#zach wellison x nanette dougherty ofc

[chaoticgeminate]

You're So Classic (vi)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features toxic level parenting, bad relationships with Christianity, and corrupt authority. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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BLT (k)

Zach wasn’t usually the type to buy style magazines, he hardly ever saw the need before, but now there was definitely a small stack he kept at home. All of them shared one thing, Nanette was featured in the spread somewhere, and his initial idea was to make a cut-out collage as a sort of time capsule for the growth of her career. Something tangible she could keep since the fashion world was so cutthroat, designers rose and fell in the same day even, but then he’d seen the pictures.

Beautiful, of course, there was no denying that she looked stunning. But Zach could see where the photos had been edited, where the few freckles she had were hidden with make-up and digital touch-ups, her waist was far too narrow here than what he knew it really was. But keeping these around felt like it might be a bad thing, taking into consideration her reaction to waking up bloated, he’d never forget that haunted look he’d caught so briefly on her face as she panicked about it and tried to hide it from him.

Instead he kept the magazines on his bookshelf, he knew that Nanette was aware of them since she’d giggled when she saw the first one earn its place on his side table, but she herself never looked through them so he had opted to put them up. He wasn’t going to assume the worst about what she might be going through since that wasn’t his place, but he kept those concerns in his back pocket for now until he felt they were valid or if she addressed it first.

Ramirez had seen the narrow magazine spines on his bookshelf when he’d shown up but he wasn’t willing to ask questions yet, Zach knew the other man had plenty of them but there was a lot of respect for privacy between the two of them. He’d let Ramirez disappear for two weeks, no questions asked, and just told everyone else it was a vacation when Zach knew it was much more severe than that; he didn’t know the specifics but it hadn’t been his business, and he refused to let the man go jobless because of whatever it was. Since then they’d been close, the other man had plenty of opportunities to leave and just hadn’t, and Zach knew that he had someone in his corner who would go to bat for him at the drop of a dime.

“Miso butter roasted potatoes. What do you think?” He was recipe testing with Ramirez, the other vet was not only his head chef but one of his best friends, and once a month they would spend a day or two off together to tweak the menu here and there. Ramirez hummed as he took a bite of the lightly crispy outside, fluffy inside, potato and the other man nodded in approval. Zach tried it and hummed too, putting a check onto the recipe card and dropping it into the box for approved recipes, and then Ramirez was handing him a ramekin with fish pie inside.

It was a European thing, he was sure, maybe even a specifically British thing but he didn’t know quite yet and would have to look it up later; the soft mashed potatoes and creamy filling were good, it wasn’t necessarily his taste but he couldn’t deny that it was worthy of popping up on the specials board. His diner definitely was known for American classics but LA was a food melting pot and the occasional times he offered something more international always earned new diners coming to check it out.

“This is kind of heavy but it isn’t bad, like a shepherds pie but with fish.”

“That’s what I was thinking, I put a little more mustard than what the recipe suggested to try and brighten it up a little bit. I think we should play with the filling flavor a little because we’re working with US ingredients compared to UK stuff which is bound to have even a little different flavor profiles, but I think this one works.”

Zach watched Ramirez go back to the pie filling and smiled, moving on to the next recipe on the list, and he smiled at the general peace involved with the routine of it all. A knock on the door made him exhale a little, patting Ramirez on the back after washing his hands, and Zach nearly froze at the sight of a police officer on his doorstep.

“Are you Zachary Wellison?”

“Yes, Officer. Is something wrong?”

“I need you to get down on your knees and keep your hands where I can see them. You’re being detained for questioning based on reports of assault.“

Zach found himself blindsided as he was handcuffed, though the officer did allow him to at the very least slide into his slip-on sneakers so that he wasn’t marched barefoot to the squad car, and the officer’s partner was reading off his Miranda rights. Ramirez was talking with the initial officer about options for bail if it led to an arrest. 

None of Zach’s neighbors were home at least. Maybe it was stupid but he didn’t want them to think he had actually done what he was being accused of. It was harder to prove yourself innocent than it should be in this day and age.

He didn’t ask questions, he didn’t speak up, because he knew that he needed to get a lawyer stat, but he was genuinely confused. From the wording it sounded like he was a suspect, not that it was a hard accusation, but he had no idea who would even accuse him of something like that. When he did go out to bars with others he never allowed himself to get drunk, he never allowed himself to have more than a few beers or drinks in general because he knew that he was sloppy, but even then he’d never been an aggressive drunk.

The squad car moved through the traffic with ease, finally arriving at the station, and Zach was led into a room with a metal chair and cheap table. As he took his seat the officer took off the cuffs, allowing him to rub his wrists slightly, before someone who could only be a police detective entered the room and sat down across from him.

“Hello Zachary, I’ve got a couple of questions for you.”

“I’d like a lawyer first, please.”

“Of course, there’s one on their way. I don’t want to keep you here longer than I need to, son.”

“I understand that, sir, however I will not be answering any questions until a lawyer is present as is my right.”

The detective leaned back in his seat and nodded, leaving Zach to stare at the table in silence as they waited, the ticking of the clock and the low hum of the fluorescent lights filling the void of the room with background noise. He didn’t know if it had been hours, or days, before the detective got up when a low buzz sounded and someone else walked in. The woman was professional, her salt and pepper hair in a loose bob that fell to her collar bones, and her eyes were sharp.

“Hello Zachary, my name is Margaret McCall. I am your state-provided legal representative.”

“Hello ma’am, thank you for coming.”

“Of course, young man, I appreciate your manners. Now I understand you’re being detained due to accusations of assault?”

“Yes, ma’am, that’s all I know at the moment as I refused to speak with the detective until I had a lawyer.”

Margaret nodded her head in approval before looking at the glass mirror, the detective returning and sitting down his his folder once again.

“Zachary, where were you three nights ago?”

“At work, sir, I own The Chow Hall. The diner on-“

“Ah, yes, the diner for veterans. So you’re a veteran then, thank you for your service.”

His jaw tightened as he gritted out a ‘thank you for your support’ despite wanting to be silent, the cops always seemed to think that just because he was ex-military that he bled blue, and the detective pulled out the photograph of a young woman.

“Do you recognize this woman, Zachary?”

“She comes into the diner after a night out drinking with her friends, it’s a pretty common event, usually weekly. But I only help on the floor when the servers need me, usually I’m in the office or the kitchen.”

“That’s the only place you know her from? You don’t go out partying in her circles?”

“No sir, I only know her from the diner.”

The detective put the photograph away and crossed his arms on the table.

“You have proof that you were at work, son? The whole shift?”

“Yes, sir, we have security cameras. I can access the feed and records from my phone, if you want that proof immediately.”

“Give me a few minutes, son. Let me check with the tech team.”

After he left the room Margaret hummed, scribbling something in her notebook, and Zach glanced at her as she closed the front page.

“The good news is that they have nothing to hold you here, especially with security footage proof on your end as to where you were, so you shouldn’t be detained much longer. In the event that they find something, do you have the name and number of friends or family I could call to confirm details of your week?”

“I do, would you like me to write them for you?”

“Yes, please, Mr. Wellison.”

He scribbled down the information for Ramirez and after only a moment’s hesitation for Nanette as well, though he did make sure to leave a note that she was currently visiting family in Texas and would only be available via video call if they needed to see her face for any reason. He looked up as the door opened and the detective sat down, empty handed this time, before Zach was handed his cellphone.

“If you could access those cameras for me, son, while I can watch you do it I would be appreciative. We’ll need you to send us a copy of the records from 20:00 to 03:30, unaltered. If they’re tampered with we will know.”

Zach made sure to keep his phone tilted so that the cameras in the corner could pick up what he was doing as he accessed the camera app, opening the video feed from three nights ago and creating the clipped segment that he sent to the detective’s e-mail. Once it was received, after the details were confirmed, Zach locked his phone again and handed it back. Margaret waited until the detective left to scoff.

“While I know you’re just looking to prove your innocence, they do require a warrant to request information from your personal devices.”

“I know, ma’am, I just want to go home.”

It felt like hours had passed as Margaret gave him her information, on the chance that they tried to pursue this case further, and the legal protections he had if they tried to disrupt his life over currently unconfirmed charges. He appreciated that she spoke as if he were innocent, because he was, but still with the reality that sometimes innocent people were convicted despite evidence he felt respected.

“You’re free to leave, son, your security footage is clear. Apologies for disrupting your day, thank you for your cooperation.” Zach took his phone back and Margaret led him out, making sure he had her information, and she slipped a piece of paper into his hand behind her business card as she shooed him away. Zach waited until he was in the car with Ramirez, who came to pick him up, to look at it.

Check your phone case for tracking and listening devices.

Zach hadn’t thought about that possibility and held up his finger to silence Ramirez when the other vet went to ask him what he was doing, and the man went on talking about the other recipes he’d gone over while Zach had been in the station instead. Zach found a small device tucked in the back of his case, barely the size of the top of his thumb, and he could see the microphone hole easily. There was even some sort of location tag tracker on it, no doubt they’d be trying to get it back, and he grinned as Ramirez pulled over at the gas station so Zach could drop it in the trash.

Only after he was sure his phone was safe did they head back, sharing a disgusted rant about the LA cops as Ramirez theorized someone had paid the woman to make the accusation against him, and Zach was willing to dismiss the idea. He didn’t have anyone out there who disliked him that badly, at least he hoped not, and the only thing that made sense would be someone who didn’t like that he was a veteran or that his diner was doing well.

Cassie’s nose was busted up but the proud smile on her face had Nanette grinning too, fussing with a rag to clean the blood off as her little sister cradled her trophy, and she could hear Paul’s nerves about facing her mother with Cassie this busted up. It had been right after the last game of the season ended that the goalie from the other school team had gone after one of Cassie’s smaller teammates, who had managed to get a shot past into the net, and Nanette’s sister had jumped in the second she realized Heather was going to get punched and pulled the smaller girl out of the way in exchange for a bloody nose.

“No matter what Paul or mother have to say, Cassie, I’m so proud of you.” Nanette ignored the look Paul shot her in the rear-view mirror, she’d chosen to sit in the back with her sister on the drive home, and focused solely on Cassie’s smile as the teen held the rag in place now.

“Thanks, Nana. Means a lot to me.”

“I’m serious, you’re killing it out there, I have the coolest little sister.” Watching Cassie’s smile turn shy made Nanette glance at her step-father, who was pulling into the neighborhood, and Paul scowled deeper when he realized she was watching him. He knew as well as Nanette did that her mother was going to lose it, the two of them had already been fighting over Paul allowing Cassie to pursue sports instead of pageants and débutante events, and Nanette knew it was in part because her mother didn’t want any other kids and Paul felt slighted that he’d only had one that was his to raise.

The two of them were just selfish and Cassie was being caught in the middle; Paul would always let her get the brunt of their mother’s temper for choosing sports over pageants.

Paul looked even more alarmed when Nanette’s phone rang, since he knew she wouldn’t take a personal or work call inside, and Cassie began heading in with her season MVP trophy. He knew as well as she did that without her going inside beside him that he couldn’t slip away while Nanette dealt with her mother’s anger on the subject of Cassie’s nose. Nanette answered the call and watched Paul skulk inside, hearing her mother’s shrill outrage even from out here, but she ignored it in favor of the call.

“Hi Delaney, is something wrong?”

“Do you remember Francesca’s friend, Lillian?”

“Lillian Hunt? Yes, she wanted to model but refused to follow the calorie restrictions and now she’s looking into acting right?”

“Correct, I called to warn you. Lillian went out three nights ago to celebrate getting a role in a commercial; Cheyenne called me because she showed up to film with bruises all over her and claimed that a stranger assaulted her. The man she described sounds like your boyfriend.”

