Picture Perfect Obsession
C.M Steele
Contents
Untitled
Untitled
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Epilogue
The End
Picture Perfect Obsession
A Best Friends Duet
C.M. Steele
Copyrighted © 2020
All Rights Reserved
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is purely coincidental.
Cover design: C.M. Steele
Cover Image: Deposit Photos
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Emmitt: A simple assignment to photograph a fun run, shouldn’t even be a blip on my busy schedule between celebrity and location shoots. Still, one runner catches my eye, and nothing will ever be the same again. I drop everything to find out who she is, and when I can tell her that she’s mine. Because once I have her, there’s no way I’m letting her go.
Who needs to travel the world when you have it all in your arms? She’s my picture-perfect obsession.
Madison: I’m so not a morning person or a people person either, so I must have been out of my mind to agree to do a 5k with my bestie. As I hopped around to stay warm, I caught the attention of a photographer and lost my attention to the task at hand. Running can be dangerous when you’re lost in thought.
Who knew that I’d manage to send myself to the hospital and find a handsome prince waiting to whisk me away?
Chapter 1
Madison
“Up! Up!” I hear her, but I’m trying not to listen as my roommate attempts to get me out of bed.
I’m so not looking forward to running a 5K, but that’s what Addison signed me up for. If she wasn’t my best friend, I’d tell her to shove it. It’s too damn early and still too damn cold for this. I give her my best scowl as she stands over my bed, demanding I wake my sleepy ass up.
“Stop making that face. It’s time to get ready.”
We’re both trying to make our way through college and be independent, but that’s an uphill battle when you live in a big city. At twenty, we both work our butts off doing temp work and going to school in the afternoon. We’re more than halfway through the semester, so it’ll be nice to have the summer off and only have to work.
“It’s not even light out,” I grumble, ducking my head under the covers.
She tugs them off. “It will be in five minutes. Move your ass. You run every day anyway.”
“It’s not the point. I hate crowds, the cold, and mornings…” I toss the blanket over my head again.
She kicks my bed and then bounces on the edge of the mattress, waking me up some more. Finally, I surrender. I’m such a pushover, I would have gotten up anyway, but I need to make her earn the torture she’s about to make me endure. “Get me coffee,” I growl out.
She jumps off and giggles. “Sniff,” she adds, walking toward the door. I do it and smell the fresh pot already brewed.
“You should have come in here with that bargaining chip then.”
“I didn’t know I was waking the grumpy troll this morning. Get up and get it yourself, lazy ass. We’ve got miles to run.” She walks out as I flip her off. Fucking hell, she’s probably already had three cups.
I grumble as I roll my ass out of bed. I showered last night, so I head to the bathroom to freshen up before she comes to hunt me down. Ten minutes later, I’m decked out from head to toe in magenta running gear with just a hint of grey on the sides. I tie up my hair in a ponytail with bobby pins to keep as many flyaways tucked in as possible. It’s only three-point two miles, but I still don’t want to come out looking a mess.
As soon as I step out of the room, she has her arm out with a hot cup of coffee. “Thank you.” I take a drink and sigh. It’s just what I needed. I have to have my fix every morning. It’s one of my only vices and chocolate of course.
“Anything for you, sleeping beauty. Now let’s get to it. We’ve got a race to win.”
“It’s not a real race. It’s a fun run.” I roll my eyes at her and snatch a banana off the counter to take with me. Slipping on my favorite running shoes, I’m starting to feel excited about beating my best time. It’s going to be very short either way because Addison and I run about a ten-minute mile—more or less.
“I’m ready.” I stand up and polish off my coffee before washing out the cup. I’m the neater one out of the two of us, so I wash her cup that’s already in the sink. It’s a habit I picked up as a kid. My parents both worked, so I learned to do the cooking and cleaning. We were happy, but we weren’t wealthy. Addison wasn’t that lucky. Her parents died two years ago in an accident.
“Give me five minutes.”
Whipping my head toward Addison, my eyes turn into saucers as I glare at her. She’s tying up her hair and walking back to her bedroom. I could kick her in her shins, but then she can’t run and will bite my head off for it. "What the hell? You rush me, but you're not ready?"
"Well, hello. I had to make sure you were up because if I didn't, then we'd never make it out of here. Besides, I'm just taking another tinkle. I'm not using those port-o-potties."
"Oh yeah. I better go too."
"Damn right."
"The only thing I want to catch is a man," Addison hollers from the bathroom. I'm so grateful these apartments were meant for roommates. Sharing a bathroom is hard between two girls who work at the same time. We both have gigs down at the Merchandise Mart as temporary administrative assistants while we go to school online and occasionally at the school. This semester I have no actual in-class classes, which is nice. Addison, on the other hand, has all of hers at the campus. She’s not very pleased with it, but hey, I was in that same predicament last semester.
