Behind His Lens (6 page)

I stare into her ch
ocolate brown eyes and shake some sense into her. “Yes. That is a group of sexy, sexy men. But you are one sexy female and could have your pick of any of them,” I declare confidently. As I speak, the glossiness behind her gaze lifts and a wicked grin forms on her lips. The little minx is back.

“Let’s go.” She winks and pulls me forward. We’re still a couple of yards off and I use the di
stance as an opportunity to ogle the men as much as I want. Of course, the common denominator is that they all have rippling, soccer bodies. But that’s where the similarities end. They’re clearly all from different cultures and different walks of life. One of the guys has wild, curly hair, and I find myself smiling as he does a silly victory dance after blocking a shot in the goal he’s tending.

“Bennett’s the blonde guy playing midfield,
” Naomi declares as we get closer. I pull my eyes away from the curly-haired goalkeeper to find the man she’s referring to. He’s gorgeous, of course, with short blonde hair and sharp features. But that’s not what makes me clutch my hand to my throat. No, that reaction stems from the man Bennett is standing next to— Jude.

They
rest there, catching their breaths and talking, without even realizing we’re approaching. They look like an erotic fantasy, standing close together like that. There’s no comparison though; Jude is hands down the sexiest man on the field. He’s got a few inches on Bennett and his dark, unruly hair yanks at the strings of my desire before I’ve even scanned down his naked torso.

My lips curl into a private smirk as I recollect my theories from
yesterday. I knew he worked out and his chiseled body now confirms it. The morning sun glistens off his tanned chest and I have to clench my eyes closed in defeat.

“What’s wrong?” Naomi asks, and I
nearly jump at her words.

“Jeez. Settle down.” She puts her hand on my shoulder and I can feel myself trembling against her palm
beneath my tight running shirt.

“Bennett is talking to P
hotographer Boy,” I peep quietly as I pry my eyes open. The look on Naomi’s face is absolutely priceless.

In slow motion her
mouth drops open and her head swivels to where the two guys stand.

“No. Way. No. Freaking. Way.”

“That guy is too sexy to be real.” Her head snaps back to me and I shake my head, glancing down to the ground. I stare toward the golden leaves crunching underneath my neon colored sneakers. Yes. Freaking. Way.

“Do you want to leave? We can go right now, Charley,” she offers
, and her sweet tone finally makes me lift my gaze. Bennett and Jude are glancing over at us, along with the other eight guys. I gulp; it’s too late to leave now.

“No. No, it’s fine. We’ve come this far and Bennett already noticed you.” His wide smile shows exactly how happy he is to see her and it’s almost bright enough to block out Jude’s confused scowl.

Without another word, we start walking again and I try to focus on anything other than Jude. It doesn’t work though. He draws my attention as though he’s the sun, and I’m helpless against his overpowering rays. The chiseled v-line of his obliques leads down to his navy soccer shorts. I think that’s called an Adonis belt… and God— now I know why. His shorts sit low on his hips and then cut off above his knee, revealing his mouth-watering legs and chiseled abs. Both of his strong hands grip his waist in a closed stance, making it clear I’m far from welcome.

“Naomi!” Bennett calls as we approach. He jogs over to greet us and I have to look away. The scene is practically nauseating as they meet midway
and he kisses her on the cheek. I’ll give them maybe a week before it’s official.

“This is my friend, Charley,” Naomi offers
, and I force myself to look up and be polite. I really am happy for her. Naomi has had a string of bad relationships and this guy seems so genuinely excited that she’s here; I can’t help but like him.

I run my hand through my long ponytail and step forward. With a big smile, I offer my hand, “Nice to meet you, Bennett.” His hazel eyes lock onto mine and in that brief moment I understand that I’m not a complete stranger. Jude either filled him in yesterday or just a minute ago as we walked up. Either way, the mischievous glint in his eyes tells me I won’t get to pretend that Jude doesn’t exist.

