eyes as a bright light went off, nearly blinding her.

"Good, you're finally here." A lean man, wearing tan loafers and a huge camera around his neck scrutinized her. "Tina get this woman some appropriate clothes!"

Nyla looked down at her outfit and frowned. She thought she had done a pretty decent job of dressing up in a cashmere sweater dress and a pair of black pumps.

"I'm Kory, the photographer," the man introduced himself by placing a kiss on each check. "My assistant will get you prepped right away for the shoot."

Nyla barely had time to introduce herself before she was whisked into a dressing room by a tiny, curvy women whom she assumed was Tina.

"I thought this was going to be a more professional photoshoot."

Tina glanced at her critically. "Last minute changes, Vogue decided to go a different direction." She rolled her eyes while flipping though the clothing rack in the corner. "It drives Kory and I nuts when they just inform us hours before our models are set to arrive!"

Nyla nodded.

"I'm going to need you to strip out of your clothes honey."

"Is there a bathroom where I can go?"

Tina stopped shuffling through the clothes before letting out a soft laugh. "Darling, there is no privacy in modeling. Just strip right here. It's not like I haven't seen it all before." A devious glint came to her eyes. "We have a stud muffin coming right after you, I can't wait for him to strip. Maybe you'll get to see him as well?"

Nyla knew that Tina was trying to make her more comfortable, but it wasn't working. She slowly kicked off her heels before stripping out of the dress. Tina turned around and poked her belly.

"Flat stomach, hint of abs, do you exercise?"

Nyla was extremely tempted to slap her hands away from her body, but she refrained. "Yes, I do yoga and boxing regularly."

Tina's eyes lit up at the mention of boxing. "Interesting choice girl."

"You have stretch marks near your thighs, but the dress chosen should cover it. If not, it will be air brushed anyways when we are editing," she said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Nyla didn't like the comment. It had taken her a while to accept that she had stretch marks on each of her legs and to have it air-brush would be like loosing something fundamental that played a big role in her identity.

"I'd like to keep them in the photos."

Tina shrugged her shoulders. "You'll have to speak with the editor then."

She gave Nyla a robe before showing her the outfits she would be wearing. There were two power suits, but it was the soft feminine pale blue dress that took her breath away. She fingered the material, it felt like silk beneath her hands, but Tina swatted her hand away. "That's for the last shot."

She took the black and white suit off the rack and passed it over to her. "We are going to start with this first."

Nyla changed into the striped suit. The sleeves tapered out at the ends, creating a bat-like affect. The pants were equally wide and hid the six-inch red stilettos she was wearing. Nyla liked the suit, for the most part. What she did not like was the plunging neckline.

Tina passed her some tape while fussing around the rest of her outfit. "Tape the inside to make sure nothing spills."

Nyla did as she was told, still highly uncomfortable. That's when Kory walked in, camera still in hand. "Change the lipstick to red and style her hair all the way to the back," he said to Tina.

Tina took a makeup remover to change the nude lipstick to a bright red one. Nyla stood silently while Kory glanced at ever detail. "Good, let's go."

The set was simple, a desk had been placed in the middle giving it an office feel. Kory told her his vision before setting her onto the table and making her do a few poses. As the time went on, Nyla became more comfortable and she even started to have a good time. Kory was very intense, but in the best possible way. It was clear that photography meant a lot to him and to see him yelling the craziest insults at the crew had her quite shocked to say the least.

She modeled the second outfit in the same manner but for the third outfit, Tina changed around her makeup to give her a softer look. She also let out her hair into beach-waves curls that Nyla adored. When she finished changing into the dress, even she had to admit to herself that she looked nice.

The material of the dress felt even more heavenly on her body than it had on the rack. Her shoulders were exposed, as well as a large portion of her back. There was a high slit, right in the middle of the dress and Nyla was careful about the way she moved, or she would be flashing everyone. The belt cinched her waist in a flattering manner and added depth to the dress. She wore a pair of golden strappy heels.

Tina met Nyla's eyes in the mirror, "Kory is going to go crazy. It's the perfect amount of feminine, sultry, but not too provocative."

Nyla smoothed down the dress out of habit, even though there weren't any wrinkles. "Where is this from? It might be my favourite dress I've ever worn."

"Eli Saab sent it over when he heard that you were going to be doing the Vouge photoshoot."

Nyla's eyes went wide when hearing the designers name. She hadn't met the Lebanese designer before, but his dresses always called to Nyla. They were elegant and timeless, something most designers were not able to accomplish.

Tina pointed to a box at the corner of the room. "He also sent a note and another dress for you to take home."

Nyla's fingers itched to open the box put she heard Kory's voice outside the dressing room to 'hurry the fuck up'. Tina merely rolled her eyes, something she did quite often before pushing Nyla out into the dragon's nest.

For the first time today, Kory seemed satisfied with her entire look. He didn't request for touch-ups, nor hemming of anything.

"Splendid, it's as if the dress was made for you."

"It was!" Tina yelled back.

Kory ignored her. Nyla took a look at the set; everything had been removed save for a golden seat that matched the colour of the belt.

"Have a seat there," he pointed towards the middle.

Nyla did so. Kory fawned the plates of her dress around the place before snapping a few shots.

"Good, the lighting seems to be fine," he mumbled, more to himself, "our male model should be here soon."

Nyla heard the last words and tensed; she didn't know that she would be modeling with anyone else. Just as she was about to open her mouth and ask, a smooth voice cut it.

"I'm sorry I'm late, Tina wouldn't stop fussing over me."

