“There we go! That’s beautiful!”

The camera clicked about six times as Angela tried to hold the pose. It was not quite as easy as it looked, to keep the same pose several times and to pretend that her mouth was not hurting like hell from smiling for the past two hours straight. But she loved it. It was exhilarating. In fact, she didn’t know why it had taken her so long to make this leap. Even if she never became a huge modeling star, just being in front of a photographer’s camera was enough for her. There was something so captivating about having someone focus that intensely on you that sent shivers up and down her spine and goosebumps all over her body.

It was the sort of excitement, she supposed, that she should have been feeling about graduating from law school and landing a nice associates job at a prestigious law firm, but it didn’t compare to this. That was one of the things about having a passion and having something that you did because it was safe or expected of you.

“Wow, that is great,” the photographer, Nick Barnes said as he sat his camera down. “You can take five while I make a few lighting adjustments. Great work, Angela.”

It had only been three days since the night of the party and Angela was already in the photographer’s studio working on her portfolio. She’d received the phone call the day before out of the blue from Nick Barnes himself. She had not actually heard of him before, but after the call when she googled his name she was surprised to know that he had done quite a bit of great work. He was an up-and-coming photographer who would probably be working with the top models and top agencies in a few years if he continued to climb. The man had an incredibly good eye and an innate ability to grab the perfect shot.

After he had taken the first group of pictures, he’d shown them to Angela to get her opinion and at first she just could not believe that it was really her. She looked like someone had taken the idea of her and somehow transformed her into something perfect looking. It was the way everything came together—the lights, the wind machine, the background sets, the makeup, the wardrobe and the hair. It was all so perfect and it created an impeccable product. For the first time in her life, she realized that she was becoming truly convinced that she could really do this thing. Richard had been right. What a keen eye he had.

Nick and his crew—which consisted of Jessica who did hair, makeup, and wardrobe and his friend Allan who did set design, lighting and wind—went to work on moving things around and changing the background theme. They were working on some office girl type of shots and Angela was wearing sexy versions of business attire, with her cleavage a bit more amped up and the skirt designed to accentuate her curves in just the right way.

She felt a bit weird about it at first, but once the camera started clicking and Nick started giving her direction she very quickly lowered her guard and got really into it. There was something so freeing about just letting go and allowing yourself to become immersed in being someone else. When she was in front of that camera she could be whoever she wanted; she had nothing to answer for and she didn’t have to be embarrassed about anything either.

It was all about her—that was the thing she liked the most. Her whole life she hadn’t really had the freedom or the opportunity to make something all about her. She was surprised by how much she liked it and she wondered again why she had waited so long. But every time she asked herself that question she would always hear an inner voice answering: she had been afraid because of the stigma her parents attached to modeling and her dream. Somehow, she had internalized the feeling and decided that she was not really good enough to make this happen.

But now here she was. And she was good enough. Her pictures were coming out stunning and fabulous.

Her phone buzzed right then. She was getting a phone call from an unknown number. She hesitated for a second, wondering if it was some stupid telemarketer trying to get her to buy lightbulbs over the phone again or a boat of some sort perhaps. She usually ignored these calls, but she was feeling good so she decided that she would answer the phone and maybe even insult this nuisance caller.

“Hello?”

“How’s the photo shoot going?” the voice said on the other end. She recognized it instantly; it was Richard.

“Oh my God! It’s so great!” Angela said. She was trying to hide the enthusiasm in her voice slightly so that it didn’t make her sound like a complete tool.

“That’s what I like to here.”

“The photographer is fantastic and the pictures are turning out amazing.”

“Yeah, Nick’s the best. And I knew that you were meant to do this.”

“Well, I appreciate all of your support and I don’t know how I could ever thank you.”

“Well, how about you meet me when you’re done. We can have lunch,” Richard said.

Angela had to do a double-take and replay what he’d just said in her mind to make sure she wasn’t dreaming everything.

“I’d love to.”

“Great. I’ll text you the details,” Richard said.  “See you soon. I don’t want you to keep Nick waiting.”

Before Angela could say anything the call was disconnected. She looked at the phone as if asking herself if that had really just happened. This day could not possibly get any better.

“Okay, Angela—we’re ready. Jess will show you the new wardrobe for this set.”

Angela nodded and followed Jessica to the dressing room.

