AVA POV(⁠◕⁠ᴗ⁠◕⁠ ⁠)

I AGONIZED FOR DAYS OVER WHETHER TO SHOOT ALEX IN A STUDIO ORoutdoors.I took all of my photoshoots seriously, but this one felt different. Moreintimate. More…life-changing, like it had the power to make or break me,and not just because I might submit it as part of my portfolio for the WYPfellowship.I would have Alex Volkov all to myself for two hours, and I wouldn’tsquander a single second.I eventually chose to shoot him in a studio. I booked the space in theuniversity’s photography building and waited, pulse thumping, for him toarrive.I was more nervous than I should be, but maybe that had something to dowith the wildly inappropriate dream I’d had last night. One that featured me,Alex, and positions that would make an acrobat’s jaw drop.Even now, I flushed at the memory.To stave off the onslaught of unbidden, erotic images, I fiddled with mycamera and stared outside the window, where hints of fall bloomed on thetrees and leaves swirled lazily on soft gusts of wind. Red, yellow, orange—fire on air. A physical marker of the transition from the hot, halcyon days ofsummer to the icy, bone-chilling beauty of winter.It was September, but a different kind of winter whooshed in on a cloudof delicious spice and cool reserve.Alex entered the room, cutting a sleek, powerful figure in his all-blackoutfit—black coat, black pants, black shoes, black leather gloves. A sharpcontrast to the pale beauty of his face.My fingers tightened around my camera. My creative soul salivated,desperate to capture that mystery and lay it bare on the page.I’ve found that the quietest, most reserved people often make the bestportrait subjects because the exercise doesn’t require them to speak; itrequires them to feel. Those who bottle up their emotions every day feel thestrongest and love the hardest; the best photographers are the ones who cancapture each drop of emotion as it spills out and mold it into somethingvisceral, relatable. Universal.Alex and I didn’t greet each other. No words, not so much as a nod.Instead, the air hummed with silence as he divested himself of his coatand gloves. It wasn’t overtly sexual, but everything about the man wassexual. The way his strong, deft fingers slid each button from its hole withoutso much as a pause or stumble; the way his shoulders and arms flexedbeneath his shirt as he hung his coat on the hook by the door; the way hemoved toward me like a panther stalking its prey, his eyes bright withscorching intensity.The velvety tips of butterfly wings brushed my heart, and I clutched mycamera tighter, willing myself not to step back or tremble. Liquid warmthpooled in my stomach, and every inch of my body became a nerve ending,hypersensitized and throbbing with arousal.He hadn’t touched me, and I was already so turned on I trembled. I hadn’tthought that was possible outside romance novels and movies.Those green eyes flared, like he knew exactly what he did to me. Howtight my nipples were beneath my thick sweater, how wet I was between mythighs. How much I wanted to devour him, to pour myself into the cracks ofhis soul so he would never be alone.“Where do you want me?” Gravel rasped his voice for the first time sinceI’d met him, turning the clear, authoritative tone into something darker. Moresinful.Where did I want him? Everywhere. Over me. Beneath me. Inside me.I licked my suddenly dry lips. Alex’s gaze dropped to my mouth, and myentire body pulsed.No. I wasn’t a schoolgirl on a date. I was a professional. This wasprofessional.A portrait session with a subject, just like countless other sessions I’d hadin the past.Of course, I hadn’t wanted to throw any of my previous subjects on the floor and ride them until kingdom come, but that was a minor detail.“Uh, here is fine,” I croaked, gesturing to the stool I’d set up on a plainwhite background.I’d kept today’s set up simple. I didn’t want anything to detract fromAlex, not that they could. His presence obliterated everything around himuntil he was the only thing left standing.He folded himself gracefully on the stool while I checked my settings andsnapped a few test shots. Even unposed, his photos jumped off the screen, hisgorgeous features and piercing eyes tailor-made for the camera.I reigned in my shameless lust and spent the next hour coaxing him out ofhis shell, moving him into various poses, and encouraging him to relax.I wasn’t sure Alex understood the meaning of the word.The pictures so far were beautiful, but they lacked emotion. Withoutemotion, a beautiful photo is just a photo.I attempted to open him up with chitchat, talking to him about everythingfrom the weather to Josh’s latest update to that day’s news, but he remainedaloof and guarded.I tried a different tactic. “Tell me about your happiest memory.”Alex’s lips thinned. “I thought this was a photoshoot, not a therapysession.”“If it were a therapy session, I’d be charging you five hundred dollars anhour,” I quipped.“You have an inflated sense of your worth as a therapist.”“If you can’t afford me, just say so.” I snapped more pictures. Finally. Asign of life.The click and whir of the shutter filled the air.