Chapter 1 – Mr. January

It had been fun, Bella had to admit. Her, Rosalie and Alice had spent hours poring over the catalogue of male models. She had shortlisted a possible twenty 'lucky' guys, who Rose had then contacted to interview. One was gay and a couple had girlfriends, so they were eliminated pretty quickly. Between them, they narrowed it down to the final twelve. Bella felt like Tyra Banks on some fucked-up version of America's Next Top Model.

Now the first day of the photo shoot had finally arrived and Bella was starting to feel a tinge of regret. What the hell was she doing? She knew she couldn't back out now though. Working for Eclipse was too good an opportunity to miss and she knew Rose wouldn't let her live it down if she backed out of the other part of the challenge too. Plus, the model she had picked to be Mr. January was even hotter in the flesh than in his photo…

His name was Emmett. She had immediately been drawn to his picture by his sparkling blue eyes and cheeky smile. And, if she was being honest, his bulging muscles. And, if she was being really honest, his bulging pants.

Emmett was sat in a chair being fussed over by Alice, who was doing his hair and make up. Bella always worked with Alice on her photo shoots, and this had the added bonus of her friend being able to play wing-woman and put in a good word for her. He was wearing a white toweling robe and presumably nothing else. Bella had to admit the thought of his taut muscles underneath was making her feel something she hadn't felt in a long time. The top of the robe was gaping open to reveal the tanned skin covering Emmett's massive pecs. She imagined slipping the robe open ever further and running her hands over that smooth chest, and down… Focus, Bella!

She cleared her throat and surreptitiously readjusted her tight V-neck t-shirt and miracle-boost bra. Emmett had revealed in his interview to Rose that he was a 'breast man.' Bella had initially protested at her choice, unsure that she had what it would take to interest him, until Alice reassured her she could give her a bust to die for with the right underwear. She hadn't lied. Bella's boobs looked fucking great.

"Hi Emmett, I'm Bella. I'm your photographer today." She leaned forward and held out a hand, which he shook after a pause to stare at her chest. Alice smiled gave Bella a sneaky thumbs-up behind his back. "Are you all set?"

"Yep, raring to go." He flashed Bella the irresistible dimpled grin she had been so drawn to in his portfolio pictures. "How long do you think the shoot will take?"

"Well, that all depends on how good you are," Bella said in what she hoped was a flirtatious manner. She'd been with Mike so long she was really out of practice at these things. "I'm hoping it won't take too long though. I want to be out in time for the game tonight." A light flashed in his eyes. It was all about the game. Bella felt a tiny bit manipulative at playing him like this with the information Rose had gained from her interview. But she was also enjoying the rapport that she could feel building with this super-hot guy.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Emmett stood up from the make-up chair, his blue eyes locked with Bella's. She didn't want to count her chickens, but she felt like she had him hooked. Was it really going to be this easy? Boobs and football?

Without looking away, in one deft movement, Emmett slipped out of his robe and let it drop to the floor. Bella could hear Alice let out a little gasp. Before she could even gather herself and think about where to look, Emmett strode over to the winter-themed set. "I'm ready for my close up."

Bella gulped. Her eyes involuntarily scanned up and down his naked body. He really was a fine specimen of a man. She reminded herself that she had to be professional – at least until after the shoot. But it was going to be difficult to keep her thoughts from wandering into smutsville…

Bella's reverie was rudely interrupted by someone bursting through the door behind her. She turned around, fuming. This was supposed to be a closed set.

"Sorry… I'm… late!" panted the intruder, between ragged breaths. "First I got on the wrong train, then when I did get on the right one it was delayed for some reason. And this place was pretty hard to find, you know."

"Erm, I'm sorry – who are you?" asked Bella putting her hands on her hips. This guy seemed to think he was supposed to be here. She was pretty sure he wasn't one of the models turning up at her studio on the wrong day. She took in the battered baseball cap, huge dorky glasses and rumpled t-shirt. Definitely not a model.

"Edward Cullen, at your service," he smiled, wiping a hand on his skinny jeans before offering it to Bella.

"And you're here why, exactly?" She reluctantly took his hand, gave it a limp shake.

"Oh, I'm your new assistant." New cock-blocker more like, thought Bella.

"I don't have an assistant."

