Page 3

Mango meows louder this time. That’s her hungry meow. I shake my head at her. “No, angel. I gave you food a little while ago, and the vet said I need to cut down on extra treats.”

She blinks at me blankly and meows again.

“Sweetheart, I’m busy,” I grumble, attempting tolook back at the screen despite her demands. I’ve missed Tiffany removing her sweater, and she’s laughing at a joke someone made in the chat.

Dammit.

I attempt to lift the orange furball off my lap, and she wriggles wildly in protest, knocking into my mouse and keyboard, then leaping down to the floor with a bewildered, hurt expression.

“I love you, but you’re so weird!” I shake my head at her antics, and when she leaves my bedroom with a loud yowl, I shut the door behind me.

Settling back down at my desk, I sigh and begin straightening out the things Mango knocked over.

“This is an unexpected surprise,” I hear Tiffany say, and I look up to see what’s going on in the stream. The chat box is empty, and she’s looking at the camera expectantly.

It takes me a second to process that she’s talking to me. My heart leaps up into my throat and I frantically scroll up. In her fit of cat weirdness, Mango must’ve hit the button to send tokens to request a private session.

Fuck. What do I do? Oh gods. Oh gods.

A sweet smile spreads across Tiffany’s perfect, plush lips. “A really good surprise, in case that wasn’t clear.”

I’m dead. Mango knocked over my glass of water and somehow I got fried from the liquid touching the electrical equipment. There’s no way I’m in a privatewith the camgirl I’m obsessed with and she’s telling me she’s happy about our alone time.

CHAPTER 2

EMMA

It’s been a long day.

A morning filled with chores I’ve been putting off, followed by an afternoon taking my dad to the doctor for his remission checkup. He understandably gets stressed going on his own after everything he’s been through, and I don’t mind going with him, because I’m just thankful that he’s still here to spend time together with at all. Plus, going with him lets me put to use some of the knowledge I gained from my nursing degree.

A degree I’m not even using.

A familiar pang of guilt forms in my stomach at the thought. My brother worked his ass off to make sure I wouldn’t have to drop out of school and hasn’t said a word about the fact that I’m not working as a nurse. As grumpy as Noah is, he’s the kindest, most supportive brother a girl could ever ask for. Which only makesthings worse, because his kindness makes me feel like a monster for taking advantage of his support.

Ugh, now really isn’t the time to be worrying about my guilty conscience, but it’s hard to ignore on days when I’m already stressed.

It’s not like I knew I wanted to do something else when I was in nursing school. You’d have to be crazy to subject yourself to all the stress and rigorous coursework required to become an RN just for the hell of it. No, I really thought I wanted to be a nurse. I wanted to help people after seeing how important and valuable a good nurse was both with Mom before she passed, and with Dad during his fight with cancer.

I’d like to think I’m still helping people, only with fewer needles and more dirty talk.

I push my worries away and look into the webcam, trying to send as much comfort and ease as I can to the man watching me. I’m dying to know what prompted GentleGiant to request a private so abruptly, but I don’t want to scare him off. He’s by far the sweetest viewer I’ve had in my lives in ages, always asking how my day’s been, giving sincere compliments, and never pushing my boundaries. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind if he asked me for more, so I’m glad he took the plunge on getting some one on one time.

Tonight’s stream started off a little rocky, but knowing he was there helped me stay focused on what Ienjoy about camming—showing off my body and chatting with appreciative viewers.

I tried out camming on a whim as a way to make some cash on the side, and in the process, stumbled upon something I enjoy that pays a hell of a lot more than being a nurse. Maybe it’s shortsighted to focus on my camgirl work over utilizing my nursing degree, but if the past few years have taught me anything, it’s that I should do what I love now because you never know how much time you have on this earth.

And I love being a camgirl, as strange as that may seem to some. It combines all of my best assets: my confidence in my body and sexuality, my ability to make people feel comfortable talking to me, and my no-nonsense attitude. I love my body more than ever, even with the occasional fat shaming and rude comments from viewers. I enjoy talking to strangers and connecting with them. Just because it’s centered on sex and desire doesn’t make the service I offer shameful or wrong.

A myriad of questions flit through my mind as I wait for a reply from GentleGiant, and I fiddle with the strap of my dress that he complimented. I know I shouldn’t care about a viewer’s opinion on it beyond getting them to stick around to watch me, but when I picked it out, I may have had him in mind. He always loves when I wear something extra soft and feminine.

As the seconds tick by with no response, I get a littleconcerned. Is he shy? Is he having a hard time talking because he wants me to do something really freaky? Maybe both? Is he the kind of guy that will want to spend our time venting about all his troubles, or will he want me to put on a filthy show?

GentleGiant paid me triple the number of tokens I usually ask for to do a private session, so he clearly wantssomethingfrom me.

When the silence stretches out for a few beats longer, I prompt him again. “I know it can feel different when it’s just the two of us. Harder to say what you want when it’s so direct. But I’m here and I’m happy to give you what you need.” I smile reassuringly at the camera, playing with the ends of my hair. “It’s okay if you’re too shy to turn on your camera or mic. You can use the chat if that’s easier. I want us to have a good time together, in whatever way works best for you.”

It may sound like a bunch of bullshit, but my words are sincere. I’m a sexual person and I enjoy seeing what other people are into and helping them explore their desires in a way that’s pretty safe for everyone involved. Yeah, some people are complete assholes and it doesn’t feel great to be called a fat whore, but I know my worth. I’m hot, I’m kind, and I’m damn good at this work.