[Insider] Exposed - Chapters 1 and 2 (Patreon)

Hey Friends! As some of you know, I've been working on a commission for the past few weeks and I thought it was time to share the first couple of chapters with you. This is a longer commission, the first of it's kind that I've done, so it's still ongoing. My plan is to give you a couple of chapters at a time at first until we get to "the good stuff". I haven't settled on how frequently I'm going to drop here. I figure we'll start with this one and see how it goes.

In other news, I'm about half way down with the chapter of The Therapist. Hoping to get that out to you all by the middle of next week. Hannah and I are also nearing completion for the next chapter of Window. So, tons of content that should be dropping in pretty quickly one after the other.

As always, this is an alpha so there will be mistakes I need to tighten up. Can't wait to hear what everyone thinks.

CHAPTER 1

Boxes covered the front lawn. A rented U-Haul sat in the driveway with its back gate open, half-emptied, the afternoon Texas sun turning the metal interior into an oven. Katie sat in the cab of the truck, applying lip gloss as Josh hauled another box inside. She planned to get out and help him, but the lighting was perfect. She just needed a few minutes.

She climbed from the cab of the truck, the heat hitting her the second she stepped out. She grabbed the hem of her tank top, wiping her forehead as she pulled out her phone and propped against a box on the front porch. TikTok was the first app on her home screen. She opened it, pulling up a Megan Thee Stallion song she'd been saving for this exact moment.

The caption was already written in her head: new house new adventures with a house emoji and a key emoji. It was just the right type of combo that would make her 47,000 followers demand to know what she meant. She'd been building her account for two years and it was finally getting traction. She recently had a skin care company reach out and offer her free stuff last week to use their product on her page. It was weird, having strangers react to her every event, but they weren't real, just faces behind a phone she would never see.

She lip-synced the chorus, walking backward down the driveway in cutoff shorts and an oversized t-shirt she'd knotted at her waist. Her dark hair was pulled into a messy ponytail that swung against her back as she hit each beat, her lips mouthing the words in an exaggerated pout. She had the face for it. Full lips, soft features. Josh often commented on her lips and how perfect they were. She'd even had to ban more than one weirdo on her page who said exactly how much they appreciated her lips.

She was mid-spin when she heard a deep voice behind her that made her jump and ruined the video.

"Don't think I've ever seen a dance like that before."

Katie stopped and turned. A man stood at the edge of the driveway where the lawn met the sidewalk. Late fifties, maybe older. Well over six feet, with wide shoulders and big hands. He was overweight, but still solid underneath, suggesting that there was a time when that wasn't the case. His dark hair was going gray, his eyes were brown but looked too large for his head, and his nose was crooked like it'd been broken multiple times and never put in place properly.

In his arms he held a Chihuahua in a pink rhinestone collar. The dog was trembling.

"Sorry." Katie laughed, nervously, pocketing her phone. She tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear that had come loose from the ponytail. Standing in front of him she felt tiny. At five-three and a petite frame, she looked small next to most people, but this guy was a whole other level. "I didn't think anyone was watching."

"Brian." He shifted the dog to one arm and extended his hand. His grip swallowed hers. "I'm next door." He nodded left toward a single-story house with a porch that had a rocking chair and outdoor sofa.

"Katie." She pulled her hand back. "We're just moving in. Obviously." She gestured at the chaos behind her.

"It's a beautiful house. You'll love it. I helped build the porch myself." His smile showed stained yellow teeth, his gaze dipping to her chest.

Katie crossed her arms without thinking about it. Then uncrossed them because that was worse.

"And this is Jewels." He lifted the Chihuahua slightly. The dog's ears perked up. "She runs the block. Everyone is terrified of her."

Katie reached out to pet her. Jewels lurched forward in Brian's arms, straining toward Katie's face with her tongue out, pawing at the air between them. Katie leaned in and Jewels caught her chin, then the corner of her mouth, her tiny body vibrating with the effort.

"Oh my God." Katie laughed, scratching behind the dog's ears. "She's so sweet."

"She usually doesn't like people." Brian watched Katie's hand on the dog. "She must sense something good about you."

The front door opened. Josh came out onto the porch, red-faced and sweating from the last hour of moving furniture. He was shirtless, beads of sweat covering his otherwise define chest. His black hair was matted to his head, six-pack visible above the waistband of his basketball shorts.

He saw the man standing in his driveway with his fiancée and came down the steps.

"Hey." Josh extended his hand. "Josh."

Brian took it. His smile faded, his eyebrows pinching together. "Brian. Next door."

Jewels growled. A high, thin sound, her tiny teeth bared in Josh's direction.

Josh pulled his hand back. "Guess Chihuahuas are gonna Chihuahua."

"Oh," Katie startled, taking a step backward, her phone clattering to the ground. "Sorry, she startled me."

She spun around and bent down to grab her phone.

"She’s protective." Brian’s gaze dropped to her ass as the cutoffs rode up. She straightened and he looked away, meeting Josh’s stare, caught. Brian just grinned, unapologetic.

Katie reached over and rubbed Jewel's chest. The dog immediately melted and started to lick her hand. "She loved me," Katie said, grinning at Josh. "Instant best friends."

"Great." Josh wiped his hands on his shorts. "So you're right next door?"

"twenty-five years." Brian looked at the house behind Josh. "Watched three families come through your place. Hopefully you two last longer than the last ones."

"What happened to the last ones?"

"Divorced." Brian shrugged.

"Well, we just recently got engaged. So no worries there." He put his arm around Katie, pressing his lips to her temple.

"Congratulations." He smiled at Katie. "So what do you do, Josh?"

"Accounting. My company just opened an office downtown. They moved us here to get it up and running."

"Accounting." He nodded, showing his teeth. "I should have guess it. Numbers at all." He winked at Katie and she covered her mouth in a laugh.

"So Katie," Brian pressed on, before Josh's jaw could loosen. "What was all the dancing about?"

"It's for TikTok."

"She has quite the following," Josh interjected, pulling his fiancée closer.

"Is that right?"

"I mean, it's not huge or anything. Forty-seven thousand followers. I post a couple times a week, lip syncs mostly, dances, some lifestyle stuff. I'm trying to grow it."

Brian's tongue slid across the top of his lip like he was processing what she said. "Wow, that's quite the feat. And here I thought I was doing well with my hundred or so." He pulled out his phone. "What's your username? I'll give you a follow, help the algorithm or whatever."

She exchanged a nervous look with Josh, before telling him.

"Well." He pocketed the phone. "I'll let you two get back to it. You've got a long night ahead." He looked at the U-Haul, then at Josh, then at Katie. "If you need tools, I've got everything. Just knock."

He turned and walked back toward his house. Jewels watched Katie over his shoulder the whole way, tail still going.

"That guy's a creep."

Katie laughed, grabbing a box of plates from the kitchen counter and placing them into the cabinet. "I didn't think he was that bad."

"He was practically eye fucking you." He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, leaning against the white granite counter-top.

"He was being friendly."

"When you dropped your phone his eyes nearly bulged from his head he was staring so hard."

Katie paused as she grabbed another plate, the slightest shade of pink coloring her cheeks. "I doubt he's the first guy to stare at my ass. Besides," she looked over her shoulder. "You're doing it right now."

"I'm serious, babe. He gave me the creeps." When Katie didn't immediately respond, he pressed forward. "And that accounting joke? Could he be anymore racist?"