For a moment Nanette felt that slither of surprise work its way through her, because that was definitely a surprise, but it turned into anger quickly.

“Delaney, first and foremost Zach would never put his hands on anyone like that and I’m insulted you would even believe that of him. Secondly, he was at work at the diner three days ago for a night shift, if the cops were called to the diner it would have been all over social media.” The Chow Hall wasn’t some massive Michelin Star restaurant but it was a very widely known place in LA being so focused on veteran hiring and rehabilitation to civilian life, the countless articles and travel blog posts about it had made it into an internet famous diner.

“As I said, I was just concerned. Please be careful trusting him.”

“Delaney, you are being ridiculous, Zach didn’t do anything like that. Now I have to go, my mother is not patient when it comes to disrupting family time. I’ll see you in a few days when I get back.”

“Of course, Nanette.”

As she ended the call Nanette sent a text to Zach first, asking him if he was okay, and when she didn’t get an answer she simply tucked her phone away. He was recipe testing with Hector today so there was a chance his phone was on silent, it wasn’t a huge deal, and her mother scowled when Nanette stepped inside.

“Was that your agent?”

“Yes, mother, that was Delaney.”

“Are you going to break up with that boy now that he’s proven he’ll run around and hurt people?”

Nanette stared at her mother in disbelief and realized that Delaney had called her already, likely during the game when she hadn’t been answering her phone, and that anger from before returned even as she fought to keep her tone level.

“Mother, Zach didn’t do anything like that and he would never do anything like that, he’s not a man that would go around hurting people. He was at work the night of the incident, if you must know, and the woman who made the accusation simply described someone that looked like him and everyone is up in arms for no reason. Do you know how many guys in LA have close cut brown hair and wear flannels? The answer is, a lot of them.” Nanette kept her tone as dismissive as possible, wanting to just cut this conversation off before it could lengthen, and a part of her felt guilty because the second she did her mother would just start in about Cassie’s nose without a care for how the injury happened.

Watching her mother’s perfectly shaped eyebrow raise and those pale pink colored lips curl into a disappointed expression had Nanette instantly on the defensive. The relationship they had was nothing like when she’d been a child now that she was living on her own and able to see how terrible the woman was. But any time she made the move of cutting her out entirely Nanette would panic and break within days. Her mother had always pushed her to do better and want more for herself, the idea of giving up her family like that was terrifying and she wasn’t brave enough to do it. Nanette’s mother wasn’t a good person but that was her mother, the woman who loved her and raised her, so instead she was as vocal as she could be trying to change her mother’s beliefs.

“Nanette Rose, I understand that you think you love him. I do, honey, I was there once too remember? But the fact that you’re willing to settle for a man that owns some diner in LA when you’re so much better than that feels like a slap in the face for everything I’ve ever done for you. I don’t mean to make you feel like I’m attacking you or your choice, God knows you’re like me and have to learn things the hard way, but I just don’t want to see you hurt or ruin your entire career over him.” The resigned tone of her mother’s voice felt like whiplash when compared against her expression, making Nanette back down since it was pretty obvious that her mother was not going to listen.

“He’s a good man, and a great partner, I hope that soon you get to see that for yourself.” Honestly she missed him, a lot, maybe it was the honeymoon phase or whatever but she really wished he was here; his comfort and care was something she could use right now. It was true that she’d begun spending a lot of time with him but Zach brought calm to her life that she hadn’t even known she’d been missing, and his consideration for her work was unparalleled. He respected her even though she was a model, not once had she heard him make any remarks about her intelligence the way others often did, and he even helped her learn about field hockey so she could talk with Cassie about it with no judgment.

Zach was nothing like some of the male authority figures she’d had in her life, who tried to talk down to her because she was a woman or act like her doing pageants and débutante events made her stupid by default.

“Alright, if you say so, just remember that you can always call if you need help okay? Now, please tell me you understand why I hate this sports thing your sister is doing, or are you delighted that her nose is leaking blood all over?” Nanette couldn’t help it, her eyes rolled and she let out the softest laugh.

“Mother, Cassie is having fun and she’s great at the sport, you have a daughter who has pursued modeling and fame. Let her live her life, please? Sometimes it seems like all you want to do is live through us.” The swat to the side of her head with a rolled up magazine was to be expected and her mother looked absolutely thunderous, the sting was just present enough to be annoying, and Nanette scowled right back.

“Don’t imply that I’m some washed up crone, I don’t live through either one of you, I only want what is best for you both. If I hadn’t taken you in after the divorce your father would have put you in an early grave with his drinking habit, all I ever did was give you opportunities.” Nanette’s ire faded as she was reminded, yet again, just how ugly the divorce had been for her mother; she’d talked to her dad who had confessed at the time he had a drinking problem. He’d told her that he didn’t know if he would have been able to step up and be the dad she needed at that point in her life.

“I’m sorry, mother. I know it wasn’t easy for you, Dad even admitted he didn’t know if he could have stepped up back then, but there was a lot of stress I was under trying to live up to your expectations that I couldn’t tell you about because I never wanted to disappoint you. Please don’t put Cassie in that position, let her play field hockey and be who she is, just let her be a kid while she still can.” Her mother’s annoyance softened to a resigned look as she shrugged, nodding and waving her hand to dismiss the conversation, it was a relief and slightly irritating that her mother would just end conversations she was tired of without a resolution but there wasn’t much Nanette could do without risking her mother getting angrier.

Cassie was sitting in bed, nose patched up and changed, when Nanette walked into the room; the three-bedroom house had one room converted into an office, for Paul, so the ‘guest’ space was the bunk bed in Cassie’s room. It was a twin over double style, so whenever there were guests usually Cassie was relegated to the top bunk, but Nanette was more than okay with her baby sister cuddling up to her so they shared happily and talked most of the night.

“Is mom really mad still?” Seeing the very worried expression on her sister’s face made Nanette immediately exhale softly and sit down, pulling her sister into a side hug gently.

“Not as mad but she’s still pretty heated about it, I’m sorry I can’t do more to help you.” It was hard to navigate standing up for her sister, and herself, while still showing her mother respect.

“I don’t blame you, Nettie, you had it worse than I did with all those pageants and stuff. I don’t know how you put up with it.”

“You’re braver than I was back then, I just wanted to make mother proud. I started to like it more as I got older but that isn’t me telling you to give up what makes you happy. You are Cassandra Dougherty, not Nanette or Marcelline Dougherty, you have to make your own way in life; as long as you’re true to who you are then I’ll always be proud.” The two of them switched to sitting on the floor so Cassie could tell her about the different plays, and how she was excited that she was set to be the Captain at twelve if she kept doing what she was doing, and Nanette helped her sister come up with easier ways to memorize the plays so that she had a better chance at achieving that spot.

If she finished out middle school as the field hockey captain for two years then it would make her more likely to get a good spot on the high school team, since Cassie was having a good time so far Nanette wanted to make sure her sister was able to do the things she aspired for. They were discussing teammates and who was cooperative for extra practice when her little sister got quiet, looking very shy, and Nanette waited for her to broach whatever topic it was she had on her mind.

“Nettie? What does it feel like to have a crush on someone?” Nanette’s brows raised a little and she felt her heart stop only momentarily, trying not to recall the days of her own youth when her mother would take her on dates with boys when she didn’t really want to. This wasn’t that situation at all.

“They make your face feel warm, your chest feels like it's exploding with butterflies, and when they’re telling you about something they really like -even if you don’t understand it- you always want to listen because seeing them happy makes you happy.” Nanette thought about Zach, about how infectious his own happiness was, and Cassie’s brow furrowed.

“Is it… is it normal to feel that way with… with another girl?”

“Absolutely, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. People around here think it’s against the word of God, that it's immoral and disgusting, but it’s not.” Nanette’s chest was tight with concern, outrage on behalf of her sister who hadn’t even figured out life but was already questioning it and would likely be mistreated for it because of how it was around here, and Cassie must have sensed it as she fiddled with her tee shirt hem.

“I don’t know if that’s what it is but I’m scared, I know that Harry’s mom kicked Mason out as soon as he was eighteen because he said he liked boys -she told the whole team all about it because she was really upset about losing her brother like that- and I think I like Nora but I don’t know.”

“Cassie, you’re eleven, you don’t need to know all the answers to everything. Did you know there are people mother’s age who realize that they’re actually gay or lesbian, that they’re trans or bi or anything people would consider ‘not normal’ in our community? You don’t need a label if you don’t want one, and there’s no rush at all to try and find one. Just be careful with who you talk to about this, okay? There’s only so much I can do from LA. Harriet seems like she’d be able to keep your secret, from the sound of it, even if it’s total nonsense that you need to keep it a secret to begin with.”

Cassie’s eyes welled up and Nanette crawled over to hug her, letting her little sister work through whatever she was feeling and glancing at her phone when it chimed. Zach had confirmed he was okay, a relief since she wanted to focus on her sister right now.

Zach glanced at Nanette as she read through articles on her tablet, ever since she’d come home she mentioned needing to do some heavy reading and he’d told her to come to his place since Francesca was doing line reads with other peers at theirs, and he had his music on very low so he didn’t disturb her. He trusted her to tell him what, if anything, was wrong when she was ready to do so and for now he focused on finishing up dinner for them both. He’d just gotten the bacon fried up when he felt Nanette’s forehead come to rest against his back, the light grip she had on his flannel making him smile, and Zach set things aside to turn around and pull her into a hug.

“Need to talk or do you just want me to hold you, pretty girl?” Nanette’s lips curled into a smile against his shirt, the very light giggle that escaped her at the pet name proved her mood wasn’t the worst it could be, and Zach wouldn’t ever be able to describe the warmth in his chest when she hummed thoughtfully since it always came with an explanation. He felt honored to have her trust him enough to share what was on her mind, good or bad, to be her safe place to just voice all the things bothering her.

“My sister thinks she might have a crush on her friend from field hockey, Nora, and I can’t begin to tell you how badly that would go over with the people in my hometown. Much less our mother and her father. I want to help her but shy of convincing mother to let her live with me, meaning I’d have to find a place to stay, there isn’t much I can do except tell her to be mindful of who she tells that she’s even questioning it.” He was floored for a moment, digesting this information, but Zach could hardly believe just how wonderful Nanette was sometimes.

“I think telling her to be cautious about who she opens up to about her feelings is the best given the circumstances, she’s really lucky to have a supportive older sister you know. I would hope that maybe your parents might think differently since it’s their little girl but you know them better than I do so I will not try to challenge what you foresee happening here.” Zach felt Nanette nod lightly, felt the way she was holding all sorts of tension over this, and made her sit at one of the tall bar stools so he could finish making dinner.

“Are you okay with telling me more about your parents? Why they’ll go nuclear about this?” Nanette looked surprised for a second and then offered a small, embarrassed, expression.

“Of course, I thought I’d told you about them already. My mother, Marcelline Dougherty, is also a former pageant champion but she never got into modeling; she became a cosmetologist and pageant coach, as soon as I was old enough to compete I was in kiddie pageants too. My step-father, Paul McReynolds, has been her husband since I was six but he wasn’t really a father to me since my dad kept shared custody and I lived with him two weeks out of the month. He lived nearby up until I was going into Middle School when he confessed to me how he wanted to move a little bit away, I gave him the green light because I just wanted him happy, so he moved to a different town in the city that was far enough that he wouldn’t see mother all the time.” He didn’t voice how odd it was to him that she used the title mother but also the title dad, all that told him was who she was closer to in terms of her parents. Zach held up an avocado after slicing up the tomato and earned a nod.