The rest of the photo shoot lasted about another hour. Angela was having so much fun she never wanted it to end. It was like the culmination of all her dreams and fantasies of playing dress up that she’d had since she was a little girl. And now she was going out on a date—albeit a lunch date, but still a date—with perhaps the sexiest man she’d ever known.

Jessica showed her the wardrobe and left the room. As Angela got dressed, she wondered what Richard would think of her right now. Would he like the outfits she was putting on and would he like the windows of time when she was not really wearing much of anything?

As she stepped back out in front of the camera, Angela realized that she truly felt like a princess right then. She had always wondered what it would really feel like to be famous or have the spotlight placed on you. And though she was really not famous at all, having her own photoshoot with such an amazing group of people felt pretty close, she thought.

And now, she was ready to go to the ball. Her prince awaited her.

* * *

It was perfect. The candles, the basket, the beautiful handcrafted quilted blanket, the bottle of champagne, and even the fancy glasses and the romantic music playing in the background—it was all perfect. Richard had set up everything to resemble something out of a classic romance novel. It was the type of fantasy that every little girl playing with her Barbie doll dreams of but deep down knows will never really happen because no guy on Earth is willing to be that cheesy. But it’s the cheesy things that often pull the heartstrings in just the right way.

Angela had received a detailed text from Richard telling her where to go. He had asked her to meet him in the park. It was a small park that she didn’t even know existed. It was set back from the road in a wealthy neighborhood on the Upper West Side. It had taken her almost forty minutes of weaving through midday traffic to get there and she was really hoping that something exciting was going on or she was going to be very disappointed. Then she saw it.

The picnic was the sweetest thing she had ever seen. Richard must have hired a crew to set it all up so perfectly and if she didn’t know better she would have sworn that he had rented out the park for the afternoon because she saw absolutely no one else there, except for the small orchestra playing beautiful, romantic music about fifty feet away from them. It was four men dressed in tuxedos with finely-crafted and shiny, freshly polished instruments. It was the kind of group you would find at a five-star Italian restaurant, but it was all right here.

Richard was standing in front of the picnic. He was wearing a pair of designer jeans, a black t-shirt and a black sport coat; he reminded her of the Hank Moody character from Californication. She was suddenly wishing she had dressed up a bit more, but he had been very vague about what was going on. She had expected maybe a simple walk on a pretty, early June day, but this was well beyond her expectations.

“Hello, my lady,” Richard said as he reached out his hand. His hand was thick and warm. It reminded her of more naughty thoughts that she kept tucked away for rainy days. She had a huge file in her mind of delicious thoughts about Richard that she was coming to realize might turn into reality sooner than she ever thought.

“Wow, this is too much…” Angela began.

The tears stung her eyes as she came closer to the picnic area he had set up. She was not sure why she was suddenly crying, but Richard seemed to understand that she was just overwhelmed by the beauty and the romance of everything. No one had ever done anything this romantic for her before and it was something she knew that she would never forget. And if things didn’t work out with Richard, she doubted it was something that anyone would ever do for her again.

Richard bent down and kissed her hand before pulling her gently closer and wrapping her up in a warm embrace. She thought for a moment that he might try to kiss her and her mind went into a panic because she was honestly not sure she would have been able to stop him, but she didn’t want that to happen this soon. This was, after all, barely a first date—a lunch date. But of course, Richard had turned it into the most romantic moment of her life, which might have explained why she felt like this was their tenth romantic encounter.

Richard smelled sweet as honey. She could not place the arousing scent that he wore as his cologne, but it was dreamy. That was the best word she would have used to describe it because it instantly made her want to fall asleep in his arms. And if he wanted to have his way with her while she was visiting The Sandman then that might have been okay with her. Of course, she would never really want that so soon, but the temptation was there. Oh, baby, the temptation was there.

Richard guided her to her seat on the blanket and sat down across from her. He slowly grabbed the champagne from the bucket of ice and poured both glasses. Angela had never seen someone make pouring a glass of champagne sexy, but Richard pulled it off well.

It was almost as if her mind was being clouded and dazzled from all sides by thoughts of sex and romance. Was it possible that Richard had found the magic key to open up the floodgates of lust and desire in her all at once? Years of repression and being a good girl were starting to go out the window.