Katie sighed. "It was a bad joke. Didn't Greg say almost that exact same thing last week?"

"That's different." His voice got softer, his conviction slipping. "Greg is our friend."

Katie placed the last plate into the cabinet and spun around. "He's our neighbor. Do you really want to make enemies with him the second we move in?" She walked toward him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Besides, his dog is so freaking adorable." She grinned then pressed onto her tip-toes to kiss his lips.

"You're right," he sighed, his anxiety washing away as her full lips pressed against his. "I'll try harder."

He wasn't sure if she actually believed him, but she rested her head on his chest and let it go. Katie had always been a little too trusting when it came to this kind of stuff. He knew that she had a lifetime of experience with guys hitting on her. She'd always been hot, but something about Brian just didn't sit right with Josh. He hoped he was wrong.

Katie's phone buzzed in her back pocket and she lifted her head from Josh's chest. "Oh," she giggled.

"What?"

"He just liked one of my videos on TikTok." She held up the screen. "His username is Bull_Durham_Brian."

Josh leaned over to look. "Bull Durham? Like the Kevin Costner movie?"

"I guess?"

"Bull Durham Brian." Josh shook his head. "That's the most old-man username I've ever seen."

They were both laughing now, the tension from a few moments ago melting away. Katie looked back at her phone and her smile dropped.

"Oh no."

"What?"

"He found my Instagram." She held up the notification. "He just requested to follow me there too."

"So? What's the difference?"

"The difference is this." She scrolled to a photo and turned the phone around. It was her from last summer, standing on a beach in Galveston in a black bikini. She was looking over her shoulder, standing in knee high water. Her bottoms were bunched showing just enough of her butt to be one of the most liked pictures on her page. She almost didn't post it, but Josh had pushed her. The result was 200 new followers almost over night, along with a couple dozen DMs she refused to open.

"That picture is one of my favorites," Josh said with a grin. "You know how much I love your butt."

"And now our neighbor can see it. Josh, he's old enough to be my dad." She continued to scroll, her breathing getting shallower. "There's like thirty of them. Christ, the one from Cabo you insisted I post because my chest looked so good."

Josh leaned against the counter across from her. He watched her face, but his mind was somewhere else. The guy was a creep, sure. But the thought of some old divorced guy next door scrolling through these photos, stuck in his empty house while Josh had the real thing right here...

He shifted his weight, adjusting his shorts subtly.

"Unbelievable...You think it's funny, don't you?" she said flatly.

"I mean..." He shrugged. "It's not, not funny." He paused, his eyes glazing over slightly. "If there was any doubt in his mind that my fiancée was hot, there's none now."

"You just said he was a creep."

"He is a creep," Josh said, too quickly. He looked at the floor. "But you have to admit, the idea of him doing God knows what with your pictures right now is kinda hot." He actually laughed. "He was all cocky earlier trying to charm you, acting like I didn't exist and now he's probably stroking—"

"You're disgusting." She covered her face with her hands

"You're blushing."

"I am not." She was. She could feel the heat in her face and she hated that he could see it. "This is not... I didn't sign up for a sixty-year-old fan club, Josh."

"You didn't decline his follow request either."

Katie looked down at her phone. The notification was still there. @Bull_Durham_Brian has requested to follow you. She chewed her bottom lip.

"Let me see his page at least."

She tapped into his profile. It was public. The grid wasn't what she expected. No selfies, no vacation photos. The first several rows were Jewels. Jewels in a tiny sweater. Jewels on a hiking trail with her ears pinned back. Jewels asleep in a sunbeam on a hardwood floor, the light catching the rhinestones on her collar. But they weren't regular pet photos. The composition was extraordinary. The lighting was professional. One shot of Jewels sitting on a porch railing at golden hour looked like it could be framed.

"Oh my God, look at Jewels." Katie tilted the phone toward Josh. "She has her own little photo series. Look at this one, she's in a sweater. Josh, look at her little face."

"I'm looking."

"He takes her everywhere." She kept scrolling. Past the dog photos were landscapes. A barn at sunset. A stretch of coastline in fog. A downtown street at night, puddles reflecting neon. And further back, older posts. Portraits. A woman in profile against a window. A man's hands wrapped around a coffee cup, every line and scar visible.

"Okay, these are actually really good," she said quietly.

"What are?" Josh had already lost interest and was scrolling on his phone.

"Brian's pictures. Look at these." She held up the phone. Josh glanced at it for two seconds and handed it back.

"Cool."

"No, Josh. These are legit. This isn't some guy with an iPhone."

"What like you think he had them professionally done or something?"

Katie didn't answer. She was still scrolling through his grid. There was something intimate about them.

She accepted the follow request.

They ordered Thai food and ate it on the sofa next to a pile of boxes and two full suit cases. Most of the kitchen was put together. The bedroom had sheets on the bed, the rest could wait until tomorrow.

After dinner, Katie decided to change into something more comfortable while Josh worked on mounting the TV. He had just gotten the mount in place when she walked back out wearing a pair of black leggings, a tank top, and no bra. Josh did a double take as she walked out, dropping the screw driver from his hand.

"You can't just walk around like that and expect me to get anything else done tonight."

She looked down at herself. The thin white fabric clung to her chest, the brown of her nipples clearly visible. It was her favorite tank top partially because Josh always had this type of reaction to it. "It's my house. I'll wear what I want."

"I'm not complaining. I'm just saying." His eyes hadn't moved from her chest.

"You're ridiculous." She rolled her eyes, smiling then bit her lip. "But if you're not going to get any work done anyway."

She grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head. Her nipples were already hard just from how Josh was looking at her. She tossed the shirt at him and walked over to the sofa. Josh's mouth was still hanging open as she sat down crossing one leg over the other.

Josh was already on his feet.

He kissed her before he sat down, one hand sliding into her hair, the other settling on her bare waist. She pulled him down onto the couch and they sank into it, his weight pressing her into the cushions. His mouth moved to her neck.

"Mmmm," she purred, tilting her head to give him better access.

"Fuck, you're sexy." His lips moved to her collarbone, as her acrylic nails pressed into the base of his neck.

Her phone buzzed on the sofa next to her. She ignored it, focusing instead on Josh's wet kisses working their way to her chest. When it buzzed a third time, she could no longer resist. She reached for it, her free hand still in his hair.

Three notifications, all from @Bull_Durham_Brian. Three likes. A spring break photo where she was leaning against a railing in a crop top. A mirror selfie in a low-cut blue dress with a slit that showed plenty of leg, she'd worn to a friend's wedding.

Josh lifted his head from her chest and saw the screen.

"Well." He grinned against her skin. "I think we know what he's doing right now."

Katie's face went hot. "Shut up."

She swatted his back, pushing his head back to her chest.

Josh didn't move. He stared at the little red hearts on the screen. The logical part of his brain told him to be mad. That was their neighbor. A guy he didn't trust. But he couldn't deny how turned on he was. He tried to dismiss the thought, blaming it on the timing of the messages.

"And just think, all he'd have to do is walk right next door and he wouldn't need Instagram. He'd get an even better view."

Before she could respond, his lips closed around her nipple and her back arched off the sofa, her phone clattering to the floor.

"You're so responsive tonight." He pulled off her nipple, smiling at how hard it was, then sucked the other into his mouth.

"I want you." Her fingers slipped into his shorts, searching out his manhood.

