For unknown reasons, I take visceral offense to that. “Maybe this is why engagement photos should be taken for people who are actually engaged.”
“Yeah, that!” Joss says, though it’s clearly insincere because she’s got her fake scowl on, aimed right at Yayoi.
“You’re enjoying how awkward this is, aren’t you?” I ask.
“It’s a little funny, seeing you squirm.” She smirks my way. “Where’s all that charm now, Foley?”
“What about you? You were perfect with Ali. Now you’re all—” I motion a hand up and down her tense body “—edgy.”
Her eyebrows fly up. “Am not! You take that back.”
“No. If I’m bad, then so are you. We’ll be sharing the blame here, lollipop.”
Yayoi looks between us, glances at Ali, whose eyes are wide, then clears her throat. “Let’s try again.”
This time, it’s clear a competition has started because she gazes at me all sappily when she takes my hand. Quite hard not to roll my eyes.
Yayoi laughs. “Joss, he’s your fiancé, not a basket of puppies.”
“Ha!” I point at her as we walk. “Overactor.”
She cackles, and so do I, and the camera snaps away. On the next take, she skips like a fool, and on the one after that, I yank her arm when she tries to do the wave with me. Laughing, she stumbles, then decides to leap on my back.
“What is happening right now?” I ask as her arms wrap around my shoulders.
“No, keep it up!” Yayoi says, motioning a big circle with one hand.
I smile at the camera, then mutter, “This is what engaged couples want pictures of?”
Joss is too busy laughing behind me to answer.
“Cute! Okay, let’s do the one where you lift her up and her foot is in the air.”
Try to picture that in my head. A funky splits-type image pops up and is immediately trashed. “Say what?”
Ali laughs. “Here, I’ll help.”
She traipses over, instructs me to widen my legs and pick Joss up so her forearms rest on my shoulders. Joss shriek-laughs when I do it, and her fingers naturally thread through the hair at the nape of my neck.
Tingles.
Ignore the tingles.
“Joss, bend one knee and point your toe,” Yayoi says, snapping away.
Ah. I get it now. No splits, it seems.
I look up into her eyes as her curled hair falls about her face. “Just so we’re both on the same page, I’m currently touching your ass.”
She snorts. “What ass?”
Resist the urge to squeeze. “It’s definitely there.”
“This is incredibly awkward positioning, don’t you think? How much you want to bet the picture is straight fire, though?”
Probably, but I’m too focused on the very feminine body pressed against mine to wonder about how it looks or whether it’s awkward.
So soft. I always knew she’d be soft.