“So, the shoot went well?” Richard asked as he began to place the food out of the basket. There was potato salad, cherry pecan fruit salad, falafel sandwiches, and even some bruschetta cheese bread. It all looked so sumptuous.

“Oh, it went amazing. I never knew that it could feel so good to do that.”

“Well, I’m sure it is an amazing feeling. That’s how you know when you’ve found your purpose in life. When you do something and it feels that good that you want to do it all the time—not for money, or fame, or because it is expected by others—but because you love doing it and you want to do nothing else with your time. That is when you know what you were made to do.”

“That’s beautiful,” Angela said.

“No, those are just words. You are beautiful.”

“You’re going to give me a swelled head,” Angela said jokingly.

“Oh, well I certainly wouldn’t want to do that,” Richard said, flashing that sweet grin again. “So, tell me more about it? When will you have the pictures?”

“Nick said he’ll print out a few and he’ll send me some digital copies. Apparently, he has to run them through some software to make them absolutely perfect. But I tell you, the ones he showed me were pretty perfect looking. I had no idea I could look like that.”

“Why? You look amazing,” Richard said.

“There you go giving me that swelled head again,” Angela said. Even as she said it she heard the Freudian slip. She wondered if Richard picked up on it at all.

“So, how’s the new job going?” Richard asked.

“Oh, the day job? It’s going okay,” Angela replied.

“So, you’re already thinking of it as just ‘the day job’? That is good. That’s how you should always feel when you’re working on a dream.”

“I didn’t even think of it before I said it. I didn’t mean it to come out that way, but you’re right. I am thinking of it as the day job. It’s okay. I enjoy it, but it is far from being a passion. It’s more of a job that has some things I enjoy doing incorporated in it.”

“Well, that is something you can use later on,” Richard said.

Angela nodded as she tried the bruschetta. It was like a taste bomb going off inside of her mouth.

“Oh, wow. This is so good,” Angela said.

“I know right? Sad to say I didn’t make it, but I know who to talk to,” Richard said laughing.

“I just realized I don’t know that much about you,” Angela said.

“Well, you grew up as my daughter’s best friend. I’d like to think you know a bit about me.”

“Well, yeah. I know basics, but I’d love to know what makes you tick.”

Richard laughed. “What makes me tick? Well, I’ve never really answered that question before. I don’t know if it’s ever been asked to me that way, but I think I like it.”

“You still haven’t answered it,” Angela said.

“I’d say the main thing that makes me tick is the pursuit of happiness.”

“The pursuit of happiness? That’s a different and very straight forward answer to that question, but very interesting. Would you care to elaborate on that?” Angela asked with a fake interviewer’s voice.

“Sure. I believe that one should be happy in life and that if they aren’t truly happy then they need to reexamine their goals and their priorities to figure out why. I’ve always done what made me happy. I knew I loved the practice of the law but I also wanted to be a part of the entertainment world, which I’ve always been fascinated by. So I became an entertainment lawyer. I knew that I didn’t want to work under someone else’s thumb so I worked hard to start a successful firm. I knew that I love women and I love romance. I want to be truly in love so badly I can taste it. So far it’s the only thing that has really eluded me, which is probably why I’ve spent my whole life searching for it so hard. To a lot of people that gives them the wrong idea about me.”

“Oh, so you sleep with a lot of beautiful women just because you’re searching for love?”

Richard smiled at her. Angela was shocked that she had put him on the spot that way, but now she really wanted to get an answer out of him and see where he was going to take this. She had to know straight from his lips.

“Sex and love are two very different things. I have a strong desire for women and for sex—I won’t ever deny that. But when I find the one I’m supposed to be with then I’ll commit myself full-heartedly to that woman and forsake all others.”

“You think you can just stop the chase and the hunt just like that?”

“Oh, yeah. Every man goes through the phase where he loves to hunt and seduce women. But eventually, that life becomes lonely and unfulfilling. If it didn’t then most men would run around forever aimlessly. I surpassed that part of my life many years ago.”

“What about Stephanie?”

“Stephanie is the mother of my child, and I’ll always love her for that. But I can’t stand the way she’s just deserted her. I know Naomi blames me, but I really have tried to reach out to Stephanie, hoping that she’ll repair their relationship. But I know how she feels; she has always resented Naomi. How can someone resent their own daughter? Naomi has never admitted it, but I know she realizes that her mother feels that way.”

