Page 9 of The Billionaire's Ride

“You look hot!” he shouts. “Just pretend you’re seducing the sexiest man alive.”

Kate flickers her jade eyes at me. Her cheeks flush with a warm glow before she drops her gaze.

I shoot that Garret git a look. “You’re not helping.”

Garret shrugs and pulls out his phone, turning on his heel. “Whatever . . .”

“Can we get some music going?” I call out. “Kate, what would you like to listen to?”

“I don’t know. What do you have?” she asks with hunched shoulders. Why is she not more comfortable in her knickers? She’s the one who created them.

I pull my phone from my pocket and scroll through a music app for a sultry, electronic R&B artist, whose music makes women’s hips sway. “Put this on,” I say, handing my phone to one of the production assistants. Soon, the saxophone sounds with a cool, finger-snapping beat keeping the rhythm. “Is this all right?”

“Sure,” she says, though her body remains unbending. Too bad there isn’t time for a couple of brandies. That would loosen her right up. If she doesn’t relax soon, we’ll lose the light.

The crew stands around, chatting, and scrutinizing Kate’s rigid poses. If I can feel their judgments, I know Kate can too. And it’s not making things any easier for our model-slash-designer.

Two songs later, she’s still stiffer than the hard-on she left me with last night. This isn’t working. I’ve got a dangerous idea, but it may be the only way to get the job done. “Okay, everyone out!” I call, lowering my camera and glaring at the crew.

They all freeze and fall silent, staring at me with half-smiles as if I’m cracking a joke. “I’m serious, piss off.”

“You heard the man. Let’s go!” Francesca demands, and the crew slowly shuffles out. I send Francesca an appreciative nod and wait until the last person is out and the door is shut before turning back to the designer-model.

Kate stares wide-eyed at the closed studio doors, and her cheeks lose their pink glow. Now we’re alone.

Chapter Four

DREW

“It’s JustKate and Just Drew, all right? There’s no need to be nervous anymore,” I say gently, wanting to soothe all of her discomfort.

“Yeah, sure there isn’t.” She rolls her eyes.

What will it be like to watch those gorgeous green eyes roll back as I touch her the way she wants to be touched? I shift my hips. If only I could adjust myself without grabbing my slightly throbbing cock. I’ve got to get it together. This is a job. “Why don’t you lie down on your stomach? Lean up on your elbows.”

“If you can’t see the lingerie, it kind of defeats the purpose,” she says in a much bolder tone, calling the shots. But she’s not the boss here. I am.

“Oh, so youwantme to see your lingerie now?” I toy with the words, this time getting a little smile out of her.

“You know what I mean.”

I position the camera. “Yes, I do. But it’s not for the magazine. It’s just to help you feel less . . . exposed.”

She shrugs, then lifts up on her hands and knees, crawling to the middle of the bed.Fuck me. Kate is hot. “I think we’re past being exposed,” she says, lowering herself down on the bed with her feet in the air behind her.

I bite my lip and snap a photo. “So, Kate, I have to admit, when I met you the other night, I didnotpeg you for a lingerie designer.” Unfortunately, I didn’t peg her at all.

“Oh, yeah? Well, I didn’t peg you for a photographer.” Her shoulders ease up, and I can tell she’s getting a little cozier.

“I bet you never thought you’d see me again, huh?” I ask.

Kate looks away shamefully. “Honestly, no.”

I examine her luscious curves in the lens. “Yeah, me neither. I was just as surprised when I walked in on you half-naked today.”

She flashes a wry glance. “I’m sure that was vengefully satisfying for you.”

“Why? Because you left me with wet pants and a broken promise?” I ask, and her face turns a slight shade pinker. “I don’t know about vengefully satisfying, but it did ease my pain a little.”

---