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“God.” Drew groaned as they finished, pulling the toy from their clit as they tried to catch their breath.

As they lay in bed, sweat dripping down their forehead, Drew closed their eyes. All they really wanted was to feel Rose’s head rest on their chest. To feel her breathing settle as she drifted off to sleep.

Drew’s eyes shot open as they caught themself in the thought.

That’s not good.

12

ROSE

By the timeEllen and Finley were strolling into the park, it was already nine at night. Rose had spent most of the day roaming around the East Village after storming out of Drew’s.

“Hey, sorry that took a minute!” Ellen brought her friend in for a hug.

Rose lingered in the hug for a minute, holding onto her friend for longer than either of them expected. When she finally pulled back, Fin came right in with another hug.

They sat down on a park bench across from the dog park to watch the pre-bedtime crowd: dozens of dogs goofily sprinting around with their last bits of energy. Rose was so engrossed that she couldn’t talk about anything else for a while.

“I love that Great Dane; he takes no shit.” Rose crossed her arms as she watched the gentle giant parade around the park.

Fin watched her with a wrinkled brow. “What’s going on, Ro?”

With a deep sigh, Rose shook her head. “That fucking photographer is…” Her voice trailed off as she tried to find a way to succinctly explain what an ass Drew was.

“Yeah, Drew is a bit of a traditionalist.” Ellen laughed, clearly having gotten a taste of Drew’s pretension during the planning phase of the engagement.

“To say the least.” Rose rolled her eyes. “I love you guys, and I love working on your photos, but I can’t wait for this project to be over. If I never saw them again, it’d be too soon.”

Ellen put her hand on Rose’s knee reassuringly. “Look, once you guys send all the pictures to us, you’ll just have one more shoot to get through. If you could do that job with the naked guy, you can definitely get through this..”

Rose whipped her head around to meet Ellen’s gaze. “What?”

“Maybe now isn’t the best time…” Fin cleared her throat, squinting at Ellen.

Ellen groaned. “I thought you told her.”

Before Fin could give a good excuse, Ellen was already shaking her head.

“Told me what?” Rose raised a finger to make sure they didn’t forget she was sitting right there.

Fin bit her lip. “I may have mentioned you guys working together to a friend who was planning a maternity shoot, and she may be, like… very wealthy and excited. I bumped your rate up 20 percent!”

Rose’s head dropped, the weight of her head dangling listlessly. “Fin, are you serious?”

“To be fair, you’re both so talented, and the blend of the work is great. Drew sent us a scan of the negatives and it’s so fresh!” Ellen tried to come to her fiancée’s rescue.

“More like fresh hell.” Rose snipped, crossing her arms at the thought of having to spend more time with Drew. “They won’t compromise on anything, and they constantly demean my work.”

Ellen scoffed. “Why are you letting them?”

Rose could hardly believe what came out of Ellen’s mouth. And clearly, Fin couldn’t believe it either – their mouth hung open in surprise.

“Excuse me?” Rose laughed the words out as she looked into Ellen’s eyes. They told Rose that she was entirely serious, even if the words had come out a bit harsh.

“Ellen…” Fin stammered.

With a deep sigh, Ellen lifted her hands in surrender. “Look. Honestly, Rose? You’ve never been one to let someone walk all over you. You might give too many second chances, but you always stand your ground.”