Josh released her nipple, bringing his mouth to hers. His hand moved down her stomach, tugging on the waistband of her leggings as she lifted her hips and tried to lay flat on the couch. He pulled them to her knees and she kicked them the rest of the way off, one leg at a time, until they were somewhere on the floor, with her panties quickly following.

Josh sat back, pulling down his shorts, his gaze traveling over her body. She loved the way he looked at her, like she was the hottest woman on the planet. Somehow he made every time seem like the first time he was seeing her.

"See something you like?" she teased, spreading her legs slightly, letting her fingers trail down her stomach.

Josh nearly fell forward, tripping out of his shorts. He caught himself on the arm of the sofa and they both laughed before he kissed her again. She felt him hard against her thigh, then between her legs, the heat of him pressing against her smooth flesh. Her hand slid between them and wrapped around his cock, guiding him.

"Ahhhh." She pressed her forehead to his as he pushed into her. He was slow about it. She was wet but tight, and he only got the first inch before he pulled back. He dragged himself over her clit and she sucked in a breath. Then he pressed forward again, deeper this time, and her mouth fell open against his neck.

Her nails dug into his back. "Fuuuuck." She bit down on his shoulder to keep herself quiet as he sank the rest of the way in, her body stretching to take him, her legs pulling him closer.

He pulled back a final time and pushed into her again.

"Ohhhh." She reached back, grabbing the arm on the couch above her head as he bottomed out inside her.

"You feel so good." He kissed her neck as he started to get into a rhythm.

Katie arched her back matching his strokes. "Fuck me, Josh."

Josh smiled and drove into her again. She didn't usually talk much during sex. She would moan, and show her enthusiasm in other ways, but the only time she would talk, especially drop an F-bomb was when she was really turned on.

Katie squeezed her eyes shut, focusing on the way his body felt when it met hers, the wet sounds of their bodies and the creak of the couch springs. Her orgasm was coming fast. She hadn't realized how much she needed it. Her eyes shot open, her arms wrapping around Josh's neck and taking him deeper.

"Fuck, Katie." His mouth was on her neck, then back to her lips.

She rolled her head to the side, a moan escaping her lips. Josh repositioned himself, putting her legs on his shoulders as he sat up on his knees.

"Ohhhh." She was louder now, and her hand found his, bringing it to her chest. He was happy to oblige as he squeezed it, and rolled the swollen bud between his fingers.

Josh's pace grew faster, as sweat started to bead on his forehead. Katie's mouth hung open, her tongue sliding across the front of her teeth. He released her tit, his hand trailing down her flat stomach and finding her clit.

"Oh, God! Right there." Her breathing was labored her voice beginning to carry. "Oh. Ohhh ffff."

The sound of slapping flesh filled the air. Katie's voice turning to unintelligible whimpers as she pushed her body up to meet him.

Her thighs started to shake against his shoulders. She could feel it gathering low in her stomach, that tightness that pulled everything inward. Her breathing broke apart. Short, sharp, open-mouthed. Her nails raked across her chest as Josh's thumb worked her clit.

She reached back with both hands, pressing against the armrest as she flung her body into his. Her arms began to shake, as her entire body lifted off the cushion, her walls clamping around him. Josh held still inside her, watching her face and allowing her to ride out the rest of her orgasm.

When she finally went limp beneath him, she opened her eyes to see him grinning down at her like he'd just won the lottery.

"Your turn." She pulled him down by the back of his neck and kissed him.

Her legs wrapped around the back of his thighs as he drove harder into her, chasing a release that was only seconds away. Each jolt made her gasp into his ear, as her fingers tickled his neck. Every time she'd clench around him, she'd hear him groan and his speed would increase. His breathing went ragged against her neck. His strokes got shorter, sloppier. She tightened her legs around his waist and felt his whole body go rigid.

"Ohhhhh." His toes curled into the fabric of the sofa, his cock pulsing deep inside her. She moaned against his neck as each throb sent another wave of electricity through her until he collapsed on top of her.

They stayed liked that for another ten minutes. Each of them trying to catch their breath as the sound of crickets chirping could be heard from outside.

"Well, living room christening can be checked off," Josh said, his voice muffled against her skin.

Katie laughed. "I think we may have broken the couch." She could feel the frame sagging underneath them. One of the cushions had slid onto the floor at some point and neither of them had noticed.

Josh lifted his head. He felt dopey, satisfied, but a nagging thought lingered in the back of his mind. He thought about the phone notifications lighting up the floor. He thought about Brian alone in the dark. It shouldn't have added to the heat of the moment, but it had. He felt a pang of guilt, followed immediately by a dull throb of want.

Katie flicked his forehead, snapping him out of whatever fog he was in.

"What?" he laughed.

"Nothing. You just look stupid when you're happy."

"You make me stupid." He kissed her once, soft, then rolled off her and onto the floor with a thud. "Ow."

Katie laughed and pulled a throw blanket off the back of the couch, wrapping it around herself. She found the remote and grinned at Josh who was still on the floor, naked and looking for his shorts.

"Was that proper enough motivation to get you to finish hanging the TV?" She pouted her lips and blinked. "Please?"

Josh found his shorts and slid them on. "Had you not come out here looking all..." he made a gesture with his hands, "like that. It would be up already."

"Are you complaining?"

"Not at all." He picked up the screwdriver and got back to work.

It took them the better part of three days to finish unpacking. Katie hung curtains and pictures in every room. This was their first house together as a couple and she wanted it to be perfect. She rearranged the living room twice, and posted a half a dozen TikToks about the new house that pulled in a a few hundred more followers. Josh got the TV mounted, assembled the guest bed, and only had to call his dad once about the garbage disposal. The house was starting to feel like theirs.

Brian had waved a few times from next door, but otherwise kept to himself. She usually saw him walking Jewels in the afternoon, the feisty dog snapping at everyone in her path. Despite that, he always seemed to like her latest posts on both TikTok and Instagram. The more it happened the more she thought maybe she'd over reacted when he first starting following her.

Thursday night Josh and Katie sat on the sofa, a new one she insisted he buy. They'd opened a new bottle of wine, and ate popcorn as she laid against his chest. It was the first night in their new house that felt normal. There was no more decorating, no more putting furniture together. It was all done and now they could relax.

Katie muted the TV. "Do you hear that?"

Josh sat up, confused. That's when he heard it. a low whine at the front door followed by scratching.

Katie sat up and padded over to the door. When she opened it, Jewels ran into the room, her paws on Katie's shins, her entire body shaking with excitement.

"Oh my God." Katie scooped her up and Jewels went straight for her face, licking her chin, her cheek, the corner of her mouth. "How did you get out, baby?"

Josh appeared behind her. Jewels' head snapped toward him and she growled.

"That dog hates me."

"She doesn't hate you." Katie rubbed the dog's chest until she calmed down. "You just startled her, huh baby." She kissed her forehead. "Make some more popcorn, I'll take her back."

She carried Jewels across the lawn and up Brian's front steps. The porch light was on. She knocked and the door opened almost immediately.

Brian stood in the doorway in jeans and a t-shirt. "She got out again. Screen door doesn't latch right." He reached for Jewels and the dog licked Katie's chin one last time before going to him.

"She came straight to our door. Straight to me."

"Good taste runs in the family." He stepped back. "You want to come in for a second? I have a favor to ask ya."

She hesitated, glancing back toward her house. She could see the blue glow of the TV through the window. "Just for a second."

