The First Photoshoot

With the exception that she wore tiny little shorts instead of leather pants, her outfit was almost an exact replica of his fighting stage outfit for the Arena. Of all the stunts Celi could have possibly pulled today, he hadn't counted on something like this. What was she thinking?! Was she purposely trying to make him want to jump her in front of her team members? Because there was no way they'd be able to stop him if he were to lose control and go after her, and it would take some time for the police to arrive if they were called. Unsure of when exactly it had dropped in the first place, John' s mouth snapped shut quickly.

If there was any way he could have stayed calm and not be bothered by Celi's portrayal of his fighter outfit, he would have gladly done without hesitation. Unfortunately, being calm and nerve-dead was not something that could be used to describe the hot-headed combatant. And John had to try to stamp down his desire as best as he could. It was easier said than done. So he did the next best thing. Turn around and simply walk out.

John kept up a brisk pace as he walked, his long legs giving him a good advantage of covering ground faster than Celi. It wasn't that he didn't like the outfit or how she looked in it - on the contrary, it looked absolutely amazing on her - but seeing her like that in front of other people? Yeah, that wasn't okay. Had Celi decided to don the replica of his suit while he was over at her house, there would have been several lewd remarks flying out of his mouth. And quite a bit of fun, most likely. But they weren't alone together and they were going to be doing a photo shoot. With other people watching. Was she going to have topless pictures of herself taken? And how many people would be seeing her like that?

He didn't know, but he didn't like the idea of other people oogling her 'goods'. Not that John should really give two shits about what she did or how many partners Celi might have had. It wasn't as if he was innocent or gentlemanly, with all his former conquests. And he didn't even know her for very long. Just a few days, really. So why was he getting all jealous over nothing? Because he damn well can, that's why! Reason or no reason, it didn't matter. All that mattered was trying to keep control of himself while he was at the college. Not for his own sake, but for Celi, Terry, and any of his siblings that might want to attend the college someday.

When Celi called his name and cried out for him, he ignored her and walked into the stairway, descending the first flight of stairs as she struggled to catch up with him. It served her right! But his pace slowed as he reached the halfway divide between the stairs. Allowing the designer to catch up with him, he waited until she was standing with him on the small walkway before suddenly whipping around to face her. "You crazy broad! Just what the hell is going through your head, dressing like that in public?!" John snapped in a low voice, trying to control his temper, "I've been busting my ass since four in the morning and you decide to go topless? That's not very nice. You keep pushing me and one of these days I might not be able to hold myself back. Then you're gonna be in a shitload of trouble."

John blinked at her in mild confusion for a moment before it registered. "You think I'm pissed off?" He asked, his voice still tense, "I'm not. I'm just trying to keep myself from molesting you in front of your friends. I'm trying to behave myself so you wouldn't have a hard time with getting me to do your modeling thing. You know... like you asked me not to give you a hard time? You're making that really hard right now." Icy blue eyes pierced into hers as he looked at her pointedly. It was the truth, just not all of it.

It wasn't like he could just come right out and tell her that he was getting jealous of the thought of anyone else seeing her in various stages or dress - or undress. They weren't even dating. It was actually kind of ridiculous to be jealous over someone who wasn't even his in the first place. If he admitted to that, Celi would probably laugh at him. Or tell her friends... and that would spell humiliation and disaster for him. No, he'd rather have her furious with him and yelling. As long as Celi didn't start crying, any reaction was fine by him. But he figured he should probably clear things up with her first. "If you really want to know, I was headed to the bathroom on the first floor to cool off. The walk would do me good."

John stiffened when Celi leaned her forehead against his chest, having not gotten the chance to cool off. But at least she was calm now and not upset with him anymore. Well... she was probably going to be upset with him a lot as long as they worked together, so that was a moot point. But at least she understood why he left. He just couldn't say anything earlier, because knowing him, most of his initial reaction would have been swearing or something of the same ilk.

But he didn't want her to feel guilty either. It wasn't as if Celi was a mind reader, nor had she known him long enough to predict his reactions, so it really wasn't her fault that he stalked off. Letting his gaze drift from one stairway to the other, he made sure no one was coming. When he was satisfied that they were alone, he wrapped his arms around her in a hug. It was tight, solid and probably uncomfortable to her since she wasn't used to getting hugged by him, but she'd just have to put up with it. Mostly because John sucked at verbally trying to comfort people. "Don't feel guilty." He said flatly, his request sounding slightly like an order.

"I dunno. Maybe because we don't know each other all that well yet?" John suggested, deciding that that was most likely their problem. That and it was the only thing he could think of that didn't involve directly admitting that he was an asshole (which she probably already surmised by now) or that she didn't know how to handle him yet. Despite they're differences, in how they talked, acted and handled things, they could probably hit it off wonderfully if they put their minds to it.

All in all, his reaction hadn't been the best plan of action. It had definitely been the safest, but had he been able to at least give her an explanation, Celi wouldn't be on a guilt trip right now. He'd told her not to feel guilty, but that seemed to make it worse. Well, John might not feel inclined to tell her everything, but he could at least admit something. Tilting his head down a little, he kept his voice low, "You know, I actually do like that outfit. Maybe you should wear it again sometime... in private."

