freaking out on the inside, and it was just second nature for him to reach out to me.
As we drove, I gazed out of the window in awe. Florida was beautiful. Yeah, it was way more crowded than what I was used to back in Willow, but it had a nice charm to it. At least the areas I’d seen anyway.
The location was only a few minutes away, so the drive didn’t take too long.
Right when the car pulled into the lot, a crew was waiting for us. Well, waiting for them. Veronica was ushered off to a huge tent set up on the beach, where I guessed she’d be dolled up and dressed for the shoot.
Corbin was taken to a different tent, and I followed close behind him. Some woman with light brown hair and a too serious expression was at his side, talking really fast and giving him instructions.
“Jennifer,” he said, putting his hand up. “Take a breath. Relax. Everything’s fine. This isn’t my first rodeo.”
Ah, his agent. He’d told me about her before.
The makeup and hair teams got a hold of him right when we entered the tent. They guided him to a chair and sat him down. Someone dabbed foundation on his nose and cheeks before smoothing it in. They didn’t spend too much time putting makeup on him, only adding a layer of foundation, some concealer, and a little blush before handing him off to the hair person.
Corbin looked over at me as the man doing his hair ran some product through the top of it. He lifted his brows and stuck his tongue out, making me snort out a laugh. He was such a goober.
“Who are you again?” Jennifer asked, narrowing her eyes at me as if she’d just now noticed I existed. “Oh, right! You’re the friend. Try not to touch anything, okay? The equipment is expensive.”
The friend.
“Jen,” Corbin said, all traces of the humor he’d previously had were nowhere to be seen. “Hunter isn’t five.”
“Sorry! Sorry,” she said before sighing. “These things just always stress me out.”
“Then go sit the fuck down and take a chill pill,” Corbin said before the hair stylist grabbed his head and turned it back the other way. He hadn’t said it in a harsh way. Just in a Corbin way.
Jennifer became less bitchy, though, so it worked.
After his hair was done, some woman instructed Corbin to undress, and I was a bit caught off guard by it. He stripped down in front of like seven people…like completely naked. He didn’t look embarrassed or anything either. That same woman then handed him a pair of swimming shorts.
My mouth watered—and my pants became a little tight—as he put them on. Crazy how Corbin could look just as sexy putting clothesonas he did when taking them off.
The makeup team swarmed Corbin again once he was dressed, touching up areas on his chest and areas of his legs. He was already shaved, but they highlighted some parts of his abs and gave him a sun-kissed glow.
I didn’t think he needed any of that, but whatever.
When we left the tent, I breathed in the amazing air, a mix of ocean and coconut.
Cape Florida was known for its beautiful sand, historic lighthouse, and spacious beach—a great alternative for people who wanted a more tranquil beach experience. The area had been closed off because of the photoshoot, but even farther out, I still didn’t see many people. Just the scattered couple or two and a handful of families with kids.
It looked like a true paradise as I stood on the shore, overlooking the emerald colored water and admiring the bursts of diamonds as the sun hit its surface.
No sight was more beautiful than Corbin approaching me, though. His smile was brighter than a thousand suns and warmed me to the bone.
That warmth dissipatedjusta little when Veronica approached in her itsy bitsy bikini that left very little to the imagination. Her long blonde hair had a beach-wave to it and her lips looked extra plump and shiny.
The photographer was already set-up where he wanted them to pose, and he shouted out some instructions. The rest of the crew acted and helped make his vision possible. I was told to step back and get out of the way, so I moved behind the set.
No one was rude to me. Just busy. I understood that.
Jealousy aside, the shoot was interesting—and yeah, fucking sexy—to watch. Corbin stood facing the camera with an ‘I’m going to fuck you senseless’ expression and Veronica hung off him. After a few frames, they shifted a little.
