Wedding Photos
Part 2 

Ethan did his best not to think about the coming photo shoots. It
didn't do much good. For the next week and a half, he tried to focus
on the work at hand. He found himself becoming even more of a
perfectionist. When people had nothing but the Adour shoot and these
photos to look at, he didn't want to leave them anything to be overly
critical about.

Sometimes, he chuckled to himself. If the harpies decided to be
critical, the lack of anything concrete to be critical about wouldn't
slow them down a bit. For his first job in photography, he'd been the
assistant to a fashion photographer whose own bitterness towards the
field had strongly informed Ethan's decision to become a
photojournalist. Despite having come full circle, he could still hear
Mike Connor's voice in his ears, exhorting him to stay the hell away
from people in the fashion business even as he snapped pictures of
fashion models for fashion magazines.

Mike had been pleasantly surprised when Ethan had elected to go to
school for photojournalism and elated when he'd won his Pulitzer.
Ethan debated calling him and asking his advice. He knew that Mike
could be discreet, too. But, he either couldn't bring himself to tell
anyone about Renee or couldn't decide how much not to tell. Besides,
Mike would probably just say that he wasn't surprised by such goings
on. And, since Ethan had already decided to go ahead with the wedding
and the shoot for Substance, he wasn't sure what good Mike's advice
would do him anyway.

When Renee called to tell him who the other model would be, Ethan
immediately threw out most of the ideas he'd had for the shoot and,
over the course of the next four hours, sat at his desk and came up
with a hundred new ones.

The check from Wayne Vandevoort had come back with incredible haste.
Two days after sending the invoice out, Ethan had opened his door to
find a special courier waiting for him to sign and receive the check.
When he thought about how much amusement Wayne had probably gotten
from writing it, he had to fight the urge to tear it up. It wasn't
much of a fight, though. Ethan needed to update his equipment for the
shoot with Sondra.

When he'd first opened his studio, Ethan had made a list of what he
would buy as he got the money to do so. Still, he hesitated and
dithered, considering other options. It was more money than he'd ever
had at one time, far more than he expected to accumulate any time
soon. If he regretted how he used it, he might have to wait a long
time before he could correct his mistakes.

Still, in the end, he steeled himself, closed his eyes, and decided
that, if one photo shoot could make or break his career, he'd better
have the best.

It paid off immediately when Sondra showed up. Dressed in baggy pants,
a loose-fitting men's dress shirt, baseball cap, and sunglasses, she
still managed to carry herself with a poise more appropriate to a
golden age movie star or a queen than an R & B chanteuse.

The poise lasted just long enough for her to see the new camera Ethan
had bought. In that moment, her eyes widened and a broad smile lit up
her whole face, "Is that a Hasselblad 205FCC?" she asked.

Ethan smiled back, finding her enthusiasm infectious, "Yeah. I just
picked it up this week. This will be the first shoot I use it on."

Sondra approached, hands extended in a way that told Ethan she wanted
to touch it, but was afraid to.

"It's beautiful," she said, wonder clear in her voice. Then, she
looked at Ethan, "I have the H1. I know I shouldn't. It is too much
camera for a dilettante like me, but..." There was a look of pained
longing on her face now.

Ethan lifted the camera free of its tripod and offered it to her,
"Well, if you have the H1, you know how to handle one of these. The
chassis is very similar."

Sondra looked up at him, seeking permission to take the camera. He
smiled again and gestured for her to take it. She did, holding it like
it was a sacred relic, eyes shining.

After a moment to look over the lens, Sondra raised the camera to her
face. She looked around the studio. With the camera pointed out the
window, she clicked. Pointing at the office area, she adjusted the
focus. Another click. Then, she turned it on Ethan.

As she adjusted the lens to bring him into clarity, Ethan felt
self-conscious. Despite his fascination with cameras from an early
age, he'd never liked having his own picture taken.