“Nice to meet you too, Charley,” he smiles knowingly. “Thanks for forcing Naomi out of bed this morning.” He shifts his eyes to Naomi, and I swear I can see a blush form beneath her tanned skin. Naomi, you little sap.

Suddenly a
voice booms behind us. “Are you two going to play or what?” I look up just in time to see the curly haired goalkeeper run over with a lazy smile. As he steps close, I realize he’s handsome beneath his crazy hair and something about his easygoing attitude makes me lower my guard.

“Only if you teach me that
little victory dance of yours,” I muse with a grin. My compliment lights up his face, and for a moment I ignore the sensation of Jude’s eyes pinned on me.

“Looks like we got a keeper, Bennett!” He quips with slight accent laced through his words. He pronounces keeper, as “keepa”.

“I’m Tom by the way,” he offers.

“Are you from Australia?” I ask with a smile.

His hand claps against his chest as he feigns heartbreak. “New Zealand! I’m a kiwi, love!”

The gesture is so over the top that I can’t help but laugh.

Tom dribbles the ball between his feet. “So you are guys going to join?”

“I think we’ll just watch if that’s okay?” Naomi interjects, glancing toward me for backup. She has nothing to worry
about; I’m not running around pretending I know a thing about soccer with Jude watching. Over my dead body.

“Sounds good
.” I smile, glancing toward the center of the field. Jude hasn’t moved an inch. His bright blue eyes are focused directly on me and he shakes his head once slowly. Excuse me, you don’t own Central Park.

“What’s his problem?” Naomi asks as we walk together toward the side of the field. We didn’t bring a blanket or chairs
, so we sprawl out on the dry grass to watch the remainder of their game.

“I have no idea…”

Jude

“So is she single?” Tom asks with a hopeful tone.

“How would I know?”
I bite out gruffly.

The four other guys on my team stand around me in a tight circle. We’re meant to be discussing strategy for the second half of the game, but all four of them practically
started salivating the moment the girls walked up. Why the hell is she here? The universe seems to be playing a cruel joke by forcing our paths to cross three times within the last three days. Although, technically, she doesn’t know about that first time at the Club and that’s the way I’ll keep it.

Josh narrows his eyes on Charley. “There’s no way a girl like that is single. Although her friend is pretty, too. I guess Bennett already claimed her?”

“Claimed her? Who talks like that?” I snap a little too angrily.

The guys shuffle
around on their feet until Tom breaks the silence.

“Yeah well, sorry mates, but I already made Charley laugh, so I guess that settles it, right?”

“Oh, fuck off, Tom,” Josh laughs, punching his arm.

I want to kill them all.

I left the photo shoot yesterday the moment Mrs. Hart was satisfied with the shots we got. I shouldn’t have touched Charley. I didn’t plan on doing it when I walked over to adjust her pose, but I lost control the moment I stepped close to her. Her skin was so beautiful and I just needed to know what she felt like, how her radiant skin felt beneath my touch. She responded to it, blossoming like a flower, and it killed me to have to walk away. I hate myself for getting that close. I was a fool to think I could contain myself around her and now she’s here, testing my will again all too soon.

Fuck.

I chance a glance over my shoulder. I just want to look at her. I know I shouldn’t, but when she’s wearing an outfit like that, there’s not a man alive that could resist.

Her tight running top sticks to her skin, hugging her breasts. Her long, toned legs are stretched out in front of her as she leans back onto her palms. Her friend, Naomi, says something and I watch with steadied focus as Charley tips her head back and laughs freely. The sun highlights her golden hair and even without a stitch of make-up she’s the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen. I want to make her laugh like that. I want her to smile for me the way she smiles for her friend.

“Hey Team Captain, wake up! Aren’t you meant to be leading us?” Josh quips, and I roll my eyes at being caught staring. Fuck them. I don’t care what they think. Besides, they know the kind of lifestyle I live. There’s no way they’d be able to guess the kind of thoughts running through my mind right now.

