Flawed Perfection (Beautifully Flawed, #1)

Chapter Eight

I stood outside the apartment, my lips in a deep frown as I crossed my arms and leaned back against the wall, wishing my stare could burn a hole in the door across the way.

Bobby blew me off. No one was home. I needed his help and he knew it, yet he was nowhere in sight, and I couldn't get a hold of him.

Adam came up the stairs, and I couldn't help but be distracted by the way he looked as he loosened his tie. If I had my camera like I was supposed to, I would have snapped a shot. He was the perfect image of an A&F drool-pile-inducing model. My mind froze as his eyes slowly met mine, and a smile stretched across his face.

"Hey, Riv, why the extremely pissed face?" he asked, stopping in front of me with his hands in his slack pockets.

I was trying to remember why I was mad. When I did, I took a deep breath and jammed my finger at the air over his shoulder.

"Your dumbass brother! I told him yesterday I needed his help; my job depended on it, and guess what? He's nowhere to be found," I explained, my voice low in its irritation. I held up my phone and waved it. "And apparently he lost his phone, too!"

He crossed his arms over his chest and gave a heavy nod. "New girlfriend will do that to a guy."

"New girlfriend?" I repeated.

Adam rolled his shoulders. "What was he supposed to help you with anyways?"

I leaned my head back against the wall, and Adam moved closer to me, his hands reaching for my waist, but then going back into his pockets. His eyes left mine and went to his shoes.

"My boss told me the photographer they hire for our advertisements, along with his models, had bailed on us. The quick fix was a credit card with my name on it and enough money to buy me a camera, and me finding a male model. Bobby was supposed to help me get a camera and be my model."

I closed my eyes as I rubbed my temples. "This was a huge opportunity. My work is looking at cutting down costs, and wants me to do the photography and the advertising. It'd be amazing, and I'd get a raise."

"Alls not lost," Adam said, and I opened my eyes to look at him. Small blotches of red appeared on his cheeks as he continued, "If you wanted Abercrombie as opposed to, you know, Cro-Magnon-Muscle-Head, I could help?"

My jaw dropped. "You're serious?"

Adam gave me one of those faint-inducing sideways smiles as he nodded. "Of course, anything for you."

"I need to raid your closet first. I've got a location all set up for the shoot, and we need to get to an electronics store ASAP," I said.

Adam threw his hands up, still smiling. "Alright, Bossy Boss, lead the way!"

I tossed the clothes out of Adam's closet onto a pile on the bed. He sat there watching; leaned back with his button-up now half undone and his tie hanging so loose I didn't know why he still had it on—besides the fact he knew he looked gorgeous sitting like that.

"That should do it," I finally said, staring at the pile of pants and shirts with my hands on my hips.

"You sure we don't need to go to the mall and buy half the store?" Adam teased as he got up, threw off the tie and slipped the shirt off his shoulders with back muscles rippling.

"You don't need to be half-naked until the photo shoot," I said as I distracted myself by grabbing a bag off a hanger and starting to fold the clothes and put them inside. If I kept staring at him, I might melt—or worse make a move on him.

"This isn't like a boxer brief company, is it?" Adam asked as he slipped on a v-neck t-shirt.

"Really?" I asked, rolling my eyes just so I wouldn't be staring at him. "Don't you think if it was for clothing or something like that they'd provide the clothes?"