We’re both single and frankly too busy for dating even though I’m sure she’s just as anxious as I am to find a man—even a temporary one.
“Ready,” she sings, grabbing just enough stuff to fit in our mini zippered pockets.
When we finally make it to the race, we collect our bibs and take turns pinning them to each other before going over to the start corral. We’re closer to the front because we signed up with our approximate race times. It’s really a fun run, but the faster we go, the warmer I’ll feel. I decided to forgo a thicker sweater, so I’m sporting a pink running hoodie that I can tie around my waist when I get overheated. It has wicking technology, but we all sweat, especially f
or these things.
I slip my wrap-around Bluetooth headphones in because I need the steady beat to keep me at pace. It’s the best twenty dollar investment I’ve ever made. In the middle of picking my playlist, Addison elbows me, so I pull them back out. “Hey, you won’t believe it, but I think the photographer on the platform over there is staring at you.”
“Where?” There are four different platforms with people standing on them.
She blatantly points to the one that’s the closest to us. “Over there.”
“Don’t point,” I screech, putting her hand down.
“Why? It’s clear he’s ogling you.”
“No, there are thousands of people around here. It’s his job to look at people.” Addison winks at him.
“Yeah, but it’s not his job to damn nearly eye fuck you.”
I finally take a peek. I raise my gaze up to the platform to see Mr. Hotshot lower his camera.
He smiles, and I gasp because there’s no doubt it’s for me. Addison points to me, and he nods. Holy hell, he’s so handsome and about six feet or taller. It’s hard to tell from down here, but he’s only one of two people up there. I’m guessing because of his broad shoulders, there’s no room for anyone else. I’m bumped by a small woman who takes my attention away from the hot photographer. When I catch the end of what he’s saying, and then Addison starts putting her fingers up—one, three, seven.
“Did you just give him my bib number?” I ask in outrage as if he can’t just see it himself.
“Well, that way, he can at least figure out your name. You better get your game face ready. You might be in a lot of shots.” She smirks, and I’m entirely self-conscious now. Damn her. I left the apartment with just some Chapstick on my lips, so they didn’t dry up in the cold wind.
“Oh, God. I hate you,” I say with a smile on my face.
“No, you don’t, and the blush on your pretty cheeks tells me that you want to know Mr. Hotshot.”
“Shut it.” The announcer speaks over the microphone, stopping our discussion. I look up, and he’s taking shots all around the crowd. The buzzer goes off, and as we wait for our turn to leap into action, I look up one more time, and he’s gone. A sudden feeling of loss comes over me, and I put my headphones back in and let the run begin.
Chapter 2
Emmitt
I woke up around five and set up my cameras for today's photoshoot. I have a high profile client looking for me to take pictures at the finish line for the 5K today. They are the sponsor and want their own personal spin on it. I pack everything up and run out of my condo into the freaking icy morning. Damn, if this job didn't pay me three times my going rate, I'd say fuck it, but I'm not going to knock easy money.
I've worked my entire life trying not to eat up all the money my grandfather left me. I leave that job up to my mother. She's the spender and then some. Onto ex-husband number four, she's managed to snag a good chunk of dough out of them except step-dad number one. He was the smart one and my favorite. I didn't even mind when he took my father's place. I loved that old man, but their marriage didn't last long.
As soon as she learned that she'd get nothing in the divorce, she moved on to the next sucker, but I stuck around with Mr. Bryant. My step-brother and I grew close in those two years, and I didn't want it to end, so they let me hang around.
We went our separate ways in college, but Mr. Bryant or Dad, as I prefer to call him, paid for my entire four years at Northwestern. It was a blessing that I'm forever grateful for. Now, I always do my best to make him proud. He's the kind of dad that any boy would be lucky to have.
And just as I get to the lobby of my condo, I get a text from him. Dinner, my house tomorrow. I want both my boys there.
I shoot one back. Sounds good. Can’t wait to see you.
When I get into position, I start with some random shots of the city background and the participants. There’s four thousand out here today, so it’s going to take a while to get to the end, but I’m only doing these shots, and then I have to head to the finish line. The course loops itself, so thankfully, there’s a shortcut that’ll take me two minutes.
I’m almost done with my starting line shots when I spot two runners who were decked out in pink, but it’s one of them that catches my attention, and it has nothing to do with the run. She’s smiling and hopping lightly off the ground to keep warm.
Her tits are pressed firmly against the sports bra she’s wearing underneath, but I can see that she needs more support for them than what she has. My hands would do a much better job, but then again, I’d have them in my mouth or teasing them with my fingertips, rolling her hardened nipples that are presently poking through her tech hoodie.
