It was easy feeling pissed off at JieMi rather than concerned. It was easy fuelling the rush of anger deep within her chest and letting it wash over the pinch in her heart. She shook off those worries that clung to her, dispelling her questions.
"Just because I came from a foreign school doesn't mean I suck at Photography!" She sniffed, folding her arms.
"You'll have to prove it then," JieMi replied, a smile on his lips.
The grin was sweet, soft and warm. The dance of a cute hidden dimple on his cheeks made him look adorable, mischievous even, and her heart skipped a beat. A little flutter and squish in her belly. She looked away quickly, unsure why her cheeks heated at the sight.
"I'm a busy man. I'll email you my schedule and we'll meet at a place of my choice," he told her dismissively, waving his palms as he would to a worker. Man? More like a stupid boy.
"Your choice?" Amber raised a brow at him, repeating his words. Demanding jerk.
"It's not like you'll have a suitable place for professional photography," He shrugged, eyeing her carefully as he flicked through his phone. "Did you even read the fine print of the project?"
He shoved his phone at her face, a zoomed-in version of the entire document. "It's black and white boudoir photography. Boudoir." He emphasised, curling his tongue over the French. His voice dipping prettily as he spoke.
Amber blinked then snatched his phone to squint at the words, her heart racing at breakneck speed when her mind registered the words.
Boudoir photography.
In French, the word translated to a lady's private bedroom. It was a sensual, private kind of photographic style that was definitely a thousand times more intimate than your average portrait shot.
For the masses, this usually implied photography involving a woman scantily clothed and in her bedroom, where nudity was implied rather than shown.
Amber knew as much because one of her cousins had bridal boudoir photography.
Her face warmed at the thought. It had been a sensual image. Her cousin sprawled over the bedsheets dressed in the skimpiest of lingerie. Her bare ass covered in strips of light from the window. The clever placement of light and shadows had concealed her cousin's nudity.
While the image had been erotic, it was impressive, classy and elegant. A confidence boost for her cousin and a pretty present for her cousin-in-law.
Men weren't usually as interested in boudoir because of the implied femininity and sexuality these kinds of photographic styles had. Still, sensual male photography wasn't unheard of.
For a photography project, the word no doubt implied capturing the beauty of skin and the narrative of the model. Amber's eyes darted to JieMi, her cheeks warming at the thought.
"Is this even allowed?" She gaped at her soulmate. Her mind was swimming with the new information. Boudoir photography for the both of them?
Her cheeks warmed at the thought of her in her cousin's place. Her own body splayed over the bedsheets. Hell, JieMi in her cousin's place, bared ass and with the sun highlighting his pretty cock. She flushed at the thought.
"What are you talking about?" JieMi raised a brow, cocking his head to the side in question. His voice pitched, his annoyance obvious in his tone. "Are you a prude? Then why the hell are you at Art School?" JieMi snapped, sounding annoyingly disgusted.
He sniffed, his voice dipping into a low murmur just loud enough for her to hear. "I'm surprised," he growled, his voice a deadly hum. "After the stunt you pulled with my body. I thought you would be used to these things." He sat back onto the desk, his ass pressed against the wood.
Amber flushed, feeling anger and embarrassment bubble in her chest. A volatile mixture. She studied artists who had produced works of nudity in its extremes, had submitted paintings of her own bare body. She'd worked with nude models and had created works of artistic naked beauty. She was no damn prude!
"No. I mean, you!" She narrowed her eyes. "Are you allowed?" It was easy switching the hot fiery emotions of her embarrassment and masking it into anger. "If I take those photographs of you, don't you think your company will have something to say about them?"
He glanced at her then, with an elegant, handsome brow raised.
"The school's under a contract. They protect my privacy or they face legal charges," he wrinkled his nose at the thought. "I'll just have to make sure you don't leak my photographs," JieMi replied nonchalantly, smirking at her as he continued. "We just can't display my photos in the final exhibition, just yours."
"B-but!" She stammered, opening her mouth to speak. Just hers? She gnawed on her lips. They had to display the pictures of her in an art gallery?
Amber wasn't the kind of girl who loved showing off her body and beauty. She was no model or stellar beauty. Her Instagram flooded with images of food and her in scenic regions. No selfies and no swimsuit images. This project? It would be way out of her comfort zone.
Her eyes darted upwards to the male before her. But that would entirely depend on the type of picture JieMi would be taking. Her mind dove, going straight for images of eroticism.
Of her arching her back, her bare breasts tipped by the sun. Of her, clad in a thong that barely flossed her ass. Her thighs parted to the wall while her bare back faced the camera. Of her, in the shower, the water spilling down her skin as JieMi photographed her—No, no. It couldn't be that bad.
That was almost porn. She hastily dismissed the thoughts of those images, desperately trying to keep down the blush on her cheeks.
"What? It's good, isn't it?" His lips twitched as he interrupted her quickly. "Nobody except the school professor will see your photography skills of me," he shrugged, tilting his head up to look down at her with a smirk. Damn it. The asshole implied that her skills were shitty. She glared furiously at him.
"I—"
"Perhaps," JieMi's lips stretched into a dark smile. "You're afraid of me capturing you in such an intimate setting." He hummed. "Voyeurism hm?" He let his tongue curl sensually over the English word and something within Amber lit up. Her eyes meeting his darker soft hazel ones. "Or perhaps, you're afraid of seeing my cock again?" His voice dipped into a whisper at the end and Amber blushed, her cheeks burning at his words.
"Fuck no. It's sma—"
"Save your insults. As if I'll let you get that far." JieMi cut her off yet again with a shrug. His expression was cold. "I don't know what's going on inside your head about Boudoir Photography, but you know the school. They won't let you display your naked body on their walls."
She scowled at him, feeling as if he had controlled her emotions. Letting her work into her anger and surprise like a puppet before he slammed her down with a swipe of his silver tongue.
"It's boudoir. You can't book a studio and expect us to pass!" She said. "We're talking about private bedrooms and organic light—"
"I'm not stupid," he replied. She glared at him then. He was stupid and he would always be damn stupid in her mind. "Unless you want to offer up your bedroom or not I'll choose the venue." He raised a brow, folding his arms. "So?"
She bit her lips then, her expression falling. There was no way she could use her rented apartment. JieMi would definitely look down on her and she wasn't interested in experiencing such a shameful encounter. Hell, she didn't want him to pity her. She wanted him thinking that she was fine without him. Fine without her soulmate and he could fuck himself for all she cared.
Ezra's apartment? She furrowed her brows at the thought. She would have to run it through with him and she was a little unsure whether he would agree. Heck. He'd been aloof and distant for the past few days since their make-out in the car and until now she was not sure what she had done wrong. Aside from asking him if she could give him an orgasm. Was that really so bad?
"I'll choose the venue," JieMi sighed, having read the situation on her face. "I'll email you the date and address by tonight." He turned, heading off quickly and something within her jerked forward.
"Thank you," she said, her voice small.