"You're very stiff," Sondra said, lowering the camera. "This makes you
uncomfortable. I'm sorry." 

Ethan couldn't help but laugh. Sondra gave him a quizzical look as she
reattached the camera to the tripod.

"I'm going to have to watch myself with you," Ethan said by way of
explanation. Sondra smiled, although Ethan could see she wasn't sure
what he was talking about. He was just as glad that the buzzer rang
and he didn't have to explain.

"That will be the other model," said Ethan. For reason's she hadn't
bothered to explain to Ethan, Renee had chosen to keep Sondra in the
dark as to the other woman's identity. She followed him to the office
area and watched the elevator door anxiously, lips slightly parted.

When Ethan opened the door, the woman who stepped out wasn't
immediately identifiable. Wearing black sweatpants, a black t-shirt,
and a black denim jacket buttoned up in spite of the warmth of late
spring, she'd topped off her outfit with sunglasses and a scarf
wrapped around her head, showing not even a hint of her trademark
white hair.

Still, it would have been impossible to hide her long limbs or the
preternatural paleness of her hands. After a couple of seconds staring
at her, Sondra asked, "Stitch?"

Chastity Carter, in the middle of unwrapping her scarf, smiled, "Heya,
Sonny. Long time no see."

Sondra laughed and hugged her, "Renee got you to do this?"

Chastity chuckled, "It didn't take much convincing. I've been angling
to get out of my contract with the holy rollers and
moneychangers...and this will certainly do that." As she spoke, she
unbuttoned the jacket. Underneath, she wore a black silk blouse in
sharp contrast to her unblemished, white skin. As Ethan took her
jacket, she removed her sunglasses, hanging them on the pocket. The
eyes underneath were a radiant, almost primary blue thanks to contact
lenses hiding their natural, pink color.

"You look happy to see me," said Chastity, giving her friend a
lopsided grin.

"I am." Sondra smiled at her again.

"Good," said Chastity. "That was the one part I wasn't so sure about."

"It's weird," said Sondra. "It's going to be weird anyway, like
fooling around with my sister or something."

"Renee said you two have known each other for a while," said Ethan.
"But, she didn't say how."

"Our choirs had an exchange program when we were growing up," said
Sondra. "I stayed with Stitch and her family in  for like a week when
I was eleven or twelve. We got along so well, I spent every summer
there until I signed with Mad Dog."

"When I told Mom and Dad we were doing this, they told me to say
hi--and to return your jacket." said Chastity.

Ethan had meant to let the two friends talk, but he couldn't help
himself, "You told your parents about this shoot?"

Chastity turned to face him, "Yeah. Don't worry. They'll keep their
mouths shut."

"I, um...." said Ethan.

Sondra laughed, "I think Ethan's surprised your parents would
approve."

Chastity smiled, "Don't believe what you read about me. I sing gospel
because it's pretty and that's who offered me a contract. I love the
music, but hate the business. At the top, it's just like the rest of
the music industry. They'll still fuck you, literally and
figuratively, whenever they get a chance, but they'll wrap it in
sanctimonious bullshit as if that makes it better."

Sondra smiled up at Ethan, "Stitch's folks are really cool. At least,
her mom and her stepdad are. Her father's...an unpleasant individual."

"He saddled me with the name. Do you have any kids, Ethan?"

Ethan shook his head.

"If you ever have a little girl and want her to grow up to be a total
freak, name her Chastity."

"I'll...keep that in mind," said Ethan uncertainly.

"Where can I change out of this?" asked Chastity, indicating her
clothes.

Ethan pointed her to the changing room, "Everything that was delivered
for the shoot is in there if you want to look it over. If you can
change into the robes on the back of the door and wash off any makeup
you're wearing, I'd like to go over some possibilities for the shoot."

"Possibilities?" asked Sondra, raising an eyebrow.

Ethan nodded, "I've got a lot of ideas. I want to know what you two
are going to be comfortable with."