"You do now," he flashed her a crooked smile. Bella noticed his teeth weren't perfectly straight. "Esme Cullen is my aunt. She's offered me some work experience on this shoot. The whole calendar thing, I mean. So here I am. Rosalie didn't mention it to you?"

"No. She didn't." Bella threw an exasperated look at Alice, who was packing away her make-up kit. Edward didn't seem to notice it. Alice just shrugged.

"I was stoked when Esme told me I'd be working with the Bella Swan. I'm a huge fan of yours."

"You… you know my work?" Bella was slightly taken aback at his confession. She'd never met a fan before.

"Yeah, I follow your photo blog religiously. I thought the People's Park portraits you posted were just stunning." He lowered his voice. "I've got to admit, I was pretty surprised when my aunt told me you were shooting a nudey calendar for Eclipse magazine, but hey, I guess it's a job, right?" Bella pursed her lips, silently fuming inside. He was right, of course. After the effects of too many cosmos had worn off and Bella faced the reality of her decision in the cold light of day, she questioned the integrity of what she had agreed to. Not just the extracurricular challenge that Rose had set her, but the actual job itself. Was this really the direction she wanted her photography career to go in? Nevertheless, she was not about to admit that to this nerdy work experience kid.

"Actually, the nude form is considered one of the highest forms of art. Just look at Michelangelo's David." She gave Edward a tight smile.

"I think I could actually be looking at him right now…" Bella followed Edward's admiring gaze towards Emmett, who, apparently unfazed by the newcomer in the room, was practicing poses and did not look dissimilar to the famous statue.

"He's quite something, isn't he?" It was Alice. "Bella, I've got to scoot. Give me a call if you need anything. Oh, and good luck." She winked.

It didn't take long for Bella to get the shot she needed. Emmett was a natural and she told him so. "Aw, it's nothing," he said, modestly, as he reclined on the chaise longue draped in white furs. "Most of the work I get is underwear shoots. I'm used to stripping off. If you've got it, flaunt it, right?"

"Right. And you've certainly got it, Emmett. You're looking amazing." Flattery will get you everywhere. In the background, she thought she heard Edward scoff. Ugh, she had to get rid of him. He was totally cramping the little style she had. "Hey Edward, can you go to Starbucks and get me a coffee? Tall skinny vanilla latte. Emmett, do you want anything?" He shook his head, causing the strategically placed scrap of fur to slip a little and revealing to Bella that he was really enjoying this photo shoot. She felt herself blushing.

"Where's the nearest Starbucks?" Edward asked, begrudgingly. She could tell he didn't want to go, that he felt this sort of task was beneath him, but she didn't care. This was work experience after all. Interns were expected to do this kind of crap. Bella proceeded to give Edward some long and overcomplicated directions to ensure he would get lost. With any luck, her latte would be cold by the time he got back and she could send him out for another one.

With Edward gone, Bella felt the atmosphere in the studio shift. Emmett stared sexily into her camera with come-to-bed eyes and she felt butterflies in her stomach… and somewhere lower down. She told herself he was just doing his job, that he was being paid to look at her like this; but she knew she wasn't imagining the sexual tension in the room. As he fluidly changed poses, flexing and tensing his muscles, she could tell he was enjoying performing for her. He was basking in her stare like a cat in the sunlight.

Emmett pulled himself up onto his knees, casually holding the fur cloth teasingly in front of him, revealing just enough for Bella to feel her pulse quicken. She was thankful to Alice for the padded miracle-boost bra for the second time that day, as she knew it was masking her excitement beneath her thin cotton t-shirt.

"Do you like this?" he asked, looking straight at Bella, a knowing smile playing around his lips.

She swallowed. "Yeah, that works." Bella didn't know what else to say. She'd come to work that day prepared to seduce Emmett. Now it felt like the tables had turned and he was pursuing her. It was thrilling, but also a little scary. She'd been dating Mike since high school and couldn't remember the last time a guy hit on her – let alone a hot, naked guy.

"What about… this?" he let the fur drop. Bella could see the full extent of his arousal.

She smiled and bit her lip. "Erm, I don't think that's quite what the magazine is looking for…"

"I'm not asking the magazine. I'm asking you. Do you like this?"

Bella fixed him with a challenging stare and starting taking more photos.

"I'll take that as a 'yes,'" Emmett laughed.

Author's note: I hope you like what you've read so far. More to follow soon... I'm a fanfic virgin so would love some feedback - please review! :)