by Sara Daniel
Melodie studied him the same way anyone in her profession did when they discovered the subject had a pimple or had gained five pounds since the last photo shoot.
Zola squinted at his scar. “We’ll lose jobs over this,” she said bluntly. “All those underwear and swimsuit campaigns. Not everyone is going to want to the extra work of airbrushing it out. A pity.” She shook her head, as if he’d taken a knife to his chest on an ill-advised whim.
“Swimsuits and underwear are not everything,” Gretchen pointed out. “His beautiful face hasn’t changed, and companies need models for turtlenecks, sweaters, and winter coats.”
“I can put out feelers for male beauty products. We’re too late for the winter catalogs, though. Everyone’s focused on spring and summer campaigns now.”
“Raincoats, jackets, T-shirts,” Kyle ticked off the seasonal suggestions. “Or the nonrenewal clause works both ways. You can release me as a client, and I’ll figure out something on my own. After all, you do have other clients now.”
Relief rushed through him, and his shoulders relaxed for the first time in a year. He could model again, or he could walk away. It was his choice. The scar on his chest would always be a part of him, but he didn’t have to let it dictate the direction of his life.
“Oh, no, I’ll never drop you,” Zola assured him. “I can find you plenty of good jobs to make us a lot of money and notoriety. We’ve both taken a hit with our professional reputations in the past year, though. I can’t promise I’ll be able to make you one of the most sought-after models in the world again.”
“I can live with that. In fact, I think I’ll enjoy it more.” His looks would always be scrutinized and obsessed over because of his profession, but he no longer felt the weight of needing to achieve physical perfection or to imprison himself at home because of the perceived limitations of his scar. He turned to Gretchen. “I have you to thank.”
“No need to thank me. I’d do it all over even if I knew you’d never model again.” She smiled, and he thought the expression was bittersweet.
Two women cornered him with a tub of coconut oil. At the same time, a man rubbed some styling gel in his hair. He let them do their jobs, returning to the familiar routine of modeling, while Gretchen strolled away. Under the bright studio lights and following a constant stream of stage directions, he lost sight of her. By the time the shoot wrapped, she’d vanished.
Chapter Seven
Gretchen threw herself into her business and clients, which was easy enough to do. With the days she’d taken off for the trip to Texas and the extra time she’d spent over the past months on her mother’s agency, her company needed round-the-clock attention.
After a week of constant work, her clients were once again feeling the love. Unfortunately, another love had driven her to work until she was too exhausted to think. She’d fallen in love with Kyle, given him her body, poured her heart into helping him make peace with his demons, and he gave her…his thanks.
He might as well have stabbed her.
On a logical level, she recognized the irrationality of her anger. She’d enticed him back to the modeling world, reminding him of the perks of the job. Her presence had never been a key selling point.
He’d given her everything she’d wanted from when she’d sought him out at the beginning of the month. He’d returned to modeling, providing her mother with a lucrative cut from his new jobs and a public-relations boost and attracting new talent and high-profile customers alike to the agency.
Mother had recommenced her professional, high-powered career. She’d found her own apartment and would be moving in tomorrow, October first. She’d given Gretchen two pairs of black pants and three shapewear undergarments “guaranteed” to make twenty pounds melt away as a parting gift. Gretchen should have been breaking into song from the sheer joy of reclaiming her home and her life. Instead she fought back tears.
“Ms. Meyers.” Her secretary’s voice through the intercom interrupted her troubled thoughts. “Mr. Ramsey is here to see you. He doesn’t have an appointment.” She lowered her voice. “But since I was able to get a rush on that shade installation for you, meeting with him might be worth your time.”
Oh yes, staring at Kyle was worth every unproductive minute. But he wasn’t a piece of eye candy she could simply ogle to her heart’s content. “I don’t think—”
Her office door opened, cutting off her feeble excuse. He stood before her, his perfect cheekbones, smooth skin, broad shoulders, and toned body all within reach, yet never to be hers. She didn’t regret a moment in his company. She only wished she’d had more time.
“I’ll clear your schedule for the rest of the afternoon,” her secretary said, amusement and a touch of envy in her voice. “You can reward me with a raise at your convenience.” She clicked off before Gretchen could reply.
“You’ve been avoiding me.” Kyle’s voice curled around her, sending delightful shivers down her spine as he closed the door.
“Just getting out of your hair so you can resume your life without me in the way.”
He pressed his palms to the desktop and leaned toward her. “Is that what you think? Apparently we have some things to talk about because I was under the impression you were part of my life and you liked it.”
She opened her mouth and then closed it. Of course she liked being part of his life, but she didn’t have to endure the humiliation of throwing herself at him. “Me and ninety-nine percent of the female population.”
He bent his arms against the wood surface until his face leveled with hers. “I don’t want ninety-nine percent of the population. I want you.”
“I beg your pardon.” She’d heard him but she didn’t believe her ears.
He leaped on the desk, sitting on the report directly in front of her, his legs straddling her lap. “I want you, Gretchen Meyers. I want your body spooned with mine when I wake up in the morning. I want you smiling across the table at dinner each night. I want your brain to help me figure out how to invest my income, so I don’t have to be a denture model when I’m eighty-five.”
