3. Chase

It wasn't as if I expected Adam to say that his career was completely centered around putting explicit videos up on OnlyShots.

Yeah, guys, I upload videos of myself coming online multiple times a week. Oh, and no one knows it"s me, by the way.

Adam was shy enough to begin with, and he certainly wasn't going to admit that.

I knew it must not be Adam's real job anyway, because there was no way in hell he was making much money from his videos. Finding his profile was like finding a diamond in the rough for me: almost no one knew about him, but he had a small, steadily growing follower base on the website.

But I sure as hell didn't expect that Adam's actual job would be something intensely demanding.

"I'm a data analyst," Adam said, seemingly confident for the first time this morning. "I work with research doctors."

"And because I know nothing about the world outside of construction, what does that… actually mean?" Shawn asked, grinning at him. "Me use tools. Me fix houses. Me not a smart man."

Nathan snorted. "My brother's being modest. He's smart as hell. But I'm also curious what kind of data you work with."

Adam was polite as he pushed back his hair. "I work with research neurologists to perform mathematical data studies."

Shawn and Nathan both blinked at him.

Holy shit. So Adam Dix—Adam Richardsen—was a super-smart fucking nerd brainiac in real life.

Why the hell did he need any amount of money from uploading his OnlyShots videos?

He cleared his throat. "Ah, basically, I do the math part for doctors who study the human brain."

"Wow," Nathan said. "We're in the presence of genius. Hell, when my teenage daughter's having trouble with her math homework, I'll know who to ask for help."

Adam smiled, the sheepish side of him coming back in full force. "The math I do isn't as complex as it sounds. Well, maybe a little, when it comes to the regressions and the statistical modeling, but in general, it's a lot of standard data crunching."

Sure as shit sounded more lucrative than solo jerk-off videos.

All week, the construction crew and camera crew had been talking about our new home renovation client, Adam Richardsen. The name had gone in one ear and out the other. I was a camera guy for a TV show, not a producer or director; I showed up, set up cameras, and got perfect shots. It wasn't my job to know whose house we were filming in. It wouldn't have given me proper warning anyway, because his real last name wasn't Dix.

And now I was in his kitchen. It felt like a time capsule from the 60s, other than a few new appliances. I remembered one of the Fixer Brothers guys saying that Adam wanted a renovation that kept the same 60s-style spirit alive in the kitchen, while updating some completely worn-out features. The retro vibe in here was great, even if it did need some updating.

And then there was Adam himself.

The nice, shy, cute nerd next door. Who I'd happened to have come thinking about, many, many times.

Adam glanced over at me as Shawn and Nathan got pulled into a conversation with Flynn. I watched him for a moment, still marveling that he was a real, live human being, right there in front of me. He was wearing a simple light grey long-sleeve, fitted jeans, and a pair of glasses that I'd never have known he wore. In some videos, he showed the back of his head, and I was used to seeing his black hair all fucked up and going in a million directions as he moved around in bed. Today it was neatly positioned and combed into a perfect swoop.

"I'm impressed, Adam," I told him. "Your job sounds important."

"I like numbers," he said. "It's not as challenging as it sounds. More relaxing, for me, honestly."

"Very cool." I turned on the camera I'd just set up, making sure the lens was properly in place and framing the kitchen.

"So, ah, how about you?" he asked me. "Have you always been a camera guy?"

Watching Adam try to make small talk was rapidly becoming one of my favorite things. I could tell that he was struggling to figure out what to say, but the fact that he kept trying so hard to chat with me was adorable.

"I've always been into filming things," I told him. "And really any kind of art. I didn't think I'd end up on a home renovation show, that's for sure."

"What did you think you'd be doing instead?"

"I always thought I'd end up making art films, indie movies. Maybe even music videos," I told him. "I'm an art school dropout. But I happened to know my way around a good camera, so when I interviewed for this film crew, they took a chance on me. I fucking love my job now, no matter how long the hours are."

"Crunching math seems a lot easier to me than what you do," he said, giving me a little smile.

"It's unlike anything I've done before," I said. "Before-and-after shots are fun to frame. Demolition day is always a blast, when I get to film the Fixer Brothers taking a sledgehammer to cabinets and drywall. It's like capturing controlled destruction."

"It's always my favorite part to watch on TV, too," he said.

"I really do love seeing clients' faces when their renovated spaces are finally revealed, too," I said. "And the in-between footage. You've seen the show, so you know it focuses just as much on the guys' lives as it does on the renovation projects. These guys are like true friends to me at this point.