“Mother and Paul are both very religious, if I wasn’t at my dad’s house or doing pageants I was usually at church or bible studies, they don’t see their bigotry as anything but following the word of God -even if they do cherry pick what they follow and what they’re lenient about- and there are plenty of people who have straight up cut ties with their children because they ended up coming out. Cassie is terrified, and unfortunately she should be, so I’m just trying to figure out how to help her.” Zach set Nanette’s sandwich down in front of her along with a small plate of kale chips for them to share, he’d looked into some alternatives for chips and he didn’t mind these so much, but he could tell it was bothering her.

“Would you be able to get a place on your own? Or are you contracted to live where you are? If you got a house of your own, I mean, couldn’t you just tell your parents you want Cassie to get out of the local area and become a temporary guardian until she’s eighteen?” Nanette chewed on her lower lip for a second and shrugged, looking more than a little lost, and he had no doubt that her parents were the nosy type given the way she was addressing this.

“Mother probably wouldn’t care but Paul wouldn’t like it, Cassie is his daughter -his only kid since mother refuses to go through childbirth again- and he’s the reason she’s even allowed to do field hockey instead of pageants. Even if he won’t actually have her back when she needs him, which is frustrating.” Zach found himself nodding, already disliking the man for putting his daughter -and step daughter- in this position at all since it sounded like Marcelline was the worst kind of bossy Southern woman.

“Well, I can help you go over your employment contract to look at your clause for residency, if you need me to, or I can help figure out what you’d need to put down on a place. I can also just mind my business and let you handle this, I don’t want to overstep.”

“I think I’m going to just learn what I can do to support her for now and if I need to take her in I absolutely will, I don’t want to rush her into thinking she needs to come out with some sort of label right away either, Cassie is only eleven so I’m just trying to be mindful of allowing her to start making her own choices.” Zach nodded and unlocked his tablet, to flip on a video to watch while they ate at the table, before he found himself with another question. He’d left the tablet on his messages application, which had Nanette’s question if he was okay from the day of his almost arrest.

“Hey, uh, that day you messaged me? Why did you ask if I was okay? You never said.” He had confirmed he was fine and sent her a question mark in reply. Nanette blinked and swallowed the mouthful of food with her hand covering her face as she tried to eat quicker. It was a cute habit of hers, to cover her mouth before speaking if she was eating during a meal.

“Delaney called me being super annoying about a false accusation, one of Francesca’s friends named Lillian apparently described someone like you as her assailant when she went out drinking and Lillian’s agent called him so he was all worried about me. I reassured him that she was wrong and you’d been misidentified, but it’s still really annoying. He was so upset about it he called my mother while we were at Cassie’s field hockey game, I mean come on really? I knew you didn’t do what they tried to accuse you of, not only were you at work that night but you’d never do anything like that.” Zach felt torn between relief that Nanette so firmly believed in him and immediate confusion that her agent knew about the incident. He didn’t think it was totally left field for the two agents to know what another, but it didn’t sit right with him.

“Is that a normal thing, those two talking?” Nanette hummed as she looked up from the video before rolling her shoulders in a shrug.

“Kind of? Cheyenne -Lillian and Francesca’s agent- takes a lot of aspiring models that refuse to do the calorie restrictions to try and get them minor film roles. I couldn’t imagine why she’d bring it up unless Lillian’s condition is worse than what I’ve been told, and according to Francesca you wouldn’t even know she’d been hurt looking at her. I kind of think she faked it for attention, wouldn’t be the first time and her boyfriend is a make-up artist.” The food he’d eaten sank like a rock in his gut and Zach excused himself, hating what he was doing as he stood in the bathroom and messaged some of his old contacts. He’d been willing to let it go until Nanette mentioned Lillian’s condition and that she’d faked things like this before.

A confirmation and a promise to dig into it from an old commanding officer of his sent him back to the table and he hoped, against all his doubts, that maybe he was wrong.

All Fics Taglist: @haylzcyon @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @tauralmie @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry @all-the-way-down-here

Just Pedro Taglist: @maievdenoir @beecastle @littlemisspascal @writeforfandoms @aynsleywalker @lovesbiggerthanpride @mswarriorbabe80

You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime @harriedandharassed

[chaoticgeminate]

Thinking about Nanette and Zach today because tbh, I'm on the struggle bus and I just KNOW how sweet Zach would be on days that she's struggling to eat 😓😓

Love that story, it's sooooo good even though it hits rather close to home.

Oh my god, Nonnie I am so sorry you're on the struggle bus. Please know that whatever you're going through I (and Zach) will always be here for you 100% of the way. If you need someone to talk to, someone to just listen, or someone to help you when things are hard.

I have a little gift, Nonnie.

cw below the cut: mentions of bdd, eating disorders, please read at your own risk

He knew it was a hard day for her as soon as she walked through the front door, there was a sort of lethargy in her movements and Zach watched Nanette hang her purse before slipping out of her pumps. It had been happening more and more recently, with the looming nerves about whether or not she would be flying to Paris for Fashion Week, and he had to bite his cheek not to say anything when she sat down beside him on the couch and curled against his side.

Recently her temper had been shorter too, stemming from the very rigorous routine she'd put on herself to try and guarantee a place on the Paris runway. He'd started giving her space when she got home because of it, letting her decompress or if she needed to she could engage a conversation first if she was in the mood.

Today was one of those days.

"Zach?"

"Hm?"

"I- I'm hungry but... but I'm not."

He set down his book to take her hand, the one resting on his thigh playing with the hem of his shorts, and kissed her fingertips gently before pulling her up. Nanette followed and he could see the full extent of her mental stress by the way her eyes were watering, she was far too close to snapping.

"That's okay, come on, let me take care of you."

Her sniffle made his heart heart and Zach silenced her phone, and his, after taking her upstairs and gently pushing her in the direction of the bedroom. Both devices went into his pocket as he turned the tap and watched the hot water start to fill the tub, nodding to himself, and when he walked into the bedroom Nanette was stripped down in front of his mirror.

He knew now what she dealt with, the battle she waged every day that he couldn't fight for her, and Zach watched as she turned to face him fully. He hated that his natural reaction to her bare was to get turned on, especially when she was vulnerable like this, but he ignored his body's reaction to lead her to the bathroom and drop one of her favorite bath bombs into the water.

Nanette wrapped her arms around him and clung to him as the water filled more, kissing the crown of her head and just rubbing his hands down her back to keep her warm. Only after she slipped into the tub did he grab the little bench he kept in here, for when his knee acted up, and sit behind the tub so he could braid and pin her hair up as she lounged in the water.

"I'm gonna get your make-up off."

Nanette hummed and he gently used her wipes to rid her of everything on her face, leaving her looking just as gorgeous and a lot less troubled. He kissed her forehead before putting her face mask on her and told her to relax, dimming the light and keeping the door cracked so he could hear her as he headed back downstairs.

He put together a bunch of small plates, just an array of quick bites that she could choose from, vegetable based with some very easy protein in the form of leftover chicken and salmon from his recipe testing earlier today. By the time Nanette ventured back downstairs she was looking worlds better and her eyes lingered on the plates of food that were set out.

"Tapas night."

When her lips tipped up into a smile he relaxed, she was going to be okay, and Zach never once made a big deal out of what she did or didn't eat. A few bites here, a few bites there, and while it was far less than what he would have liked he didn't force her to eat more. Instead he tipped her face to his after dinner, when they were curled on the couch watching a video series about a Youtube star that tried out these crazy hack videos, and he pressed a gentle kiss right to her lips that made Nanette smile against his mouth.

"Good job today, Nanette."

Her eyes watered again but out of relief and Zach held her close knowing that it would get better, she'd already worked up the courage to get herself a therapist and tomorrow she started her own therapy, and he wasn't going to let days like this chase him away.

[chaoticgeminate]

You're so Classic (v)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features sexual harassment at a work function, implied bad parenting, and smut. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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Chicken and Dumplings (8.4k)

Nanette didn’t usually remember her dreams, it was rare that she got anything aside from whatever emotions came from the images her mind created for her, and today was no different. Waking up warm and comfortable, calm in a way she hadn’t felt in some time, with only happiness and a low buzzing content to ease her into consciousness; soft breaths puffed against the back of her neck and Zach’s arm was draped over her waist and with the blessing of central air the room wasn’t too hot even though both of them had slept without clothes on.

Sometime during the night she’d rolled over, closer to the edge of the bed, and Zach had given chase; she’d almost forgotten about her habit of moving in her sleep, it was something she’d probably have to mention since she’d fallen off her bed a few times as a child. Nanette settled back into Zach’s embrace as he continued to sleep and the sun continued to rise, it was still very early -likely around five or six- so she didn’t even try to move away.

Nanette took stock of how she felt, the ache between her legs was familiar but there were only good memories attached to it, and her heart was racing when she slowly recalled all the things Zach had said he wanted to do with her. This was the first time she’d taken a weekend to herself, to just stay away from her apartment and Francesca and all of that other stuff, so there was part of her that wanted to explore all of Zach’s promises now.

But patience won out, it would be best to take this slow, she knew it was probably a dumb idea to rush into things just because she had a good time once. While she didn’t doubt Zach or how attentive he was to making her feel good it was still her own worries that she would learn something was wrong somehow, or that Zach would want to do something that just wasn’t doing it for her and he’d be disappointed in her. After exhaling softly she managed to slip out of bed, feeling jittery and like she needed to move, so she opted to go to the bathroom and then work on breakfast.

Pausing when she saw her reflection, running a hand down her stomach, Nanette bit the inside of her cheek since she felt bloated. It wasn’t a great feeling, she turned to the side to see if there was a noticeable change and tried to fight down the mild panic since she was sure there was. It just meant she’d have to go lighter on meals, which was perfectly fine, and she did have a higher weight allowance now so it wouldn’t be the end of the world if she weighed in above her usual. She stepped back, taking in the shape of her hips and thighs, just trying to remind herself that it was impossible for such drastic change to happen overnight, that she was fine and it was okay that the hefty meal she had the day before wasn’t going to ruin her life.

Tying her hair back into a messy ponytail to escape the judgmental stare of her reflection, picking up Zach’s flannel and letting it hang open, she slipped on fresh underwear and tip-toed down the stairs into the kitchen. He had a one-cup coffee maker and Nanette made a note as she rustled through his cabinets on what his coffee of choice was, that way if she ever had him over at hers for breakfast she would have some on hand, and after making sure she had what she needed for the two cups of coffee it was time to see what she could make.

Zach had a variety of things in the fridge and she couldn’t help but smile seeing it organized in clear bins with labels, things specifically set aside for different meals like vegetables he’d separated from bulk purchases or proteins for each meal, and she decided on making omelets. One cured ham steak, an onion, bell pepper, a few mushrooms, and the sliced colby jack cheese made their way onto the counter with the eggs after she found a cutting board and his knives.

Nanette had just cooked the water out of the mushrooms and gotten some color on the onions and peppers after she added them to the pan when she heard the sound of footsteps in the hall, Zach’s hair was still a tousled mess and he’d thrown on some boxers and new sweats, but his eyes landed on her at the stove and she swore they went black.

“Good morning.” His voice was soft and rasped and sent chills down her spine in a good way, it made her feel beautiful and wanted better than any camera or job offer ever could, and her lips lifted at the corners before she could really even try to play coy.

“Good morning Zach, hope you’re hungry.” The words made him groan and walk over, hugging her from behind as he looked over her shoulder, and she giggled when the stubble of his facial hair rubbed against her skin as he nuzzled her neck. Nanette swayed with him as she tended the stove top, the fact that Zach hadn’t immediately jumped to take over made her relax, it was a real calm between them and just an easy morning.

“If you didn’t have the stove on I would start with dessert and bend you over the table.”