After all, Jude and monogamy don’t even belong in the same conversation.

I glance back at the guys and notice Tom studying me intently.

“So she was the model on your shoot yesterday?”
He’s goading me and I know it.

“
No, it was your mother, Tom,” I answer flatly, but the guys all laugh anyway.

“
Yeah, yeah,” he groans, brushing my lame comeback aside. “Is she fair game?” he asks, tilting his head to the side, clearly not willing to give up yet. Four pairs of eyes stare back at me, waiting for my reply, and every nerve ending screams for me to say no. No, she’s not fair game. She’s mine. She belongs to me and she’s off limits. But I can’t say that.

“Go for it. I don’t date models, remember?” God, I’m a terrible liar. I don’t think I could be locking my jaw or
clutching my fists any tighter, and I know Tom can tell.

I groan angrily, “Can we play soccer, already? You guys can fight over her later. Let’s go!”

I reel back and yell for Bennett, “Is your team ready?”

Charley’s head pops up at the sound of my voice, but I don’t glance over. I know my tone is harsh
, but I can’t seem to control any part of my body at the moment, which is only pissing me off more.

“You’ll have to excuse my friend, ladies, it’s not often that he’s around such beautiful women,” Bennett winks over to the girls and I hear them laugh. Charley’s giggle sends a shiver down my spine and I have to shake out my shoulders to get rid of the foreign sensation.

After a brief word, we break from our huddle and move around the field to take our positions. I end up in midfield, a few feet from Charley. By the time I’m in position, everyone is still getting to their spots, so I hunch over, resting my hands on my knees and steadying my breath before the game starts again. I glance around to see that the guys are all busy fixing their shoes or stretching out, so I know I have this moment to myself. I grip my hands on top of my knees even tighter, and before I think better of it, I twist my head toward Charley. She’s sitting a few feet away from me so my movement catches her attention. Within seconds, she’s staring up at me with wide, blue eyes, as if she can’t possibly pull her gaze from mine. Her innocent expression makes it impossible to hold back my grin, and without a second thought, I shoot her a slow wink.

Her mouth literally drops and my grin spreads even wider across my face. I know I must be an enigma to her. I’m a complete jackass one minute and then I wink at her the next, but that’s
the way it has to be. I want her, but she should just stay away from me. Then why are you winking at her, asshole?

I shake my head
harshly and turn away without a second glance. Luckily, Tom tosses the soccer ball across the field and the game begins, saving me from making any more mistakes. For the next thirty minutes I’m going to focus on soccer and not the angel on the sidelines stirring up feelings from my hardened heart.

CHAPTER FIVE

Charley

“So we’ll meet at The Village Tavern around nine?” Bennett asks Naomi.

The soccer game ended a few minutes ago and everyone’s sitting in a circle swapping out their cleats for sneakers and shrugging on t-shirts, much to my chagrin. Goodbye heavenly dream.

“Sounds good. That place is really close to where Charley and I live.” She smiles over at me and I offer a small nod. It’s intimidating being in a group with so many attractive men, not to mention the man sitting directly across from me. I can’t meet his eyes and we haven’t said a single word to each other this whole time. Is he purposely ignoring me? Did I make him mad yesterday? No. He can probably just tell how much he affects me and he doesn’t want to lead me on. But what about that wink? Naomi saw him do it too, so I know we’ll break it down the second we’re alone.

A few of the guys start to stand and say their goodbyes. Before he leaves, Tom offers me a wide grin and tells me he’ll see me later. I’m happy he’ll be at the bar. He’s easy to be around, unlike
some
people.

A beat later, Bennett hops up and walks over to stand in between Naomi and me so he can grab our hands and pull us up. Naomi giggles like a schoolgirl. She seems to really like him and I can’t wait to tell her how much I approve. All my instincts tell me he’s a good guy.