Chapter 13 #2
He laughed. My stunned expression must’ve been showing on my face. “It’s not that big of a deal. We’re friends now, right? I can offer to help you with whatever has you so rushed.”
With a grateful smile, I shook my head. “It’s fine. I can handle it; I just have to get back.” I put my hand on the door and looked back at him. “But thank you for the offer.”
He winked and tipped an imaginary hat at me as I rushed inside.
Holly came through for me. She’d been just about to head out, and when I showed her my outfit—after carefully looking around to make sure the place was closed—she disappeared into the back and returned with a gold-and-black pair of heels that were perfect. Better than the first pair, actually.
After hugging Holly tight, I ran my card and hurried out. I’d forgotten something I wanted for the backdrop behind my bed. Since it was the new year, it needed to be super festive. I was normally so organized. I couldn’t believe this had slipped my mind.
We had a small craft store another block away from my loft, so I rushed toward it, carefully watching exactly where I was going before I ran into someone else.
And even watching, my heart thumped harder as I turned the corner.
Porter stood dead ahead, exiting the craft store with a single bag in his hand. “I can’t get rid of you,” I joked.
He grinned at me and nodded at my bag from Holly’s. “Get your items?”
I shook the bag. “Yes and remembered something else I needed. Gotta run in here, and now I’m even later.”
He followed me in and took the shoes from my hand. “Go find what you need. I’ll wait and help you take it back.”
I didn’t take the time to tell him he didn’t have to do that. If I didn’t hurry, I wouldn’t be live on schedule, and my subscribers had paid good money for me to be on time.
Five minutes later, I carried a basket full of New Year’s decorations to the front and paid.
Porter stood by the front door, dutifully holding the bag with the shoes. “Come on,” he said. “My place is down from yours anyway. I’ll walk you.”
“Big plans?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’ve got a special live stream tonight,” I explained. “It’s my biggest night of the year, so I want it to go well.”
He swallowed, clearly affected by the thought of my live stream.
Oh, how powerful that made me feel. I tried not to preen as we walked, talking about marketing as we neared my building, and even though I reached for the bags at the bottom of the stairs, he shook his head.
“What kind of friend would I be if I let you go up without carrying them? Come on.”
He led the way and waited while I opened the door, then and only then did he hand over the bags.
The words were on the tip of my tongue to invite him in. That same stare had returned, the one that saw me through and through. The one that lit my skin on fire and nearly had me making stupid decisions right before I had to get online and take my clothes off.
“Thank you,” I stuttered out. “For the company and for the muscle.” I breathed deep and smiled at Porter. “I’m a lot calmer now.”
“Can I help you set up?”
I gazed into my apartment, and against my better judgment, nodded. “Sure, thanks. That would save some time.”
We were here to work, not to explore this insane feeling between us, so I put the bags on the bed. “Don’t get mad if I boss you around, okay?”
He laughed and held up his hands. “Go for it.”
I ran for my bathroom, yelling instructions as I went. Once behind the partially closed door, I swapped my pea coat for my fluffy white robe. “Unpack the bags and start hanging the decorations above the bed.”
He had the bag unpacked when I returned but held the shiny Happy New Year banner uncertainly. “Just to be sure,” he pointed at my bed in the corner of the room, the one I used for videos. “That’s where you want it hung, right?”
Laughing, I sat at my makeup vanity and slid the robe slightly off my shoulders to do my makeup. “Please. The tape’s in the top right desk drawer.”
He grabbed the tape and got to work.
“I can’t thank you enough for this,” I said as I dabbed base on my cheeks. Camera makeup had to be a lot thicker than normal. “It really helps me out.”
“No problem.” A few seconds later, he returned for another pack of decorations. “So, how’d you get into this, anyway? Doesn’t seem like something you just wake up and decide you want to do one day.” His tone was curious, not judgmental, so I didn’t take offense.
“I was struggling. I moved out of my parents’ house at fifteen, and didn’t know my grandfather for several more years. I bounced from job to job, crashing at friends’ houses. I managed to get this apartment.”
His eyebrows flew up. I could just see his face in my vanity mirror. “You’ve lived here since you were fifteen?”
I thought about my timeline. “No, I think I had just turned eighteen. But yeah, a long time.” I was really ready to move on.
“A couple years ago, I made friends with a girl online, through a chat room for a book series we both really liked. She does this sort of thing for a living and got me into it. It got me out of debt.” I snorted.
“Quickly. And then I started making some insane money. I couldn’t back down after that, in fact, I expanded.
I didn’t used to do the fully nude, self-pleasure thing. ”
He’d long since frozen, watching me as I talked and applied layers of color on my eyes. “You didn’t?”
I shook my head and started the other eye. “No, it was a gradual progression. But I know what it means to be flat broke. I won’t go there again.”
Sucking in a deep breath, I applied mascara and waited for the judgment or the haughty look, but none came.
“I respect you for doing what you had to do. You took care of yourself and bettered your life. Nobody was hurt by you doing what you have. You made good choices for your life.” He cleared his throat and looked away, hanging up a streamer. “I’m sorry for not fully seeing that sooner.”
Everything shifted for me at that moment. His sincerity touched my heart, and I couldn’t believe how much I had wanted his acceptance and didn’t realize it.
Damn it. Now I wanted more.
I ignored him, musing in my own confusion as I applied my eyeliner and mascara, but when I had one side done, he cleared his throat again. “Will that do?”
Whirling, I grinned at him. “It’s perfect. Thank you.”
He headed toward the door. “Well, I’ll leave you to have a good show, then.”
Again, I had the strongest urge to invite him to stay, but there was accepting what I did, and then there was watching it live and in person. I wasn’t going to invite that drama in. I stood and crossed the room to open the door. “Thank you again,” I said softly.
My robe fell completely off one shoulder, exposing the strap to my negligee and drawing his gaze. I jerked it back into place, but it had been enough. The dynamic between us shifted and Porter looked down at me with eyes full of heat.
“You’re welcome.” His voice was so deep and low, it sounded like he growled the words.
Reaching up, Porter tucked a stray hair behind my ear and opened his mouth to say something else, but then clamped his lips shut.
The same hand that moved my hair shifted and he brushed his thumb along my lower lip. “Goodbye.”
I closed the door behind him and had to lean against it for a moment. I was so turned on that I was actually really glad I was about to do a live stream.
This was about to be one well-earned orgasm.