The One He's Been Looking For

“Look at me through the lens. Nice. I like it, Jordan. Hold that, please.”

The flashbulb popping drew her attention back to Ian again and again. But no matter how hard she tried to follow his direction, the crowd in her peripheral vision was a major distraction. She just couldn’t focus. Not like this.

Ian must have realized from her frozen expression and her stiff limbs that she wasn’t able to overcome the prying eyes. He turned away from her and waved his hand at their audience.

“Clear the studio,” he said to the spectators. But because Ian never asked for privacy, no one moved.

“Now!” he barked loudly.

Jordan watched, relieved, as the crowd disappeared behind the divider. Violet emerged from her room with a curious look on her face.

“Take the rest of the day,” Ian said when he noticed her standing at the edge of the set.

“For real?” Violet asked, surprised.

He nodded. “Do me a favor. Make sure everyone leaves. I want it quiet and private. Got it?”

“Got it.” Violet slid one last suspicious, slit-eyed look at Jordan before she spun on her spiked heels and disappeared.

Ian waited until he heard Violet’s echoing heels reach the door. When it shut behind her, he turned his attention back to Jordan.

“Now,” he said as he walked toward her. “No more excuses.”

“Thanks for that.” She felt herself immediately relax. She would’ve thought that having others around would make her feel less nervous around Ian, but now that they were alone together, she felt more at ease.

“I take it you don’t do that very often,” she added.

“I’ve never done that,” Ian said as he scanned through the photographs he had already taken of her. “Not for anyone.”

“Then why’d you do it for me?”

He walked over to where she was standing, and she liked his natural, long-legged swagger.

“I’m going to be blunt so we can move this along, okay?”

“Sure,” she said with a shrug.

“You interest me. Individually, your features are...ordinary, but together...” He paused as he studied her face. “But together, they are extraordinary. And I feel compelled to capture that in a photograph. Fair enough?”

Jordan wrinkled her brow and gave a small shake of her head. “Was there a compliment in there somewhere? ’Cause it sure didn’t sound like it...”

“You seemed like someone who’d rather get it straight. Was I wrong about that?”

“No. You’re right. I’d rather get it straight.”

“So...is there a problem?”

Jordan put one hand on her hip and felt her proverbial hackles rise. “I don’t have a problem.”

“Good.” Ian nodded his head. “I’m glad to hear it. Time is money and I’d like to get back to work.”

“Sure.” She frowned at him. “Why not? It’s your time to waste. Good luck with getting a usable shot....”

“When it comes to getting the shot,” he replied with the confidence of a man who didn’t often fail. “I don’t need luck.”

Chapter Four

Now that they were alone, and Ian had removed the distractions, he was determined to get down to business. At first her nerves, natural awkwardness and heightened self-consciousness made her feel as stiff as an overly starched shirt. But bit by bit, little by little, he coaxed her out of her shell. He was totally relaxed and in charge when he had that camera in his hand. He knew exactly what he needed to say, knew exactly how he needed to say it in order to get her to perform. The calm timbre of his voice combined with the continual stream of encouraging words stripped away the last threads of nervousness from her body. Once she shook off those nerves, she was able to feel the energy that was flowing between them; when he moved, she moved. It was a dance—a sensual, flirtatious dance. And surprisingly, being the focus of Ian’s camera was nearly as exhilarating as street racing her Ducati. She hadn’t expected it, wouldn’t have imagined it, but modeling for Ian excited her.

Ian stepped closer to her. “Beautiful, Jordan. Now I want you straight on to the camera. Remember to bring your personality to the shot—a gorgeous face is only half the battle. That’s it. Hold that right there.”

Ian snapped off several more shots before he lowered the camera. “Are you up for a couple more?”

Her body was flooded with feel-good endorphins and her defenses were completely down. Jordan felt flushed all over her body as she smiled at him. “Sure.”

Ian felt encouraged by the fact that Jordan wasn’t ready to stop the session. “Up till now, I’ve been directing you. Now I want to see you direct yourself.”

Her eyebrows lifted in surprise. Hands on hips, she asked, “Seriously?”

“Seriously.” Ian smiled back at her, revealing a dimple. “Show me what you’ve got.”

Ian found that he was thoroughly enjoying photographing Jordan. She was everything he had imagined she would be—and much, much more.

“Okay,” she said with a shrug. “I can do that.”

Ian lifted his camera.

“You want me to start now?” she asked.

“Whenever you’re ready.” He made some adjustments to the camera.

Jordan took in a deep breath and held her hands out in front of her. “Okay.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe I’m going to do this, but I’m going to show you something no one—other than my roommate and maybe the Peeping Tom next door—has ever seen before.”

“That sounds promising,” Ian said, and then asked teasingly, “Will I see it sometime today?”

“Hey...” Jordan teased him back. “What you’re about to see takes some mental preparation. Okay?”

“By all means,” he said with mock seriousness. “Prepare.”

Jordan drew another deep breath and brought her hands together in the prayer position in front of her chest. “I call what you are about to see Joan Jett meets Billy Idol meets Lita Ford. Can you dig it?”

“I’m ready to be impressed.” Ian bantered with her as he raised his camera and prepared to capture her poses.

Ian was like a snake charmer. He had managed to make her feel so completely comfortable that she was willing to make a fool out of herself and strike every “cool” rocker chick pose she had ever come up with in front of the bathroom mirror. Ian took picture after picture, and by the time Jordan struck her last pose, which featured her best Billy Idol snarl, she couldn’t stop herself from laughing. She tilted her head back, crossed her arms in front of her stomach and laughed out loud.

“That’s it!” she said dramatically. “You’ve taken it all out of me. I’ve got nothing left to give.”

Ian realized that he was laughing along with her. The rare sound of his own laughter seemed strange and out of place in the studio. But with Jordan, laughing seemed like the most natural thing to do.