Sondra looked puzzled. Chastity said, "He's offering us choices. You
remember those from before we signed with the labels."

"Oh," said Sondra, seemingly unruffled. "All right then."

Chastity rolled her eyes and headed into the dressing room. Before
following her friend, Sondra smiled at Ethan, "Don't let the tough
talk fool you. Stitch is really a sweetheart." Then, she was on the
other side of the door, leaving Ethan to wonder what tough talk Sondra
had meant.

                                   -=-
                                   
A fair amount of giggling emerged from the dressing room before Sondra
and Chastity did. Ethan, fussing with his equipment in the studio, had
to laugh to himself and admit that Renee had chosen well in pairing
Chastity with Sondra. There was the strong physical contrast that
would make Ethan's job much easier, of course. But, he hadn't dared
expect there to be this much chemistry. Sondra's public image was
classy and tasteful. The word he'd heard used over and over to
describe her was "chanteuse." He'd been hoping that she could relax
enough that the pictures didn't look too forced. He hadn't expected to
hear her giggling.

They emerged dressed in the robes Ethan had provided. Other than
color, they were identical. He'd picked the royal blue one for
Chastity, the black for Sondra, but they'd decided to reverse them
between themselves. Sondra looked amazing, but that was hardly
surprising. Ethan could have scrubbed off all her makeup and dressed
her in a burlap sack and still sold a half million magazines. Chastity
was a little bit trickier. She was undeniably beautiful, but her
beauty was fragile, easily spoiled by a bad color combination or
unflattering lighting. The black robe was a great example of how bad
she could look. It made some nice contrasts with her hair, but her
skin, already nearly translucent, looked bruised where it touched the
cloth and her eyes just looked tired this way.

As they sat and listened, Ethan laid out the ideas he'd come up with
for posing them. Sondra didn't reject any of his ideas, but did
occasionally suggest ways in which they could be better. Chastity
rejected about half, each with an abrupt shake of her head, and the
single syllable, "No."

Ethan began to notice a pattern in what she rejected, but couldn't be
sure. To check his hypothesis, he suggested a set that, while
extremely tame, made Chastity the focus rather than Sondra.

Halfway through the third sentence, Chastity shook her head, "No."

Ethan sighed and rubbed his eyes, "I think it would work well. It
might even be a full-page opposite the title."

Chastity shook her head a little bit harder, "I don't like it."

Ethan leaned in a little, "How would you suggest we change it to make
it better?"

Chastity looked flustered. She turned to Sondra, who just shrugged at
her. Sighing, she said, "What if it was Sondra in the foreground and
me in the background?"

Ethan frowned, "We've already got enough of those. I'd like to do a
few focused on you."

Chastity shook her head again, "We should focus on Sondra. She's
prettier than me."

Ethan laughed, "Sondra's prettier than everyone. But, you're still a
beautiful woman and people want to see you."

Sondra blushed and Chastity didn't say anything.

Ethan allowed himself to look puzzled, "You do know you're beautiful,
don't you?"

"Of course," said Chastity. But, there was enough defiance in her
voice to give lie to the words. Ethan let them hang in the air long
enough to start to become uncomfortable.

"That's why your stylist at Sweet Salvation should be shot," said
Ethan. "Or maybe crucified if that would be more appropriate."

Chastity let out a snort of laughter before covering her mouth in
embarrassment. When she pulled her hand away, she asked, "What do you
mean?"

"What do you think is the most flattering color for you?" Ethan asked.

"Black," said Chastity immediately. Ethan started to answer, but saw
Sondra shaking her head sadly and decided to sit back.

"Black makes you look sick," said Sondra. Rising to her feet, she slid
the robe from her shoulders, "Try this on. It would look much better
on you."