A soft chuckle escaped him as he stared down at Celi. "Well, if that's what you really want." John feigned disinterest, "And here I was going to really be looking forward to it. Maybe I might even show you a few moves if you wanted to learn how to protect yourself. Buuuut if you don't really wanna wrestle around with me at your place while you wear that outfit, I understand. I am a pretty scary guy after all. And who knows what might happen. You and I might end up in an embarrassing and compromising position or something like that."

Her state of dress, or undress actually, was quite hypnotizing. If he stayed here with her for too long, there was no telling what he might do. The urge to touch her was already starting to whisper to him, but he dismissed it. "We should probably get back to doing your little photo shoot now. Maybe after we're done you and I can head out somewhere?"

Oh, so she wanted him to take her out on a date did she? Well, he just might be able to swing that. Celi hadn't seemed to mind riding in his truck with him a few nights ago, so his driving wasn't an issue with her. It was a bit of a surprise that she was so willing to wear her current outfit for him so soon. John had thought for sure she'd give him a hard time. But that apparently wasn't the case. She was just full of surprises now, wasn't she? Not that it was a bad thing. He was more than willing to see her strut around in that outfit for as long as her heart desired.

To top it all off, the designer did want to learn some moves from him and he would readily comply. After all, she and her little sister were practically sitting ducks while they were living practically all alone. Security system or not, they needed to be able to defend themselves from attackers and criminals. What better way to teach Celi to defend herself than to wrestle around with her while she was wearing the outfit she was currently dressed in? "You're on." John said, grinning at her, "A date after work, then I'll teach you some moves."

"Yeah, you're right. Let's get back in there before they put a mob together and come lookin' for us." John said, leading her back up the stairway, "I don't know about you, but I don't want to have them freakin' out, thinking I'd hurt you or some shit like that. People spread rumors like that about me all the time. I don't exactly need another one right now, especially if you want me to take you out in public tonight."

The two of them headed back up the stairs and down the hall at a relaxed pace. John still didn't feel completely at ease with Celi's current outfit choice, still wanted to do something about it - like tear her clothes off and have his way with her - but he had to be good. For now anyway. It wouldn't do either of them any good if he decided to start acting like an animal while they were still in public. So he'd behave and do whatever she asked of him (within reason) while they did the photo shoot. But the moment he got Celi out to his truck? She was fair game then. Opening the door for her in a show of chivarly he motioned her inside. "Ladies first."

What a zoo. John watched as Gala bombarded Celi with question after question - some being rather personal and none of his business - as soon as the poor girl walked back into the room. He'd be upset with the questions and the way her friend was acting if he wasn't used to most people being scared witless of him. One question in particular caught his attention and made him crack a grin, however. And before the fighter could really think twice about it, because it was just too good of an opportunity to pass up, he was already asking Gala in an amused tone, "Did we do the nasty? Why? Did you wanna watch or something? Maybe take some pictures? A few glossy eight by tens might spruce up my room a little bit, you know."

His reaction was absolutely priceless! The abject horror written all over Gala's face almost made John lose his cool and burst out laughing! The cowboy's humorous accusation had really struck a nerve in the blonde and had him positively defensive. John feigned disinterest in the whole scene, mentioning to Gala, "You know, denial is the first step in realizing and admitting that you have a peeping problem. And I see nothing wrong with putting pictures of Celi and I on my wall. We are here for a photo shoot, right?"

Unfortunately, Celi's outburst killed off his entertainment for the time being. The magenta haired designer having a frustrated ad somewhat embarrassed look on her face. Killjoy. Ah well, it was fun while it lasted. John thought, shaking his head at her. "All right, all right. I was just pickin' on him anyway. No hard feelings, okay?" John questioned, lifting a brow, "I figured it was payback for nosin' into someone else's business. But let's get on with this photo shoot already."

"Okay then, so you want real emotions." John said, keeping his face carefully neutral despite the fact that Celi was currently topless, "What kind of emotions do you want from me? And do you really want to take pictures of me in my work clothes? I mean, I should actually wear the outfits you made, instead of what I'm wearing. I'm covered in dust and drywall mix, after all."

"No offense taken." John said, easily taking the outfit Lexi was holding out to him. It looked like something he'd wear on a regular basis anyway, only it was new, clean and made specifically for him. He removed his hat and set it down on top of one of the nearby sewing machines, then pulled off his shirt with a practiced ease. It was obvious - to the two of them - that he had been using his hard boiled egg trick regularly, as his mild bruises were completely gone and the ones that had been darker were now so light that they were nearly unnoticeable.

Without any hesitation or care that he was in the presence of others, John unfastened his jeans and dropped them as per usual. He had done the same thing twice on the night Celi had scouted him out, much to her embarrassment. A slight smile curved his lips as the memory of her reddened cheeks and utter shyness at seeing him stark naked played in his mind. Luckily for Celi and her team, John had actually heeded her advice and had worn a pair of low cut briefs today, though if anything, they drew more focus to his package. He really didn't like the feeling of wearing underwear, but then again, having several people see him naked probably wouldn't fly with Celi.

Pulling the dark denim jeans on first, he slid the black leather chaps over them quickly and buckled them, making sure his outfit was good to go. The belts were tightened to fit him comfortably, the boots adorned his feet easily and he felt fairly good wearing the clothes. Pulling his hat back on over his curly brown hair, he adjusted it, tipping it towards her a little. "Ready when you are." He said with a grin. The sooner they could get through this, the sooner he could get her alone all to himself.