Zach stepped away from her to start the coffee as she cracked the eggs into a bowl, her brows shooting up as her entire face flushed, and Nanette knew the sound that came out of her was garbled and not really words but she just couldn’t find a way to form words after that. The conflicting emotions raging in her heart and the thoughts racing through her mind were all over the place from dread that he’d go to make good on his word until he noticed she was bloated to excited that he wanted her still, her grip on the whisk tightened as she beat the eggs she’d cracked without another word or sound.

“Are you okay? Did I say something wrong?” Zach was leaning on the counter beside her, his coffee in hand just watching her face, and she blinked before schooling her expression into a convincing calm. It wasn’t hard since she’d been forced to do this thousands of times before, even if it felt wrong doing it to Zach, but she didn’t want their weekend together to turn into her word vomiting and scaring him off over all the superficial bullshit that popped up in her head. Maybe Leon was right about her, that she was shallow, but it had to be different since hers were usually self-targeted right?

“You can’t just say something like that and not expect me to react.”

Zach’s concern melted to something smug and she felt an ugly sense of relief crawl through her, it wasn’t fair that she couldn’t admit what she was feeling to him but she was scared that he’d walk away, and it would just be easier to hide it for the weekend and face it later when she was alone to process everything. Louis would be able to help her with date dinner ideas that wouldn’t leave her feeling so gross the morning after, she could also have green smoothies for breakfast for a few days if she had to as well.

“I suppose that’s fair, Nanette.” Zach leaned over to kiss her and she turned her head to capture his lips with hers, it was slow and deep and made her whole body ignite like kindling in a wildfire, but before it could go too far she pulled away to keep cooking, Making two separate bowls for the eggs, hers having just the whites while Zach had her extra yolks, and he didn’t say anything but she did notice the very slight downward turn at the corners of his mouth.

“So, what are today’s plans? You mentioned wanting to go somewhere? Or are you going to change your mind and request a weekend in?” His frown became more pronounced and Zach leaned over to catch her chin with a gentle hold between his thumb and pointer so she looked him in the eye.

“We’re going out, don’t you worry, as much as I’d love to keep you here Nanette there’s no way I’m going to push you into more when I can tell you aren’t ready for it. You don’t have to hide or fake anything with me, okay? If you aren’t in the mood, or something is bothering you that has you up in your head, then don’t be worried about my reaction. I’m a grown man, if I really need to get off that bad I can do it myself without forcing anything on you.” Nanette felt her throat tighten with each word, a little glad she hadn’t poured any of the eggs into the pan yet since her eyes began to water embarrassingly, and Zach pulled her away from the stove to hug her tight to him after setting his mug aside.

Nanette felt relieved and conflicted and overwhelmed at the realization that things could be easy with the right person, she’d grown up seeing her mother and step-father have their fights and she could never forget the way her mother used to scream at her dad over every little thing, and other pageant parents had been just as intense and quick to fight their partners. This easy thing with Zach was so different that she didn’t know what to do. It was so good because the weight of expectation was gone but it was making her feel like she might end up messing up, that her bullshit would be what fucked it all up.

“How- how’d you get so insightful?” Nanette wanted to feel as emotionally stable as Zach appeared to be, he was so sure of himself and aware of others, she wanted that same peace.

“Therapy, a lot of therapy, I still go. I have anger issues, still do sometimes, I’m getting better but I don’t think I’ll ever be one-hundred percent. Can I- is it too heavy to ask you what you’re thinking? If it is then we can change topics.” He was giving her an out, of all things, and Nanette leaned against him more as Zach pulled her to sit down at the table, he had her perched in his lap and was just holding her.

“I just- it’s so easy with you and I’ve never… seen that. Experienced that. I felt pretty, like you still wanted me, even without make-up or having my hair done up and it feels nice but terrifying that it’s this easy. I’m scared that my superficial bullshit will get in the way.” Nanette didn’t see the way Zach’s eyes narrowed since she was too busy looking down and away from his face, ashamed to admit this much.

Zach bumped his forehead to hers, gently, so she looked up and met his gaze again; he looked worried again but it was a subtle look hidden under his softly fond expression.

“I want you to know that I think you are beautiful however you choose to present yourself, in or out of clothes with your hair up or down, make-up or not. As for your superficial bullshit, if you’re talking about your career I’m going to do my best to adapt to it, if you talk to me and communicate with me about what you’re feeling then I can offer insight and reassurances.” Nanette was so used to keeping quiet when things bothered her, to accepting the bad in someone because the good was always enough, and that was the exact opposite of who Zach was as a person. He valued her input, wanted to talk with her about any and everything, and if she was feeling down he wanted to know.

It was a stupid way to think about it but she felt less like a doll and more like a human than she ever had in her entire life.

Zach finished making the omelets for breakfast, tasking Nanette to put together a small fruit salad, and while he put everything together he studied her. Seeing her in his shirt definitely had woken him, and his libido, up for the day; he was a simple man and there was something about seeing his girlfriend in his shirt that ticked off the boxes in his caveman brain. But more than that he was seeing the way she was standing with most of her weight on one foot, the slight turn of her body away from him, and he chose not to say anything about her choosing to give him her yolk.

It was clear that something had happened after she woke up to make her feel like she had to hide from him and Zach hoped that, soon, she would feel comfortable telling him about it. He was just as guilty for hiding things, glossing over his anger problems instead of giving her deeper details, but he also didn’t want to scare her off by telling her about something that he’d gotten mostly under control this early. Instead of making a big deal over it Zach hoped his words were enough, that she would understand that he was here for her as long as she met him half way.

They sat down beside each other and Zach flipped on Animal Planet, it was some show about an alligator rescue, and Nanette settled beside him with her own food looking a little better than she had. After a beat of silence between them, just watching the team head out to some flooded church field where two gators were at, he felt Nanette lean against him and turned his head to glance at her.

“I, uh, woke up feeling… well feeling bloated from last night’s dinner.” Zach almost asked her why that would be a problem, he caught himself at least, but it sort of clicked before he managed to make himself look like a total idiot; to him it was a non-issue but he had a feeling something like that was a bit of a hard blow to Nanette’s routine.

“Do you want some lemon water? I know that helps some people at least lessen the feeling.” Zach was half out of his seat before she even said yes and he handed her the cool beverage with a smile as well as a Gas-X tablet. It wouldn’t be the perfect solution but he had a feeling that he’d have to work around the requests she made if they were heavier foods like yesterday, choosing leaner meats or going light on certain vegetables. Like her intimacy situation there was a lot of things Nanette was still learning about her body, adding calories and food types would be no different, and Zach made a mental note to look into some more lean versions of his favorite recipes.

“Is that why you looked upset earlier?” He didn’t want to make assumptions about what she was feeling and if she was willing to tell him then it would be easier to figure out how to handle it going forward.

“Yes, I uh, I was worried it was noticeable.” Zach had to admit her worry flew right over his head for way too long, mostly because he didn’t really get it, but when it finally clicked he caught her hand in his to kiss her knuckles lightly. Nanette’s eyes went round as she stared at him and he offered her as gentle of a look as he could manage, even if he was hurting for her and what she was dealing with, and her little hints about how easy they had it didn’t spell out a good image for what she’d gone through growing up.

“Nanette, I’m going to be entirely honest, there is nothing you could really do to change your appearance that would make me want you any less. I’m not going to dictate what you have to look like to be attractive to me because you’re always attractive to me, what matters is if you feel comfortable with yourself.” He had no idea if she had ever had anyone say that to her before, he was starting to think she hadn’t, but her watering eyes and relieved smile made him brush her tears away with his thumbs and kiss her forehead gently before he kissed her on the nose.

“Thank you, Zach.” He nodded and kissed her on the mouth, deep and slow and just trying to show her how much he cared without any additional words, and Nanette was panting when they parted with a flush on her face that he knew he could get to travel all the way down her neck and shoulders.

Finishing breakfast with much lighter conversation topics, as he recognized she was a little too raw and needed a break, Zach told her to go get dressed while he put the dishes in the dishwasher so that they could go out. Nanette looked stunning in the loose sundress, he didn’t know exactly what to call the light shade of pink or what the colorful flowers printed along the skirt actually were, but it looked very pretty. Zach went upstairs and grabbed one of his gray plaid button downs, a pink tee-shirt underneath paired with his dark gray shorts; Nanette looked up from where she was braiding her hair and smiled, the shade of pink he’d chosen was lighter than the one she wore but looked like it was in the same family of pinks.

Nanette walked over and undid the buttons on his shirt, leaving only one of them done to loosely hold the top together, and he slipped his watch onto his wrist before he could really think too hard about the way her eyes had raked down his figure. After she slipped into her sandals Zach got his socks and sneakers on, making sure she had her purse and he had his wallet and keys. And instead of his car they walked the short distance to the pottery workshop he’d told her about.

The owner was another vet he’d met through the VA, she had handmade figurines and piggy banks, plates, sets of cups and saucers, and really anything you could think of. He and Nanette would be painting something and then Katherine would dry and glaze them, whatever they chose, so it was exciting since it was a chance to experience and create. Nanette was beaming when they got inside, taking in the large stock of unpainted wares, and Zach told her to look around while he greeted Katherine.

“It’s been so long, I cannot believe how far we’ve come now that we’re civilians again.” Katherine earned a nod as Zach grabbed his wallet to pay for the booking, he’d gotten unlimited time for the day and the top tier selection on what to paint.

“At least it’s things we like to do, yea? I know you have to have fun with all the kids that come in.” Kat had always loved kids, Zach remembered meeting her at the VA building when they’d been waiting for their appointments, she’d mentioned coming from a massive family and that as much as she sort of resented her parents for depending on her like a third parent she did miss when her siblings were kids instead of teenagers.

“Loads of fun, I did get lucky that Sasha -the twelve year old- wants to do more pottery stuff so she’s here pretty often whenever she can catch the bus over.” Katherine handed his card back and Zach noticed Nanette looking between a teacup and saucer as well as a mug, making him smile as he walked over to see what she was thinking.

“Mug or teacup?” He paused when she asked him, realizing she’d seen him approaching in the small mirror on the shelf, and Zach grinned as he winked at her.

“I go with mugs because they end up at the diner, I try to come here a few times a year since it’s relaxing for me and it’s fun to see what I can come up with.” He watched the realization flicker across her face, the standard white mugs mixed and matched with the very vastly different painted ones finally making sense, and Nanette’s eyes softened before she grabbed one of the larger mugs since it was the ones he used. Katherine chuckled from the register.

“If you’re both doing mugs take two each.” He knew it was because he’d paid for the most premium choice but Zach still couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the other vet, earning a cheeky wave, but he and Nanette grabbed their mugs and made their way over to the painting tables. They picked one against the window since it had the best lighting, with Zach grabbing two palettes and filling them with a little of every color paint, and Nanette was beaming as she accepted the pack of cleaned paintbrushes from Katherine and Zach took his with a wave.

“I noticed you use a lot of warm shades, fire and autumn colors, for the mugs you have at the diner that are painted. Do you not really like cooler tones?” Nanette was already at work with a pencil, sketching a really rough design onto the unpainted clay, and Zach found himself watching her make the rough outline of flower petals and leaves.

“I tend to avoid green, which you generally see paired with blue for ocean themes or other shades for floral themes.” The motion of her pencil paused before she made a soft sound, returning to her sketching.

“You were deployed then.” Not a question, then again he hadn’t really tried to hide that his time in service had left it’s marks, and Zach whispered the soft ‘yes’ as he began painting the mug in his hand. His method was more abstract than planned, random swirls and patterns of color, but the motions of the brush were soothing and Nanette leaned more against him to tap his shoulder with the side of her head.

“My dad is a vet too, it got ugly for a while and that’s why mother stopped my visits with him, you don’t have to worry about it scaring me off. You said you’re in therapy, I don’t doubt that’s part of it.” Zach let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding and nodded, the wide brush stroke that looked like a flower petal made him continue the pattern before Nanette winked and used her brush -dipped in green- to draw a stem for him.