She walked in and stopped. The walls were covered in framed photographs, and they were nothing like his Instagram. These were large, professionally printed, properly matted. A black-and-white portrait of a woman so sharp Katie could make out individual eyelashes. Landscapes that looked like they belonged in a gallery. Editorial shots that could have been pulled from a magazine.

"Oh my God." She turned toward him. "These are amazing."

He grinned, looking over her toned legs, making Katie wish she was wearing more than just her pajamas. "I have an eye for beauty."

"Wait." She turned to him. "You took these?"

"Most of them." He shrugged like it was nothing then turned and headed toward the kitchen. Katie followed, focused more on the pictures on the wall than the actual house itself. Every room was filled with pictures.

"I had my own studio back in my younger days." He stood at the kitchen counter, letting Jewels stand on the counter as he mixed her food. "Had an entire team working for me in North Carolina."

She watched as he pulled a pill from his pocket, smashed it into smaller pieces and put it into Jewels' food bowl. "Now, she's my muse."

She stopped in front of a portrait of a woman looking directly into the camera. The lighting was warm, the expression intimate. Like Katie had walked in on something private.

"Who is she?"

"A client. Long time ago." He leaned against the kitchen doorframe. "Difficult one. She fought me the entire way, but once she finally let me take the lead." He licked his lips, his gaze finding Katie's "It was magical."

"I um..." She suddenly felt very exposed. "I should get back to J—"

"I took a look at your Instagram page. You have real talent." He paused as she stopped her retreat, her ears perking up. "Your instincts are good. You know your angles, you know what works for your features. But the lighting is flat on most of them, especially indoors. Small adjustments would make a big difference."

She wasn't sure if she was being complimented or critiqued. Both, probably.

"I'm heading to Santa Fe in a couple days," he said taking a step toward her. "Jewels is on a pretty strict schedule. She needs her meds, walks twice a day. She's a real handful." He looked at the dog, already passed out in her bed. "Last time I put her in a car she threw up on my leather seats."

"Aww, poor baby." Katie looked at Jewels. Tiny ball, one ear flopped, completely gone.

"She likes you, and she don't like a lot of people."

"You're asking me to watch her while you're gone?"

"I don't have much in terms of money any more. But I'd be happy to give you some pointers on your photos. Just a few tweaks can really make all the difference."

"What's the routine?" The question was out before she could take it back. She probably should have talked to Josh first. But Jewels seemed low maintaince, and the appeal for her photos to look even half as good as the ones in his hallway was too good to pass up.

He pulled a piece of paper off the counter. Already written out. Meds, food, walk times. He handed it to her. "It's all there. Give me your number so I can call and check up on her. Make sure she'd getting along alright."

She was already typing her number into his phone, without actually agreeing to anything. Before she realized it, she was folding up the paper and heading toward the door.

"Katie." She turned. "She cries the first night. Don't give in. She's manipulating you."

She laughed and walked back across the lawn. Josh was on the couch where she'd left him with a fresh bowl of popcorn.

"What took so long?" he asked, grabbing the remote.

"He asked me to dog-sit for him."

"What? Like at his house?"

"She doesn't travel. And she clearly likes me more than anyone else on this block." She nudged him with her elbow. "And we all know how she feels about you."

Josh nodded unsure of what to say.

"You should have seen his house, Josh. The pictures on his walls are insane. He used to own a whole studio in North Carolina. He offered to give me tips on my photos when he gets back. Like a trade for the dog-sitting."

"I... I don't know if I like that. I mean, your pictures are all great. What is he going to be able to show you?"

"My pictures are average at best." She put her head on his shoulder. "Better picture quality could mean thousands of new followers. It could be great for what I'm trying to achieve."

"I don't trust him."

"I know, I know, he was staring at my tits." She rolled her eyes.

"Your ass," he corrected, but couldn't stop the grin from forming.

Katie leaned into him, tucking her feet under her and pressing play. "It's going to be fine." She grabbed a handful of popcorn. "Plus it will give me an excuse to go shopping maybe find a few outfits for your eyes only."

Josh sat back and shook his head. "Now you're talkin."

They watched the rest of the movie in silence, Katie's head on his shoulder, his arm around her. Her phone buzzed once on the coffee table and they ignored it.

***

CHAPTER 2

It was just after seven in the morning when Katie let herself into the house. Brian had texted her an hour ago saying he was on the road, then again thirty minutes later informing her that Jewels eats every morning exactly as seven. It was sweet how much he cared for the dog. It was also borderline insane.

She let out a nervous breath as she pushed the front door open and was immediately met with the jingle of Jewels collar as the dog rushed into the living room to see who was there. The lingering smell of coffee hit her nose as she stepped deeper into the house. Brian must have made himself a fresh pot before he left.

"Hey baby," Katie said with a grin, scooping Jewels up from the floor as she brushed against Katie's ankle. Jewels went straight for her chin, licking with the desperation, causing Katie to laugh. "I know, I know. He left you all alone. Poor baby."

She carried her into the kitchen and set her on the counter, followed by the list of instructions from her back pocket. Meds with every meal. She found the pill bottle next to the dog food, shook one out, and crushed it between two spoons the way the instruction sheet described. The powder got everywhere, but she was able to scoop most of it up and place it inside the dish. Jewels watched with enormous eyes, trembling, tail going.

"You act like you haven't eaten in days." She mixed the powder into the wet food and set the bowl down. Jewels nearly nipped Katie's finger she attacked it so fiercely.

As the dog ate, Katie leaned against the counter, taking in the house. Brian's kitchen was slightly bigger than hers, the countertops darker with flecks of silver in them. The backsplash looked real, not just the peel-and-stick stuff that was in their house. She kicked off her flip-flops and wandered around the space, opening drawers with mild curiosity as she mentally compared the house to hers, stopping as she reached the sliding glass door that led to the backyard.

"Whoa," she said to herself, as she opened the patio door and stepped out onto the deck. In the center of the yard was a large pool with stone around the edges. Two lounge chairs sat under a shade structure with string lights wound through the posts. A privacy fence ran the perimeter, tall enough that you could do whatever you wanted back there and nobody would know. The whole setup looked like something she'd save on Pinterest.

She pulled out her phone, planning to shoot a quick video of the setup, when Jewels appeared at her feet. "You live like a queen here, don' you?" Katie picked her up, put her phone into her back pocket and walked back inside the house to explore some more.

The hallway off the living room was like a gallery. Dozens of pictures covered the wall and Katie took her time examining each one. A jazz club shot in a neon light, smoke frozen mid curl. A woman out with her friends, her head tossed back mid laugh as wine sloshed in her glass. A close-up of hands on piano keys that was so sharp she could see the calluses on the fingertips. She marveled at the detail of each picture, unable to imagine the amount of time and effort it must have taken to be able to get a shot like that.

She found herself opening the first door she came across. It was a small bathroom, well maintained, a single towel on the rack. The walls were mostly bare, and she closed the door wandering deeper into the house. The next door she opened looked to be a guest bedroom. The mattress was bare, a desk sat in the corner completely empty. She wondered if Brian had people who visited or if the guest bed was just something you kept because that's what the room was supposed to be.

She kept walking. The next door was open and she knew it was his bedroom before she stepped inside. The bed was big, navy comforter, pillows stacked against a wooden headboard that looked heavy and old. A pair of reading glasses sat on the nightstand next to a glass of water that still had condensation on it. There was a book, face down and open, something she didn't recognize. The room smelled more like him than the rest of the house. She stood in the doorway for a moment, Jewels tucked under her arm. "Is this where you sleep, girl?" The dog licked her cheek and she moved on.

