Newly Exposed (5 page)

“You seem agitated today,” he said, while shifting his jeans as he sat down.
 

“Long day,” I lied, as I tried not to think about how close Adam was and how he smelled like fucking sex on a stick and how hot he looked in the tight storm trooper shirt he was wearing.
 

“Aren’t you going to compliment my shirt?” he asked, noting my perusal of his shirt. Yes, I was staring at his shirt, not his chest, nope, not his bulging muscles at all.

I looked at his hopeful eyes and melted a little.
 

“Do you float to the dark side, Adam?”

“Doesn’t everybody, just a little?” he said, while looking at me through his eyelashes, those long damn eyelashes.
 

I took a deep breath and said, “I guess we do, don’t we?”

We sat there for a second, just taking each other in. This was so stupid, it was as if we’d never seen each other before or had never seen the opposite sex before. He was just a guy with a pretty face and a love for a cinematic masterpiece…with an entirely too hot of a body.

“Listen, Solo, I wanted to talk to you…”

“Let’s get down to business,” I interrupted him, not wanting to hear what he had to say, because with the way he was looking at me, with those soulful eyes and that lonesome dimple, I knew he was going to say something that was going to mess with my mind, and I didn’t need that complication. Adam was with Teeg Models now, which meant he was completely off limits.
 

“Here is your contract,” I handed it over to him as I started flipping through my iPad. You need to sign pages, three, six, and eight, and initial on two and four. There are sticky notes in there for you to take a look at. I’m going to need to know your banking information for direct deposit and your current address. After we sign everything and run through some test shots, I’ll get you the keys to your new dwelling and take you over there.”

“Hey, slow down for a second,” Adam said, grabbing my arm, searing his touch into my skin. “Did I do something wrong? I feel like you’re being cold toward me.”

“Adam, I’m just doing my job,” I replied with a sigh.

His eyes searched mine, and when he realized I wasn’t going to crack, that I had already erected my wall, he somberly nodded and leaned back into the couch as he meticulously went through his contract, reading every single line of it. It was rare to see someone read a contract so intently, especially when it came to the models. They usually just wanted the money and the house, but not Adam, he was different. There was something about him that was genuine, but also dark, like he had been through too much for someone so young.
 

While he was reading through the nine page contract, I started playing Mahjong Tiles on my iPad to keep myself busy. My dads taught me the game when I was young and I had been addicted ever since. I used to play on the computer, but now that the touch screen had become the be-all and end-all of electronics, it upped the fun factor of Mahjong on the iPad. For some reason, pressing my finger against the screen to eliminate matching tiles was so much more thrilling than using a mouse.
 

“I prefer the cat layout over the dragon; I find it more challenging,” Adam said, right next to my ear as he looked over my shoulder. “Ooh, Spring and Summer,” he reached over and eliminated two tiles by reaching around my body and touching my iPad. His chest pressed against my back, and I could feel my body wanting to melt into his, just to test out how it might feel to be held by him.
 

My head turned toward his and I said, “You play Mahjong Tiles?”

“Hell yeah. You’re looking at the reigning champ in my family. I Mahjong like no one’s business.”

Our noses were practically touching, we were so close, too close. His breath tickled my skin and his eyes bored holes into mine as those long lashes of his fluttered up and down.
 

Clearing my throat, I pulled away and said, “Um, you done with that contract?”

Adam heled the contract out to me and said, “All done. Pretty sure I just signed my life away.”

“Maybe not your life, but definitely your body. Time to take some pictures for your profile.”

I stood up and walked toward the ivy lined wall while taking a deep breath to gather my thoughts and settle my raging nerves. With one look from those beautiful eyes, he had me forgetting all my rules and testing the waters of what it would be like to give in to a Teeg Model…again. This was so not good.
 

Chapter Five

Adam

I was thinking cheesedick things, but that’s what Solo did to me. She smelled like a fucking field of flowers on a warm summer day, total cheesedick…but fuck if it wasn’t true.
 

After I left the studio once I was done showing off my body at the casting, I tried to keep Solo from running into my mind, but unfortunately, all I did was crave her more. And coming in to sign my contract, knowing she was going to be here, was the brightest part of my day. After seeing my mom in the hospital all day, fighting for her life, I needed the easy conversation and repartee that Solo and I had.
 

When I walked into the studio, my attention was immediately drawn to Solo. I briefly took a gander at the freak show being conducted on the side with some guy’s erect dick, but was instantly drawn back to Solo. Her long brown hair fell over her shoulders and was settled under a grey sock hat that looked pretty damn cute on her. She was wearing a plain white V-neck T-shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans. I don’t know why, but the simple outfit had me itching to get closer to her.
 

What really drove me to the brink today was the small lip ring that she was playing with, something I didn’t notice when I first met her. I either didn’t notice it, or she wasn’t wearing it. Either way, I was totally digging it and was mesmerized by the way her tongue flicked across it and played with it when she was nervous.
 

Her entire body nervously shook when I was around, and I took that as a good sign. I wasn’t really in the market for a girlfriend, but after meeting Solo and talking to her briefly, I knew that I wouldn’t mind having her in my life. Actually, it was more like I needed her in my life. She was a breath of fresh air, and I wanted to know more about her.
 

“Are you going to get up?” she asked, slightly annoyed, as she stood in front of a wall of ivy.
 

