Gabe arrived early, striding into the Ivory Suite at the Palms Casino and Hotel to make sure it met his satisfaction. A large white bed sat in front of a glossy black and white wall, anchoring the luxurious space, while a plush black and white carpet dampened the sound of his footsteps. The wall across from the bed had silver wallpaper with a slight pattern and sheen, and a sitting area just past the bedroom held a curved red couch and white bucket chairs. When he inspected the bathroom, he discovered frosted, sea-glass-colored glass walls surrounding the ornate mirror.

Yeah, this would do.

Even the lamps in the hotel room were surprisingly sensual, their tall, silver bases shaped like pleasure beads. The client would be pleased.

Gabe smirked, thinking of Bex. He’d left her this morning with a squeeze on her gorgeous ass and a lush kiss that threatened to turn into more if they didn’t both have to work.

He set his camera on the counter in the hotel kitchenette and began arranging his lights in the bedroom, so when the makeup artist and stylist from Bare Fortunes Lingerie arrived ten minutes later, he was already ready for them. Today’s model followed the stylist into the room, her hair arranged in a loose chignon.

Gabe looked around the room. Everyone here was professional, on time, and tasteful. So why did this feel wrong?

The stylist stepped forward to consult with him and the makeup artist, interrupting his doubts.

“We want to do a refined sensuality,” she said, tapping her finger against some sample images. “Bare Fortunes Lingerie is sexy but still tasteful. We want today’s shoot to be old-school glamour meets sleek sophistication.”

The makeup artist rummaged through her bag of gear. “I’m going to give you a touch-up,” she said to the model. “I’m thinking fake lashes, for sure. And a bold red lip. That will be a perfect contrast to the black and white on set.”

Gabe nodded, and the makeup artist pulled the model into a corner to add the last touches. He turned his back on them and swept his eyes over the room. This setup was such a contrast from his shoot with Bex, which had been all nature and rock and sky. Here the room was a sleek and opulent, but the shoot felt like artifice. With these photos, they’d be trying to sell sex, but he imagined it was more like what sex with strangers would be. Sex with Bex, on the other hand, felt like connection. Like unfolding himself and finding home.

Shit. He was such a sap sometimes. How had his one-night stand turned into the woman he wanted to spend every night with?

“Okay,” said the model, arriving at Gabe’s side and bringing him back to the job. This was a job, after all. “I’m ready for you.”

“Let’s start on the bed,” he suggested. “Lie sideways across the pillows.”

He climbed onto the mattress and pointed his lens down at the half-naked model at his feet. Normally, lifting his camera would give him a steadying feeling, the control coming back. Gabe couldn’t place the slight tremor of nervousness that shook his hands now until he realized with a bite of regret that it was because Bex was going to hate this. Sure, she might know logically that an assignment was just an assignment to him. But jealousy didn’t care about technicalities. She was going to be pissed.

Still, he had a job to do.

“Eyes on me,” he commanded and brought the camera to his face.

Gabe brushed Bex’s hair off her cheek to kiss her lightly, smiling as a soft snore met him. He shifted her sleeping weight off his arm and slid out of bed. While taking photographs was a huge part of his job, editing images was the larger part, and he had the whole Bare Fortunes Lingerie shoot to sort through before next week. There was work to do.

He padded into the living room of his apartment and brought his computer to life. He selected his favorite photographs in Lightroom and then brought the batch over into Photoshop. He’d give Bare Fortunes a set of color-corrected photos and let their advertising team make the final call, but there was still something to be said for handing over polished images.

Bex slid her arms around Gabe’s stomach, and he jumped.

“Hey,” she murmured, hooking her chin over his shoulder to see the screen. “What are you working on?”

He minimized the screen and turned to her. “Just making final selections on the photos from today’s shoot.”

She covered her mouth as she yawned. “Can I see?”

“They’re not edited images,” he stalled.

“You let me see the photos from my shoot before they were finished.” She had him there.

“You won’t like them.”

“I like everything you do. You make the world seem beautiful.” She was going to regret that choice of words, just like he was going to regret showing her the photos.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Bex looked hurt. “Why is it such a big deal?” She reached for the mouse and opened the screen. “Oh.” Her eyes widened in pain. “You didn’t tell me it was a boudoir shoot.” Her voice was a little scratchy.

Gabe made a face. “Not quite. It’s a lingerie campaign.”

She narrowed her eyes at the pictures, her lips pulled into a frown. “Doesn’t leave a lot to the imagination, does it?”

He ignored that. There was no right answer—say yes and admit the models were half-naked? Say no and lie? “I don’t choose who hires me,” he said instead.

“But you do.”

“What?”

“You’re a freelancer, right?” Bex’s voice was flinty and wounded. “So you do get to choose who hires you.”

“I don’t know what you want me to say, Bex. I booked this campaign months ago. This is just paying the bills until the gallery show. Hopefully, I’ll get some traction with the gallery and then I won’t have to do these shoots anymore.”

Gabe could feel her retreating, withdrawing, even though she nodded. “Okay, yeah. The pictures are sexier than I imagined you’d be shooting, but I guess they’re great.”

Bex was holding back on him, and he eyed her cautiously. “Thanks.”

She sighed. “That’s just a lot of naked girls, Gabe.”

His chest tightened. He reached to cup her chin, and she flinched back ever so slightly, which hurt more than any words could. “I was doing a job, honey. This didn’t mean anything.”

“I’m not mad that you had a job to do,” Bex whispered. “I’m mad that you felt like you had to hide it from me. It makes me feel like there’s some other reason you’re not sharing with me.”

“I was trying not to hurt your feelings.”

She shook her head. “When you’re not honest with me, that hurts.”

They were going to go in circles here. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to hurt you.”

Gabe could see the struggle on her face. This was still so new to her—so new to both of them. He had spent so much time having to focus on himself in the last few years, on figuring out what his life needed to look like, that sometimes he didn’t stop to think about Bex’s point of view. They were a lot alike, he and Bex. So much, sometimes, that he forgot she might not always agree with how he handled things.

“Listen.” He reached for her waist and pulled her to him. This time she relaxed against him. “Let me turn off the computer and take you back to bed. Let me show you there’s nothing between us.”

“Okay,” she whispered. But when they slid into bed together and he kissed her like an invitation, she pulled back and cupped a hand to his jaw. “I’m exhausted, ace. I’ve been running around to get things together for Sam and Aderyn, and it’s catching up to me. Can we just sleep tonight?”

“Sure,” he agreed, but her words stung. Even when she’d fought with him before, she’d never refused him. Gabe knew Bex was better at communicating her feelings with her body than with her words, and this spelled out rejection more clearly than words on a page ever could.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and held her, his lips on her neck. He couldn’t lose her now, not when they had gotten this far. But Bex was restless in his arms all night.