Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77127 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
There was a long moment of silence before he answered, “Okay.”
Nothing was going to ruin my mood today.
I waited for the woman behind the counter to finish her phone call and looked around at the portraits hanging on the wall. If stumbling onto this place hadn’t been a sign from up above, I didn’t know what was.
“Sorry about that.” The woman hung up the phone and walked over to where I stood.
“No problem. I didn’t have an appointment or anything. I was just on my way to a meeting down the block, and the photos hanging in your window caught my eye. Are you the photographer?”
The woman reminded me of my mom. She was tiny, with long, flowing, dirty blonde hair and a Stevie Nicks vibe. “Yes. They’re all mine. This is my portrait studio. I’m sort of a one-woman show—answer the phones, take the photos, print them, and frame them. I can’t help myself. I’m a control freak.”
“Well, that seems to work for you. They’re incredible.”
She smiled warmly. “Thank you. Were you looking for a particular type of shoot? Is it for yourself? Or a family portrait of some kind?”
“I’d like to schedule a shoot for someone…as a gift. My girlfriend...something like this, maybe.” I pointed to the oversized, framed photo of a very pregnant woman looking down at her exposed belly. She had one hand covering her breasts and the other caressing her stomach. It was beautiful—the quality and softness of the shot gave it an almost angelic feel. “She’s been a little down lately, and I think she’s getting self-conscious about her body. I want her to see herself like I see her.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful. What a nice surprise. Many women don’t feel so beautiful about their bodies when they’re pregnant. You giving her something like this tells her that you’re proud of her body and she should be, too.”
“That’s what I’m hoping. She’s gorgeous pregnant.”
“Do you have an idea of when you want to bring her in? Let me get my calendar, and I can show you some packages. I’ll be right back.”
My eyes moved to the framed portrait next to the one of the pregnant woman. The two photos on the wall were the same ones that hung in the window and caught my attention from the street. It was the combination that stopped me in my tracks on the way to my meeting. Next to the pregnant woman was a large portrait of a baby. She was probably only a few months old and sound asleep with her little ass sticking straight in the air while she lay on a white, furry blanket. Her knees were tucked under her tiny body, and her chubby cheeks rested atop her hands as she slept. But the thing that stopped me was the wings. The sleeping angel had a set of white, feathery wings on her back. She truly looked like an angel.
“I’m Jenny, by the way. I probably should have opened with that before.”
I extended my hand. “Rush. Nice to meet you, Jenny.”
When she opened her calendar, every page had scribble all over it. She was pretty damn booked up.
“Looks like you’re busy.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll fit you in whenever you want it. Any man who thinks his pregnant partner looks good enough to want to buy her a photoshoot takes priority in my book.”
She didn’t know the half of it. Looks good enough. I wanted to devour Gia twenty-four seven. And you could bet I’d be getting a few extra copies of the shots for myself. Jenny might not think I was so sweet if I told her I wanted duplicates for future spank bank material.
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
“So, all of my packages come with a one-hour photo session. A few days after the shoot, I send you a link to the photos, and you pick which photos you want to have printed. I have packages that range from two photo selections up to eight.”
I scratched at the scruff on my chin and looked at the portraits again. “Do you have any packages that include two shoots? I’m thinking I’d like to buy one for my girlfriend now and one for the baby when he’s born.”
“I do. I have a package that includes two sessions with ten photo selections, and you can pick your ten shots from a combination of both shoots.”
“I’ll take that one.”
Jenny smiled. “Your girlfriend is a lucky girl.”
“Trust me. I’m the lucky one.”
I actually fucking whistled walking from the photography studio to my meeting, even though I was about to be in the company of my father and brother. Jenny had given me a little bag with a gift certificate inside and a tiny, golden angel trinket. It couldn’t have been more perfect. I hoped Gia liked the present as much as I knew I would.