Zach didn’t think about the fact that there were kids in the room already, he just pressed the softest kiss to her mouth as she smiled so softly at him, and Nanette pulled away first with a smile on her face that was so understanding that it made him feel like it was safe to open up more to her about his PTSD and everything he’d been through. To an extent, at least, he’d never tell her about active combat or the true horrors he’d seen but he could talk to her about the lingering nightmares and emotional baggage.

They fell into much gentler conversation after that, mindful of the giggly children and protective parents, instead talking about plays and concerts they wanted to see; Zach loved that Nanette preferred orchestral music and jazz bands, even if she did enjoy every other genre the instrumental pieces were her favorite, and decided that sometime he’d have to plan a trip to the East Coast where they could see a proper Christmas orchestra performance in the snow. His Mama had taken him to Boston once in the winter, his uncle had a boxing match there, and Zach would never forget how it felt seeing snow for the first time.

“So what’s the most exotic place you’ve traveled?” Nanette blinked at his question before turning an almost rueful gaze on her mug, the pattern was a lovely floral and he had no doubt her skill at applying make-up attributed to her steady hand as she worked over her sketch.

“I’ve only ever seen San Antonio, Houston, Austin, and LA; pageants, when I was younger, in Texas while modeling was here. Now that I have the evening gown exclusivity there’s a chance I could go to other places depending on shooting location, my goal is to be on the runway for Paris Fashion Week even if its just once.” He loved that it wasn’t a dream, that it was a goal, that she knew what she wanted and that she’d been working on the moves to get her there.

“Tell me what you need me to do, if anything, so I can help you achieve your goal.” Nanette glanced at him and smiled, the finished mug set down so she could get started on the second, and Zach felt that tension from the morning slipping away.

Katherine was sweet and she’d offered a gig to teach painting to the kids, if Nanette wanted it, but the model had to refuse. Instead she hit up a few make-up artists that she knew who specialized in costume and decorative make-up since the hours Katherine wanted were super flexible, it was a win-win for her to get steady-handed artists and for the make-up artists to find something to pad their wallet when they had no job lined up. Zach held her hand as they left, their mugs would be dried, glazed, and baked with the next batch before they were ready for pickup.

It had been a longer time than she expected but Nanette had a lot of fun, it was nice to do something creative and calming, so by the time they got back to the apartment she was no longer as anxious as she had been upon waking up. The measures Zach had taken helped too, she felt worlds better, and he led her to the couch with a promise of a light lunch; it was honestly the best she’d ever been treated by a partner and Nanette allowed herself to enjoy it.

Eventually she’d have to face the reality that for so long she’d allowed people to be awful to her, maybe with help she’d learn how to stop that from happening with people she worked with too.

A low chime from her phone made her check the device, a message from Madame LeMarc about her first contractual shoot for the Wednesday coming up, and after confirming the location and details she promised to have Louis send over her updated measurements when she got into the agency on Monday to verify that nothing had changed. That way Madeline wouldn’t have to worry if minor alterations needed to be made, or if there were touch ups to be done she could handle it before the day.

Zach set down a bowl of ramen, made with shirataki noodles instead of regular wheat noodles, and while the noodles had always failed to work as a spaghetti substitute they were great in a soup dish like this. The protein was just lightly poached eggs, so the yolk was runny, and the flavorful broth was meaty enough to not need something like chashu or chicken. He’d added mushrooms, lotus root, and bamboo shoots that Nanette had a feeling were all things he made regularly since they didn’t have the same canned taste as the few times others had made ramen from scratch.

Nanette flipped on ‘How It’s Made’ after they migrated to his dining table, sitting next to one another and trying not to stare when he sat down in a way that she would have hated on any other man. Zach tried not to manspread, she’d seen him fidget and shift in seats to avoid taking up so much room, but here at home he didn’t have the same reservations. If anything though, knowing he was hers, it made her want to crawl into his lap and straddle his thigh.

Before she could accidentally choke herself on her food Nanette turned her attention back to the screen, another chime from her phone making her glance at the device, and she noticed Zach look anywhere but the small touchscreen.

“It’s my mother, I’ll call her later.” Nanette wasn’t going to interrupt her meal to call, it’d be bad manners anyway, and there was nothing of major importance she could think of that her mother would need to speak to her about. Unless Cassandra had begun doing pageantry again, which was unlikely, her sister had loathed the dresses and jewelry and everything about the child pageant life to the point that she’d gotten banned from three for picking fights. At eleven there was probably little chance of Cassandra allowing their mother and her father to force her into that setting, if anything she was probably fighting back harder if they were persisting.

Nanette was seventeen years older than her sister, by the time Cassandra was the age to start child pageants Nanette was starting her modeling career, so most of their interaction was done through video calls. There’d been the odd visit here and there but nothing that would really lead to the two of them having a real sisterly relationship. Before she could even tell Zach about her suspicion, that it had something to do with Cassandra, her phone began to ring and he nudged her gently.

“Go ahead, if you want some privacy you can go into the office.” Zach’s offer made her nod before she was heading to the other room, not closing the door but respecting that he didn’t seem to want to get involved with potential family drama just yet. Which was fine, they’d only just gone exclusive had had only been dating for a short time.

“Mother, I was in the middle of a lunch date, is everything okay?” There was a small chance that would stop any of the long stories, since her mother was big on manners, and the camera finally loaded her mother’s face and the woman beside her. Marcelline Dougherty was the kind of woman that would go without voicing her opinion even if it was unwanted, the woman beside her was probably the exact same, though.

“Nanette Rose, are you serious right now? You’re at the biggest turning point in your career, do not throw it all away for some boy-“

“I can juggle my career and my dating life, I’m not a child and Zach has already begun asking questions to take measures to avoid problems over it. Is there a reason you’re calling?” Nanette could admit that she had a hard time talking with her mother, she’d grown up being taught to respect her mother and step-father while getting nowhere near the same respect in turn, sometimes it was a remedy for a bad mood and other times it made her want to rip her hair out.

“This is Alexandria Maldonado, she is the new chairwoman for several of the pageants you’ve won in the past, we think that it might be a good example for Cassandra if you came back and did a few of the adult pageants.” As she expected it was something to try and push Cassie into doing something she didn’t want to do, the wedge between her and her sister was already big due to the age but the fact that Nanette had done pageants and went on to be a model had caused more resentment from her younger sister.

“Why is Cassie doing pageants so important to you? Why can’t you just let her do what she wants as an after-school thing, she’s into field hockey right?” Nanette had tried to keep tabs on her sister’s hobbies so that maybe there was something they could talk about when she came to visit, the school paper had run an article that Cassie was looking at getting a spot as the team Captain next year if she played good and kept her cool.

“Nanette Rose, I cannot believe you want to allow your sister to continue to do something so crass.”

“If you force her to do things she doesn’t want to do, Mother, all you’re going to do is alienate her when she’s legally allowed to leave. Do you know how many people I’ve met that have gone no contact with their parents for the same reason?” That shut her mother up, the outraged look on her face melting to something else, and Alexandria’s smile had fallen too. As if they just expected her to try and make Cassie give up her thing just to fit into shoes she didn’t want to wear.

Nanette hadn’t wanted to be some role model for her sister, she wanted Cassie to be able to do her own thing, and it was clear that her mother didn’t agree.

“Where’s Paul in all of this? If Cassie is doing sports now then clearly someone had to sign it off, so you’re trying to go behind their backs to get your way?” Nanette didn’t mind coming back to try and cheer her sister up when she was down, to try and reassure Cassie that she was allowed to make her own way in life, but she wasn’t going to be a tool her mother could use to try and make Cassie feel like she wasn’t good enough. Nanette had plenty of her own hours crying over the harsh words her mother would throw her way whenever she didn’t do good enough at a pageant or whenever she wasn’t keen on whatever little new talent she was supposed to learn.

“I am her mother, just like I am your mother, I know what’s best for her and playing some sport with a bunch of fat teenagers will lead to her being ruined. Do you know that she doesn’t wear dresses to church?” Nanette looked up at the doorway when Zach appeared, holding up her food, and she nodded as she tapped the desk but grabbed his hand to squeeze it in gratitude before he could walk away.

“Mother, please, it’s not the nineties anymore; Cassie can wear pants and a nice shirt to church.” Zach shot her a look of full sympathy and Nanette leaned back in his chair, making sure that her mother didn’t see him at all just yet.

“Do you know she’s the only girl doing that? All the other girls her age are in pageants and doing débutante events, just like you did, but not Cassandra. No, she’s too busy beating other girls up with a field hockey stick and planning to go to university in the Northeast. All of my children leaving their poor mother-“

“Don’t you start that now, you’re the one who encouraged me to work with Delaney, as soon as I was offered a spot at his agency you were practically packing my bags for me.”

“Because I wanted you to be successful, to become famous, and now you’re going to work with designers who aren’t large names and ruin your figure. Honestly, you look like you’ve gained weight, you’re not trying to throw your whole career in the toilet for a boy are you Nanette Rose?”

“What? No, why would you think that? I haven’t gained weight either, I’ve been keeping track of my measurements and weight with Louis, so don’t try to scare me with that.” Zach was already back downstairs and Nanette barely managed to get her mother off the phone before she was escaping to the bathroom to inspect her reflection again.

She didn’t feel any bigger, she could swear she didn’t look any bigger either, but she began poking her cheeks and her hands itched for a measuring tape that she didn’t have. The tremor in her limbs faded when she reminded herself that her dress fit the same as it had the last time she’d worn it, loose only after it was past her hips as it needed to be and fitted everywhere else without being too tight. The pattern wasn’t pulled or stretched in a weird way, it’d been easy to get on and off, so she was fine.

Heading back to the study and pocketing her phone, bringing her food back downstairs, she earned a smile from Zach as he looked up from the book he was reading on the sofa. Nanette finished eating and went over to cuddle up to his side, looking over at his book before deciding that he was too far into whatever the plot was for her to pick up on it. Instead Nanette laid with her head on his thigh, just relaxing, and Zach used one hand to play with her hair as she watched How It’s Made.

Offering to let Nanette use his gym was an easy choice, it was clear she was used to exercising often, and Zach stared openly when she came downstairs in her sports bra and leggings. He helped her pull her hair up into a bun as she slipped on some flat sneakers, and he joined her in stretching out their limbs so that they were less likely to cramp up after. Nanette was slim and it was obvious, as well as what she told him, that her workout wasn’t to gain muscle but that she hated doing just cardio. Which meant stretching was a must for her since any overworking over the muscle she did have could lead to cramping if she didn’t stretch or hydrate.

The cardio thing was understandable, after his time in service and the PT tests he hated running for cardio even if he got a treadmill for that purpose, and Zach watched her get started on some dumbbell hammer curls while he decided to go for bar curls.

“Do you usually do bench press and dead lifts? Or do you skip those since you aren’t trying to build muscle?” He wasn’t sure what her routine usually was and if he didn’t have something she needed in terms of equipment it’d be no problem to get a hold of it, Zach didn’t necessarily want her to solely work out here but he wanted it to be convenient so if she had an issue like this morning she could go through her usual routines to quell her anxiety.

“I don’t, even though I know I should, my problem is that my dead lift form isn’t great and I’ll either over-correct it or I won’t correct it enough. I just tack on a few extra back exercises like rows and some push-ups to superset my workout to target my chest muscles.” Zach hummed gently and as they finished their curl sets he walked over to his rack, setting for dead lifts at her weight capacity, and Nanette came over as he beckoned her closer with two fingers.

Zach hummed and walked her through her form, to see what she was talking about, before he very gently corrected her starting stance.

