by Joanna Sims
Chapter Nine
“Okay. Let’s get started,” Ian said as he crouched in front of her and pointed his camera. “That’s nice, Jordan. I like that. Look to the left—chin up. That’s it. Hold that. Now bring your hand up to your face so I can see the ring. Beautiful, Jordan. Just like that.”
More than ever, he now had to rely on Clint’s eyes at the monitor to make certain that he was getting the shot he wanted. Ian moved closer to the side of the pool and knelt down so he could frame a shot of the ring next to Jordan’s face. The haircut had enhanced her delicate bone structure and made her high cheekbones and large almond-shaped eyes more prominent in her lovely face. When he saw her with the new style, his body had had the same visceral response reminiscent of the first time he had laid eyes on her. She was a stunning woman, but what made her even more alluring was the fact that she was unsure of her own appeal. Her insecurity and her awkwardness only elevated her beauty and added a layer of depth and fragility that intrigued him.
He had been having a lousy day before Jordan had reappeared. Right before they left for Curaçao, he had begun to notice a dark spot developing in his right central vision. Perhaps it was denial, but he had hoped that it was just an innocuous floater. But after his early morning run and a shower, Ian couldn’t deny reality—he was starting to lose vision in his right eye now. And that was making him feel frustrated and anxious. Scared. When his right eye failed, the life he had built for himself would crumble. He would be disabled. He would be dependent. All day he had found it nearly impossible to focus on his work.
But when Jordan arrived, without being able to explain it, without really knowing why, he felt better. Grounded. Capable. In control again. And the minute he began to photograph her face, the minute he connected with the energy that was flowing from her body to his, the negative emotions drained out of him. And all that was left was the thrill of photographing Jordan.
He wanted to capture all that she was in one perfect shot. Her vivid blue eyes, as striking as the fiery blue diamond on her finger, were alive with intensity and emotion. She was telling a love story with the dreamy look on her face and her slightly parted lips, and he believed her. She broke through the barrier of the camera, reached through the lens and touched his soul. She was so sensual, so provocative, that he almost forgot himself. He almost forgot who he was, where he was and what he was doing. He almost put down his camera, pulled her out of the pool and into his arms.
“Gorgeous, Jordan.” Ian encouraged her as he took several more photographs. “I like that right there.”
Jordan didn’t know how many photographs Ian had taken of her by the time he stopped shooting and began to review her images on the monitor with Clint. After a minute, Ian nodded his head in the affirmative and Clint signaled to the crew that they were finished for the day. Jordan was greeted at the edge of the pool by Lucca and her sumo wrestler and was quickly divested of her jewels. Now wrapped in an oversize towel, she scanned the crowd for Ian. Her eyes darted from one person to the next, but she soon realized that he had left. A wave of disappointment swept over her. Perhaps it had been silly of her to want Ian to praise her when they were done. But she had wanted his approval. She had wanted his praise.
“Jordan...you were amazing!” Ivory had appeared at her side. “You looked like a seasoned pro out there.”
Jordan forced herself to smile at her roommate, not wanting to let on that she was upset. Ivory was right. She had just accomplished something pretty major. She had forced herself to go through with her first public photo shoot and she had succeeded. She had prevailed. And with or without Ian’s praise after the fact, she was proud of herself.
Ivory put her arm around Jordan’s shoulders and they began to walk back to the prep area together. “The crew’s getting together for a drink or two. Or four. Are you in?”
“Sure.” Jordan felt as if she deserved to celebrate. “Why not?”
* * *
Jordan thought about Ian when she picked out a slim-fitting minidress to wear for the crew get-together at the bar. But when Ivory and she arrived there, Ian was nowhere in sight; Jordan felt so disappointed that she brought up it up to Ivory.
“You won’t see Ian here tonight. Or any other night, for that matter,” the model said. “I’ve worked with him on several jobs and he never hangs out with us. That’s his deal. He doesn’t socialize with the staff during the shoot and he doesn’t shag the models. Bloody well smart of him if you ask me.”
After drinking two virgin strawberry daiquiris and begging off several invitations to dance, Jordan was ready to leave. The main reason she had come to the get-together was to see Ian, and without him, the party soon lost its appeal. Now free of the crowd but not ready to return to her room, she slowly walked along an elevated boardwalk that separated the two private hotel beaches. The sound of a blues band playing in the bar situated at the end of the boardwalk serenaded her as she stopped and leaned against the wooden railing to admire the view. She breathed in the fragrant sea air and considered heading down for a quiet walk on the deserted beach below.
“If you’re looking for the others, they’re at the Schooner Bar.”
The sound of Ian’s voice reached her ears and she felt that familiar tingle in the pit of her stomach. She turned toward him. Dressed casually in jeans and a shirt that showcased his developed chest and toned arms, he walked toward her with a faint smile on his handsome face.
“No. I know,” Jordan replied. “I just left there.”
Ian positioned himself on her left side and leaned on the railing. “Why’d you leave? The night’s still young.”