She smiled in spite of the ache in her heart. “You don’t have to claim you want to spend every minute with me to convince me to manage your money.”
He touched his index finger under her chin, lifting her head until she looked directly into his heartfelt gaze. “I’m not. Honestly, I don’t care if you manage my money or even if I have any money to manage. The point is, I love you and I want you in my life whatever way I can get you.”
Gretchen stared. She had no words. No snappy comeback appeared on the tip of her tongue to rescue her vulnerable heart.
“You don’t believe me.” He dropped his hand, and his shoulders slumped. “I know I was difficult about returning to modeling. I had this obsession that my body had to be perfect for me to be worthy of showing it off. To top it off, Brett’s death messed me up bad. I’m not over it. I’m not sure a person ‘gets over’ death. And I have some serious character flaws. When people tell me how handsome and sexy I am, it goes to my head. I get cocky and obnoxious. Pretty soon, I start pulling stunts like walking straight into this office without waiting for an invitation.”
“I love you,” Gretchen blurted. “You don’t have to convince me of all the reasons I shouldn’t want you or that you’re just as human as anyone else. I know, and I love you exactly the way you are. But why do you want me?”
“Because you’re beautiful, sweet, funny, smart, thoughtful, caring, resourceful, compassionate, sexy—”
“I’m a plus size,” she reminded him. “I could eat those women you model with for breakfast and still be hungry.”
“I couldn’t care less if you’re a size one-hundred fifty-two or a negative thirty-one. Who gives a shit? I love you for you, not the size of your thighs, stomach, and boobs.”
His stark words blew her away. He’d proved her less-than-perfect appearance wouldn’t keep him from sleeping with her for a night or two. But on a permanent basis, conventional
wisdom said he’d want someone who could match his beauty. She’d let him go without a fight because he deserved the chance to find such a person.
“Having said that, I’m happy to show you how much I appreciate your body in the exact shape it is now.” He pushed the buttons of her blouse through the tiny holes. “You accepted me and convinced the entire world to welcome me with this scar on the middle of my chest. Why is it so hard for you to accept and love yourself?”
Gretchen stared at him, her shirt gaping open, her breath lodged in her throat. He was right. A lifetime spent believing she wasn’t worthy stopped her from accepting his love, making her as shallow and superficial as the most body-obsessed model.
Kyle pointed out this fault in the same breath he professed his love. He loved her, just as she loved him. She could either embrace the love she’d never imagined could be hers or wallow in misery and her own stupidity for the rest of her life.
He’d said he loved her for her brains, too. She needed to prove she had some.
“I’ve made peace with the size I am.” Usually, she had to add a qualifier for when her mother wasn’t around. But she didn’t need to qualify her acceptance any longer. “I’m happy to spend the night showing you my acceptance.”
“I’m talking about way more than one night.”
“Me, too.”
He bounced off the desk and nudged back her rolling chair, dropping to one knee on the floor in front of her. Then he reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a small velvet jewelry box. “I love you, Gretchen, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
She leaped out of her chair and threw her arms around him, sending them both tumbling to the carpet in a tangle of arms and legs. “Yes. I love you. You’re my model hero.”
By the time they raised the shades and left her office, Kyle had given her abundant physical evidence of how every inch of their imperfect bodies meshed perfectly together, but she didn’t need proof to know their love would last.
.
~ABOUT THE AUTHOR~
Sara Daniel writes irresistible romance, from sweet to erotic and everything in between. On the personal side, she’s a frazzled maid, chef, chauffeur, tutor, and personal assistant. She battles a serious NASCAR addiction and was once a landlord of two uninvited squirrels. Last but definitely not least, she has her own happily-ever-after romance with her hero husband.
You can visit Sara at:
www.saradaniel.com
Other Stories in the Decadent Publishing Calendar Men Series
http://bit.ly/1nfWVru
Burning Love by Cassandra Carr
Firefighter Jude Mason is hurt on the job and placed on disability. While he rehabs his injuries, doubts start creeping in. What if he never heals? Worse than that, is the question he barely dares to contemplate—what will he do for work if he can never go back to the station? Firefighting is all he knows.
Michaela owns a café and lives her life with the constant threat of her business failing. She works long hours making her restaurant a success, leaving little time for romance. And who would want her anyway? She’s far from model-thin, for one thing. Sure, she’d like to have someone to share the good times and bad with, but her prospects are few, so she concentrates on her job rather than bemoaning her complete lack of a love life.
A collision at a photo shoot brings Jude and Michaela together. They both feel the pull, but with Jude’s uncertain future and Michaela’s nonstop job, can they find common ground? If they’re lucky, Jude and Michaela might discover a future that burns brighter with true love.
The Other Brother by Lucy Felthouse
Photographer Melodie Carr moved to New York City to escape the death of her fiancé in Iraq. Struggling to come to terms with it ever since, she sees a call for photographs for a calendar to benefit family members of fallen heroes, and is eager to help out.
Unfortunately, she doesn’t know any men that fit the profile. Not until Patrick Brogan—her late fiance’s brother—turns up in New York. Seeing him brings up all kinds of memories, but she’s determined to push them aside and persuade him to take part in the calendar. But is that all he’ll take part in?
Contents
Title page
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
~ABOUT THE AUTHOR~