Chapter 4

Hitting the timer on the camera, I sprawled on my stomach on my bed, pushing my ass in the air for maximum effect. My curls were perfectly mussed and shiny, and the light lip gloss I'd applied made my lips look plump and kissable. I knew that the white bedsheets were the perfect contrast to my tanned skin, and the whole aesthetic was going to make this a fucking hot photoshoot.

But as I pouted slightly for the camera, I couldn't seem to summon up my usual enthusiasm. This was not good. I relied on the money my FanBoyzOnly account brought in to pay my way through uni, topping up my student loan because my parents didn't have the money to spare. I huffed, annoyed with myself, and that was when the camera clicked. Because of course it did. Stupid camera.

Rolling off the bed, I stomped over to the camera, and sure enough, it had captured me mid-huff. Stabbing at the Delete button, I wiped all traces of my mini breakdown from memory. I yanked my bedroom door open, shouting into the hallway.

"Dexter! I need you!"

A moment later, there was a bang, and my housemate appeared in his bedroom doorway, rubbing at his eyes and yawning. "What the fuck is the emergency? I've only had two hours of sleep because the fucking shoot ran so late."

"I need your help. Please. Pleeeease." I batted my lashes at him, and he groaned.

"Fine, I'm coming. Give me a second to wake up properly. And I want you to take a vow of silence after I've finished helping you with whatever it is. I need sleep. A lot of it."

"I'll be as quiet as a mouse. Which is a weird saying, when you think about it, because mice make all kinds of scratching and squeaking noises."

Dexter ignored my mouse comment, sauntering past me into my room. I took a moment to appreciate the sight of his body dressed in nothing but a pair of tight boxer briefs, because, hello, I had eyes. And my eyes liked looking at pretty things. We should all be nicer to our eyes and let them view all the pretty things, in my opinion.

He stopped in the middle of the room, taking in my setup. "What do you need me for?"

"I need you to motivate me for my photoshoot. I can't seem…" Trailing off with a huff of breath, I shrugged. "I don't know why, but I can't find the enthusiasm."

"Okay." Without missing a beat, he lifted my camera from its stand, holding it in one hand and angling the ring light with the other. "White jockstrap. White socks. Hands on the wall, looking over your shoulder. Ass out, leg arched."

I followed his instructions, already feeling better. Dex was another one of my besties, and as well as that, he was a porn actor, working at an actual studio. So he knew things. Lots of things about posing and lighting and angles.

"Hold it there. Don't turn your head that far…yeah, that's it. Nice." He snapped a couple of photos and then studied the camera. "Okay. Now lose the jock, but keep the socks on. Fucking hot."

"You think so?" I knew I was, but I liked the confirmation. He just rolled his eyes at me in reply, though.

"Over to the bed, now. We want to go for cute, corruptible boy-next-door look. The kind of boy you'd be happy to take home to your parents, and they'd have no clue that really you were a depraved little fucker."

"Hey! I'm not depraved. I'm very cute and corruptible." Climbing onto the bed on my hands and knees, I glanced back at Dexter over my shoulder. "Speaking of parents, I hope that none of my family members ever stumble across my photos. They'd disown me."

There was a flash of sympathy on Dexter's face, but it was gone almost as soon as it arrived. He knew I didn't need it. "They wouldn't really disown you, babe. Arch your back a bit… Yeah, nice. Hold that pose."

"I know they wouldn't really," I mumbled. "You know what they can be like, though. They don't approve of the methods I choose to pay my way through uni. Or the way I dress and act, for that matter." It wasn't like they didn't love me, because they did…they just had trouble accepting certain things about me—although not the fact that I was gay, at least. Part of that was thanks to my two older brothers, who'd immediately made it crystal clear that I had their full support when thirteen-year-old me had announced to everyone that I was one hundred percent gay during a family Sunday dinner.

My nonno had emigrated to the UK from Italy fifty-nine years ago when he'd fallen in love with my English grandmother, breaking off his engagement with a girl from his local town in the process. From what my dad had told me, it had resulted in a huge family scandal. Despite his break with tradition, and the fact he no longer spoke to a large portion of his family, my nonno had very set beliefs about how Rossi men should conduct themselves. Ah, well. I was me, and unlucky for him, I'd inherited his stubbornness and strong will. If I wanted to do something, I would do it, no matter what. I stood my ground.

Shifting on the bed, I returned my attention to Dexter, giving him a small smile. Lowering the camera, my housemate stared at me for a moment, before he strode forwards, placing a warm hand on my back and dipping down to kiss the top of my head. "I know how they can be, but I also know that no one should ever be allowed to dull your sparkle, little magpie. You deserve to shine."

My smile widened. No matter what other people thought of my job choice and lifestyle, I had the best friends I could wish for, friends who I knew supported and loved me unconditionally. Case in point—Dexter, who was taking time out of his sleep schedule to help me get some good photos for my FBO account.

"Okay." Dex thumbed through the pictures he'd taken, and then glanced back up at me. His mouth stretched open in a yawn so wide, I swore I could see his tonsils. "Want another with different underwear?"

"I think I've got it from here. I'll set up a timer to do the rest, then I'll do a couple of videos. Thanks for your help."

"Anytime."

When he was gone, I set up my camera on the stand, took a few more shots, then switched to my phone. I preferred to do video with my phone, but I liked to use a camera for my stills. Don't ask why, I just did. As I stroked my dick to full hardness, giving the camera a sultry look, my mind wandered to Bennett. I wondered what his dick was like. I doubted I'd ever find out. It was fun to play with curious boys, but this one hadn't been ready for anything more, and that was okay. I just had to forget about how gorgeous he was, and how sweet, and how he was an amazing kisser.

I'd lose my infatuation with him soon enough. I had my uni work. My job. My friends. Other hot boys to corrupt, or to corrupt me. Either worked.

I kept my gaze averted from the corner of the room, where Bennett's hoodie was draped carefully over my chair.