At his first job, Ethan had learned the art of not staring. He used it
now. Sondra Adour was standing completely naked and seemingly
unconcerned in his studio. Millions of men would pay to see what he
was seeing now. Sondra seemed unfazed, as if she had decided Ethan was
trustworthy or harmless. She didn't even look his way, instead
watching her friend and holding out the robe.

Chastity seemed to want to bolt, but after a couple of seconds,
launched herself out of her seat, undoing her sash and sliding out of
her robe as she did, letting it fall back into her chair. As she
wrapped herself in the blue robe, she grumbled, "Blue is so not my
color."

Sondra took her friend by the shoulders and led her to a full-length
mirror. Ethan picked up the discarded black robe and handed it to
Sondra as Chastity looked at herself in the mirror, "I don't see it."

Sondra wrapped the robe around her shoulders, "Can I show her--with
makeup?"

"Be my guest," said Ethan. He didn't know if Sondra could do what he
had in mind, but he could make suggestions if he disagreed with her
aesthetic sensibilities.

As it turned out, he needn't have worried. Sondra's instincts were
dead on. After hearing "I still don't see it" for the third time, she
ordered Chastity to close her eyes until she was done.

As Ethan watched, he realized that Sondra's work was actually better
than what he'd envisioned. Ethan had planned to work in primary blue
with hints of violet to hint at a normal flesh tone. Sondra had gone
the other way, starting with primary blue and working in hints of
green. Instead of making her look more like anyone else, Sondra was
coaxing out an otherwordly beauty that was wholly alien to normal
sensibilities, but beautiful in a way that transcended trends. Ethan
allowed himself a small smirk. He knew part of why he didn't think of
this color scheme. There was something positively pagan about the
look. Ethan smiled, thinking how that would play with the gospel
crowd.

"Can I open my eyes yet?" asked Chastity.

"Open them," said Sondra, grinning.

"I look like a Martian," said Chastity. But, there was no malice in
it. Her tone of voice said what her words wouldn't.

"You look like Freyja," said Sondra solemnly, "Viking goddess of love
and fertility--the most beautiful and propitious of all the goddesses.
You're going to make me famous."

Chastity laughed, "You're already famous."

Sondra nodded, "I know. But, you're going to make me famous for what I
see inside myself." As she spoke, she continued to apply makeup to the
upper part of Chastity's chest. "That's got to be a lot less work than
the first part has been."

Chastity laughed again, "You're crazy. You know that. Right?"

Sondra nodded and slid the makeup case towards Ethan, "Absolutely.
Now, try not to smear any of that until we're done shooting you." So
saying, she sat down, tilted her head back, and closed her eyes. Ethan
hadn't planned on needing to help Sondra with her makeup, but it felt
like she'd issued him a challenge as if saying, "Show me you know how
to do this."

She kept her eyes closed and didn't speak until Ethan was finished. He
stepped back, "What do you think?"

Sondra opened her eyes and looked in the mirror. Her lips curled up in
a slight smile, "Very nice."

Ethan allowed himself to exhale a breath he didn't know he'd been
holding. It wasn't a transformative job like Sondra had done on
Chastity. If the young pop star had been too effusive about it, the
compliment she'd paid Chastity would lose some of its magic. Instead,
she'd given Ethan exactly the measured response he'd been hoping for.

Once in the studio, the girls seemed eager to pose. Neither of them
had much modeling experience. Coupled with the almost-constant
giggling, it made things go slowly at first. But, they listened well
and even had some good suggestions as to what would look good.

The day wore on as Ethan took hundreds of pictures. The girls were
exceedingly fast learners and eventually settled down. Ethan's shoots
focused on shots that elicited the innocent physicality between girls
who were friends. For the most part, the pictures contained no overt
sexuality, but would make all but the most unimaginative viewer wonder
what was going on just below the surface.

He'd wanted something genuinely unique for the front cover, but the
one image that kept going through his head, while derivative, was so
stunning that it took on a life of its own. It was far more risque
than anything else they'd done so far, but Sondra and Chastity agreed
to it eagerly.

