Chapter 2: Chapter 2
“I…uh…am actually heading out now. I was going to go through the pictures and upload them this afternoon. Bo wanted to have them for the website before the seventeenth.”
“But you have time to eat, right?” Alejandro nodded in the direction the others had gone. “You should come and join us. I’d love to hear more about your work.”
Warmth crept up the back of Mal’s neck. Nobody as gorgeous as Alejandro had ever invited him to lunch. Even if it was just a friendly invitation to discuss photography, it was more than Mal was accustomed to.
“Yeah. I have time to eat. That sounds good.”
Alejandro stepped back, giving Mal room to finish packing up. He’d slipped on a pair of baggy white shorts after the shoot, and it was impossible not to notice the way the line of his pelvis angled down to disappear inside the waistband. Briefly, Mal wondered if he was going to bother putting on a shirt to eat. Probably not. The man was obviously more than comfortable in his own skin. His own delectable skin. Even if it was still a little green.
When Mal moved to swing his camera case over his shoulder, Alejandro beat him to it. With a smile, he adjusted the heavy strap against his bare muscle.
“I’m glad Bo listened to me. Not that this project needs any help, but plastering your photos across the web is going to put us over the top, I’ll bet.”
Mal’s pleased smile widened as he began to follow Alejandro. He looked unbelievable from the back. Mal had always had a thing for broad shoulders, and Alejandro’s shoulders were perfect. “The shoot was your idea? I had no idea you were a fan of my work.”
“Well, they were always going to do the shoot. I was just the one who told Bo he’d be an idiot not to get you.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it. Of course, now I better make sure Bo only sees the best shots. I’d hate to make a liar out of you.”
Alejandro glanced over his shoulder as they stepped into the large corner of the warehouse where craft services had been set up. “You’ll just have to make it up to me then,” he said. With one of his dazzling smiles.
Mal blinked. Alejandro was really, actually, genuinely flirting with him. Him.Mal didn’t want to fool himself into thinking it meant anything, but he thought it couldn’t hurt to flirt back a little.
“I suppose I do owe you one.”
“Well, that was too easy.” As they stopped at the end of the table laden with food, Alejandro picked up a plate and handed it over to Mal. “Maybe I should hold out for you owing me two.”
Mal was surprised by the sheer amount and diversity of the food laid out before them. He filled his plate, though he wasn’t really aware of what he was dishing up. Alejandro was standing close to him—close enough Mal could smell his aftershave. Who could think about eating?
“Get me another nice gig like this, and I’ll owe you three.”
He followed Alejandro to a low couch along the wall, hesitating only for a moment when Alejandro sat in one of the corners. There was just enough room for two people on it, and with Alejandro currently sitting sideways, propping his plate up on his knee, it would be next to impossible for their legs not to at least brush against each other. Mal didn’t have a choice, though. It was either take the seat or not sit with him at all, and frankly, the latter wasn’t even an option.
“So what do you do when you’re not making men look fabulous?” Alejandro asked.
“Whatever I can. I do a lot of freelance stuff, so most of my work comes through referrals. But fortunately, I’m doing less work at weddings and family reunions and more work on movie sets. What do you do when you’re not…” Mal paused, realizing he didn’t have a good way to finish that sentence. “Not here?”
If Alejandro noticed his hesitation, he didn’t acknowledge it.
“Eh, I’m boring,” he dismissed. “Right now, all my free time is taken up helping my sister get her restaurant off the ground. She’s a great cook, but she knows jack about business.” He dipped a taquito in a small pot of guacamole. “Bonita’s of the opinion that because of what I do and the fact that I’m not actually afraid of my computer, I must be a marketing genius.”
Mal could tell Bonita that Alejandro didn’t need to be a marketing genius to be a success—not when he looked like he did.
“Has she already opened her restaurant? I know the editor of the Life and Leisure section at the Times. I could give him a call.”
The smile Alejandro shot him was quizzical. “You would do that? You don’t even know her.”
Mal looked away, trying to hide his embarrassment at being so eager to help. It seemed ridiculous to say that he would do it just because she was Alejandro’s sister and, therefore, worthy of the effort.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone