Since Alix hadn’t said anything to me yesterday about wanting me to model for him again, I decided that going into work early this morning would be the best way to avoid an awkward conversation. If I was already working when he came in, I could control the conversation, or at least look busy while he talked. If I looked into his eyes and saw that, for some unknown reason, he still wanted me, I couldn’t say I was confident in my ability to say no.

I told myself it was because he was good-looking, and that it was due to how he made me feel physically, but deep down I knew I was lying to myself with those excuses. I didn’t have the ability to fully explain what it was about him that drew me in and made me lose focus, but I knew I needed to get ahold of it if I could ever make this work.

Which brought me back to wanting to be in the office by the time Alix arrived.

The moment I reached the studio door and found it unlocked, however, I realized my plan already had failed. As I walked inside, Alix pushed off the table he’d been leaning against and walked toward me.

“I figured that since you bring me coffee all the time, I’d return the favor.” He raised his hands to show cups from the same bodega I’d purchased the two cups I held. “One can never have too much caffeine.”

I nodded dumbly. He’d caught me off-guard, showing up early, offering me coffee. If it hadn’t been for the fact that we’d already said no more sex, I might have thought he was trying to get me into bed again. Or that he felt guilty about us already having slept together.

“I have a proposition for you.” One corner of his mouth twitched. “A business proposal.”

“Okay. Will the office work?”

Alix nodded and led the way. He sat down in the chair in front of the desk and set one of the coffees on the desk. I put one of the drinks I bought in front of him and then walked around behind the desk. It felt strange, us sitting like this, as if he was the employee and I the employer, but I wasn’t going to do anything to change it. I needed the desk between us for both distance and perspective.

“I have a contract for you,” he said, gesturing to the papers on my desk. “Two, actually. The first is to move your assistant position from temporary to full-time. Jean is taking care of things on the temp agency side, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

That one was on top, I saw. He fell silent as I read through. It was fairly straightforward for a contract. A set salary – which was higher than I expected – as well as working hours, which holidays I’d have off, my new insurance provider, and a week’s worth of paid leave gained every two years up to six weeks off total. When I got to the part about how the first week would be available as soon as I signed, I stopped and looked up.

“This is too much.”

I waited for him to admit that he’d given me such a generous contract because he and I had slept together, but he just shrugged.

“I don’t really know what it says. I had Jean write it up so I wouldn’t be tempted to try to bribe you.”

My eyes narrowed. “Bribe me for what?”

He smiled. “Bribe you to sign the second contract. It’s the same as every other model contract I have, so you don’t have to worry about favoritism there.”

I set aside the assistant contract and started going through the other one. I managed to keep my expression neutral even as my brain struggled to accept the numbers I was reading. He set it up for me to be paid per session, as he’d said, with the first two ‘test’ sessions I’d already done being only a little less than any future sessions would be. With each session, I’d have a release form to sign, which gave me a bonus. A bonus that made each session worth more than I made at the temp agency in a month. If I declined to sign the release forms, any photos from that session would only be available to Alix to use privately, unless I wished to purchase them.

The way my stomach tightened told me that the idea of him hanging my photos on the walls of his apartment, or wherever he lived, was almost as nerve-wracking as having them on display.

The contract also allowed for the option to release only photos that didn’t show my face. I’d receive a smaller bonus than if I agreed to allow them all to be used, but it also kept me from having an all-or-nothing decision to make.

“This is the same contract all your models sign?”

Alix stiffened, making me wonder if it was me questioning, or if it was the fact that I said all your models.

“I’m not treating you any differently,” he said, the muscles in his jaw clenching. “I want you to model for me and be my assistant. If you would prefer one over the other, that’s your choice.”

I was struck by the strange impulse to reach across the desk and touch him, reassure him. I curled my hand into a fist.

“It just seems like a lot,” I said carefully. “I didn’t come to the States to be a model, or to make a lot of money.”

He raised an eyebrow. “You’re hesitating because I’m offering too much?”

When he said it like that, I felt pretty foolish, but I had to know. “Why me?”

Alix stood, his hand rubbing the back of his neck. “I thought we talked about this.”

I shook my head. “I know you think I don’t see myself clearly, but it’s not about that. We’ve done a couple sessions, but this contract says that you want me to do a whole new line. You mentioned it before, and I asked a similar question. You didn’t really answer me then, and I would like an answer now. Why do you want me to pose for a whole new line instead of hiring a professional?”

I was feeling pretty good about how matter-of-fact I sounded, but the piercing look Alix shot me made me think twice, and his gaze didn’t waver as he walked around to stand in front of me.

“I want you to be the model for my new series because you’re the inspiration behind it. The only one I can see in my head when I picture it.”

I stared at him. I didn’t know what the new series was, but how could I have been an inspiration for anything?

“Alix, I–”

He crouched in front of me, putting us at eye level. He reached out, tucked a curl behind my ear.

“Hear me out about it, at least?”

Dammit.

I nodded. How could I say no to a job that could give me enough money that I’d never again have to worry about failing here and having to return to Ireland? A job that would allow me to have a savings account for emergencies, something to fall back on if I needed it.

He pulled his chair around the desk so that we were sitting on the same side of it, our knees almost touching.

“You already know that I enjoy bondage.”

That sentence shouldn’t have made me need to press my thighs together.

“Well, I like doing more than that.” He kept his eyes on my face as he spoke, and I got the impression that he was waiting for me to freak out. “I’m into the whole BDSM package, and I want to do an entire series on it.”

I held up a hand. “You want me to pose for even kinkier pictures than me in my underwear with my hands tied?”

Alix chuckled. “When you say it like that...”

I crossed my arms and leaned back, waiting for him to realize I was only half-joking.

He ran his hand over the dark stubble on his chin. “Sorry. I’m just not used to having to explain it. Usually, the...people I’m talking to already know about the lifestyle.”

I was grateful he didn’t go into detail about just who those people were. Even though I wouldn’t be sleeping with him again, that didn’t mean I wanted to hear about the women he’d been with before me. Or the women he’d be with in the future. The ones who already knew what that lifestyle was already about.

“You want to do a series of photographs showing the BDSM lifestyle. With me.” I had to say it out loud to see if it freaked me out or not. Judging by the rush of arousal that coursed through my veins, I would have to say...not.

“More or less,” Alix said. “The conditions the contract spelled out stay the same. No nudity. And what you said before, about things staying professional between us, that’s still there too.”

I knew if I took the time to think through it, I’d find a dozen reasons why I should tell Alix that I’d be his assistant and nothing more. I didn’t ask for time, but I did have a question.

“Before I can yes or no, I need one thing.”

“What’s that?”

I pressed my hands against my stomach, wishing they could calm the butterflies. “I need to know exactly what you’ll be expecting from me.”

He was quiet for a minute, then stood. “Take the rest of the day off. Tonight, I’ll take you somewhere for research.”

I may not have been overly experienced sexually, but even I could guess that wherever he was taking me, my work clothes wouldn’t cut it.

This was going to be...interesting.