At least, they were eager until they got in front of the camera. Ethan
had offered them the small, discreet patches that kept them from
exposing any of the parts that would push this photo shoot into the
realm of pornography, but both had demurred. Now, Sondra stood in
front of the camera dressed in blue jeans and nothing else, her
raven-black hair pulled behind her ears and cascading straight down
her back.

Chastity was standing a few inches behind Sondra, dressed wearing
jeans and a loose-fitting tank top. She didn't seem quite willing to
press against Sondra's bare back nor did she seem to know where to
rest her hands.

"Maybe we should get those pads..." Chastity suggested.

Without looking, Sondra reached back, caught her friend by the
forearms, drew her forward and, after a brief struggle, placed
Chastity's hands firmly over her breasts.

"Sunny!" Chastity said indignantly.

"Hush," said Sondra smiling. "That's a half-million dollar feel you're
copping there, two hundred fifty thousand dollars a breast."

That seemed to break the ice. Chastity giggled again, pressed herself
more evenly against Sondra's back and rested her head on her friend's
shoulder. In some shots, Sondra raised her hands over her head and
Chastity appeared as only a pair of arms. It was an obvious homage to
the Janet Jackson Rolling Stone cover some years earlier, but
different enough not to be entirely derivative. At Sondra's
suggestion, they even swapped positions for a few shots.

"All right," said Ethan finally. "I think we've got everything we
need."

Sondra rose from her stool, "Okay. What's next?"

"That's it," said Ethan. "We've already got far more than Substance
wants."

Sondra frowned, "I think we need to do a few more."

Ethan started reloading the Hasselblad, "What did you have in mind?"

Sondra tilted her head, "Ethan, have you heard my love song?"

Ethan shook his head. Sondra stood up a little straighter. Without
warming up, she came in at near-perfect pitch. For the next two
minutes, Sondra Adour stood in the middle of his studio, dressed only
in blue jeans, and sang a capella for him. No matter how jaded he
might have become, Ethan recognized that this might be the most
sublimely wonderful moment of his adult life.

It was only slightly modulated by the content of the song, which was
both a love song and a gauntlet thrown in the face of some abusive
man. Based on the refrain, the song seemed to be called, "You Can't
Keep Your Woman Away From Me." The music and lyrics wouldn't have
sounded out of place if they'd been recorded by a turn-of-the-century
bluesman.

When she stopped singing, she asked Ethan, "Does that sound like a
song you want to accompany with the pictures we've gotten so far?"

Ethan shook his head, "Tell me what you want to do."

"It would be easier to show you," said Sondra. Turning to Chastity,
she asked, "Do you trust me, Stitch?"

Chastity nodded and opened her mouth to answer. But, before words
could come out, Sondra had strode purposefully over to Chastity,
buried a hand in her hair, arched her head back, and kissed her
exposed throat. She flashed a glance at Ethan, who realized he was
standing and staring, not taking pictures. Stepping behind the camera,
he started snapping quickly.

Rather than distracting them when he ran out of film, Ethan switched
to his digital camera. It wasn't as good as analog, but he'd invested
a big hunk of Vandevoort money making sure it was almost as good.
Practically ignoring him, Sondra had forced Chastity to her knees,
kissing her neck and shoulders fiercely. Ethan kept moving around to
try to get pictures that would be printable.

Once Chastity was down, Sondra continued to drag her down until she
was supine. Straddling her, Sondra reached down, gripped firmly with
both hands and, with one mighty tug, tore the tank top down the
middle. When Chastity looked to Ethan, she seemed to be beseeching him
to save her. But, when Sondra placed her own knees between Chastity's
legs, Chastity locked her own legs around her friend's waist,
undulating against her.