“Yeah, she doesn’t ever talk about that. Her mother is a very sore topic.”

“I knew when she was young that her mother felt the way that she does and it quickly began to drive a wedge between us. I realized slowly that I had lost respect for Stephanie and I had lost my love for her; she wasn’t the woman I thought she was. I had married too young and impulsively as a young man and if I hadn’t I wouldn’t have that amazing daughter of mine, so I can never say it was a mistake. But I just hope that one day Naomi will bury that anger she has or direct it to the right place. Right now I’m just an easy target. Naomi has always idolized her mother, which I guess is typical of children who so desperately want the love of a parent that just refuses to give it.”

Richard pulled a silk handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his eyes. Angela was finding it hard to take that this big, beautiful man was crying in front of her. He was visibly upset about the strained relationship he had with his daughter. She felt a bit guilty that she had stirred all of that up just because she wanted to know the truth about who Richard was.

If he was faking then he was the best actor she had ever seen and she had met many. She felt that his feelings and the words echoing from his sweet lips were true. He had so much love for his daughter and Angela knew that one day Naomi would realize what a fool she was being and accept the way things were. But no one could push her into it, she had to discover it all on her own time. Richard understood that perfectly and he was strong enough to wait, despite the obvious pain he felt.

“It will all work out okay,” Angela said, placing her hand on his.

Richard looked up at her and smiled, “Thank you.”

After the picnic, Richard had another surprise in store. He grabbed Angela by the hand and led her to another part of the park and to a roadway where a hansom cab with a horse-drawn carriage was waiting. The horse was beautiful and majestic looking as if it had been waiting its whole life to do this job for them that day. Its mane was stunning, its hair smooth and shining under the midday sun. It was glorious. Angela had not been on one of these in forever.

Richard climbed in first and then held out his hand to help her up. Before she knew it they were off.

The trotting of the horse’s hooves on the pavement was a perfect melody of light percussion that had a lulling effect. Angela felt like she could just fall asleep right there with her head on Richard’s shoulder and just drift away for a bit.

That would have been the best way to end this day.

Richard snuggled up a bit closer to her to encourage her comfortable leanings, his arm wrapped around her pulling her close to him. His body was hard but warm with an inviting softness to it. When you were with a big, strong, generous man like this, it was so easy to let go of any worry or problem that you had with the world. Everything was just perfect when it was this way.

“This is so sweet,” Angela said. “I haven’t been on one of these since I was a kid.”

“It’s been a while for me too. It’s funny how such a simple thing like this can often be the most romantic.”

“I agree,” Angela said. After a few moments, she had to ask Richard a question that was burning in her mind. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a lunch this romantic.”

“I’m sorry?” Richard asked. He was obviously taken aback.

“Well, you are the Richard Kane. And you have known me since I was a girl. I have to admit, I’ve had a bit of a crush on you for a while. When did you realize that I was someone you would want to take out?”

Richard laughed. “Well, I’ve seen you grow from a young girl into the strong, independent young woman you are today. And sometime over the past few years as I realized that you’re now that woman, something just clicked in me. I guess I felt drawn to you somehow. I’m not sure that answers your question, but it’s how I feel. You don’t think I’m too old, do you?” Richard asked with a laugh. It wasn’t a nervous laugh, but a laughter that let her know that he was more than comfortable with his age and that the age difference between them didn’t mean a thing to a man like Richard Kane.

“No, not at all.”

“Good,” Richard said as he held her even closer.

“So, tell me a bit about some of your exotic travels,” Angela said.

“Wow, that is random,” Richard joked.

“That’s me. Random ideas pop into my head quite often,” Angela replied.

“Well, good. That’s the sort of thing I need to keep me on my toes,” Richard said as he let out a long sigh trying to gather his thoughts. “I’d say the most interesting trip I ever took was to Costa Rica.”

“Oh, I’ve always wanted to go there.”

“It’s beautiful—lush jungles and plant life, interesting people, and amazing food. But it’s so beautiful that it can also be deadly.”

“How so?”

“Well, when I went there about eight years ago, I went with a friend of mine who’s a bit of an adventurist. He loves to go to exotic locales and live off the land, hike through all sorts of crazy landscapes. So six of us decided to go on a three-day hike through the jungle. We came face-to-face with a panther at one point and I was actually almost bitten by a fer-de-lance—one of the most venomous snakes in the world.”