“Try now.” He watched her go through to motion and hummed.

“There we go, you were trying to use a stance that was better for someone taller, that should make it easier for you to keep your stance. Do a set.” Zach focused on her back and knees, watched her run through the set of ten, and when she finished he was grinning because she’d done a really good job. Nanette set the bar down and hugged him tight, he had a feeling Louis had skipped her adapting to dead lifts since she had been willing to sub that out with additional exercises.

They worked through her entire routine, which was pretty well covered for what she needed, and Zach was definitely sweating by the time he was done since he might’ve definitely pushed himself to show off a little. After he started up the slow cooker, the meal he’d planned for dinner inside it already, Zach followed Nanette upstairs.

“Are we showering together?” Nanette’s curiosity might’ve come across as genuine if not for the glint in her eyes and Zach thought about this morning and how she’d reacted to the idea that he’d turn her down over being bloated. If there was one thing he didn’t want to do it was make her feel unattractive, even if it was unintentional, but he didn’t want to push her either. Zach nodded gently, since he wouldn’t be able to get a condom on he wasn’t going to let it go too far if she got handsy but he wanted to make sure Nanette didn’t think he was the kind of guy that had his fun and would walk away.

His shower was pretty big, perk of being able to renovate his bathroom on his own, and Zach grinned when Nanette actually chose to scrub him down first. She wrinkled her nose at his 2-in-1 shampoo and bodywash but didn’t say anything against it, he knew that it wasn’t the best thing to use but he did at least have conditioner. His sigh at the feeling of her nails lightly scraping down his chest didn’t get lost in the sound of the water and Zach almost hunched over as she got down on her knees, very carefully cleaning him up and skipping his now hardening cock as she lathered up his legs.

“Nanette-“ His attempt at getting her back up was lost when she toyed with his shaft before gripping him gently in her hand, the fact that her hands were so small hadn’t occurred to him until now and Zach throbbed as his brain finally registered the size difference between them. She wasn’t exactly petite but Nanette wasn’t above average height either, seeing her hand on his cock made him wheeze as he hunched over her with his arm braced on the tile as she slid her hand along his length.

“I want to take care of you, Zach.” The way she let her lashes flutter, the gentle smile on her face, made him surrender with a groan and fuck if she didn’t look gorgeous with water dripping down her and all her focus on him. The soap was washed away and he almost protested until Nanette’s furnace hot mouth engulfed the head of his dick, his body jerking as he immediately halted his hips to avoid hurting her, and Nanette didn’t even slow down.

He was panting hard with each bob of her head, with how she hollowed her cheeks out and licked a flat stripe up the underside of him, and Zach had his breath punched out of him when she used her hand to stroke what her mouth couldn’t reach. He cupped her cheek with his free hand, so that he didn’t tangle his fingers in her wet hair, and Nanette moaned at the gentle touch before she let him fall out of her mouth with a pop so that she could suckle at the head of him while stroking his shaft.

When her tongue brushed against his frenulum Zach moaned low and deep, the sensation making his thighs tremble. The wet and slick sounds of her hand on him, of their combined panting, the

“Fuck, Nanette, so fucking good-“ Her answering moan made him look down, her eyes locking with his as she mouthed at the side of his cock like it was an ice-pop, and Zach felt his balls pulling up before he could even try to breathe and stop himself from spilling his cum all over her face.

“Gonna cum-“

“Are you? Gonna come all over me?”

He groaned at the idea of his cum dripping down her chest and Zach didn’t even have a chance to fight it as she suckled at his head again, lines of his spend painting her skin as he moved the hand on her face to high thigh so he didn’t bruise her with how tightly he dug his fingers into his skin. Nanette was gentle helping him work through the last of the tremors, his eyes blinking open to see the line of spit break as his cock softened and the sight of him dripping down her chest.

Nanette stood up when he stepped back and Zach pulled her against him, kissing her deep and pressing her back into the tile as her hands went up to his hair.

“Let’s get cleaned up, I want you in my bed again.” Nanette moaned softly and whimpered when he slipped one hand up to feel how wet she was, her soaked folds making him change his mind, and she clearly was okay with it as she tilted her hips against his hand so his fingers caught her tight little hole.

“Too far, want you now-“

“Not going to do anything other than my hands or mouth without a condom.” Nanette whined and he used one finger first to see if she was sore from the day before, she didn’t even flinch and instead she whined like he was teasing her. Still tight as hell but no longer as cautious about being intimate with him, it made Zach groan into her mouth and slide a second finger into her carefully. Nanette gripped his hair tighter and her hips rocked back before she angled them forward again, he let her control how fast he filled her and when his hand was cupping her pussy Zach curled his fingers and smirked at her throaty whine.

“Zach please-“ He nipped at her throat as his free hand circled her lower back and angled her hips just a little more.

“Zach please~ please what, baby?” He teased her a little, wanting her to ask for what she wanted, and Nanette whined in response to it.

“Want to come all over your hand, want to go to bed so you can fuck me through the mattress.”

“Someone’s bold now that she knows how good it can be, I like that.” He began moving his fingers with them curled, pressing against that spongy part of her, and Nanette keened as her head pressed back into the tile and one of her legs reflexively lifted to wrap around his hip. Zach was mindful that she had surrendered her balance, making sure his feet were planted better, and his thumb played with her soaked folds as he pressed himself against her more.

“Do you hear how wet you are?” Nanette nodded, the very slick sound of his hand moving against her was almost louder than the shower, and Zach felt her getting close.

“Look at you, coming apart for me like this, so fucking sexy. Gonna take care of you always, gonna make you feel good whenever you want it, want you to fucking soak me until you’re begging me to stop.” His mouth was just running and his thumb pressed her clit with the intent to circle it before she was wailing his name and coming hard, panting in his ear like she’d just run a marathon, and she was so wet that he was hurrying through washing her off so he could get her to bed faster.

Nanette was giggling, breathy still, but not against his rushed shower or the way he basically carried her out of the bathroom and barely dried her off before he got her onto the bed.

Sore, in the best way, and now she was being served a lean version of chicken and dumplings; it was thick and warm and delicious, and Nanette knew that she was going to sleep like a rock tonight. Zach smiled as they sat together on the sofa but she couldn’t help the way she smiled as he turned on an old episode of Project Runway, right as the contestant was working with her model, and his eyes widened before he turned to look at her.

“You never told me you were on the show.” His grin was wide and she laughed too.

“I was still new to modeling then so I was only used twice, though it was crazy to meet Michael and Nina and Heidi in person, but that’s actually how Delaney got me into the swimsuit contracts that I had.” Zach watched them fit the cocktail dress on her, it was slinky and black leather with sharp cut-outs and had a long cape on one shoulder only, the shoes and accessories were all neon colors since the theme was city lights.

“So neither designer of yours got to do Fashion Week?”

“Nope, both got eliminated pretty early in. It was a bummer but it is what it is, I had fun and it was a great opportunity. If I hadn’t taken it there was a chance I’d been going back to Texas, since rent here in atrociously high, and then I wouldn’t have gotten to meet you.” Zach hummed and nudged her gently before the episode ended and the next one began to play.

They stayed up talking about what it was like to be on a show, Zach even mentioned he’d gotten suggested for the Guy Fieri show and was unsure of whether or not he wanted to be on it at all, and Nanette couldn’t help but smile knowing that if he was she’d have some major competition coming in. There was no way the local ladies would miss the chance to get someone like him in their lives.

“I think you should, if only to raise more awareness to the fact that it’s still a struggle for veterans to find work, but when you do warn me so I can be ready to beat off other women with a stick.” He blushed at her compliment and Nanette straddled his lap to kiss him.

“Don’t get all blushy with me, sweetheart, you know you’re hot as fuck.” The grip of his hands on her hips as she peppered gentle kisses to his cheeks made Nanette pinch his side, there was no way she could go again yet, and Zach locked gazes with her as he tapped his forehead to hers.

“I’ll take your word for it, baby.”

“Good, you should take my word for it.”

They laughed together as he tickled her and Nanette shrieked as she wiggled out of his hold, earning a laugh before he was dragging her against him to cuddle up for a movie.

All Fics Taglist: @haylzcyon @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @tauralmie @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @rominaszh @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry @all-the-way-down-here

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You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime @harriedandharassed

[chaoticgeminate]

You're So Classic - Masterlist

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He's witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won't try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she's never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic.

Word Count Total: 45,230

Chapter List

Chapter One: Chicken and Waffles (3.4k) Chapter Two: Peach Pie (5k) Chapter Three: Blueberry Cobbler (10.9k) Chapter Four: Frito Pie (11k) Chapter Five: Chicken and Dumplings (8.4k) Chapter Six: BLT (6.3k) Chapter Seven: TBD

Extras

Bad Day Ask by Anon

[chaoticgeminate]

You're so Classic (iii)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features mild smut, sex aversion, and themes of implied peer pressure. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

Chapter Art Done by @daddydindjarin 💙 Click Here

Last Chapter | Series Masterlist | Next Chapter

Blueberry Cobbler (10.9k)

“Turn.”

Nanette shifted her pose, bringing her arms up more to push out her chest as the photographers snapped pictures of her profile, making sure to arch her back just so as the scene coordinator gave an approving thumbs up from the sidelines, and despite the chill of the cold air she was having a good time on this shoot. Camille was posing at another area of the coast, just near enough that they could share the trailer for warmth between changes, and Nanette was eager to tell her friend about Zach.

After their incredible first date she’d invited him to a private photography gallery for date number two, it was a former intern she’d worked with in the past named Kaleigh who managed to get the funding she needed to host her own gallery, and Zach had proven he was no slouch in the semi-formal department when he’d shown up. Pale blue button down with the top two buttons undone, black blazer paired with charcoal slacks, and his work shoes polished up? Nanette had seen the eyes on him as she walked with him at her side the entire night, unable to fight the pride and feeling of victory burning in her blood.

He’d taken her home and kissed her again, just as chaste as the first date, and her cheeks had been flush right up until she went to bed. Zach was honestly so much different than she expected, he was considerate and kind in a way that she hadn’t really experienced before, and she knew that he probably had read all the public available articles of the modeling world so his lack of questions was… both concerning and refreshing.

“Darling, you’re distracted.” Harrison’s voice made her look up at the photographer as he smiled, fondly at least, and Nanette couldn’t help but feel like an idiot for letting it distract her at work.

“Sorry Harrison, it won’t happen again.” The snickering from a few other models nearby was ignored but Nanette knew that they’d tattle to Delaney, she wasn’t a stranger to the constant attempts at one-upping each other wherever possible, but given the fact that she wasn’t the type to allow for distractions she knew that he’d probably just check in to see if she was okay at most. For the rest of the shoot Nanette kept her focus on work, that way it would look like a hiccup at best, and as expected her agent just asked if she was okay and then excused her when the client called the shoot.

“So, you’re almost never distracted here on set, what’s going on Nettie?” Camille’s question made Nanette smile fondly, the two slipping out of their showcase swimsuits in the thin changing tents. Out of all the people she’d met after leaving home it was Camille who had been by her side the longest, they’d gone to their first trial photo shoot together after applying to work with Delaney at the same time. If there was anyone she trusted most it’d be Camille.

“I had a second date.”

“With the guy from the club?”

The reminder of Owen made her skin crawl but Nanette shook that away, that wasn’t a problem anymore, she had a reason to deny hooking up with people now that she had a more valid reason that wasn’t just a flimsy no. Having a steady ‘almost boyfriend’ would be seen as an acceptable reason to turn down the advances of others.

“No actually, his name is Zach and he owns a diner called The Chow Hall. He’s really sweet, Cam, and I really like him.” The confession earned a long look from Camille as she shimmied into her jean shorts but Nanette kept her focus on making sure the bikini she’d been modeling was hung up correctly, her attire for the day was a simple sundress so it hadn’t taken much effort to change at all.

