I raise my camera and catch the moment her thumb strokes the lace. A slow, private smile warms her cheeks.
Movement flickers past my lens.
Zoe glides past, still in her satin slip, and rollers fastened.
I backpedal and catch her in the bedroom doorway, shoulder tipped against the frame.
“Don't move,” I whisper, lifting the lens.
She goes statue-still, fingers curling around the trim. “Why?”
“You look cute. Can I take a picture?” My thumb hovers over the shutter.
She glances back over her shoulder, lashes low, and mouth curving into a grin. “Always.”
She shifts her hip. Click. Rolls her shoulder. Click. The satin catches the light. Click, click, click.
By the time we’re laughing, I’m sure I’ve filled half my memory card. I turn the screen toward her.
“Shay, that’s beautiful. They look so boudoir.” She nudges my arm with her elbow. “Can you send me these?”
“Of course.”
“Do me.” Zara perches on the edge of the bed, twisting up a lipstick. She drags the color slowly across her mouth, blotting with a tissue.
The light hits her just right. My finger moves before my brain does, clicking.
After that, I don’t stop shooting.
Rollers.
Half-done eyeliner.
Stockings tugged up one leg.
Slips and lace and bare shoulders dusted with powder.
I drift room to room like a quiet little paparazzi, camera slung around my neck, finding fun and unusual angles.
These aren’t party shots.
Not posed smiles.
They’re private—in-between.
The kind of moments you keep for yourself. The kind you don’t realize are beautiful until you see them frozen on a screen.
The ladies crowd around me one by one, and I watch them see themselves the way I do. Watch them appreciate the moments they never considered beautiful and sexy.
When everyone’s finally dressed, Jaclyn takes the camera from me. She nudges me toward the stairs.
“Go ahead of us.” She slings the strap over her neck. “I’ll bring this down, but we’ll give you a five-minute head start to meet Cash.”
My heart kicks into a sprint. “Okay.”
“Go have a little extra fun for the rest of us who can’t anymore, will you?” Nettie swipes bright red lipstick acrossRoss's mouth. “Don’t half-ass it, sweetheart. Put your whole back into it.”
Everyone laughs.