There was one more door at the end of the hall and as she turned the handle she was surprised to find it locked. She tried it again, not hard, just enough to confirm, finding it odd that every other room was open. She looked down at Jewels, who was staring at the door with her like they were in this together.

"What's in there, huh?"

Jewels sneezed.

Katie looked at the door for another second, then turned around and walked back to the living room. It was probably a darkroom or an office or something. Jewels jumped into her lap and curled up immediately, sighing like she'd been waiting for this all morning. Katie pulled out her phone. She opened TikTok and checked her numbers. Forty-seven thousand, four hundred. The lip sync video from move in had a few thousand views, but only a handful of new followers. She'd tried to talk Josh into doing a dance with her last night, but he fell asleep on the sofa before she found something he'd actually agree too.

Deflated, she pulled up Instagram, hoping the pictures she'd posted gained some traction. She'd gained maybe three hundred followers since they moved in. The house content was dead on arrival. The kitchen reveal she'd spent an afternoon editing sat at nine thousand views. Her unpacking montage barely cleared six.

She looked down at Jewels, already half asleep, one ear flopped sideways.

"Alright. Let's see what you can do."

She opened the camera and held Jewels up next to her face. "Alright, don't embarrass me." She hit record and started lip-syncing to "I Got the Magic in Me," bobbing her head to the beat. Jewels stared at the screen for exactly two seconds before lunging at Katie's face, tongue first, nearly knocking the phone out of her hand. Katie broke, laughing hard enough that she almost stopped recording, but she kept going, panning between herself and Jewels who was now jumping on the couch cushion barking as Katie danced to the rap.

She watched the playback twice. The moment Jewels lunged at her was genuinely funny, and the light from Brian's kitchen made both of them look good. She almost never posted a first take of anything, but this one had something her other videos didn't. "Alright, let's see if you really do have the magic," she said to the dog, before posting it.

She tossed her phone onto the cushion and flopped back on the couch, Jewels readjusting on her lap. She lay there for a minute, staring at the ceiling, scratching behind the dog's ears. Her phone would buzz when the views started coming in. For now it was just quiet. She could hear Brian's refrigerator from here, a low steady hum. She liked it. It made the house feel less empty.

She reached for the remote on the side table. Pointed it at the TV. Nothing. Pressed the power button again, harder. Dead.

She flipped the remote over and popped the battery cover. Two double-A batteries were in it covered in dust.

"Come on." She sat up, pulling Jewels from her lap. "Let's see if we can find some fresh batteries." She opened the drawer on the side table. Paid bills, old instruction manuals, and a checkbook sat on top. She moved them around, rummaging through to see if she spotted anything that even vaguely resembled a battery box.

Just as she was about to close the drawer and give up hope something caught her eye. A stack of old polaroids, stuffed into the back of the drawer face down.

She picked them up, her eyebrows pinching together. The first was a woman sitting on the edge of a bed in an unbuttoned white shirt. Katie recognized the bed immediately, it was Brian's. The shirt was hanging open just enough that Katie could tell she wasn't wearing a bra. The swell of her chest showed just enough to be inviting. The woman looked to be about Katie's age. She was smiling seductively at the camera a look of admiration in her eyes.

Katie flipped to the next one. Different woman, same bedroom. This woman was taller, thinner, standing in front of the window in a slip that the backlight made nearly see-through. She had her arms crossed over her stomach, relaxed, like she'd been standing there for a while and forgotten what she was wearing. Or not wearing.

She kept going. A redhead on the couch, one knee pulled up, a sheet covering her lap and nothing else. A brunette in the kitchen, leaning on her elbows against the black countertop.. Her legs were kicked up, her ankles crossed. Katie could see the swell of her ass as she faced the camera, her lips barely parted. "I hope he scrubbed down that countertop after," she said to no one, as she continued to thumb through them.

They were all different women. Different ages, different bodies, different rooms. But they all had the same quality. Every single one of them were breathtakingly beautiful, and they all looked pleased to be there.

She paused on one near the bottom. A woman with short blonde hair, younger than the others, sitting in a kitchen. But this kitchen was different. The countertop was white, not black and the walls were more of a cream color. She was wearing a man's button-down shirt that stopped mid-thigh. Only the bottom two buttons were fastened the others hung free displaying her nakedness in a way that looked more elegant than scandalous. She was holding a coffee mug and looking at the camera with this expression Katie couldn't stop staring at. It didn't just look seductive, it looked challenging. Like she was daring the person looking at it to not want her.

Katie wondered what a picture like that would get in views. Not the nakedness, there was no way she would ever post something like that, but the confidence, the defiance. She only looked at the picture for a few seconds and she already wanted to know more about the person in it. There was true art in the way the photo was taken.

She put the photos back in the drawer and closed it. Jewels was watching her from the couch cushion, head tilted.

"Don't look at me like that. I was just looking for batteries and got distracted."

She pulled the dog back into her lap and sat there for a minute. Her heart was beating faster than it should have been, which was stupid. It wasn't like she'd found anything crazy. Boudoir photography was everywhere. Half the photographers on her Instagram explore page shot stuff like this. But scrolling past it on a screen was different from holding it in your hands in the living room of the man who took them.

Her phone buzzed and she flinched hard enough that Jewels jumped.

Has she let you leave yet? She likes to give you the big sad eyes when she thinks you're about to go. Don't fall for it or you'll never get out.

Katie smiled at the screen before she could think about it. Jewels had climbed back onto the cushion beside her, ear flopped, half asleep already. Katie shifted the phone, angled it down, and took the picture. The dog didn't even open her eyes.

She typed back. We made a dance video for the channel. It must have worn her out. She pressed send on the picture. Once it sent, she pulled up the thread with Josh and sent the same picture.

Josh's reply was almost instant. She was shocked he was able to answer so quickly, expecting him to be busy at the new office. She barely even looks like the same vicious creature that attacked me.

Katie giggled and fired back a text. Don't be dramatic. She's perfect and you love her.

Brian's reply came next. Glad to see she's not giving you any trouble. I knew you'd be the right pick.

Katie smiled at her phone and pulled up her TikTok. The video with Jewels already had almost a hundred likes and five new followers. Maybe this would be the momentum she needed.

By Thursday she had the routine memorized. The first half of the day was spent inside giving Jewels her meds and posting videos of the two of them on TikTok. She had gained almost a thousand new followers on both TikTok and Instagram. While still not at the fifty-thousand mark she'd hoped to be at, she couldn't deny Jewels was a hit. The afternoon routine was only slightly different. Instead of staying inside, they would go for a walk, exactly at three as instructed.

She hadn't gone back to the drawer, but she would be lying if she said she hadn't thought about them.

Brian texted every day. The first couple were simple. How's my girl? Katie would send a photo and he'd reply with a line or two. By mid-week they got more specific. Did she eat the edges of the wet food or leave them? She does that when her stomach is off.

The dog content was working. The lip sync from Brian's couch had cleared sixty thousand views by Wednesday morning. A clip of Jewels nosing a piece of cereal across the kitchen floor did even better.

Thursday night they were on their own couch, the TV running something neither of them was really watching. Katie had her phone tilted away from him, scrolling her analytics for the third time in an hour.

"I'm stuck."

He looked up. "Stuck how?"

"My numbers." She held her screen toward him. "I thought I'd be at fifty thousand last week. I'm still off by almost seven hundred. The house content totally flopped."