“When did you meet this guy?” Camille’s tone was light but there was skepticism to it that Nanette didn’t like, as if her best friend thought her judgment wasn’t good enough, but rather than calling her out on it she kept her worries tucked away.

Camille only cared about her, she hadn’t been there for the meet up with Zach like she had been with Leon or Owen.

“The night Leon dumped me I stopped by his diner, I wanted something to eat so I didn’t look like a worse loser going home you know? He was kind, and he’s hot, so I couldn’t really stop noticing him and decided to go back again.” It was impossible to keep the smile out of her words, to not get a little bit soft when she thought of her first time meeting Zach even thought it wasn’t even that long ago. Camille led her out of the tents and toward her car now that they were both dressed, the Southern California weather was nice even if it was a little warm, and Camille waited until they were in the car to continue the conversation.

Both of them knew that Delaney was pretty weird about them dating, no doubt he’d go ballistic if he knew that Nanette was seeing someone who owned a diner regardless of it being a place for veterans to begin readapting to civilian life, and Camille’s discretion was something Nanette always appreciated. Their agent really didn’t have a right to stop them from dating, seeing people, or controlling who they were with but he’d used his position of booking them for shoots to punish them when they did things he didn’t like.

Nanette had a list of other agencies she could apply to if Delaney did go nuclear, she’d lawyered up before signing her contract with his agency to ensure they couldn’t throw in any sort of ‘no competition’ clause to prevent her from staying in the industry at her step-father’s suggestion. Which, realistically, was a good idea since he’d already done that to two models who were now waiting tables doing as many film auditions and music auditions that they could find.

“Can we go there, so I can meet him? Or are you, uh, not that sure about him yet?” Camille’s request ripped her out of her rampaging thoughts, making Nanette look up as her friend waited in a long line of traffic, and after a moment’s thought she decided there was no harm in it. Especially since she knew Zach was a good man and that, once they met, Camille would lose the slight wariness in her voice.

“Sure, I can have a small salad since I skipped a heavy meal yesterday and the day before.” After being a little too close to her maximum allotted weight per her contract she’d severely cut back on everything she was eating or drinking, keeping to her room when she was home since Francesca was still on a deficit and their two tempers mixed as well as oil and water on a good day.

Camille parked and Nanette wasn’t surprised to see the diner had plenty of people inside already, most of them talking and laughing while some were drinking coffee with a book, and she decided not to say anything as her best friend took in the decor visible from the outside. The two walked in and Nanette waved at Akenlolu, the woman was using her cane today but she was here, and the server grabbed two menus with a smile.

“I’ll let the boss know you’re here, he should probably take his lunch break anyway. Water with lemon?” Nanette nodded and Camille did too, the veteran leaving them be as they sat at a booth today, but it was pretty obvious when her friend saw Zach for the first time since her eyes widened and her lips parted in surprise.

“Holy shit he’s hot.” Camille’s remark made Nanette giggle with a nod, simply turning her head a little to see him weaving through the tables, and she scooted over closer to the window as Zach set their drinks down with one of his own. He was wearing a short sleeve button down today with his black trousers, the buttons mostly done up to her mild dissatisfaction, but he looked so good.

“Nanette, hi, how are you doing?” He kissed her cheek, gentle and affectionate without being too much, and it made her face warm as Camille’s eyes began to absolutely sparkle.

“I’m good, Zach, just got out of a photo shoot and my best friend Camille wanted to come meet you. So I figured we could split a salad.” He looked over at the currently silent observer and offered his hand.

“Camille? It’s nice to meet you, I’m Zach Wellison.”

“I’m afraid Nanette’s been keeping you quite the secret, I bet she knew I’d interrogate you when we met. I’m Camille D’Agostino, and you’re quite lucky I’m the one you met first since our other friends Melinda and Shaye are a lot nosier than I am.” Zach chuckled but Nanette laughed, covering her mouth to soften the sound, and Camille pouted but she broke into a soft laugh of her own.

“You’re also a model, then?”

“Yep, Nanette and I have modeled for the same agency since we started doing it.” Zach was grinning at least and after Akenlolu came to take orders Nanette found herself relaxing the more that the pair beside her talked, Camille was telling him about growing up on the East Coast and it was nice to know that her friend trusted him enough to tell him where she was really from, and knowing that she basically had Camille’s approval meant a lot to her.

“So what are your intentions with Nettie? I’ll have you know she’s very amazing and she’s my best friend so you need to answer this very carefully.”

“Oh Cam, seriously?”

“Yeah seriously.” Cam sniffed and tipped her nose up at Nanette when she tried to intervene, the interaction making Zach chuckle, and Nanette glanced at him with a roll of her eyes.

“You don’t have to answer her, she’s being ridiculous.”

“I know. But my intentions are simply to take care of Nanette and do whatever is in my power to keep her happy and safe.” His answer earned a nod from Camille but for Nanette her face warmed again since he’d looked right at her when he said it even if he was answering Camille. It felt extraordinarily intimate since his voice was so soft, his eyes keeping hers locked on him, and Nanette squirmed in her seat before she could really stop herself. When the shiver of heat began to run down her spine, sending chills down her arms, she felt a small stab of panic but kept her face as clear and relaxed as she could. Still dealing with the aftermath of what she went through with Owen, emotionally, she didn’t know if she was ready to lie to Zach about enjoying being in bed with him.

It’s fine, she was fine, it was okay to have the guy she wanted to date turn her on.

If Zach or Camille noticed the shift in her behavior neither one of them said anything and Nanette managed to keep her bodily reactions under control, spending the rest of lunch laughing and sharing stories about some of the models they’d worked with in the past or how some of the security for the shoots had looked silly falling into the sand when people passing by tried to come get a closer look and the employees had moved to intervene.

By the time she got back to her place Francesca was thankfully still on set filming for her minor role in an art film, leaving Nanette the rest of the afternoon to tidy up the living room and clean up the bathroom before she retreated when she heard her roommate’s loud car pull into the driveway. Francesca slammed the front closed before stomping to her room and slamming that door too as Nanette exhaled, waiting just in case the aspiring actress decided to come try and pick a fight, and the knocking on her door moments later made Nanette plaster a pleasant look on her face.

All she had to do was be polite and she could get Francesca to leave her be. If she was polite then any problems that came from this couldn’t be pinned on her.

“Hey Frannie. How was filming.” Watching Francesca’s lips tighten into a flat line made it pretty clear to Nanette that this wasn’t supposed to be a casual talk.

“It was fucking awful, don’t pretend like you don’t already know that. What did you do with my moisturizer?” Nanette kept her smile as soft as she could even as her own mood plummeted into anger and annoyance, still reeling from the confusing burst of emotions from lunch.

“It’s in your cosmetic’s drawer, Frannie, I just wanted to wipe the sink counter down so I put it with the rest of your makeup.” The ‘where it belongs’ was unspoken but Nanette should have known better than to think that her roommate, who was already in a worked up mood, would let the issue rest there.

“I use it every day, which is why I keep it on the counter, don’t accuse me of being a slob.”

“Frannie, please don’t put words in my mouth.”

“It’s pretty fucking clear that you think I’m a slob otherwise you would have put it back on the counter top when you were done instead of under the sink. Whatever, thank you for cleaning a little bit.” Francesca’s temper wasn’t gone but she wasn’t as loud or sharp toned anymore, which Nanette would count as a win, and the model inhaled heavily as soon as she closed the door before letting her back rest against it. The sharp, aggressive, tones made her shiver as she fought against the rising panic.

She was fine, she was perfectly okay. Francesca was in a pissy mood but it was fine, it was nothing like her mother and Dad used to be.

Once her breathing was back under control she found herself choosing to collapse in bed, dreading the nightmares she’d no doubt be plagued by after today, but she didn’t have the energy to do anything else today.

Gentle fingers pressed into the curve of her waist, mouth moving languidly against his as she perched in his lap, and Nanette’s own hands were playing with the hair at the base of his neck as Zach held her like she was something precious. His strength went beyond the physical aspects, how he’d easily picked her up and carried her from the doorway of the apartment all the way to her bedroom, the sheer presence of him was making her heart race but not out of discomfort.

“So beautiful.” Zach’s voice was rough with desire against her lips, the flush on her skin luring his mouth to trail open mouth kisses down her neck as she squirmed against his lap and allowed her head to drop back. His breath was heating her already warm skin and the touch of his tongue against her was making her hands shake with how badly she wanted him, teeth setting hard in her lower lip to contain the sounds threatening to spill out of her.

“Let me hear you, pretty girl.” One of the hands on her waist had lifted to tug at her lower lip, his thumb resting against the plush skin right as a whimper bubbled out of her when he suckled at the area between her collar bones. As soon as his teeth nipped, just hard enough to make her gasp, Zach groaned loudly into the open room and moved his hand to grip her hip instead of her waist.

The chills down her spine made her shiver and Nanette felt the touch of his fingers move to her thigh before his hand was sliding up her leg under her skirt. The string of whispered pleas for him to keep going made Zach shiver too and Nanette drew his thumb into her mouth and sucked right as his own thumb brushed over her dripping center on her underwear. The feather light brush of his fingertips was like a spark to kindling with how worked up she was, her hips rocking down for more and her back bowing at the way it felt.

“Look at you.” The drag of fingertips along her covered slit made her whine but when he caught her clit and pressed Nanette’s eyes slammed closed as she writhed from the touch.

“Give it to me, Nanette, let me see you come.” His plea was followed by the touch of bare fingers against her wet lips as he moved her underwear to the side and the thumb in her mouth was pressing against her tongue as she rocked her hips harder before she broke.

Slick wetness between her legs and the aftershocks were the first things to register when Nanette woke up, gasping and breathing like she’d just run a marathon, her eyes wide as she stared at her ceiling. The sensation of fingers pressing into her waist and hips were still there, phantoms of her imagination lingering just out of reach, and the morbid realization of what just happened to her made Nanette’s chest tighten. There was no way, at all, that she could have ever dreamed up something so perfect and so painful.

She wanted to fit in, that was why her mind was trying to trick her into enjoying it, it was just a dream.

But Nanette couldn’t stop herself from crying, mourning something that would never happen that way, feeling bitter that she’d been allowed to create such a perfect scene when she knew the reality was going to hurt her so deeply instead and now this would be haunting her. Silent tears streaked down her face as she escaped to the bathroom and climbed in the shower, washing away the evidence of her shame as she wrapped her arms around her self.

There wasn’t any way for her Mother to know, Nanette hadn’t done anything wrong and she hadn’t technically touched herself.

The water washed away the tears and the slick but it couldn’t erase the pain or shame she felt.

Zach didn’t know what he’d done wrong.

After meeting Camille he’d thought that his relationship with Nanette was solid enough that he could ask if they could be exclusive, if she trusted him to meet her best friends that had to count for something right? He reasoned with himself that she’d been busy, that she hadn’t answered his last two texts because she was just working, since Camille’s Instagram was loaded with pictures of what looked like at least four different shoots in the course of a week and Nanette had two others on hers.

But it still left an ugly feeling in his chest, left the idea that he’d read her wrong and that she was done with him.

He wondered if Camille meeting him had been unexpected and she was ashamed of what he did.

No, no she wouldn’t be. Nanette knew what he did for a living before she went on two dates with him.

Every noise from his phone had him scrambling for the device, worried that he’d miss a chance to talk to her, and it was so distracting that his entire staff rallied together to make him take two days off and rest. Leaving him at home alone, pacing and pent up, as he let the Food Network channel play whatever it was airing while he looked for something to occupy his hands.