“Oh my God! I would have died. I can’t stand snakes.”

“Snakes are nothing to fear as long as you show them a healthy respect. They’re actually beautiful creatures who serve a vital function in the world.”

“Hmm, I guess I never thought of it that way, but just thinking of them gives me the creeps.”

“That’s just because you know that a small percentage of them are venomous, but most are not. There’s something about a snake that’s very primal. I take it you’ve never held a snake in your hand?”

“Oh, no. The few snakes I’ve seen have sent me running away in terror,” Angela replied nervously. She was uncomfortable just thinking about the snakes, and she hated that he could probably hear the nerves in her voice. He probably thought she was some lame girly girl while he was some swashbuckling adventurer.  Stay cool, Ange. Just stay cool.

“Well, it’s amazing. To hold a big, long snake in your hand and feel it moving and sliding in and out of your fingers. It’s a gift to be able to tame one of them. The secret is to let it move… loosely…  don’t try to squeeze it…  just let it move freely and feel its warmth bonding with your hand.”

Angela swallowed hard. She was suddenly not thinking about snakes... The way he was describing handling of the snake was putting disturbing thoughts in her head. She would have loved to grab his snake right then.

She could picture it now: a big, thick, throbbing tool in her hand, her fingers kneading it just right and getting it perfectly primed…

She shook her head trying to clear her thoughts, but Richard was still going. Beads of sweat were trickling down her forehead and she casually tried to wipe them away.

“You have to be careful with the head, that’s the dangerous part. But as long as you’re touching the snake just right, it won’t feel threatened and it won’t bite. You just have to respect it.”

“Right. So how did you come to almost get bitten?” Angela asked. She was thoroughly intrigued by the story; wondering how many different adventures Richard had been on and if she would ever have the opportunity to go through anything like that with him. As she thought this she realized that she was already seeing a future with him. Was this too soon to feel like that? She certainly didn’t want to reveal her cards and show her true feelings to him just yet. It was fun to keep a bit of mystery alive, especially this early in the game.

“Well, we were walking through a clearing down towards a lake and I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I looked down and I had to squint really hard to make it out. You would not believe the excellent camouflage this snake had; the way it just disappeared into the surroundings was incredible, but I saw it move slightly. It was about a foot long and very thick. Our guide told us to move away and told us what the snake was.”

“They didn’t kill it?”

“Of course not. It was just minding its own business and hoping that it didn’t have to waste its most valuable weapon on some person who was being careless. So we walked on the other side of the path and tried not to disturb it.”

“Wow, I would have screamed like a little girl,” Angela said.

“Oh, I doubt it.  I have a feeling you are much stronger than you give yourself credit for.”

Angela smiled and looked up at him. Her eyes were suddenly locked on his, captivated by his gaze. He was so looked stunning and the moment was perhaps the most romantic she had ever felt. It was as if they were all alone in the world right then.

Richard reached down and cupped her cheek with his left hand and pulled her face up slightly towards him. His lips were brushing against hers now, sweetly and so softly that it felt like just a warm breath brushing against her.

“Wow,” Angela said as their lips parted.

“I’ll second that,” Richard said rubbing her arms in an embrace.

Angela felt her whole body practically tingling; that had never happened to her before from one kiss. She thought about all of the times she had dreamed of doing that. It blew her expectations away. Most things that one fantasizes about never quite live up to the fantasy if you are able to actually do it for real, but Angela didn’t feel that way about what had just happened. It was ten times better than she ever thought it could be. There was more than a physical feeling behind the kiss; tt was tough to describe, but there was a need there. There was a strong urge to repeat the act over and over again. It was more than a desire; it was as strong and primal as the urge to eat any food put in front of you if you were lost in the desert for three days.

Richard held her face close to his gingerly, enjoying the warmth and the embrace. His face was rugged, even more so than it looked. Angela did not expect the stubble to be so thick and coarse since Richard was always very clean shaven. She found the rough texture somehow appealing. It was animalistic and primal, masculine and sexy.

Richard’s hand was suddenly on her stomach. Her shirt had somehow come untucked and a small piece of her skin was showing. His hand on an intimate part of her body sent her lust into overload and she was unable to resist as he kissed her once again, this time his tongue was intense and rigid, pushing deep inside of her and wrestling against her own.

