"Best day of my life!" she exclaimed. Toni appeared pissed while Gerry was a cross between amused and concerned.
"We're about to make your dreams come true." This came from Xander. He kicked one of her feet with his. "Spread 'em."
"Excuse me?" she raised her head.
"No! Don't move!" the assistant cried.
She lowered her head. The last pose with Toni was far too …intimate for Jessi's taste. She hoped they took her picture and left her alone.
"We're all professionals here," Xander said, a smile crossing his face.
"We're all professionals here," Laurencio echoed. "Xander, your head needs to be level with hers. We're doing an extreme close-up, so we don't have to do too much post-photo work."
The assistant left, and Xander replaced him. He didn't hesitate to straddle her hips and rest on his haunches. The nearness of his bare chest and feel of his strong thighs on either side of her made her heart flutter. The smile she plastered across her face was starting to falter.
"It's like sex," Xander added. "You have had sex before, Ms. Tuesday?"
Toni sighed.
"Don't call me that!" Jessi flushed, cursing him under her breath. She tried to look towards Gerry and silently beg him to help her.
"Don't move your upper body," the assistant ordered.
"You can tell she's never done a shoot before," Toni said.
"Spread 'em, fan-girl," Xander said again. He shifted forward, gripping her forearms in a way that brought their faces inches apart. Her breath caught, and she hated herself for it. His chest rested against hers, and he nudged her thighs a part with a knee.
Aware he was trying to make her uncomfortable, Jessi refused to meet his gaze as he settled between her legs. The intimacy of the pose made her body hot from the inside out. He was heavy, though most of his weight was on the hips squeezed between her thighs. With him on top of her, she was able to feel just how strong and wide he was. His grip on her forearms was loose but firm. His skin was hot, working its way through her thin dress in a way that did nothing to lessen the warmth racing through her blood.
"Best day of my life," she said through clenched teeth.
"You're not fooling anyone," he told her calmly.
Play along. It wasn't working. He knew it. She wasn't certain she could pretend, with the heat in her blood. She might just melt at his feet like Toni did.
Of course the control freak would choose a pose where he was holding her down with the sheer size of his body, her hands pinned by her head. Agitated by him and the fire he caused, she was also awed by how small and delicate his muscular frame made her feel. She was trying hard to ignore the sensations in her body.