Chapter 15
“Put your hand on her chest. Like you’re about to touch her boob.”
The photographer waved his arms and Dean sighed in Kelly’s ear. “That’s what you want to hear from every guy you work with, huh?”
Kelly smiled at the camera as the shutter clicked. They changed position and she used the opportunity to roll her eyes at Dean. “Touch my boob and you die.” She batted her eyelashes up at him and he laughed.
“Stop laughing and look at me.” The photographer barked and they both focussed on the camera. “Look like you’re in love. Not like you’ve just come from a comedy show.” His face ducked down behind his lens and a finger poked Kelly in her back.
Through gritted teeth she said, “Don’t make me belt you, Dean.”
“Now, now Kelly.” His mouth settled behind her ear for the next pose. “You know you’ve always wanted me. You’re free now.” Her skin tickled where his breathy words touched her. “We could give it a try. You and me.”
“Kelly, why are you screwing up your face like that?” Exasperation filled his tone, as their nemesis stood up straight and glared at her.
“Sorry. I just had an awful visual.” She turned back and draped her arms around Dean’s neck, following the new directions being shouted at them. Her eyes locked with his as a wicked grin spread across his face. “I thought I was going to be sick. I’m fine now.”
“Stay focussed. We don’t have all day to catch this light.”
They snuggled for several more poses and then Kelly leaned her head against his chest. The photographer shouted for her to look dreamy so she closed her eyes and let her lips fall open. She sighed and relaxed against him, before Dean’s hands slipped down and cupped her bottom.
Her eyes flew open as he gave a hard squeeze. She yanked herself out of his grip and took two steps away. “What the hell are you doing Dean?” The photographer cursed and berated them, but his voice faded into the background. “Why would you do that?” Hands on hips, she stared at him, waiting for his answer.
Instead of an apology, he burst out laughing. “Well, look at you. I thought I’d test whether you’re back on the market. Seems not.” He crossed his arms and gave her a knowing look. “Interesting.”
“How is this a test? I wasn’t interested in you before and I’m still not. It doesn’t mean I’m not single, you idiot.”
He frowned as her words sank in. “Hmm… maybe. I did tell Nate that you never look twice at anyone.”
Kelly threw up her hands and turned away. “Ugh. Don’t mention his name!” She stormed across the sand, making for the tent where she changed her clothes. With three more outfits still to photograph, time was running out. A few minutes later, she stomped in the other direction in a different swimsuit, ready to do battle. Between Dean behaving oddly, and the bossy photographer, this shoot couldn’t be over fast enough.
“Right. I want sexy. I want fun and romance from you two. No more angst. Look like you mean it before I lose my mind.”
Dean held out his hand. “I’m sorry. I was out of line. Don’t be awkward with me and don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m not remotely interested in you like that.”
“I’m so glad.” She placed her hand in his and let him pull her into their next pose. They pressed together, following directions and gazing into the camera. Silence filled the beach as the required shots filled the memory card and clipped instructions came from behind the camera. Her back was to the camera when she said, “I thought I might have to start avoiding you.”
“Not at all. I just hate to see you both so unhappy.”
“I’m not unhappy.”
“Okay. Whatever you say. I am sorry, though.” Dean placed his chin on her shoulder for the next shots. His hands carefully found their position on her bare back and he ignored the cameraman’s instructions to put his hands inside her swimsuit.
Tucked into his shoulder her words almost made him laugh. “Oh, fuck no! Ignore everything he’s saying. He can fire me if he likes, but you are not doing any of that.”
He grinned and pulled her close instead and the shutter clicked again, over and over before they were allowed another break. As they headed toward their tents to change again, a voice called out behind them. “You better do what I say on the next one.”
***
Two hours later, the light was fading and Dean and Kelly were both tired. Tight lipped, they returned to the sand where a blow-up pool had been set up. Kelly eyed the red liquid she could see moving inside the pool. “What the hell is that?”
“Jelly.”
“Are you serious? Where will we clean up once we’re covered in Jelly?”
“Not both of you. Dean, I want you to stay right out of the pool. I want lots of shots of you reaching out to Kelly and trying to pull off her bikini top.”
“What?” Dean’s incredulous stare turned to the big-name photographer. “I’m not pulling off her clothes.”
Kelly agreed. “He’s definitely not pulling off my bikini. No one said anything about nudity. We’re not being paid for that.”
“Come on, you two, act professional. You’ve been mucking around all day and the light is almost gone. Can we just get this finished so we can all go home?” He slouched behind the camera, leaning heavily on one leg, glaring at them and pointing to the pool. When they stared silently back, he took it as agreement. “Into the pool, Kelly.”
She looked at Dean and he winked at her. “Come on, let’s get this over with. I promise I won’t do anything weird. Think of all the fun we’ve had on all the other shoots together. We can laugh about this tonight when I take you out and ply you with wine.”
“I’m going to need more than wine to wipe this day from my memory. I wish I had some now, actually.” She grinned as she stepped into the pool, gripping his hand so she didn’t slip over. “Oh, it’s cold.” Her frown turned on the man waiting for them to get into position. “Did you freeze this or something?”
“We had to keep it in jelly form, so it had to be refrigerated. It’ll help with the shots if you’re cold anyway. When he pulls on your bikini top it’ll show—”
“Hold on. Don’t you dare even say it.” Dean took a step toward him and Kelly pulled hard on his hand.
“It’s not worth it, Dean. Come on, let’s keep it together for a few more minutes.”
“He wants to see—”
“I know what he wants.” She lowered her voice. “He wants a punch in the damn face! Just focus on me, okay? We’ll get through this and we can put in a complaint about him afterward.”