"So you're a talented artist, and you're great with people," he said. "Pretty much the opposite of me."

"I think you're better with people than you realize, Adam," I told him. "I've been loving talking to you this morning."

The blush appeared on his cheeks again and I couldn't help but get some satisfaction out of it.

I moved back to the kitchen counter, glancing over a stack of papers near the edge.

"Oh. Sorry," Adam said. "I meant to move those."

On the top of the pile was the Jade River Town Weekly, the short newspaper that our tiny mountain town published and sent out every week. In the small section that listed the movies showing in the local theater, Adam had circled the showtime for Alien.

"Do you like that movie?" I asked him.

"I love it," he said. "One of my favorite sci-fi movies."

"I fucking love sci-fi movies," I said. "I like all sorts of movies, but Alien is a cinematography inspiration for me. I also love Planet of the Vampires, which is a cheesy film that came before it that people say inspired Ridley Scott."

"You like Planet of the Vampires?" Adam asked, his eyes going wide. "Most people have never heard of that movie."

"You've seen it?" I asked, incredulous.

"I re-watched it just a couple of months ago," Adam said. "Like I said, I'm kind of a sci-fi nerd. Which is embarrassing to admit, but it's true."

"Nothing embarrassing about that at all," I said.

I felt like someone had just popped me into some alternate universe. Not only was Adam actually even hotter in real life, he was also smart, shy, and really cool, apparently.

I flirted with hot guys all the time, but this was something completely different. I felt like I wanted to drag Adam to the side and spend a few hours talking to him, not just drag him off to my bed. That was a strange feeling.

"I'm going to go see that showing of Alien at the theater with a couple friends this weekend, if you want to join us," I offered.

He cleared his throat. "Oh. Wow. I usually go to movies alone. And I'm not sure if I'll need to catch up on work this weekend."

I gave him a polite nod. "I get it. Introverts gotta introvert, sometimes. No pressure. Say hi to me if you do see me there, though? Promise I'll share some Junior Mints."

"I think we need to start rolling cameras," Flynn, our director, called out as he came in holding one of our huge Red camera rigs. "Chase, you have your shots set up?"

I'd almost forgotten I was here to actually do a job.

"Yes. I've got the perfect wide angle over here," I told Flynn. "Ready whenever you are."

Carla appeared at Adam's side. "Let's get you over here in front of Chase's camera for one minute. I'm going to put a bit of powder on your face for the cameras, because the lights can be intense on the skin."

Carla moved him a few feet to one side until he was perfectly centered in front of my camera. While she pulled at his shirt and fussed over details, Adam looked up at me.

I caught his eyes, holding his gaze for a moment. I felt hypnotized by him in an instant, like something about those eyes could stare right into my soul. Or… my dick's soul, certainly. Whatever that might be.

"Don't be nervous," I told him. "You're going to do great. And you look great, but you already knew that."

The bashful look returned as he looked down for a moment. "I'm not nervous," he said, which was an obvious lie.

"Not nervous at all, huh?" I asked, a teasing lilt appearing in my voice.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Okay, fine. I'm so nervous I feel like I could power a whole city with just the energy in my nerve endings right now."

I laughed, and he seemed surprised by it. "Are you always this funny when you're nervous?"

"I have no idea how to be funny," he said. "But I'm nervous all the time."

A heat stirred inside me as his eyes lingered on mine. I couldn't stop staring at his lips. An image flashed through my mind of an OnlyShots video from a few weeks ago where he'd sucked on a couple of his fingers, pursing his lips around them. He sure as hell hadn't seemed nervous in that video.

"Well, if you're as charming on camera as you are with me, you're going to do great," I told him.

I was only human. I was allowed to flirt a little bit, right?

Adam barely seemed to register that he was being complimented, though. He bit his lower lip as he looked around, scanning the area like he was searching for an exit route.

"I'm not used to cameras being quite this big," he said.

Because most of the videos you take of yourself seem like they're filmed on a basic phone camera.

And they still get me harder than anything I've ever watched.

Everything in me was itching to blurt out what I knew about Adam.

But for once, I needed to keep my mouth shut. I could act like I had a filter. I didn't always need to be wild and free, following my rawest instincts, being way too honest, and flirting with everyone I felt attracted to.

Even when I happened to be standing across from the person I'd privately gotten off to more than anyone else this year.

"Relax. I've got you," I told him. "And I'm going to make you look fucking amazing on camera."