One True Thing Read Free Page A

great light, and I needed it for my
    job.
    “Um, so what do I have to do?” Britney
    asked. She was my third Britney in a month.
    Before that had been Ashlee, Jessica, and Cindi—
    all hopeful, all down on their luck. They’d come to
    me, hoping I’d give them the look to get hired.
    Most of them assumed I’d want something other
    than money in return.
    I coughed. “The bathroom’s right there if you
    want to check your makeup or hair. I’m useless at
    that. I’ll get the studio prepped.”
    “You mean—”
    She thought I wanted sex. I shook my head.
    “Just go ahead and get ready. I’ll get my cameras
    set up.”
    I fiddled with my tripod and the draping that
    I’d set up. Britney had requested my “vampy”
    package, so I’d gotten out the red velvet curtains
    earlier, and set up the bed in the corner with silk
    sheets, lamps, and candles. It looked like a scene
    right out of some teenaged girl’s fantasy. Britney
    probably had been one of those daydreaming teens
    not too long ago. Too bad all she got was a gay
    photographer to take her picture, and if she was
    lucky, a career in porn.
    “Um, I’m ready.” The girl stood hesitantly in
    the doorway to my studio room.
    “Okay, let’s start with a few in your street
    clothes, some face shots, and then we’ll move on
    from there.” I kept my voice businesslike but
    gentle. Britney looked a little more scared than the
    rest of them. I gestured to a plain wooden chair.
    “Why don’t you sit on that chair backward? Rest
    your face on your forearms.”
    She walked hesitantly over and straddled the
    chair, resting her face on her arms like I’d
    instructed. I guessed she was one of those girls
    who was barely out of high school. She was
    eighteen, I’d made her show ID, but I would guess
    she hadn’t been away from home for long.
    Runaway? Kicked out? I had heard just about
    every story. They usually started to talk when they
    realized that I wasn’t ever going to touch them.
    “This okay?”
    “Looks great,” I said. Truthfully, she had too
    much makeup on, and the poor thing was fake-
    tanned within an inch of her life, but they all
    wanted a break so desperately. I saw in her eyes
    that Britney was no different. “Okay, let’s do some
    shots with your bra and panties.”
    “O-okay. Just take my jeans off?”
    I nodded and gestured to a hook over in the
    corner of the room. It was the part I hated most.
    Not the actual pictures, but asking the girls to take
    off their clothes. Truth was, if they wanted a job,
    they’d have to do it. But it didn’t mean I liked
    asking. Britney’s jeans and tank top disappeared
    quickly, and she stood awkwardly by the bed. I
    had to hold in a sigh. It was going to be one of
    those.
    “So, Britney, the way this works is I’m going
    to need a variety of shots both from the front and
    the back, with your underwear and then naked. It’s
    best if you start in a position that’s comfortable,
    and we’ll go from there, okay?”
    “Okay,” she answered with a tentative smile.
    She crawled, coltish and unsure, onto the bed, and
    tried her best to strike a sexy pose. I started
    clicking and gave her as much encouragement as I
    could muster.
    By the skin of our combined teeth, Britney
    and I managed to get through the photo shoot
    without major mishap, and enough decent shots that
    I could have some ready for her to send to different
    studios. Part of me wanted to tell her that anything,
    even flipping burgers, was better, but then I thought
    that maybe it really wasn’t so bad. “It’s just sex,”
    my brother Archer always told me. “Quit taking
    shit so seriously.”
    “Why are you so nice?” Britney’s voice
    surprised the hell out of me. I’d been in the kitchen
    pouring an iced tea and letting her dress on her
    own.
    “What do you mean?”
    “I mean, you’re the first guy I’ve met in this
    business who didn’t assume I’d be ready for sex.
    Why?”
    I shrugged. I didn’t feel the need to tell