She looked over at the beach before she answered. “It just wasn’t for me, I suppose. I don’t feel like drinking and I don’t feel like dancing. So...”
“And the company?” Ian asked.
“Other than Ivory and Clint...I don’t know.” Jordan shrugged one shoulder. “I just don’t have a lot in common with the rest of the crew.”
“That was a PC answer if I’ve ever heard one.” Ian moved his arm closer to hers until she felt the warmth of his skin on hers.
“Okay, I’ll confess. I admit that I wanted to punch Chantal right in the nose today when she said that she gave her dog away because it outgrew her purse.”
Ian found himself smiling again. “Thank you for your restraint. I admit she’s an unscrupulous dingbat, but she’s a great model and I need her for the shoot tomorrow.”
“You’re welcome.” Jordan leaned toward him and felt happy when he met her halfway and pressed his shoulder against hers.
Ian looked straight ahead, “You know...I wanted to tell you that I was really impressed with you today. You connected with the camera, you kept the emotion in your eyes and you gave me a lot to work with—different angles, really fluid movements. You’ve got a lot of raw talent as a model, Jordan. If you ever wanted a career in this industry, you could easily have one.”
She glanced at his strong, masculine profile. “Thank you. I appreciate you saying that. I never realized how hard it was to model.”
“You make it look easy,” Ian said.
“Well, I’m just really glad that I didn’t let either of us down.”
“I never doubted you for a second,” he assured her.
Whenever he was around Jordan, she managed to make him feel normal without even trying. It was hard to deny the positive effect she had on his psyche. He was glad that he had bumped into her. After the shoot, he’d retreated to the penthouse and closed all the blinds in an attempt to shut out the world. He had sat on the couch for hours, feeling sorry for himself as day gave way to night. But after a long time brooding in the dark, Ian realized that he had to drag himself out of the gutter or he wouldn’t be able to function the next day. And regardless of his deteriorating eyesight, he still had a job to do. So he had forced himself to leave the room
and head down to the beach in hopes that the fresh air and sea breeze would help clear his head. And then, as if by divine intervention, he had spotted Jordan alone on the boardwalk. It was if she’d been put in his path on purpose. As if she had been waiting just for him.
Ian turned slightly toward her. “So...you don’t feel like drinking and you don’t feel like dancing. What do you feel like doing?”
Kissing you.
That thought popped into her head instantly and she was glad that the words hadn’t popped right out of her mouth. But it was the truth. She wanted to kiss Ian and be kissed by him. She wanted to be in his arms. She wanted the simple pleasure of holding his hand. She had given a pretty good speech the night before about being “just friends,” but something inside her wanted a much deeper connection with Ian than that. She wanted to ignore the flashing warning signs. Bad timing or not, her heart was attaching itself to Ian.
“I was thinking about taking a walk on the beach, actually,” she said, hoping that he would offer to join her.
“Do you want some company?” he asked quietly.
“Yes.” Jordan’s lips lifted into a small pleased smile. “I do.”
They walked along the boardwalk together and, for Ian’s sake, Jordan was glad that they didn’t run into anyone from the crew. At the edge of the beach, he offered his hand so she could steady herself as she slipped off her shoes. Barefoot, she stepped onto the sand and then sighed with pleasure. It was cool and slid between her toes as she wiggled them.
“You have to take off your shoes, too.” She pointed to his feet.
“Are you always this bossy?”
“That’s the pot calling the kettle black!” Jordan exclaimed as she hooked the straps of her shoes onto her fingers and crossed her arms. “Come on. Make it snappy, GQ.”
Ian stared at her for several seconds before he shook his head, kicked off his shoes and then pulled off his socks.
“Happy now?”
“Ecstatic,” she said playfully as she dug her toes into the sand. “Now...doesn’t that feel good?”
“No.”
“You’re such a grouch, Ian. Really and truly you are.”
Jordan smiled up at him with a look of sheer pleasure on her face and Ian couldn’t help but smile back. She had managed to lift his spirits in no time flat. And the more he thought about her, the more he realized that he wanted to make room for her in his life. After all, he had already made room for her in his heart.
“Why do I like you so much, Jordan?” he asked.
“I have no idea. But I’m glad that you do.” She took a step forward with a wave of her hand. “Come on. Let’s go.”
They walked side by side toward the shoreline and they both stood still as the water raced up to their feet and lapped over their ankles.
“It’s so beautiful here,” she said as she held out her arms and twirled around in the moonlight. “I love this hotel, don’t you? The history of it.”
“That’s what keeps me coming back,” Ian said as he began to walk farther down the beach. “This place has been here since the late 1700s. First as a Dutch colonial mansion and then as a residence for the governor of Curaçao. Now it’s a hotel. After all this time, it’s still here.”
“It had to reinvent itself so it could survive.”
“Sometimes you have to adapt or die, I suppose,” he mused, briefly remembering the conversation he’d had with Dylan about restructuring their business.
“Most people are afraid of change because they think that what they have is permanent. It’s not, though. The only thing consistent about life is change.”
As they walked slowly toward the tall rock breakwaters at the end of the private beach, Ian reached out for her hand.