I took a deep breath and walked over to her, while eying her up and down. Yeah, she had a killer body, and what made her even more desirable was she didn’t even know it. She was drop dead gorgeous.
 

“Have you always had that lip ring?” I asked, while standing in front of the wall.
 

“Yeah, but I don’t always wear it,” she replied, while taking pictures.
 

I held my hand up and said, “Uh, do you want me smiling or anything?”

“No, just stand there and look at me. We don’t need to know what your smile looks like, we need to see your natural self.”

“Okay,” I answered while trying not to fidget. Not smiling for a camera only made me feel like a convict.

She snapped away and checked the photo each time she took one. Having someone take pictures of me, just standing in place and not even smiling, was probably one of the most awkward moments of my life, but I had to get used to it because after the contract I just signed, it seemed like I was going to be doing a lot of standing around while cameras flashed.
 

“Okay, let’s go file everything and then we can go off to the house.”

“Can I see?” I asked, before she walked away. She was on a mission tonight, and I hoped the mission wasn’t to get rid of me as quickly as possible.
 

“See what?”

“The pictures?”

She quirked her eyebrow at me and her mouth twitched to the side. “Are you really that vain that you need to see your test pictures?”

“No, but I wanted to make sure you did me justice. I can’t have you making me look fat.”

A bubble of laughter burst out of her mouth as she walked up to me and pinched my stomach.
 

“There is no fat there. As much as I hate to admit it, your body is killer. It’s hard to make you look bad.”

I acted shocked and held my heart. “My God, was that a compliment? From the one and only Solo? I think I can die a happy man now.”

She shook her head at me and walked away while muttering, “God, I hate models.”

I followed behind her; we stopped back at her desk and she handed me a pink key with my name on it.
 

Looking back up at her and the smirk that crossed her face, I asked, “Pink?”

“All the guys have pink keys; it’s one of the small things I have control over.”

“I take it the guys get on your nerves.”

“You have no idea, but you will soon find out. One of their favorite games is to see how much they can flirt with me, drop sexual innuendos, and make me uncomfortable by waltzing around practically naked. Oh, and don’t forget the constant hitting on me, asking me out, and showing up in my bedroom, as if I want them there.”

My entire body tensed up at Solo’s news about the guys I would be rooming with. There was no way in hell I would be able to stop myself from punching someone’s balls off if they wound up in Solo’s bed, waiting for her. Nope, I would not be okay with that. Not that I had any sort of claim on Solo, but I didn’t want anyone fucking with her.
 

“Seems like I’ll have to have a sit down with these men, tell them to leave the girl I have my eye on alone.”

Solo tensed up and then looked up at me with those deep brown eyes of hers. “Have your eye on? I swear, sometimes you’re like a twelve year-old with the need to play light saber wars, or you’re an eighty year old man using phrases like ‘have your eye on.’ I don’t know what to do with you.”

“Go out on a date with me?” I held my breath, knowing what her answer was going to be, but still holding out hope.
 

“Ahh, and let the flirting begin,” she said, while walking out toward the parking lot.
 

I didn’t like being clumped with those other douche bags, so I chased after her.
 

“I’m being genuine, Solo. I would love to get to know you better.”

She reached a little Honda Civic two-door and grabbed the handle while looking back at me. “Follow me and don’t get lost.” I was about to ask her out again when she held up her hand to stop me. “Adam, as much as I like you and think you’re pretty bad ass with your terrible Yoda voice and love for Mahjong, you’re a model now; you belong to Teeg Model Management, and that means you’re no longer available to me. We can be friends, but that’s it. You’re untouchable now.”

And that was fucking that. She sure knew how to put a man in his place.
 

***

We drove through the Hollywood Hills for what seemed like an eternity until we reached the top of a road that turned into a massive driveway flanked by palm trees and was blocked off by a gate. Solo punched in a couple of numbers and drove forward, while I followed closely behind her.
 

In the distance, a beige stucco mansion came into view with a fountain in the middle of the circular driveway. Off to the left of the mansion was a smaller home that I assumed was where Solo lived, because she parked right in front of it.
 

I parked close to her and we both got out of our cars at the same time.
 

“Wow, this place is incredible,” I admitted, while I tried to take it all in.
 

“Only the best for Teeg models; come with me. The guys are out on some different photo shoots today, so I can show you around without them disturbing us with their idiocies.”

Glad to be alone with Solo for a while longer, I followed her up to the front of the house. She opened the door and led me into the entryway. Talk about grandiose. The house was ridiculous. There were pictures of who I could only assume were past and present Teeg Models, scattering the deep blue walls. Rich wood tones of the floor blended with the black molding that outlined the house, providing a modern feel. The house was definitely something I wasn’t used to, but I wasn’t going to be mad about it.
 

“Upstairs are all the rooms; we’ll get to yours in a second. The main level houses the kitchen, the living area, and of course the gym, which is obnoxiously large. Outside is the pool area and obviously the backyard…”

“What’s that small house?” I asked, as I looked out the open sliding glass door that was an entire wall of the house.
 

“That’s off limits,” Solo said, as she headed toward the stairs.
 

“Well, now that you say it’s off limits, I just have to see what’s in there,” I said, as I started walking out to the back. The pitter patter of Solo’s Converse coming up behind me and grabbing my arm made me smile.
 

“You can’t go out there,” she stated.
 

“And, why is that?” I turned around and looked down at her small frame and beautiful brown eyes.