Free Captured Secret (The Captured Series) by April Raynne

and reluctantly remove my hand from his strong arm.
    “So, it’s just with me?” He flashes that award-winning smile of his at me.
    “Yes, I guess. You see perfection all the time as a photographer and I’m far from perfect.” I stare hard at the screen so I don’t have to look his way.
    “You are beautiful, Stella.” His gaze lingers on my face for a moment. “This is routine clean up stuff every photographer does.” He thinks I’m beautiful? Holy shit!
    The printer starts to warm up and it spits out a very pretty picture of me. Ty grabs it hot off the press and hands it to me. “Hey, do you mind if I upload this to my website?”
    Looking at the picture, he has made me beautiful. “Well, you made me look very pretty, so why not?”
    He mutters, “I didn’t do anything, you do that all by yourself, Stella.” Ty stands and walks around the desk to the curtains. He pulls them back to expose his large flat apartment. “Do you want a beer?”
    “Yeah, that would be great. But I don’t want to linger and hold up your night.”
    “No, I want you to stay. You can open up the balcony doors. It’s great out there when the sun is setting,” he says over his shoulder walking to his kitchen.
    I do just that as Ty comes outside with a metal bucket with about six Bud lights on ice. Twisting the top, he hands me one, then one for himself. The light in the fountain turns on and we lean on the railing. The sun is about to set and it’s giving off colors of orange, pink, red, and purple. It is picturesque.
    “How do you feel today went?”
    I say, “Good, Emily is awesome with her list. I think that I will be okay, but I am definitely going to need you to help me know what you will need for the shoot at the park tomorrow.”
    “Of course, I’m easy going. If you have any questions, just ask. I think you will pick it up fast. You come across as a smart girl.” He pauses to take a drink. “Emily is awesome. She was a blessing to me, helped me in a lot of ways.”
    I want to ask how, but he doesn’t embellish. “Tell me if I’m being too nosy, but you are very successful. Exactly how old are you, Ty?”
    He lets out a little breath through his nose as if he is trying not to laugh at me. “I’m twenty-four. I have all this because my grandparents helped me a lot. They put me through college, and got me into this great set up.” He gestures to the studio. “They were the financial side, but I’ve worked really hard to get a large client base.”
    “They must be really proud of you.”
    “You would think. I’m not exactly the suit wearing business guy they wanted me to be.”
    “I know I don’t know you very well, but I can’t imagine you in a suit and tie working in an office or cubicle.” He playfully opens his mouth like he can’t believe I said that. “They should be very proud of you, Ty. You have accomplished so much.”
    “Thanks, it’s nice to hear someone thinks you’re doing well sometimes.” His expression changes from gratitude to serious. “My grandparents, they always wanted the best for me. They planned out what I was going to do from the moment Elizabeth left.” I give him a questioning look. He shifts his weight as if he’s a little uncomfortable. “Elizabeth is my mom. She didn’t turn out like they wanted, so they made sure I was the perfect child. I took art classes, had tutors, played sports. I always tried hard to please them. I got good grades, hung out with a crowd I knew they would approve of. Yet, sometimes, trouble found me. I think I was the typical fucked up kid doing some acting out.”
    “Where is your mom now?” Our beers are gone and he opens us up another. I can tell this is a subject not touched much. “You don’t have to answer that. I think I’ve been nosy enough.”
    “No, not at all, Stella. I’m sorry, you asked me my age and I’ve given you…what did you say earlier? TMI, right?” I laugh now that he is throwing my lines at me. “What to tell