Surprised, Jordan looked over at him.
“Is this okay?” Ian asked. He held her hand loosely enough that she could easily pull away. Instead, she slipped her fingers more firmly into his and tightened her hold.
Hand in hand, they walked quietly together. Jordan hadn’t expected this private, stolen moment with Ian. But it was a fantasy come true and it felt as if the planets had aligned just for her.
When they reached the cool, jagged gray rocks of the breakwater, Ian said, “This beach is too short.”
She laughed softly. “We should talk to management about that.”
“First thing,” he agreed, not letting go. “I’m not ready to go back.”
“Neither am I.” Ian’s hand was a perfect fit for hers.
He looked around. They were in a completely private part of the beach—secluded. Free from prying eyes.
“Any objection to hanging out here?” he asked.
“No.” Jordan lowered herself onto the softly packed, dry sand. “I’m from Montana, remember. I’m not afraid of a little sand.”
She patted the spot next to her. “Take a load off, GQ. We have the best seat in the house here.”
Ian sat down next to her, bent his legs and wrapped his arms around his knees. For a moment they were quiet, soaking in the ambience of the deserted beach. There was a warm breeze rolling in with the waves as they crashed onto shore. The bright, full moon cast a golden-yellow hue across the darkened blue water of the Caribbean.
“This is exactly what I needed.” Jordan sighed as her arm brushed against his.
“I was just thinking the same thing,” Ian said quietly. “I can shut off my brain out here.”
“You’re right.” She rubbed her hands down the length of her bare legs and dug her toes into the cooler layer of beach sand.
“So...did you hear from your mom?”
Jordan groaned and shook her head. “Oh, my God, yes. I finally had to just shut off my phone—between the calls and the emails and the text messages, my bill next month is going to be outrageous. Thank God the woman isn’t on Twitter!”
Ian laughed. “Well, I hope she has a forgiving nature. I don’t want to burn my bridges with her before I get a chance to work my charm on her face-to-face.”
“You don’t have to worry about my mom—you she will love. Trust me. And don’t worry, Mom doesn’t hold a grudge. She has a very specific method of working through things that bother her. First, she freaks out. Then she rearranges the kitchen. After she rearranges the kitchen, she bakes something fabulous, which totally makes my dad happy because he has a serious sweet tooth. And then she gets over it.”
Jordan smiled and tipped her head back as the night air curled around her upper arms and bare throat. “I could stay here all night. Do you know that? I could fall asleep right in this spot. Curaçao is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.”
Ian looked over at her. He felt fortunate in that moment that Stargardt hadn’t robbed him of his night vision yet. He was able to make out the long, slender curve of Jordan’s neck and the lovely profile of her face.
“I think you’re one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen,” he said to her.
Jordan bumped his shoulder with hers. “If you don’t stop saying things like that to me, you may never be able to get rid of me. And then you’ll be sorry. I’m just sayin’.”
“Why do you always make a joke when I try to say something even remotely serious to you?” Ian asked.
“Because,” she answered.
“Because why?”
“I don’t know—maybe because it seems really crazy to me that I’m sitting here in Curaçao with the guy I used to have hanging on my wall....”
“I wish you’d stop looking at me as that guy in the ad and start thinking of me as the man who’s sitting beside you right now,” he said, and there was a subtle thread of frustration woven into his words.
“I’m trying,” Jordan said defensively. “But it’s not just that, Ian. I feel like there may be something developing between us, an
d I promised myself I’d take a break from relationships and concentrate on my art. It might not seem like it to you, but I get my heart broken really easily and the last thing I need right now, with a deadline looming, is another broken heart.”
“I’ve had my heart broken, too, Jordan,” he said quietly, openly. “Every serious relationship I’ve ever been in, I’ve been in it for love. I’ve always wanted what my parents had. A great marriage. A family. True love. And so far it just hasn’t worked out for me like that. But even though we both have a lot on our plates, I can’t stop myself from wanting to take a chance with you....” He skimmed his thumb over her slender knuckles. “You know...my father felt that he was in the right place at the right time to meet my mother. And now I feel like I’ve been put in the right place to meet you. I don’t want to ignore what I’m feeling for you just because the timing is off.”
Ian heard his words coming out of his mouth and felt slightly detached from them. In fact, he couldn’t believe his own ears. His heart seemed to be overriding his brain and had temporarily taken control of his vocal cords. The last thing he had expected to do this evening, in the middle of shooting for the Elite campaign, was to be making a case to Jordan to start a relationship. But sometimes things just couldn’t be planned for in life. And all Ian knew was that he had been feeling lousy when he had come down from the penthouse and now, being in Jordan’s company, he felt better. She made him feel better just by being there with him.
When she didn’t respond immediately, he asked, “How do you feel about what I just said, Jordan?”
She looked down and shook her head almost imperceptibly. “I’m not really sure how I should feel. I mean, last night, we both agreed that starting a relationship right now doesn’t make sense....”
Ian dug his fingers into his shin as he waited for her to continue. Had he put his heart on the line for nothing?