Her whole body felt on fire as Richard’s hand began to move slowly up her shirt. He was getting closer to her chest. She wanted it so badly. To hell with her ideals; twenty-two years was long enough. It was time for her to experience the love and the lust that she had denied herself all this time.

And he was there. His strong hand was now cupping her chest, and pushing one of her bra cups up and over the breast. She wanted to stop him, she knew she should be stopping him, but it was too sweet. She had to let it happen.

The wetness between her legs was flowing like it never had before and she was sure that she was about to soak through her panties. Oh, she wished his hand was there. She wanted him to explore that area and to show her everything in the world that she was missing.

“No… I can’t,” Angela heard herself saying, barely above a whisper.

Richard didn’t seem to notice as he was reaching behind now to unhook the bra. The hansom cab was private and there was no way the driver could see them, but it was still just a small barrier that separated them. What if he could hear? What if he just peeked his head around and saw what they were doing?

It would have been so much fun. Angela was surprised by the thought. She had never known that she had so much unbridled lust and naughty, exhibitionist tendencies inside of her. She had to stop this, though. This wasn’t her and she was going to be ashamed and embarrassed of herself if she let this continue.

But it would have been so much fun. It would have been the most amazing thing she had ever experienced; she knew this, but the had to stop it.

Richard’s lips were now on her neck, kissing her softly. Oh, the sweet, wet, cool lips pulling up a tiny piece of skin just long enough to give it a kiss and a suck in one sweet motion. Not enough for a hickey; just enough to be perfect. Oh, Richard knew just how to touch her. He knew how to feed her desires and her fantasies until she was powerless to stop them.

Richard’s finger snapped through the bra strap as the last hook came undone. He smiled then, his eyes wild with desire. He reached up and pulled the bra off through the shirt, his hand slipping down to grab the bare chest, cupping and cradling it.

His hand felt so good, warm against her cool skin as he massaged her chest with ease. As he continued to kiss her neck and inch his way down to her collarbone she was suddenly aware that the fingers of his other hand were now moving up her thigh.

He was now touching her crotch, through the wet panties. Angela felt her breath stop in her chest as she gasped and waited for what was coming next. Was she going to let it happen? Was this going to happen right now?

Oh god oh god oh god oh god...

Richard’s thick finger moved the panties to the side and he was instantly touching the outside of her, feeling the first trickle of moistness. Her body stiffened as she realized he was about to enter her. His thick fingers began to push through.

“Here we are!”

The voice from up front suddenly broke through the beautiful romantic world they had just found themselves in.

Angela froze with panic. Was the driver getting down and coming back there? Oh God!

She quickly moved Richard’s hand away and pulled her shirt down. She grabbed her bra, which was now mostly in her lap and quickly stuffed it down her pants just a mere second before the driver opened the door and greeted them both with a friendly smile.

“Are we all done or do you want another round?” the driver asked.

Angela’s mind snapped back to reality. She looked down. Her bra was still on, her shirt was not disheveled and Richard was not feeling her up. She looked down at her skirt in a state of total panic still trying to make sense of what had just happened.

Her skirt was fine; it had not been touched. It was all a dream. Just an erotic, wet, crazy dream.

Richard looked at her unaware of the vivid fantasy she had just had.

“Want another round?” Richard asked.

“No, I have to go,” Angela said abruptly.

She tried not to jump out of the cab, but she was out of there much faster than she anticipated, almost twisting her ankle on the step. Her first instinct was to run away, but she caught herself realizing how rude that would have been.

A replay of the past few minutes kept rolling through her head in a loop. What had she almost done? If the driver had not stopped right then, what would have happened? Angela knew the answer to that question and it terrified her deeply. She would have gone all the way. She was not in any position to stop. She had never come close to experiencing passion or pure animal lust on that level in her life. It was like something you would see in those late movies on Cinemax that you had to laugh at because no one enjoyed sex that much.

Relax, it was just a dream. It wasn’t real.

But she had just been there. She could still feel the moistness between her legs—it was almost dripping. She wanted to pick up where they left off and continue so badly. An image of Richard taking her behind the tree she was passing right then flashed in her mind. She could just drop her panties and lift up her skirt to allow him easy access and let him do whatever he wanted to her. She would just lie there and enjoy the pure ecstasy.

