Making It Personal by Wells, C. (best non fiction books of all time txt) 📗

quietly. “Seriously. He’s intelligent, thoughtful, and sexy as hell, even to a straight like me.” He locked eyes with Blake. “You can’t let this guy get away.”

Blake groaned softly. “That’s right, rub it in.”

Dave placed his hand on Blake’s arm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think.” He stared at the door where Will had stood seconds earlier.

“Er, Dave? Coffee?” Blake’s voice was tinged with amusement.

Dave visibly shook himself. “Sorry. It’s just I’ve never seen you so damn happy.” He let out a growl. “That bitch. Just don’t invite me to the wedding. I’ll strangle the cow.” He went to the worktop and began dumping coffee into the paper filter, making small discontented noises. Blake would have been amused but he was too busy trying to push down the feelings which rose to the surface on hearing Dave’s words. Letting Will go was the last thing he wanted to do. But Dave mentioning the wedding brought the reality of the situation home to him in a cold rush of fear. How much longer did he have Will to himself? Not long enough.

“I can’t smell the coffee yet.” Will was standing in the doorway, arms folded. “You two have been gassing, haven’t you?” His eyes twinkled. He turned to Dave. “Thank you, by the way, for the invitation. It’s been great to meet you. And I love your work.” Dave gave him a puzzled look. “Your prints? In Blake’s apartment?”

Dave’s brow cleared, and then his cheeks flushed. “Funnily enough, I was thinking about those prints only recently.”

Blake eyed Dave speculatively. “Aha, now we’re getting to the point of the invitation. Come on. I knew you had an ulterior motive.” He winked at Will.

Dave looked decidedly guilty. “Let’s go and sit down in the lounge with our coffee, and I’ll come clean.” Will’s eyebrows lifted and he gave Blake a questioning glance. Blake shrugged, picked up his coffee mug, and followed Dave out of the kitchen. The three men took their seats, Dave in an armchair and Blake and Will on the sofa. Blake liked the fact that Will leaned into him immediately. It was nice to sit there and feel the warmth radiating from his body. He draped an arm around him and pulled him closer. God, this feels good.

Dave studied his coffee mug for a few seconds and then looked at Will.

“Just so you know, I do mostly portrait work—graduation photos, family shots, weddings—although I have to be honest, the wedding side of things has dried up a little lately. Not really surprising.” He took a long drink of his coffee, his expression gloomy. “In these recession-hit times, the happy couple are more likely to fork out for the dress and the reception, but get a talented friend to take their pictures instead of hiring a photographer.”

“Yeah, I can understand that,” Will said, giving Dave a sympathetic look.

“So, I decided to drum up some business by branching out into a new market.” Dave cleared his throat. “I, er, took out an ad in GT and Attitude magazines.”

Will whistled. “Gay Times mag? Attitude? Not going to ask how much that set you back.” He pulled a face. Blake was impressed with Dave’s initiative.

Dave shrugged. “It was a one-off. I thought I’d see if anything came of it. If it was a waste of time, I wouldn’t do it again. But with more and more gay couples getting married—sorry, entering civil partnerships—I figured there had to be some business there. And if a client wanted something more… intimate, I could do that, too.” He indicated Blake with a flick of his head. “I mean, just look at the ones I took of him. If I could cope with those, I can cope with anything.” He chuckled.

Will’s eyes gleamed appreciatively. “Dave, they’re beautiful. But I have to ask you something. However did you get him to agree to doing them in the first place? And get him to jerk off for you on camera?” His hand snuck across to stroke leisurely across Blake’s belly, and Blake could have purred with pleasure.

Dave guffawed. “I can tell you that in one word—tequila! And as for getting His Majesty over there relaxed enough, I pulled up some gay porn on my laptop. Didn’t take long for that to work.” He stared hard at Blake. “And let’s not forget here exactly whose idea that shot was.”

Blake’s cheeks were red hot. “Okay, enough of that.” He gave Dave a meaningful stare. “I’m assuming something came of your ad, or you wouldn’t be sharing with us now.”

Dave straightened. “You’d be correct. A month went by and I heard nothing, so I was about to write it off as an expensive whim, when I got a phone call. A guy wanted a set of prints doing for his apartment and he requested to see my portfolio. So he came to the studio, and after some humming and hawing, I finally got it out of him that he wanted some intimate portraits, definitely sensual, but I could veer toward erotic if the mood took me. I showed him your prints, Blake, and he loved them.”

“Hardly surprising—they’re beautiful,” Blake said loyally.

“Which brings me to the point of your being here.” Dave put down his mug on the coffee table and faced them. “I want you to pose for me. Both of you.” Blake opened his mouth immediately to protest but Dave plunged ahead. “Just like before—no head shots—simply the two of you being yourselves in an intimate setting.”

Will tilted his head. “What setting?” He was clearly intrigued.

Dave grinned and crooked his finger, “Come with me.” Will unfolded himself from the sofa and extended a hand to Blake. Dave led them out of the living room and down the stairs into the photography studio. Blake had been there many times, once as an observer while Dave had been working. He glanced at Dave’s main work area. The large white backdrop was already set up, but in front of it on the floor were piles of