Page 63 of Stuck with my Brother's Firefighter Besties

Lila flushed, her eyes darting nervously around the room. “Uh, sure. What exactly do you want me to do?”

“Just keep us on track. Make sure the poses don’t look ridiculous.” Nate grinned. “Also, maybe rein in Colt before he decides to go full cowboy.”

I tipped my imaginary hat in her direction. “Yeehaw.”

Her hazel eyes met mine for a moment, and I swore her cheeks turned pink.

Lila cleared her throat, glancing down at her clipboard like it held the secrets of the universe. “All right, let’s see what we’re working with.”

As she scanned the setup, I couldn’t help but notice how she chewed on her bottom lip when she was focused. It was distracting—so much so that I almost missed Nate’s call.

“Colt! Center stage. Shirt off.”

I froze mid-step. “Excuse me?”

Jaxon let out a low whistle, clearly enjoying himself. “You heard the man.”

Lila’s head snapped up, her eyes wide. “Wait, what?”

“Shirt off, Colt,” Nate repeated, barely hiding his smirk. “We need the rugged look for this one.”

“Well, this just got interesting,” Jaxon quipped, leaning back to watch.

With an exaggerated sigh, I pulled off my flannel, leaving only the white tank underneath. I made a show of flexing my arms, glancing at Lila as I did so.

Her gaze flicked to the clipboard, but not before I caught the way her cheeks deepened to a fiery red.

“You good, Lila?” I teased, my grin widening.

She blinked rapidly, pretending to jot something down. “Yep! All good. Let’s, uh, keep it moving.”

Ryan, ever the observer, chuckled. “Looks like someone’s getting flustered.”

“Shut up, Ryan,” she muttered, but the humor in her voice gave her away.

I stepped into the spotlight, leaning casually against the hay bale. “All right, Lila. Tell me what to do.”

She hesitated, her fingers tightening on the clipboard. “Maybe… um, lean back a little? Less smirk, more… serious hero vibe?”

“Serious hero vibe,” I repeated, mimicking her tone. “Got it.”

I leaned back, exaggerating the pose just enough to make it ridiculous.

“Like this?”

Jaxon snorted. “More like a catalog model for discount farm equipment.”

Lila pressed her lips together, clearly fighting a laugh. “Colt, be serious!”

“All right, all right.” I adjusted my pose, this time locking my gaze on her. “Better?”

Her eyes lingered on me for a moment too long before she coughed and looked away. “Y-yeah. That’s… that’s better.”

The guys burst out laughing, and I couldn’t help but join in. Lila buried her face in the clipboard, muttering something about “unprofessionalism” and “never doing this again.”

But for all her flustered reactions, I could see the way her lips twitched like she was fighting a smile.

Maybe this photo shoot wasn’t such a chore after all.

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