Page 49 of The Model

“I do what I can,” she mumbled into my shoulder.

“Great, let’s get to work.”

21

Ryder

VEGAS

Letting out a deep breath,I made my way downstairs to the meeting room. I wasn’t used to having a meeting before a shoot, but this seemed to be a big campaign, so I’d do what I had to do. Angie had begged me and then informed me she’d already said I’d do the job after they doubled how much they’d pay me. It would be my most lucrative job by far and would set me up for slowing down next year. Angie still had no idea I had no intention to re-sign the contract with her, and after her booking this job without even asking me, there was no way I would change my mind. The only problem was I had very little work for the next year in the books, and it was a little worrying. I could always take the job with Igolide since they didn’t seem to want to take no for an answer. Angie had been pestering me about signing with them and to renew her contract. Neither was happening now that I was doing this job.

I found the conference room with Mathers - Skön written on a piece of paper, taped to the door. For some reason, I was nervous about this job. I wasn’t sure if I should knock or walk right in and ended up standing there until I felt someone walk up behind me.

A man cleared his throat. “Are you going in?”

Turning around, I found another model standing behind me. “Oh, I wasn’t sure what to do. Normally I just show up, and they start taking pictures. I’ve never had to go to a meeting beforehand.”

“Ah, that would be my doing. Sorry, this is an important account, and we want everything perfect. We thought if the models knew what we wanted, it would be beneficial all around.”

Wait, this guy wasn’t a model? He had to be. He was probably in his mid-twenties, the same height as me, with dark hair, the lightest green eyes I’d ever seen, and amazing bone structure. I was around enough models to know what to look for, and he was it. If Angie or any modeling agency saw him, they’d try to sign him on the spot. How’d he slip by them?

“Are you the photographer?”

He smiled and held his hand out for me to shake. “I’m Tyson Jacobs. I work for Mathers.”

“Ryder Williams, one of the models.”

He gave me a tight smile. “I know who you are, Mr. Williams.”

Shaking his hand, I tried to wrap my head around this job. I’d never heard of any of the companies, yet they were desperate to use me. I tried looking up Blue Stars Photography, but only found a website with very little information on it. They seemed relatively new, so it didn’t make sense they’d be used on such a big and important job. Maybe the photographer knew someone from Mathers. I had no idea.

Leaning around me, Tyson put his hand on the doorknob. “What do you say we go inside and get this meeting started?”

I let Tyson go inside ahead of me and followed in behind him. There were only a few people in the room, but what caught my attention was the woman on the other side of the room with blue hair cascading down her back. There was no else in the world it could have been.

It was my Lexie.

Hope filled me, and a deep burn spread through every inch of my soul. I had no idea what she was doing here, and I didn’t care. With all that was in me, I tried to hold back from running to her. I’d been patiently waiting for this moment for months, and I couldn’t screw it up now that I had her in my sights.

As I walked toward her, all eyes were on me. It was as if they knew our history, and they were waiting to see the fallout when she finally saw me. Standing only a few inches away from her, I could smell her scent. She always smelled of coconut and saltwater, even when we were hundreds of miles away from the ocean.

Reaching out to finally touch Lexie, her name slipped from my lips. It was a mix between a prayer and an apology. She moved as if in slow motion. Turning ever so slowly, I took in each inch of her. I loved everything about her, from her petite frame to the beautiful tattoos she adorned her body with, to her deep blue eyes that stood out against her hair. She was more beautiful than any woman I’d ever seen, and this time I wasn’t going to let her slip away from me.

My gaze snagged on the slight protrusion of her belly that was covered up with a tight white t-shirt. I blinked, and in the next instant, Lexie was looking up at me with tears brimming in her eyes.

Was Lexie pregnant?

How? Who had she hooked up with since I last saw her?

I didn’t understand. None of this made sense.

And it didn’t seem possible.

“And that’s our cue to leave,” I heard someone say behind me.

Lexie shook her head and stepped around me. I turned, unable to take my eyes off her. “I think it would be better if Ryder and I leave to have our talk.” She pulled out her phone and then just as quickly put it back into the back pocket of her short jean shorts. “Why don’t we meet back in here after lunch? Say, one o’clock? That should give us enough time.”

Our meeting was scheduled for ten, and I’d left my room to get here early, so I knew it was only a little after ten if that. What did she have to say that would take three hours?

---