Page 13 of The Model

“Is that why you wanted to get a new one?”

He nodded against my chest. “That and so I can take decent pictures of my travels. I’m not a photographer like you, but I like to take pictures.”

“Well, it shouldn’t be a problem now with your new iPhone. What’s going to be your first picture?”

Pulling me onto his lap, Ryder grabbed his phone and held it out in front of us. “The first picture I want is of us together.”

It was a good thing we’d made a detour on our way to my bungalow to get Ryder a new phone.

We both smiled for the camera as he took photo after photo. They may not have been with my camera, but they were perfect. Ryder kissed my cheek, nuzzled my neck, and licked a path up until he nibbled on my ear all while taking pictures of us in various positions until he dropped his phone down onto the bed to be forgotten. For the next half hour, there was no talking. The only sounds were our moans and the slapping of skin until we had to head back down to the beach.

8

Ryder

We walkedhand in hand along the beach back to the location Lexie had been shooting at earlier. Her tiny hand felt right in mine, and I was already dreading when our time together would end.

“I didn’t ask before, but what happened to your hand?” I noticed a bright pink scar on the side that looked new.

Lexie let out a frustrated breath. “My ex showed up at my place. I’m still not sure why he was there or what was wrong with him. I think he was on drugs because his behavior was erratic and had been for a while. We were fighting, and luckily, I had my whole team there on the roof. One of the models came looking for me, and someone else called the police.”

“The police? It was serious then.”

She rubbed her thumb across the mark absentmindedly. “He grabbed me, and when the cops showed up, he shoved me away. I fell, and my hand landed on something. He had thrown almost all of my belongings on the floor, so I didn’t see what caused it, and I still don’t know what it was. Raine and Tommy cleaned up the mess before I had a chance to see. I got stitches, and they gave me antibiotics as a precaution. That’s why even though we’re both clean, we need to use condoms. I’m not sure how effective my pill is right now since I’ve only been off the antibiotics for a few days.”

I blinked down at her in shock. Not once during her story did she stop walking. I wasn’t sure if it was because she didn’t want to talk about it or if she was over it. Either way, it didn’t sit well with me. It didn’t bother me to use a condom. In fact, up until I met Lexie, I’d always used a condom every time I’d had sex. Even with my high school girlfriend when we’d been together for years. There was something about Lexie that short-circuited my brain but in a good way. While it was amazing to feel her bare, I’d be buying the biggest box of condoms on the island as soon as possible.

“Have you seen this ex of yours since?”

“That’s the crazy part,” she laughed without humor. “After throwing me down, he jumped out the window and ran off. The cops still haven’t found him.”

I stopped dead in my tracks, causing Lexie to jerk to a stop. “Are you in danger?”

“My alarm is set constantly, and I had it upgraded. I don’t want anyone walking in without me knowing, so I have a buzzer on the door with a camera so I can see who's out there.”

I wasn’t sure if that was enough, but what did I know?

Lexie ran her toes through the sand while she looked straight ahead, and we started walking down the beach again. Now, though, with this new knowledge, it didn’t look as beautiful as it had before. “Is your studio okay now? Did he break anything?”

“I renovated the second floor and moved up there. He didn’t touch the studio luckily, and just threw everything on the floor looking for something.”

“What was he looking for?” If he didn’t find it, he was sure to come back, and that had me worried.

“That I don’t know. Ben seemed to think I knew what it was, but I don’t. Raine and I didn’t find anything when we looked.”

“Please be careful, Lexie. If he didn’t find what he was looking for, he’ll be back, and he seems desperate after what you’ve told me.”

“I will. I promise. You don’t need to worry about me.” She smiled sadly up at me. I had a feeling she didn’t like talking about it, so I dropped it.

It didn’t matter what she told me; I was going to continue to worry until I knew she was safe, and her ex-boyfriend was behind bars.

I spied Raine up ahead, trying to put up the tent, but with her small stature, she was having a hell of a time getting it up. Lexie must have thought the same when she spoke. “What are you going to do now?”

“First, I’m going to help you guys set up, and then I’m going to find a store and buy a giant box of condoms. I might set up an Instagram account, take some pictures. I don’t know.” I shrugged, not really knowing what I was going to do except help her.

She turned around before we hit her group. Her hands rested on my chest as she smiled up at me. I loved how happy of a person she always seemed to be, even with an ex causing her problems. The diamond stud in her nose winked in the sunlight. “It should only take three hours max. What time is your shoot in the morning?”

I frowned at the thought of having to be separated from her. “I’ve got to be there at five.”

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