Josh glanced at the screen, then back at his pizza. "What about the dog stuff? You said that was doing well."

"That's the problem. The only thing working is Jewels, and she's not my dog. Brian comes home tomorrow and then what?"

Josh chewed, thinking. "Didn't the Galveston photo pull like two thousand in a day? You just need another one of those."

Katie tucked her legs under her. "So your solution is I post another bikini pic."

"I'm just saying. The numbers don't lie. People liked that one."

"You just want to see me in a new bikini."

"I mean. Yeah." He grinned at her, unrepentant. "But also you said it yourself. It was your single biggest post"

"There's no beach here, Josh. It's not the same thing." She picked the phone back up, flipped it face down on her stomach. "It was the water. The light. It was the whole... it was a whole vibe. I can't recreate that in our backyard."

"So find a vibe."

"Mhm."

By Friday afternoon the Texas heat was devastating. Temperatures climbed into triple digits, causing the pavement to shimmer. Katie stood in front of her bedroom mirror, checking her reflection. She was wearing a white micro skirt that left almost nothing to the imagination. She turned slightly, checking out the profile view and if she bent forward even slightly she could clearly make out her right butt cheek. She'd paired it with a fitted blue crop top and platform boots.

The idea was to go into the backyard and take a few photos. She'd given what Josh said a lot of thought. He was right, her bikini photos always got the most engagement, but looking at the outfit now it felt too revealing. She thought the skirt would be lower. She chewed on her lip trying to decide what to do, before kicking off her boots and deciding to put a pair of black biker shorts underneath to avoid the inevitable wardrobe malfunction.

When she returned to the mirror she smiled. The biker shorts helped. She did a little spin in the mirror, ensuring her ass was completely covered when her phone buzzed next to her.

Meeting got pushed up. Want to meet up for lunch? There's a new taco place in the plaza right by my office.

Katie smiled. One of her favorite things about Josh was that he always seemed to find ways to make time for her. He was always inviting her to lunches, moving around his schedule to accommodate her. It was refreshing to know she had a partner who enjoyed her company.

She snapped a quick mirror selfie.

Fit check, she responded. A lot of the plazas and outdoor malls she'd seen around town had great spots for photos. She could have lunch with Josh and find a good background for her picture. It was a perfect compromise.

Damn. Wish I wasn't stuck at the office.

Something tells me we wouldn't make it to lunch if that were the case.

Guilty as charged. May want to lose the biker shorts though. They peek out of the bottom.

Katie rolled her eyes, a smiling tugging at her lips.

Nice try, perv. Then my entire ass would be hanging out.

She did another slow spin in the mirror. He was right, she'd missed it before, but the shorts were visible if you looked close enough. She had to zoom in to really see it. Which meant Josh had zoomed in to get a closer view. A warmth crept over her as she imagined him sitting in his new office zooming in on her picture and needing to hide his arousal.

If I noticed then your followers will too. Just looking you for you ;)

Shorts are staying on. Sorry to disappoint. The only way you could tell was by zooming all the way in. Not everyone has a one track mind like you.

She grabbed her keys and headed for the door. She'd already been next door and taken care of Jewels. She'd head back over before Josh got home from work to do their afternoon routine. Brian would be back in the morning which meant tonight was going to be her last chance at new content with Jewels.

Didn't you say like half your followers are male? Trust me, I'm not the only one zooming in. This is your Galveston moment.

Sorry, I'm already in the car.

Katie rolled her eyes and opened the door. The second she did she was hit with a blast of heat like she'd opened the oven door. She quickly locked up and made the walk to her car, blasting the AC the second she turned it on. Despite it being less than twenty steps from the driveway to her house she already had a thin layer of sweat on her forehead. Texas heat was certainly going to take some getting used to.

She pulled into the restaurant parking lot fifteen minutes later. The sun glared through the windshield, but she didn't make a move to get out. Instead, she looked down at the white pleats resting high on her thighs. She sat there for a second with the AC blasting, her skirt bunched against her legs. She could already feel the biker shorts clinging to her in the heat, the elastic band digging into her waist beneath the skirt.

Josh was always saying stuff like this. He would tell her to dress sexier, or wear something revealing just to get a rise out of her. If he actually saw how exposed she was without the shorts he would freak out. she thought about his reaction when she first posted the swimsuit photos. The way he got possessive, how excited he was at the prospect of "all those guys" seeing what what his. There was something sexy about the toxic masculinity of it all.

She looked out over the parking lot. The restaurant was only about fifty yards from her. If she really wanted to, she could probably get there and get seated before anyone really noticed. She chewed on her bottom lip. Was she really considering this? She thought about the women in Brian's polaroids. The confidence they showed. They had looked directly into the camera, completely bare, daring the viewer to look away. That was the energy she needed for her own photos. The thought of walking into a crowded restaurant knowing all she had on underneath was a thong sent a sharp spike of adrenaline through her chest.

She told herself she was just doing it to mess with Josh. She wanted to see his face when he realized what she had done, to watch him squirm across the booth while they ate.

Before she could talk herself out of it, Katie lifted her hips off the driver's seat. She reached under the pleats, hooked her fingers into the tight spandex waistband, and shimmied the shorts down her thighs. She had to take her boots off to get them the rest of the way down. Her bare skin suddenly stuck to the hot leather seat, making her breath a little heavier.

She turned off the car and grabbed the door handle, her pulse racing as she stepped out into the bright parking lot.

The walk to the restaurant felt longer than she'd originally thought. Each step, she found her hands going to her skirt, ensuring it wasn't flying up in the back. She considered turning around and putting her shorts back on, but Josh had already spotted her as he leaned against the restaurant entrance. His eyes immediately dropped to her legs the moment she was in view.

His grin widened. He wrapped an arm around her waist, his fingers dipping just below the hem line. "You actually took them off," he murmured, pulling her against his chest. "Are you even wearing panties?"

"Stop," Katie hissed, swatting his hand away. She tugged the skirt down an extra millimeter. "Someone's going to see."

"They already are." Josh leaned in, opening the heavy glass door. The restaurant's icy air conditioning hit her bare thighs, raising an immediate rush of goosebumps. "The guy on the bench you passed probably gave himself whiplash he did such a hard double-take."

Katie's face went red. As the hostess led them through the crowded dining room, Katie kept her hand firmly pressed against her thigh to keep the skirt in place. But Josh wasn't looking at her. He was scanning the tables they passed, tracking the eyes of the men looking at her legs. Katie's gaze went between his legs. Was he hard? She could see the thick outline of his erection, as his slacks grew tight. She rubbed her thighs together, picking up her pace.

Once they reached a corner booth, Katie slid carefully onto the cold vinyl. "Seems like you're enjoying the attention more than I am," she noted, arching an eyebrow.

Josh’s gaze darkened. He reached under the table, his warm hand resting heavily on her bare knee. "I am," he admitted, his fingers sliding up her thigh. "Every guy in here right now is trying not to stare at you. And you're sitting with me."

Katie's breath hitched as Josh's hand moved, her fingers catching his wrist. "Order a girl a drink," she said as she held his hand in place, afraid if he moved it much higher he'd see how much this display of possessiveness was really getting to her.

The waiter didn't look like he was much older than twenty-one. He stumbled over their lunch specials, his gaze flicking to Katie on more than one occasion. She ordered a spicy Margarita and chips with queso. Josh stuck to water, not wanting to return to work smelling like alcohol.