They began with Dean’s hands casually around her waist. Their stance was awkward with him on the sand and her inside the small pool. After a few moments directions were hurled at them to turn this way and that, each position more risqué than the last. Dean whispered an apology to her as his finger slipped inside her bikini strap. Their chatter eventually died down and Dean’s smile got tighter and tighter. As he stood facing her, his hands tugging on the thin black strings, the tiny patches of material barely covering her breasts, he gasped as a single tear trickled down her cheek.
“That’s it. We’re done.”
“No, I need two more shots,” the confident voice of someone who is unaware of the surprise coming their way, rang out.
“You’re not getting another damn second of us on film,” Dean snapped as he grabbed a nearby sarong and wrapped it around Kelly’s shoulders. “She’s done. I’m done. If you have a problem with that, you can take it up with our agent.” He indicated that Kelly should leave and she turned with a quiet sob and headed for her tent. As she left the area she heard Dean raise his voice again. “What the hell is your game, man? If you want erotic shots you need to put the details in the contract and pay for them. You don’t get this stuff for free.”
“I’m paying the bill. I get whatever I want.”
“Well, you don’t get this.” Dean’s next words hissed out as she paused with the floppy tent entrance over her arm. “I won’t work with you again. We’re done.”
Not waiting to hear the reply, she burst into her private space and wasted no time pulling the strings to discard the dreaded bikini. Her legs were stained from the red jelly and she bent over to examine the marks. Her skin was sticky but she’d never received an answer about where to clean up. “I guess I’ll be doing that at home.” As the words left her mouth someone stepped into the tent behind her. She covered her breasts and looked over her shoulder to find the man who’d shouted at her all day standing behind her. “Can you wait until I’m dressed please?”
“I thought we could discuss today.” He took a step forward as she frowned in his direction.
“We can, but I need to get dressed first.”
“Okay.” His conversational tone belied the implied threat in the air. He made no move to turn or look away, just stared at her.
“Can you turn around, please?” Kelly fought to keep her voice from wobbling. Her eyes flicked to the opening of the tent right behind him. He took another step forward, ignoring her words.
If I scream for Dean will he even hear me?
“You need to turn around, or you need to leave.” Pride that her voice sounded strong filled her, but she knew she was close to losing control. “I mean it.”
“Do you?” He stepped forward again and now he was close enough to touch her arm. Fear seeped through her bones as she realised he had no intention of leaving of his own volition. His fingers grazed her elbow and a lazy grin spread across his features as he leaned forward and whispered, “I sent your friend back to the van in the carpark. We have a few minutes together before he returns.”
The blood drained from her face and her tormentor chuckled. Panic descended on her and a chill spread down her back. Tears pricked her eyes as the full realisation hit her.
If I’m getting out of this, I’m on my own.
Kelly yanked her elbow away from his hand and made herself stand up straight. “If you come any closer, I’ll make you wish you never booked me for this job.”
“Oh, as if you could—” His words were cut short as Dean pushed open the tent flap and took two steps inside, in what seemed like one movement. He yanked the black shirt backward and delivered a hard punch to the smarmy jaw of the man he’d been forced to endure all day.
“Get the hell away from her!” He shouted, dragging him toward the flap of the tent. He pulled it aside and threw the man out onto the sand. “You better not be here when I reappear. If you’ve harmed one single hair on that woman’s head I’m coming after you.” The other man stared at him until he growled in a murderous tone, “You better move.” As he picked himself up and scurried away, Dean turned back and re-entered the tent.
As expected, Kelly was collapsed on the floor, sobbing.
“Hey, hey. It’s okay. He’s gone. I’m here.” She crouched down, still covering herself with her hands. “Let’s get you dressed and home.” He quickly reached for her clothing that she’d hung neatly on a rack when they’d first arrived. Through tears and racking sobs, he helped her dress, averting his eyes and talking to her in a quiet voice.
“It’s alright. It’s going to be alright. Did he—?”
“No. But only because you showed up.” She picked up her bag and turned to him, eyed red from crying. “Thank you so much. If you’d been any longer I—” More tears trickled down her cheek and he placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes.
“Is this just about today?”
“Of course.” She sobbed. “What else would it be about?”
“Well, it’s just that I’ve seen you put up with worse than what this idiot put you through today. I can’t help but wonder if it’s about Nate.”
Tears filled her eyes again, and she turned away, swiping her cheeks with the back of her hand. “It’s not about him. Trust me.”
“Alright. I’ll take you home. But if this is even a little bit about Nate, you should be honest with yourself Kel.” He rubbed her arms from behind. “I totally understand if it has nothing to do with him, though. Today has been hard and I saw how scared you were when I walked in.”
“It doesn’t matter, anyway. I’ve already ruined my chances with Nate, though today has me wondering why I coveted this job so much. We haven’t spoken in two weeks. I blew it.”
“Not necessarily. Why don’t you call him?”
“No. I can’t. I said some awful things and told him he was selfish, and he accused me of being a coward.” She turned and sobbed onto Dean’s shoulder and then pulled back. “Of course, he was probably right about that part but anyway, I’m sure he’s making plans that don’t include me.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure. I’m not normally one to play the matchmaker, but I think you’d be surprised, if you just gave him a call.”
She sniffed. “Do you think?” She teased her lip with her teeth and sniffled again. “What would I say?”
“I’m staying out of that part.” He raised his hands and made a face. “I would suggest you make the call, though.”
“Will you help me?”
Dean groaned and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. They left the tent and headed toward his car while he jingled his keys wildly in front of him. “I’m going to regret this. Let me drive you home and we’ll have a little chat about old Nate and what he’s been up to these past weeks.”