In slow motion, Sondra lowered herself until she was pressed almost
nose-to-nose against Chastity, their bodies molded together so that
there seemed to be no inch of one that was not touching the other.
Both were still wearing blue jeans and nothing else. For a span of two
dozen seconds, the only sound in the studio was the whir of Ethan's
camera and Chastity's breathing as she stared into Sondra's eyes. Inch
by inch, Sondra lowered her head until her lips were nearly touching
Chastity's. She held that pose for a few more seconds before swooping
down, not kissing at first, but biting Chastity's lower lip hard
enough to elicit a moan and make her friend's body arch like an
electrical current had gone through her. Even when it became a kiss,
it was still savage, a claiming more than anything else.

If a man had done a tenth of what Sondra had done, the whole shoot
would have been ruined. Such an obvious glorification of sexual
assault would never be tolerated. As it stood, it was awfully risky
even with two women.

Still lying pressed on top of Chastity, Sondra turned her head to
Ethan, "Do you think you have enough pictures now?"

Ethan nodded, unsure of his own voice.

She sat up, still straddling Chastity, "I should go then. I need to
get back to my hotel." She rose to her feet, looking down at Chastity,
who didn't move a muscle. "Would you like to come along, Stitch?"

From where he was standing, Ethan could feel the heat in the offer
like a physical force. But, Chastity sat up, looked Sondra in the
eyes, and said, "No, sweetie. I don't think so...Not tonight."

Sondra reached down, helped Chastity to her feet, and wrapped an arm
around her waist, squeezing her tight, "Are you sure?"

Chastity nodded. Regretfully, Sondra released her. For the next
fifteen minutes, the women gathered up their things. When both had
everything they'd brought with them, Sondra stood at the front door,
she turned again to Chastity, "Will you be in New York a while,
Stitch?"

Chastity nodded, "Yeah--two weeks....I...I'll call you tomorrow."

Turning to Ethan, Sondra hugged him. It was the sort of hug one gave
an intimate friend, warm and full-bodied. With her lips right next to
his ear, she whispered, "Don't destroy any of those pictures until
I've seen them, please."

Ethan nodded and was rewarded with a final squeeze before Sondra went
out the door.

Whatever Ethan was about to say to Chastity, he forgot it as she
wrapped her arms around his chest, pressing herself against him.
Reflexively, his arms went around her shoulders, trying to be
comforting. But, she was kissing his neck and worrying at his buttons.

"Chastity..." he said weakly, reaching for her wrists.

"Shut up, Ethan," she growled.

Ethan looked down at her, beautiful and alien. Sondra had called her
Freyja, but to his eyes she looked more like some sort of sea goddess.
A man could be drowned if he held her too tightly.

Seeming to sense his hesitation, Chastity demanded, "Do you think I'm
beautiful, Ethan?"

Ethan nodded, trusting his voice even less than before.

Pulling her wrists out of his grip, she undid the topmost button of
his shirt, "Then, shut up and fuck me or I'm going to scream."

When he was younger, Ethan had learned the trick of wanting a woman in
the abstract. It was usually easy. Models who had been doing their
jobs for a while knew how to look sexy without actually being sexy if
they didn't want to. Ethan had taught Chastity and Sondra how to do
that as well as he could, but it hadn't been enough to overcome
whatever vibe was passing between them. He'd managed, with great
effort, to be professional throughout the shoot, focusing on the
pictures he was getting rather than what he was watching.

But now, with Chastity pressed against him, ready and demanding, his
desire for her was far from abstract. He knew that her lust wasn't for
him, but it didn't matter. Sliding his hands under her, he carried her
away from the door back to his big oak antique desk, sitting her on
the edge. Chastity was already making guttural animal noises in her
throat by the time Ethan reached down and stripped off her t-shirt,
his head descending to her breast, tongue running a trail from ribs to
nipple before catching it between his lips and sucking gently on it.
Her moan echoed off the walls.