The moment the waiter walked away Josh leaned back against the booth, smiling proudly. "He was staring at your legs."

Katie rolled her eyes. "You think everyone is staring at my legs."

"They usually are."

Katie slid closer to him, allowing his hand to slide to the inside of her thigh, without going any higher. "Can I ask you something?" She turned her body so she could face him.

"Sure."

"Why do you get so..." she chewed on her lip, trying to find the right word, her gaze shifting between his legs. "wound up, when thinking about guys looking at me?" She placed her hand on his thigh and he shifted his weight. "Aren't you supposed to be jealous or something?"

The smile on Josh's face faded, his lips becoming a straight line as he considered her question.

"It's not... it's not that simple." He looked at her, then at the table, then back at her. "It's like. Okay. You know when you post something and the comments go crazy? And you get that rush because all these people want you but none of them can have you?"

"Yeah."

"It's like that. But in person." He shifted. "It's knowing what they're thinking. And knowing they can't do anything about it."

Katie studied him. "So it's a power thing."

"I guess. Yeah." He took a drink of water. "I just know you'd never let things get too far. You're not that kind of person. So it's... it's safe, I guess. It's fun because there's no real risk."

"So what if there was a risk?" Katie lifted her eyebrow. "Would that make it more or less exciting?"

She knew he didn't mean for what he said to sound like a challenge, but she couldn't help it. The idea that he liked seeing her flirt and tease people because he trusted her should have flattered her, but it felt more like he was drawing a line and daring her to cross it.

"I..." Josh's cheeks flushed pink and he turned away, but Katie saw it. She'd struck something he didn't want to dive into. She was just about to push further when the waiter turned the corner carrying her drink and queso on a tray. As Katie shifted to make room on the table, her elbow caught her silverware. The fork clattered off the table and onto the hardwood floor, landing right at the edge of the aisle.

Katie locked eyes with Josh, a flare of heat rushing through her body as she smirked at him.

She slid her hips to the edge of the booth. Slowly, she began to lean forward from the waist, her eyes never leaving Josh's. Without the biker shorts, the back of the micro-skirt immediately began to lift. She felt the restaurant's frigid AC brush against the bare skin of her upper thighs, then the swell of her ass. She kept her eyes glued to Josh, waiting for his hand to shoot out and grab her arm.

But Josh didn't move. His jaw clenched, his gaze fixed hungrily on her, a thick vein pulsing at his temple. A heavy, slick heat stirred between her legs as she pushed it another inch, neither of them wanting to back down. But at the very last second, her nerve finally broke.

Katie quickly dropped her hips, bending her knees into more of a squat. Her skirt fell flat against the backs of her thighs as she snatched the fork and slid back into the booth, her modesty miraculously intact. The waiter, none the wiser, set their drinks down on the table. He said something to them, but Katie couldn't make it out. All she could hear was the racing of her heart. The waiter had nearly seen her entire ass, and Josh did nothing to stop it. In fact, if anything, he seemed even more aroused.

"I can't believe you didn't stop me," she whispered, her chest heaving.

"I can't believe you almost went through with it." He fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat. "That's what made it hot." He leaned forward, reaching for her hand. "Let's get out of here. I'll call in sick for the afternoon."

"It's still your first week." She pulled her hand back, smiling. "And I still have to go take care of Jewels. Brian's back tomorrow and I want to get one more video with her."

Josh groaned, leaning back against the booth.

"But." She took another sip of her margarita, letting him sit in it. "Take some pictures of me by that fountain on the way out." Her hand crept up his thigh. "Something that will make my followers go insane."

The fountain sat near the back of the plaza, a low stone basin with water spilling over the edge into a shallow pool. The afternoon sun hit it from behind, throwing light across the wet stone. The heat was immediate and Katie worried her makeup would start to run before they even made the short walk. By the time they reached the stone, a thin layer of sweat ran along Katie's collarbone. She sighed in appreciation as a cool mist from the falling water hit her.

"Here." She handed Josh her phone and walked toward the fountain, her boots clicking on the tile. She turned to face him, the water catching the light behind her. "Okay. Tell me when."

Josh held the phone up. "You look incredible."

"You always say that." She cocked her hip, one hand resting on her thigh. "But I need you to give me actual direction." The skirt shifted. She felt it move and didn't fix it. When it was clear he wasn't going to offer any real guidance she smiled. "Take the picture, Josh."

He took three in quick succession. Katie checked them over his shoulder. Good, not great. She looked stiff. The skirt was making her uncomfortable.

"Let's try a different angle." She walked back to the fountain. This time she turned slightly, leaning her hip against the stone ledge, crossing one ankle over the other. The warm stone pressed against the back of her bare thigh. A drop of sweat traced down her spine as she arched her back slightly, letting the crop top ride up. "Lower angle. Get the water behind me."

Josh crouched, having to adjust his stance as his slacks pulled dangerously tight against his erection. She watched him behind the lens. He was snapping pictures, but his eyes were on her body more than the screen. She stopped thinking about the skirt. Her chin tilted up, her lips parted just enough, and she looked directly into the lens the way the blonde in the Polaroid had looked into Brian's camera.

"Jesus, Katie. You look..." Josh's voice came out rough.

"Did you get it?"

He stood up and turned the phone around. The shot was better than anything on her page. The light from the fountain caught the white of her skirt, her stomach was flat and golden above the crop top, and her expression showed a confidence she wasn't sure she felt. But her eyes went to the bottom of the frame. Because of her angled hip, the skirt had ridden up on one side. The curve of her ass was clearly visible, the bare skin smooth against the wet stone.

"Josh." She zoomed in, her stomach tightening. "You can see everything."

She watched his throat work as he swallowed. His pulse racing in his neck. "It's... I mean it still covers more than a normal bikini. And you posted that."

Katie stared at the photo. He wasn't wrong. The bikini had shown more skin. But this didn't feel like the bikini. This felt like something else entirely.

She hit post before she could change her mind.

It was almost four by the time she got back to Brian's house with Jewels. The walk had been brutal, the pavement so hot she could feel it through her boots. Jewels had done her business quickly and spent the rest of the walk trying to get back inside. Brian had been pretty specific about the route they should take, how long the walk should last, and every other detail, but Katie made an exception today because of the extreme heat.

She filled Jewel's water bowl and collapsed onto the couch, her skin still damp from the heat. She pulled up her texts with Brian.

Josh found some organic dog treats at the store today! He thought Jewels might like them 🐾

She smiled at the message before sending it. Josh and Brian had gotten off on the wrong foot and Katie was trying to extending an olive branch. It felt good to include Josh in the routine. Like they were all part of the same thing.

Brian's reply came two minutes later.

Yeah, don't do that.

Katie stared at the screen. She waited for a follow-up. An explanation. A thank you. Something. Nothing came. She wasn't sure why he was being so short. Maybe it was a busy day, or he was driving. She typed and deleted three different responses before giving up and setting the phone down.

She opened TikTok instead. The fountain photo was doing even better than she expected. Four hundred likes in under two hours. The comments were already piling up. She scrolled through the first dozen. Most were harmless. Fire emojis, heart eyes, the usual. But further down they got bolder. Comments about her legs, her stomach. Then there were others. The ones that were far more... descriptive about how she made them feel. One guy had written something so graphic she blocked him, then locked her phone and set it face down on the cushion.