What the hell was wrong with her? She had never felt this obsessed with sex before. But she realized it wasn’t sex; it was Richard. She was becoming almost obsessed with her desire to be with him. He probably thought she was insane the way she had just bolted out of that beautiful hansom cab.

Richard looked at her as he finished paying the driver in what looked like a wad of hundreds. He was apparently a generous tipper. He jogged towards her with a sweet smile on his face. The smile was easygoing and natural, which put her at ease. Maybe he didn’t think she was crazy. Maybe he still wanted to see her again.

But how far would they go next time? That was an exciting, but worrisome thought. How far...

“Are you okay?” Richard asked. “My stories aren’t that boring are they?”

Angela smiled as naturally as she could. “Oh, no. I was really enjoying hearing about it all. I just have an early day tomorrow, but we can still talk while you walk me back to my car?  So, you saw some panthers you were saying?” Angela asked with a laugh.

Richard chuckled as well at her lame attempt to keep sexual tension at bay.

“Yes, we did. One night when we were camping I awoke to a low growling noise not far from my camp. The guide was also instantly awakened. I wasn’t really frightened until I realized he was. I didn’t seriously think that a panther would attack a group of us sitting around a large fire, but apparently the guide said it does happen. He grabbed the rifle just in case and began to make a lot of noise. Soon the rest of us were up and making the same noise. The panther had been close because I could see it moving from the glow of the fire in the dark; it was pretty miraculous actually.”

“I would have been terrified,” Angela said.

“I was,” Richard replied with a laugh.

“Wow, I’m surprised to hear a big, strong man like yourself not afraid to admit that he was afraid once.”

“Why not? I’m way past the age of being macho, Angela. Everyone feels fear; it’s a routine, primal emotion. But most people just don’t know how to deal with it and use it for the fuel to achieve the right outcome. That’s one thing I’ve learned in all my years.”

“That is incredibly insightful. I never really looked at it that way.”

“Most people don’t, which is what keeps them timid and keeps them from achieving what they want. You have to use the fear as a catalyst for change. You have to assign a new meaning to that feeling. It’s a negative feeling if you focus on the fact that it’s uncomfortable. It’s really a great feeling because true change comes from discomfort and the desire to avoid more discomfort. Most people just back away from the situation and fail to grow; you have to take it by the horns and charge forward.”

Angela looked at him trying to decide if he was for real. He sounded a bit like a Tony Robbins seminar, but she knew that he really believed this and that he lived his life this way. He may have been one of the most courageous men she had ever met.

The rest of the walk back to her car was peppered with more sweet conversation, some light-hearted and some a bit deeper. She was finding out so much about this man who had intrigued her for so long when she thought he was just her best friend’s dad. There was a whole other world behind the making of Richard Kane that she had never dreamed possible and she was finding herself completely wrapped up in it all.

When they reached her car she thanked him for a wonderful afternoon.

“Well, the evening doesn’t have to end now. My apartment isn’t far from here. Would you like to join me for some drinks?” Richard asked.

Angela wanted to. Boy, did she want to. But she knew that she shouldn’t. She had the sinking feeling that she might be on the road to becoming just another conquest or someone that Richard would never allow himself to take seriously. Besides, after what had just happened she didn’t trust herself enough to put the brakes on if things started to get physical. The man was just so magnetic and she could feel herself falling for him.

But there were too many things that were still unknown. Could she fall in love with him? Yes, definitely. Could he feel the same about her? That was the question without a definite answer, and that was the reason she had to decline the offer.

“I’m sorry, but I do have an early day tomorrow. I really need to be getting home. I still have some work to do since I took some time off today for the photoshoot.”

Richard flinched for a second before smiling that warm smile of his. Angela could see the wheels of confusion turning in his mind. She knew that she was giving him all sorts of mixed signals and she really didn’t want him to get the wrong idea about her. Oh, if she could have just told him how she felt and what she was afraid of. She urged her mouth to move and to explain herself, but she couldn’t.  She just stood there feeling silly while Richard tried to make sense of it all.

But his confusion was so brief that she almost wasn’t sure it existed. It was just a slight flinch and a small glint in the eye and then it was gone.

“I completely understand. I can’t wait to see those pictures. Please send me some copies when you get them.”

“I will,” Angela said.

Richard kissed her again sweetly and said goodnight.

Angela drove home with her head in the clouds. Was this really happening?