Despite the icy chill, my cock stiffens up here. I’m glad there’s a banner around the railing to hide my massive hard-on. I watch her through my lens, zooming in to get a better look at her, stealing shots that will be just for me. I can’t let my client have these photos. A man bumps into her and apologizes, and she gives him an understanding smile before popping in her headphones. Damn it, I want her to see me, to save those smiles for me.
I have to know her, but from this angle, her bib isn’t easy to see. It’s blocked by her long ponytail. I let out a whistle that gets the attention of the woman she’s standing next to. She grins up at me, and I pointedly stare at her friend. She starts telling her something and then she points me out. Damn, I love her friend or sister, whoever she is.
By the time I steal a few more glances, I’m being called to go to the next spot. Shit. I’m working my way down. Before I leave the platform, I ask the girl who is volunteering alongside me to find a roster for me.
“Yes, sir.” She’s got to be in high school, but she’s got a photography background, so they let her help me. I don’t need much, really. I’ve taken pictures of famous people and places all on my own, making a great career for myself.
I shoot the racers that make it to the finish line first. They’re so ahead of everyone else that I have two minutes to look for my woman. The names are in number order thankfully, and that’s when I find it. Madison Chandler. I didn’t even look at her friend’s number, so I’m guessing that it’s number one-thirty-six, Addison Reynolds. I make a note of the information, but I don’t have more time to look them up before getting back to my job.
Almost two hours go by, and virtually all the runners have completed the race. I don’t see my woman, and that upsets me. Where the fuck is she? Did I miss her?
My assistant comes up to me as the last of the runners cross the finish line. “Mr. Jacobs?”
“Yes?” I’m entirely too rude, but my patience has worn thin.
“That woman you’re looking for was taken to the hospital.” I don’t know how she knew that, but I’m glad she did.
“What? Where? When? What happened?” My questions are so fast her head shakes for a second.
She sputters out, “St. Joes about an hour ago. Someone bumped her, shoving her to the ground, and someone else stepped on her ankle.”
“I’ve got to go. Tell them that I’ll send all the images over tonight,” I say, stuffing my camera and flash into my bag. I have to get to her and find out how she’s doing and what the hell I can do to make it better.
“I will.” I take off running, hailing a cab. Thankfully, there’s one ready and waiting. With all these people around, I’m surprised, but I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth.
As soon as it opens up, I state, “Saint Joes, hurry.” He takes off just as my door latches shut. I’m on my phone, sending out a text message to my client, letting him know that I had an emergency, but I’ll have his images done tonight as promised.
He makes the two-mile trip quick, so I hook him up with a great tip. Just then, I see my sweet girl come out of the hospital with her friend, and she’s in a wheelchair. I rush to them before they get in a waiting cab. “Hey, Madison,” I call out. They both turn around.
“You’re here? Did someone else get hurt?” Madi
son asks with the most beautiful wide-open cerulean blue eyes I’ve ever seen.
“No, I came to see you.” I don’t hesitate to scoop her out of the chair and into my arms.
“Um…I don’t even know you.” She narrows her eyes at me, but she clings to me even tighter.
“I’m Emmitt Jacobs, and I’ve never seen anyone or anything as beautiful as you. I want to get to know you and plan out our future together,” I confess, sounding completely nuts and overly cheesy, but it slips from my mouth so freely.
“Wow, swoon. You’re lucky he’s already carrying you. Do you have a brother?” Addison teases, rubbing her hands together.
I can’t help the chuckle that escapes. “I do, but he’s my stepbrother and completely the opposite of me.”
“Pity, well. Your romantic gesture is awesome, but I can’t let you carry Mads away. I called this cab to take us home.”
“Good, I’ll ride with you. I took a cab straight here.”
“Wow, who are you, really?” Madison’s eyes droop sleepily. How much medicine did they give her? What did they give her?
“A man who has been completely fascinated by you and who isn’t going to stop trying to prove it.” I set her in the Dodge Caravan and scoot in beside her while Addison jumps in the front seat. When she gives the driver the address, I realize they live on the southside. It’s going to be at least a twenty-minute drive. I smile, knowing that I get to be this close to Madison.
She tilts her head, leaning on my shoulder. “Adds, how much meds did they give me?”
She turns in her seat. “Oh, honey, they gave you a Norco, but he’s the one that needs some meds.” She stares at me appraisingly. “Still, I’ve got a good vibe about him even though he doesn’t have a cute brother.” She finished with a pout, making me laugh. My stepbrother probably wouldn’t know what to do with her. She’s the opposite of Tanner.
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