Chapter 28
twenty-eight
Zhuri
Cameron has to be flirting with me.
It’s happened too many times now to just be a coincidence.
Our contracts prevent anything from happening, so tell me why I like his blatant flirting so much?
At first, I thought maybe it was just because I hadn’t been with anyone in so long. That it was just nice to have someone’s attention.
Now? I think it might actually be because it’s him. That it’s not just me enjoying it; it’s me enjoying Cameron doing it.
What the hell do I make of that?
Am I actually starting to feel something for Cameron?
I can’t deny the possibility, so I shove it to the back of my mind instead. Nothing good can come from it.
I sigh and finish getting ready. This Axis photoshoot is almost ready to start, and I haven’t gotten dressed yet.
I pull on a tight pair of black compression leggings and the white sports bra they set out for me. I slip my feet into my sneakers before fanning my hair out over my shoulders.
It isn’t an athletic look, but Axis wants me to wear my natural hair for the shoot, and given the way black women are constantly judged for our natural hair, I’m ecstatic to have the opportunity to do this for such a large campaign.
It’s a big fuck you to everyone who has such a small-minded view of what beauty really is, and I love getting to be part of that.
I glance at myself in the mirror before I step out of the dressing room and head out to the studio.
I’m not religious by any means, but I still throw up a silent prayer that Cameron won’t be shirtless for this shoot. Axis is athletic wear, and plenty of men work out while shirtless.
With all the confusing thoughts floating through my mind, that’s the last thing I need right now.
I round the corner and let out a sigh of relief when I find him in a white T-shirt and black athletic shorts. Sure, the shirt is skin-tight and highlights every curve of his taut muscles, but that’s fine.
I’m totally not staring at him anyway.
Cameron, though?
Yeah, he’s absolutely staring at me.
He isn’t even trying to hide it.
“Looking good, ljepota.”
I roll my eyes because I still have no idea what that means. Then he runs his hand through his tousled, brown hair, and the light catches off his caramel eyes, and I realize I might be fucked when it comes to Cameron Kovacic.
And not fucked in the fun way.
Cameron notices me staring and smirks. He leans closer and whispers against my ear, “See something you like, Zhuri baby?”
Goosebumps break out across my skin in reaction to his warm breath against me… and probably from the sexy as hell husky tone he used.
“Are you going to ask me that every time you see me?” I manage, recalling how he asked me the same thing at breakfast last week when he caught me totally not staring at his tattoos like I claimed.
But it’s not my fault he looks like he was chiseled from stone, and the tattoos just make it all even hotter.
“That depends,” he replies, meeting my eyes. “Are you going to stare at me every time I see you?”
I scoff. “I was not staring at you.”
“Lying isn’t cute, Hart.”
He winks at me before backing up a few steps, and I immediately feel his absence. I guess I liked our close proximity.
I feel like this whole situation is getting away from me, so in an effort to not lose my mind, I change the subject.
“Would you rather give up sex or give up food?”
Cameron raises his eyebrow in curiosity before replying. “Sex.”
“Really?” I look at him in confusion. “You literally told me the night we met that you love sex.”
“I do,” he shrugs, tucking his hands into his pockets. “But I like living more, and I need food to do that. I’ll just get very well acquainted with my hand.”
“You keep managing to surprise me, Cammy.”
“What about you then? Sex or food, Z?”
“It’s already been years since I had sex, so I’ll just go with that.” I immediately cringe at my personal confession. “Wow, you really didn’t need to know that.”
“Didn’t realize you were having such a dry spell,” he smirks.
I roll my eyes. “I don’t really go for one-night stands, and men don’t like absurdly tall women.”
Cameron’s eyes rake over my body from head to toe, and I immediately heat all over from the penetration of his gaze.
“Their loss,” is all he says before the photographer gets our attention.
He is flirting with me; there’s no mistaking it now.
He knows as well as I do that nothing can happen, so why is he doing it?
Is he just naturally flirty? Does he like getting a rise out of me? Or can he just not help himself around me?
I think I know which answer I prefer, but I refuse to focus on that, instead listening to the photographer.
The rest of the shoot goes off without a hitch, but I catch him staring at me a few more times.
I no longer think; I know the answer to that question, and it has the potential to send us down a very dangerous path.
“Thanks,” I say, taking my cup from Cameron. We decided to stop by Bean Voyage after the shoot, and he walked off to grab us both coffee before I could even tell him what I drink. I take a sip, though, and I’m immediately surprised. “You got me black coffee?”
“That’s how you drank your coffee that morning at my place,” he shrugs like it’s not a big thing.
“I didn’t realize you were paying attention,” I say softly.
Cameron gives me a small smile. “I pay attention to you, Zhuri. Possibly more than I should.”
My eyes snap to his. “What does that mean?”
He swallows hard before shaking his head. “Nothing. It doesn’t mean anything.”
“Right,” I reply uneasily. “Thanks for the coffee.”
We slide into seats opposite each other at one of the wrought iron tables just outside.
“It’s no problem,” he replies, never taking his eyes off me.
Silence falls over us now, but it’s not uncomfortable. The air is thick with tension, and I can feel it to my core.
There’s a fire blazing between us, and we might just be powerless to put it out before it consumes us entirely.