“Sweetheart, I could get you with a snap of my fingers, and I wouldn’thave to shell out a single penny.”I lowered my camera and glared at him. “What the hell is that supposed tomean?”A tiny smirk tugged at the corner of Alex’s mouth. “It means you wantme. You wear your emotions all over your face.”My thighs clenched, and my skin burned until I thought I’d collapse intoa pile of ashes on the ground.“Now who’s the one with an inflated sense of self-worth?” I managed,my heart racing. Alex had never said anything so direct to me before. Heusually shut down any hint of attraction between us, but here he was, talkingabout me wanting him.He was right, but still.Alex leaned forward and clasped his hands loosely together. Graceful,casual but alert. Waiting to lure me into his trap.“Tell me it’s not true.”I licked my lips again, my throat parched, and his gaze zeroed in on mymouth. The small but unmistakable movement bolstered my confidence andcompelled me to say something I would’ve never had the guts to sayotherwise. “It’s true.” I almost smiled at the flare of surprise in his eyes. Hehadn’t expected honesty. “But you want me too. Question is, are you tooscared to admit it?”Alex’s thick, dark brows lowered. “I’m not scared of anything.”Lies. I would’ve believed him a month ago, but now I knew better.Everyone fears something; it’s what makes us human. And Alex Volkov—forall his control, all his power—was still wonderfully, frighteningly,heartbreakingly human.“That doesn’t answer my question.” I walked over to him, my cameraswaying from the strap looped around my neck. He didn’t move an inch, noteven when I brushed my fingers along his jaw. “Admit you want me, too.”I wasn’t sure where my boldness came from. I wasn’t Jules. I alwayswaited for the guy to ask me out—partly out of fear of rejection, partlybecause I was too shy to make the first move.But I had a feeling if I waited for Alex, I might have to wait forever.It was time to take matters into my own hands“If I wanted you, I would’ve taken you already,” Alex said with lethalsoftness.“Unless you’re too scared.”I was playing with fire, but that was better than standing out in the coldalone.I stiffened when Alex trailed his fingers down my neck and over myshoulder. His lips curved into a smirk. “Nervous? I thought this was what youwanted,” he taunted. His hand dipped lower, closer to the curve of my ******.The ice pools in his eyes melted, revealing a blazing inferno that heated mefrom head to toe.My head spun. My nipples tightened into firm beads, and my pulsethrobbed through every inch of my body. Somehow, it was worse that hewasn’t touching me where I ached most; the anticipation heightened mysenses, and my skin tingled with phantom caresses.“That’s not what I said,” I wheezed. Oh God, this was embarrassing.What had I been thinking? I wasn’t a femme fatale or a…a…whatever elsewas like a femme fatale.I couldn’t think straight.Alex grazed his thumb over my ******, and I moaned. Moaned. From atouch that lasted less than two seconds.I wanted to die.His pupils dilated until the green irises were eclipses ringed with jade fire.He dropped his hand, and cool air rushed in to replace the warmth of histouch.“Finish the photoshoot, Ava.” The roughness of his voice scraped againstmy skin.“What?” I was too shocked by the sudden change in the atmosphere toprocess his words.“The photoshoot. Finish it,” he gritted out. “Unless you want to startsomething you’re not ready to finish.”“I—” The photoshoot. Right.I backed away on unsteady legs and tried to refocus on the task at hand.Alex sat straight-backed, his face hard, while I circled him and capturedevery angle I could think of.The low hum of the heater was the only sound breaking the silence.“Okay. We’re done,” I said after twenty minutes of excruciating quiet.“Thanks—”Alex stood, grabbed his coat, and walked out without another word.“For doing this,” I finished, my words echoing in the empty room.I exhaled a long-held breath. Alex was the most mercurial person I knew.One minute, he was gentle and protective; the next, he was closed-off anddistant.I scrolled through the photos, curious as to how they’d turned out.Oh. Wow. Alex’s emotions leaped off the screen after our…interaction,and yes, most of it was irritation, but irritation on him looked better thancontentment on anyone else. The way the shadows hit the sharp lines of hisbrows, the glare of his eyes, the set of his jaw…these were possibly the bestphotos I’d ever taken.I paused at one of the last shots, and my heart stuttered to a stop.I’d been so busy snapping away I hadn’t paid attention in the moment,but now I saw it clear as day. Stark desire scrawled across Alex’s face as hestared at me, his eyes burning through the camera and straight into my soul. Itwas the only photo where he wore that expression, so it must’ve been amomentary slip on his part.A stripping of his mask, if only for a few seconds.But here’s the thing: even a few seconds can change someone’s life. Andas I turned off the camera and packed up my equipment with shaky hands, Icouldn’t shake the feeling that mine had been altered forever.

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