“Hi, Tash, how are you? You look great.”
“Thanks. I’m fine, you?”
“Good, yeah. Lucy said you’re seeing someone.”
Tasha shot Lucy a glance. “Yes. I didn’t realise you’d seen Lucy.”
“In the pub last night. She wasn’t gossiping, she just mentioned it. Are you happy? You look happy.”
“Yes, very,” she replied honestly, and felt her grin broadening.
“Right, come on then, time is money,” came a cry from behind them.
Tasha was taken into make-up and hair and with a very sun kissed look she was given her first outfit, a black bandeau style bikini.
She posed and pouted to Jake’s instructions then went to change. Her hair was restyled in an up do and the make-up adjusted to a more natural look and was passed her next outfit that Lucy and her boss dressed her in; an ivory basque with a thong from the bridal range and champagne lace topped stockings.
She laughed as she spoke to Lucy. “Make sure you get this one on my phone. Jim will love it.”
Lucy’s boss, Susie, asked, “Jim?”
“My six times married boyfriend,” replied Tasha as the hair team began inserting individual flowers in her hair to complete the bridal look.
Jake took countless shots; sitting, standing, leaning and Lucy snapped away shot for shot.
She changed again into a gold, oyster coloured set of underwear and as wardrobe scrambled for shoes, Tasha picked up her own. “I have some sandals that might work.”
Susie and Lucy gasped as Tasha held them aloft on her finger.
“Oh, they are lush,” cried Lucy.
Susie’s response was more direct. “They must have cost you a bloody fortune. Have you seen who they are?” she asked Lucy who looked at the designer name and gasped again.
“Are these off Jim?” Lucy’s question made Tasha feel a little uncomfortable.
She nodded as Susie spoke, “Tell him I’ll be number seven if he can keep me in those.”
Lucy laughed.
Tasha surprised them all, including herself with her reply. “Fraid not, that role is earmarked for me alone.”
Lucy stared at her. “Are you engaged, Tash?”
“No, but I really like him, Luce.”
“Bloody hell. You only went to New York for some casting thing.” Lucy was still shocked.
“Then I went to L.A. with Jim and if it hadn’t been for Dan and Pippa I don’t think I would have come back, ever.”
“Wow, he must be bloody phenomenal.” Her friend laughed once more.
Again, Jake took endless shots, as did Lucy.
She did several more shots in a black, blue and then a white set of satin underwear and it was whilst in the white set Jake asked her to pose forward facing, with her feet slightly apart.
“Tash, hook your thumbs into the waist of the pants, like belt loops or as if you’re about to take them off.”
She swallowed hard. This was how Jim removed them when she stood like this.
Jake laughed. “Don’t look so worried. You won’t actually have to take them off.”
She laughed with him and relaxed a little as she followed his instructions and judging by Lucy’s face it had the desired effect.
As she redressed and tied her hair up Lucy appeared and handed her the phone containing her photos. “I was going to stay at Ryan’s tonight. You don’t mind, do you?”
“No, of course not. In fact, if I don’t have to listen to you two at it all night all the better as my phenomenal lover is on the other side of the Atlantic.”
Lucy kissed her on the cheek with promises of being home the following night.
Tasha was ready to leave when Jake found her. They chatted for a while and agreed they should meet up for dinner. She smiled as she remembered the positive comments he’d made about the shoot, the shots and her. He’d remarked how she looked the same and yet, she was clearly different.
Jake’s words about having emailed her some of the better shots were still ringing in her ears, causing a large grin to curl her lips as she returned home. It was only about four in the afternoon and with a cup of tea in one hand she skimmed through the photos on her phone with her other hand and sent a couple of bikini shots to Lizzie. Whilst waiting for her computer to fire up, Tasha palmed her phone and realised it would be about eight in the morning for Jim so sent a quick text.
She attached the photos she had sent Lizzie and checked her emails where she found Jake had sent her numerous shots from the day.
A child? Did she want children? Did she want them with Jim? Did he want more children? He only had children with number one so maybe he was happy with that. She suddenly felt very confused. She had always imagined having children one day, but at
almost forty did James want to do it all again? They really didn’t know each other at all beyond sexual gratification and family members. He had also just ended this conversation, so she needed to wait and think about this huge decision because if he didn’t want more children would she, could she comply with that? She shuddered and decided she couldn’t think about it all now.
Skimming through the photos Jake had sent, Tasha decided to send one to Jim every hour or so until bed time, and then it would be time for their date when she woke.
She emailed her dates to Amanda then emailed a picture in the black underwear to Jim. An hour later she sent another photo in the blue underwear, but there was still no response. She put a frozen lasagne in the oven and looked through her phone and selected a photo in the gold outfit with the sandals he’d bought for her. She pressed send and was about to pour a glass of wine, but thinking Jim might disapprove she opted for a glass of water she spilled when she jumped at the ping of her phone as a message arrived.
She frowned and decided she could play it cool too. She ate her dinner which was bland and hard to swallow. In the space of a week Tasha had become accustomed to Sandra’s home cooking and missed it. She considered her next move and decided the bridal ones were her trump card so she would hang onto those until later. Selecting the one in the white satin set with her thumbs under the waist band, a very sultry look on her face and her hair cascading down and framing her breasts she picked up her phone and sent a text.
An immediate response.
She giggled as she sent another text.
She pressed send, first on her phone then the email and waited.
She giggled, pulled out a tub of ice cream from the freezer and turned the TV on. She text Dan and Pippa, relieved to find things at least seemed calm at home. She phoned her grandparents who asked her if she was sure about the ‘Yank’ she had told them about over Sunday lunch with Pippa and Dan. After telling them she was, her grandmother had insisted they should meet Jim when he came over. She felt certain they would like him because, well, what wasn’t to like? He was caring, kind, loved her and wanted to take care of her and her siblings. The fact he already despised her dad and what he stood for would also make him more appealing to them. The only thing they had frowned upon was his age. Her grandmother had gone so far as to suggest she was looking for a father figure. She had insisted Jim was far from that, but the more she thought about it she wondered if that is why Mr Control Freak appealed to her so much, because he was the in charge, powerful and protective Daddy she’d never had. The unwelcome comparison between her father and Jim made her uncomfortable so she pushed it from her mind because she also found Mr Control Freak a serious turn on and it was all becoming a little too Electra complex.
To distract herself from needing a father figure, Tasha went into her bedroom and cleared some of the clutter in preparation for her date the following morning. She stripped the sheets off the bed and put on a clean, red sheet and red floral duvet cover with matching pillowcases. She quickly polished and swept the wooden floor then threw the rubbish out. Pulling the new black, satin robe she’d bought out of the bag she removed the labels, but what should she wear with it? Was there a standard outfit for a cybersex date? Should she ask Jim? Had he done this before? That thought alone had her questioning their whole arrangement and relationship.
It was now almost midnight, so four in the afternoon for him. Picking her phone up she wandered back into the lounge where the e-mail containing the first of the bridal shots was waiting. She composed a text.
She flushed at his last question. It was a reasonable question on one level and she was the one who had brought it up, but it was also very soon to be thinking of children. The worst thing was she had no clue what her answer might be, now or in the future. She thought carefully so as not to mislead in any way.
She grinned at the re-emergence of Mr Control Freak and hit the send button then waited for a response. Looking at the photo she had chosen she smiled at the slightly sideways pose where she was leaning on the back of a wicker chair, emphasising her exposed bottom courtesy of the thong, but not at the expense of her full breasts straining against the basque. Her legs looked long and shapely in the lace topped stockings and bridal stilettos.
Her phone pinged and she laughed out loud as she read it.
Lucky Seven Page 33