Ethan unbuttoned her pants and took the waistband in both hands. As
Chastity leaned back across the desk and raised her hips, she must
have leaned against the flat-screened monitor there because Ethan
heard it clatter to the floor in a crash of broken glass. Without
missing a beat, Ethan shucked off her jeans.

"Ethan," Chastity gasped. "Your monitor..."

Ethan took her bottom in his hands, kneading the flesh and pressing
her womanhood against his belly. Lowering his head to kiss her neck,
he whispered, "A suitable sacrifice for a favor from a goddess. Don't
you think?"

Chastity nodded against him, but a second later, her body shuddered in
a way that could be either tears or laughter. Ethan tensed and held
her, teetering on the edge of lust and concern.

Then, she giggled. Ethan's shoulders sagged in relief. A second later,
he laughed as well.

"God," said Chastity, placing a kiss on his shoulder. "That was pretty
corny, Ethan."

Ethan nodded over her, still laughing, "I meant it, but it did sound a
lot better before I actually said it."

That could have been the end of it, but she ran her fingers through
his hair, drawing him down into a fierce kiss. When she broke it, she
took his bottom lip between her teeth before pulling away.

Sitting back on his desk, her legs wrapped around his waist, Chastity
looked up at him, "I think I like you, Ethan."

Ethan kissed her forehead, "I believe I've acquired a good deal of
fondness for you as well, Chastity."

"Good," she said, unbuttoning his pants. "Because I need this right
now and it would be worse later if I couldn't stand you."

Ethan nodded. He might not have wanted to put it in such stark terms,
but he knew his place here. Stepping out of his pants, he pressed
himself against the entrance to her flesh. Even before he could
thrust, Chastity arched her back, impaling herself on him. When Ethan
did thrust into her, she pushed back. Each point of contact was like
an assault, but Ethan who have been hard pressed to say who was
assaulting whom.

For a long time, she kept her legs around his waist as if trying to
crush him, leaning her weight on her palms behind her back. When her
first orgasm hit, her arms gave out. Ethan's hand, pressed in the
center of her back, lowered her gently to the surface of the desk. She
fought him a little until he guided her legs up along his torso, her
ankles up by his ears.

Chastity nodded emphatically, "Oh, yeah. That's nice."

Ethan nodded. His self-control was already getting ragged. Compliments
didn't help. He tried to focus his mind on unsexy trivialities of the
photography business and had just regained his rhythm when Chastity's
second orgasm rocked her body. In the middle of it, she opened her
eyes. For the first time since he'd met Chastity, Ethan saw unshielded
emotion there, even through the contact lenses. That he saw awe and
fear there just pushed him over the edge faster. He exploded inside
her with a strangled cry that was an admixture of triumph and loss.

Panting heavily, he looked down at Chastity, his hands still stroking
her belly and ribs. She trembled and closed her eyes, closing off the
brief look he'd had at what was behind them. Finally, not trusting his
own legs, he slid his jeans back on and sat down heavily in his desk
chair. Leaning down, he kissed Chastity gently on the ribs, then on
the breast. Her body still writhed to an internal rhythm he couldn't
hear. When he took her nipple in his mouth again, she pressed him more
tightly against her flesh, shuddering a little harder.

When she finally opened her eyes, most of the old wariness was back.
She sat up, breaking physical contact, slid off his desk, and started
collecting her clothes.

"Can I use your shower again?" she asked.

Ethan nodded silently. Without another word, Chastity disappeared into
the changing room. Ethan sat back and looked down at his shattered
monitor on the floor. As much as had happened today, he felt oddly
emotionless, as if he'd used up his ability to feel and been emptied
out.

When Chastity emerged, she was dressed all in black again, her face
scrubbed clean of makeup. She carried the jacket and scarf over her
arm, though, leaving her hair and arms exposed. Not putting her
clothes down, she leaned in to where Ethan was sitting and placed a
gentle kiss on his lips.

"Thanks, Ethan," she said quietly. "I'll see you around."