She picked it back up less than a minute later, once she didn't feel like she was blushing. Her DMs had thirty-six unread messages. She bit the corner of her cheek, but didn't open them. Instead, she thought about Josh seeing the comments. About reading the DMs to him in bed tonight, watching his face change the way it had in the restaurant. A warmth pooled low in her stomach and she closed the app.

She still had work to do. Brian was coming home tomorrow and this was her last chance at content with Jewels. She set up on the living room floor, propping her phone against a stack of books. Jewels was half asleep on the cushion but perked up when Katie started making kissing noises.

Her phone buzzed before she could get the first shot off. Josh.

Still thinking about lunch. I should have taken the rest of the day off.

Down boy. You'll be home soon. I'm sure I think think of some ways to thank you for being such a good photographer.

Send me something to hold me over then.

She rolled her eyes and took a quick selfie on the couch. Jewels had crawled into her lap, one ear flopped. Katie pouted her lips and hit send.

That's adorable. But I'm pretty sure you know that's not what I meant.

You're insatiable.

After that little fork incident can you really blame me?.

Her face flushed. She glanced down at the skirt, still riding high on her thighs. Before she could respond, Brian's name popped up at the top of her screen.

How's she doing? She seem like she's been sleeping through the night okay?

Katie switched threads. She's been great. Sleeps like a rock. She's always so full of energy when I get here..

Good. I'll be back early tomorrow morning. Has she had her evening meds yet?

Not yet. About to do it now.

She switched back to Josh. He'd sent another message.

Come on. One picture. I'm dying over here..

Katie bit her lip. Maybe one picture would be okay. Seeing just how excited he'd gotten actually made her feel bad for leaving him when she did. Standing up, she walked into Brian's kitchen. With her back to the sliding glass door, she reached behind herself and gathered the back of her skirt, hiking the fabric high up on her hips. Catching a glimpse of herself in the glass, she had to smile. All those endless squats at the gym were definitely paying off. Her butt looked perfect. She let the curve of it hold the gathered material in place, making sure the little white thong she was wearing was completely exposed for Josh to admire. Holding the phone over her shoulder, she snapped the photo.

She looked at it. Her pulse ticked up. Her gaze went to the clock on screen. There was at least another hour before he got home. She wasn't sure she could wait.

If you're a good boy maybe you'll find me exactly like this when you get home. she pressed send.

Fuck. That's not fair.

What? You asked for it.

Josh's response came in the form of a a picture.

Katie chewed on her lip as she zoomed in on the screen. Josh was sitting at his desk, thankfully. Her eyes focused on his lap. The screen was filled with the straining outline of his cock, the dark material of his dress pants pulled incredibly tight over the bulge. It looked like the zipper was fighting for its life. She traced her thumb over the screen, suddenly wishing he was already home.

Looks like you liked it, she teased, glancing up from her phone to make sure Jewels was still passed out on the sofa.

Bet you won't send it again without the shirt

She laughed out loud, causing Jewels to lift her head from the couch. You're out of your mind.

Brian's name appeared at the top of her screen again before she could press send.

If she gets her meds too late she won't sleep.

Katie groaned. She grabbed Jewels' pill bottle from the counter, crushed it up, and mixed it into the wet food. She took a picture of the food bowl and went to send it to Brian. Then she switched back to Josh's thread.

She stared at his last message. Without the shirt. Her heart was hammering. She set the phone against the backsplash and pulled the crop top over her head. The kitchen air hit her bare skin and she sucked in a breath.

Her phone buzzed on the counter. Brian.

Also make sure the back door is locked before you leave. It sticks sometimes.

Katie typed back one-handed, her other arm crossed over her bra. Already locked it.

She held her phone up and looked at herself through the camera. She looked hot, but she could do better. She smirked at herself through the lens as she reached back and unsnapped her bra. Josh would lose his shit if he say this.

She let the thin fabric dangle on her arms, giving herself one last out before making the decision. Then, with her skin burning, she tossed the bra onto the floor with her shirt. She held the camera in her right hand, her left arm crossing over her chest, fingers spread just enough that the edge of her nipple peeked between them. She snapped it before she could think.

She looked at the photo and her stomach flipped. It was the most daring thing she'd ever taken. She could see the outline of her body in the glass door behind her, the kitchen light warm against her skin. Her expression was flushed. She could almost see the fear and desire coming off of her.

Brian's name lit up her screen again.

It looks like that was only wet food. She needs the dry food mixed in or she's going to get fat..

"Oh my God," Katie muttered. She grabbed the dry food from the cabinet, spooned it into the bowl, and snapped another picture.

Come on, babe. Don't leave me hanging.

She shook her head, tapped Brian's thread and went to attach the food bowl picture. Josh sent another text, a crying emoji followed by an eggplant. Katie giggled looking at the notification bar on top of her screen as she attached the picture and pressed send.

"He's such a goofball," she said, to no one as she swiped back to Josh's conversation to attach the photo he was impatiently waiting for.

Brian's response came first, and it made her stomach drop.

The composition is good but the lighting is all wrong. You've got a warm source behind you and overhead fluorescent washing everything out.

"Oh fuck. No no no no." Her hands shook as she pulled back up Brian's messages. Her eyes welled with tears and she could feel her heartbeat in her throat as she realized she'd sent him the photo intended for Josh. Another text from Brian appeared as she stared at the screen in horror.

I'll show you some techniques when I'm back.

She stared at the message unable to make sense of it. Her embarrassment knotted in her gut as she tried to piece together why he didn't say anything else about the near naked photo she'd sent him. She called Josh, needing to tell someone what happened.

"Please tell me you sent—" She could hear the grin in his voice and it made her want to be sick.

"I accidently sent the picture to Brian" The words burst out, unable to hold them a second longer.

"You... what?" The excitement in his voice was gone.

"How?"

"I was texting both of you at the same time and I sent it to the wrong thread. And I... Fuck, Josh what do I do? Tell me what to do." She could feel herself getting hysterical. She tried to slow down her breathing.

She expected anger. She expected his voice to go cold and flat the way it did when he was really upset. Instead she heard him exhale slowly.

"Send me the picture."

"What?"

"The one you sent him. Send it to me. I want to see exactly what he saw."

Her hands were still trembling as she pulled up the photo and sent it. She heard his breathing change on the other end.

"Fuck, babe."

Something in his voice made her stomach drop and tighten at the same time. She pressed her forehead against the cool countertop.

"Josh, I'm freaking out. What do I do?"

"I... um...What did he say?" Excitement had crept back into his voice, or maybe it was dread.

She read him Brian's messages. Word for word.

Josh was quiet for a long time. She could hear him breathing.

"I mean, it sounds like..." he paused and Katie heard him shuffle in his seat. "Katie, this picture... I can... he can see your nipple." He sounded out of breath.

"I know that, Josh. I didn't mean too. God, I can't believe I was so stupid."

Josh cleared his throat. "It's fine, seriously. It sounds like he realizes it was an accident. He probably just want to forget it happened. Same as you."

Katie closed her eyes. "You think?"

"Yeah." His voice had shifted again. Softer now. "Listen. The day's basically over here anyway. I'm going to come home early."

"Okay."

"I'll see you soon. I love you."

"I love you too."

He hung up. She stood there for a minute, her phone pressed against her bare chest. Brian's kitchen hummed around her. The refrigerator. The tick of a clock she hadn't noticed before. Jewels was eating from her bowl on the floor, oblivious.

Her phone buzzed against her chest and she glanced at it through blurry eyes.

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