Nyla looked up to see Darius' standing behind Kory and the air escaped out of her lungs. For maybe the first time ever, she truly understood how devastatingly handsome he was. Decked it an icy blue tuxedo, with bold black stripes on the lapels, he looked as though he had just stepped out of the snow. His brown hair was styled back to give more focus on his strong facial features. She didn't know what to say.

Darius' surprised gaze turned towards her, and he took his time looking at her outfit as well. He had never looked at her like this before—it sent a thrilling feeling through her body and she warmed at the attention she was receiving. She really hoped that she hadn't been blushing.

Kory stepped into his photography mood, "Go stand behind Nyla."

Darius did as he was told, and Nyla could feel his breath on her bare shoulders. "I didn't know you were doing this."

"That makes two of us."

Kory snapped a few shots before he frowned. "The two of you are too tense. Nyla, I want you looking at Darius for the next shot."

Nyla didn't want to meet Darius' eyes, but she did as she was told. He was standing so close to her; she could see the specks of white in his eyes. She always thought they were beautiful, but here in the studio lighting, they seemed more alive then before. Darius didn't say anything, just fixed his gaze on her intensely. 

"Darius, I want you to hold her by the waist and pull her back gently, almost as if you are about to dip her."

"Are you okay with me touching you?"

Nyla nodded once before his arm snaked across her bare back, she shivered hoping that he hadn't notice but the small smirk on the cover of his lips told her everything she needed to know. They took a couple of more shots however Nyla didn't relax in any of them. She couldn't—not with him so close to her. Her body was buzzing with him being so near, it was freighting. She had never felt this tug before.

The switched positions and Darius sat on the desk with Nyla's heel lighting grazing the inside of his thighs. Now it was Darius' turn to avoid her gaze. On they went, switching positions as Kory bossed them around. The hum of electricity didn't seem to end either. For their last pose, Darius leaned so close to Nyla that if she moved an inch, their lips would be touching. She stood still as a statue before Kory said they could move. Immediately, she stepped back and allowed herself some breathing room. This afternoon had not gone as she wished, Nyla needed to go back to her condo and make sense of what she was feeling—it was very dangerous, developing feelings for Darius. She knew that it would only end in a heart ache.

"That's a wrap on the shoot." Kory called.

Nyla immediately walked over to him, "When should we be expecting a sample of the photos?"

"They should be ready in a month or two."

Nyla nodded and thanked him before going back to the dressing room and changing into the clothes she had originally worn. The large gift was still in the corner tempting Nyla to open it.

"If you can't carry it, I can have it sent to your condo, just give me the address."

Nyla spun around to see Tina in the corner of the room. "That would be appreciated."

She grabbed her things and left the room only to almost bump into Darius.

He had changed into a soft grey cashmere sweater and a pair of dark wash jeans that molded to his body. He grinned at her, "You want to go out and grab a bite to eat?"

"I'm not that hungry," she lied.

Her stomach grumbled seconds later, and a warm blush came over her face.

Darius laughed. "Yeah, I'm not taking no for an answer. There is a great Hakka Chinese restaurant on the street, we could go there?"

His faze was hopefully, and Nyla just couldn't refuse. "Fine, I'm in."

♠♠♠♠♠♠

Darius held the door open and Nyla thanked him. She stepped inside the restaurant, taken aback by the loud atmosphere. Somehow, she had imagined the place being a bit more formal, however most of the people in the restaurant were there with families. Large black, booth style seating line the red walls. She could smell the food immediately.

They found a booth in the corner of the restaurant and Nyla placed her items beside her. Darius took the seat across from her. A single menu was placed at the center of the table and Nyla was unsure if she should wait for Darius to pick it up or not.

As if noticing her hesitation, Darius pushed the menu towards her. "I already know what I'm going to be ordering."

Nyla opened it, scanning the various options. She could feel Darius' blue eyes piercing her.

"What?" she asked a bit self conscious.

"I've never seen you dress up like you did today."

Nyla snorted, unable to help herself. "Well, on a regular basis it is not like I have people on hand to style me."

Darius was silent for a moment. "You looked beautiful today, the dress was nothing like I'd seen before."

Nyla shrugged her shoulders. She didn't know how to respond to that. Darius did not comment on her beauty, that is not how they acted around one another. She felt as through they were both skating around a rink, unsure of what to say.

A cellphone ring blasted through the air, ending their silence. Darius fished into his pocket and retrieve his cellphone. He looked at the caller ID before frowning, "I'm sorry, I've got to take this."

Nyla waved him off and watched as he walked to a quieter place in the restaurant. She continued watching him unbashful. When she had first met him, she had thought that he was quite arrogant and rude, but the closer she got to him she realized there were many sides to his personality. The media didn't see it all, he was kind and caring towards his sister, but also intelligent and engaging. He might have inherited the company from his father, but he was taking new paths with it. He was also easy on the eyes...

She was interrupted by her thought when Darius returned. His jaw was tight and even before the words came out of his mouth, she knew what he was going to say.

"I'm sorry, something came up. I have to go."

"It's fine, I understand." Nyla did get it. She would have wished for him to stay but she also knew that business always came first.

"Can I get a rain check?"

Nyla smiled and nodded. Darius left and the waiter approach.

"What would you like to order today Ma'am?"

Nyla looked down at the menu once before ordering the first thing she saw. 

---------------

Poor Nyla's been left alone at lunch. What could Darius be doing that is so important? I'd like to thank everyone who has nominated C-Suite in The Fiction Awards it really made me warm inside.