Tidying up the various things he left laying around, dusting, running the vacuum and even cleaning the baseboards… he was going out of his mind with this ugly tangle of annoyance and worry caught in his throat.

Nanette wasn’t hurt, he knew that because she was still posting on Instagram once a day and sometimes more, so while he wasn’t worried about her being injured he was worried about her being healthy. It had not escaped his notice that she’d made sure Camille ate more of the salad they ordered and the questions had been burning on the tip of his tongue, to know if they were going to be okay with that little amount of food, but he’d kept his mouth shut. It wasn’t his place to try and… well to try and control what it was they ate or how they lived.

Zach would never be able to forgive himself if he crossed the line between concern and control, he could still hear the loud shouting not only of his drill instructors and his commanding officers from his time in service but from his own father just over the soft fear in his Mother’s voice. He had always tried so hard to be better than the man that had been determined to shape him into an angry, violent, young man; joining the military to appease his father and to escape him.

He picked up his phone and decided that, regardless of the time, he was going to try and do more than just sit back passively this time as he scrolled to Nanette’s contact and pressed the call button. It was answered but he could hear talking in the background about lighting, positioning for props, and someone complaining about stretched seams.

“I’ll be right back, Shaye. Hi Zach.”

“Hi Nanette, I didn’t realize- you could have let it go to voice mail.”

Guilt rose up in his chest at the exhausted edge to her voice, breathy and tired, and his anger began to slide away into the ugly self-loathing about how he wasn’t actually anywhere near being over his issues with his confidence and self-worth. He had again believed the worst in her, unintentionally pushing his issues onto her actions.

“No, I’ve been really busy lately. I’ve had a shoot each day after my agent got a contract for three different magazines, by the time I get done I’m too tired to do anything.”

“Do you need me to bring you anything? Can I bring you anything? I don’t want to get you in trouble but I can bring something to eat if you need it.”

To try and make-up for his slight Zach felt the need to take care of her, to do something other than just sit back and stew in his guilt. Realistically he knew he needed to reach out to his therapist, she knew about Nanette and how dating a model was tanking his own self-confidence, but right now he couldn’t stand the idea of doing anything for himself and his mental state when the little voice in his head demanded he care for the woman he wanted to be with.

“I mean we’re allowed to eat a light salad with oil and vinegar but they don’t have that here on the catering table so most of us just drink water on meal break. Have been for three days.”

“I can bring a large container of salad greens with some oil and vinegar for you all, I just miss you and want to see you.”

“I… you- really? I mean, I miss you too Zach but you don’t have to do that since you won’t get paid for it.”

“I’m not worried about the money, Nanette, I’m worried about you. You sound exhausted and I can’t imagine how hard it is on you to skip meals like that.”

The confession was a little strong for how he usually handled her career talk but he felt the need to show her that he cared, that he was worried but wouldn’t intervene unless she asked him to.

“I’d like that, Zach, and I know the others would too.”

“Okay, do I need to bring anything other than my ID?”

“No, I’ll let security know to expect you and send you the location. Thank you, Zach.”

“Of course, Nanette, I’ll be there soon then.”

As soon as the call ended he was shutting off his television and hurrying toward the door after changing out his over sized sleep shirt for a tighter fitting white shirt from his dresser, he warned Ramirez that he was coming in to get everything together himself and then he was out the door after putting on his shoes. Zach had the address and put it into his car’s built in GPS, the detour at the diner took a bit of time since he grabbed some insulated bags and containers but the longest part of the ride was heading to the shoot itself.

Following his therapist’s recommendations Zach reminded himself about the things he’d done that were good, that helped people and lifted them up, about all the progress he’d made since meeting Justin and starting the process of getting back on his feet. It was hard to look at it and be proud, when right now that ugly voice in his head was trying to tell him he’d only done good things to repay the chance he’d been given, but Zach knew that wasn’t true.

Even before the military he was someone that his friends could depend on, he was a protector and caretaker and well liked even when he lost his temper or had his own outbursts. He’d been a kid born to unfortunate circumstances who had someone trying to teach him to be cruel, his way of adapting had been avoiding the path of cruelty as much as possible and striving to be kind.

But sometimes he saw it, in his reflection mostly since he inherited his father’s nose and face shape, Zach could see the shadow of anger and danger that was hiding in wait for the moment he slipped up.

“Get it together, Wellison, you’re fine. Nanette’s just busy and she’s not upset with you.” It was rare that he indulged talking with himself but he’d learned that sometimes he needed to.

The shoot was a wide stretch of the shore and security flagged his car into a private parking lot, showing them his ID and then letting them do a pat down before he was taking the cold bags to a tent with tables of sandwiches and snacks. Nanette was posing on the sand right now and his eyes raked over the exposed skin from the mono-kini she was modeling, the butter yellow fabric looked gorgeous on her and her hair was hanging loose as she arched her back a little more like she was getting ready to jump and hit a volley ball back at an imaginary opponent.

A pose where she was on her knees in the sand, hands resting on her thighs, with her hair hanging over one shoulder followed; he noticed how still she was and couldn’t help but wonder just how long she could hold a pose for. The next pose had her leaning back to set her hands in the soft sand, still on her knees, and arching her back like she was stretching and about to get up.

Two more quick poses and lunch was called and Zach caught Nanette’s eye when she started heading toward the tables, watching her grab a larger zip up jacket that she slipped over the bathing suit before she was walking over to him and smiling so gently as she leaned on the table slightly.

“You’re a hero, seriously, I’m famished. I’m sorry it’s been busy and-“ Nanette’s worried expression made him feel guilty again and he captured both her hands in his to interrupt her, loving that he could see the touch of color under the make-up she was wearing. Just being here with her, knowing he could do something for her, was easing the knot of self-loathing that had begun forming in his chest.

“Don’t apologize for working, this is the least I could do for you, Nanette.” He couldn’t tell her what he’d thought, afraid that if he spoke it into existence he would curse himself, so instead Zach kept that truth tucked away to discuss with his therapist at his next appointment. He served up some salad to the models, greeting Camille warmly, and if it weren’t for the sour look on the face of the suit wearing man walking their way Zach would have thought everyone here was very down-to-earth.

“I’m Delaney St. John, Nanette’s agent, you run a diner?” The greeting was borderline rude and Zach felt his already turbulent emotions begin shifting to anger, years of being looked down on by men like this hadn’t done anything for him other than make him defensive when confronted like this.

“I’m Zachary Wellison, and yes I run The Chow Hall.” His diner had made headlines for being one of the only places in LA to hire veterans only so he wasn’t at all surprised to see recognition on the man’s face.

“Right, well, thank you for bringing something to eat for Nanette and the others and being conscious of their restrictions. Ladies, I need to remind you that measurements and physicals are due this weekend since I haven’t gotten any yet.” His eyes darted to Nanette and Zach felt her flinch a little, wondering if he’d inadvertently led to her needing to cut back in order to maintain her weight and measurements.

After Delaney walked away she fell quieter and took smaller bites of food, leaving Zach to believe that she felt like her physical and measurements would be a problem.

“Hey, Nanette, are you going to be okay?” He hated prying like this but he felt guilty again, even if she was an adult with the ability to refuse what he offered Zach would sometimes come and eat a dessert with her and give her a bite or two when she came in for lunch. He watched her nod without speaking, her stare distant, and Camille offered him a knowing smile.

“Nettie will be fine, Louis is good at getting the four of us to stay where we need to. It’s just Delaney being a bastard because Nettie, Shaye, Mel, and I keep ourselves within five pounds of our maximum weight.” The explanation didn’t really soothe his worries, the fact that their contract came with a maximum allowed weight made him angrier than Delaney’s attitude had but he knew he couldn’t do anything about it.

“Mhm, I’ll be okay. But thank you, Zach, for worrying about me without being bossy or weird about it.” Nanette leaned up to kiss his cheek and he opened one of his arms, letting her snuggle against his side as she sipped from her water bottle, but he noticed that Delaney was still shooting him dirty looks from where he was talking with the make-up team. Zach met that glare with a flat expression of his own, refusing to back down, and the suit wearing man looked away after glancing at Zach’s bicep where his tattoo rested.

“You know your job, and your body’s capabilities, better than I do Nanette. I’ll still worry but I trust you to tell me if something is wrong that I need to be more concerned about.” He watched her eyes widen, watched the flush darken under her make up, and he wanted to kiss her but the loud ringing signaling the end of lunch interrupted him. Before he left he stopped Nanette with a soft smile.

“Hey, can you let me know when you’re not busy? I want to plan a date if you’re okay with that?” Nanette blinked and nodded, lips lifting into a fond smile.

“I’ll text you my schedule when I get the chance, Zach, and I’m sorry again I’ve been so busy.”

“Stop apologizing for that, just take care of yourself.” He earned a giggle and kissed her forehead, making Nanette gasp softly at the touch of his lips, and Zach grabbed the empty bin of salad greens to bring back to the diner with a smile on his face and relief blooming in his chest.

He was okay, they were fine.

Nanette was still shaken from seeing Zach on site and revealing the truth of what they were to everyone but not anywhere near where she had been, which was good, and Nanette felt the weight of Delaney’s stare as she talked with Louis about her new schedule for the gym. After the series of shoots had finally ended she had three designers who reached out to hire her for their evening wear runway events, an offer that Delaney would have been an idiot to refuse since the COO of the agency had been the one to pass the message along.

Thanks to Louis monitoring her weight and measurements on a bimonthly basis already she’d known that she’d been flirting with her limits, the most recent deficit was self-imposed and her trainer had been proud of her for making that call and following through with it. There was a lot to do still since she was just shy of a few pounds below where she was allowed to be, of course, but that was the point of a new schedule and working with Louis to create an eating plan that would better suit her.

“You’re doing a good job, Nanette, I’m proud of you. You make my job easier and I appreciate you, girl.” Louis’ praise made her smile, unable to help the way she felt knowing she was doing something good for him, and as her trainer walked away she found herself face-to-face with her very upset agent.

“Is something the matter, Delaney?” His lips curled slightly into a scowl at her pleasant tone and she kept the shakiness from her voice as best as she could, for all the times she resisted his more outlandish requests and tantrums she was still worried about the idea that he’d try and crush her career. But when he handed her a bundle of paperwork she’d been given two days before, that she’d refused to sign, Nanette found herself looking up at him and all the shakiness leaving her.

“Why didn’t you sign this?”

“I’m not going to get a breast enlargement and you legally can’t force me to do so, nor can you release me because of my refusal.”

He stared at her and she stared right back, channeling as much of her mother’s quiet anger as she could, and the man’s nostrils flared slightly as he clenched his fingers around the twenty-page long surgery and recovery plan. But for as much as she was fighting it she couldn’t help but feel that worry, that niggling little fear that he was only doing this to help her later, and she hated that she wasn’t sure but Nanette was sure she was happy with her body.

There was nothing wrong with her the way she was, her shoots were popular and now she had been specifically requested by new clients to the company.

With her silence and continued refusal the man finally tucked the papers away and grabbed his tablet, e-mailing her an updated schedule with a lot of new shoots and events on it.

“Very well. Seeing as several others have agreed to it I’m diving their workload, and I don’t want your boyfriend on site again.” Delaney’s sharp tone made Nanette flinch, but only after he’d turned away from her, and she made a noncommittal noise as she turned around to go find Camille and the others.

Shaye and Mel had complimented her on landing a man as good looking as Zach, with several other girls admitting they would snatch him up in a heartbeat if she fucked up with him, but Camille had pulled her aside to quietly confess that she was happy to see Nanette with someone that was good to her. Knowing her friends liked him made it harder to come to grips with the fact that she was terrified, her brain had created this impossible fantasy and she wasn’t sure how long she could lie to him about enjoying sex, and as much as she wanted to run away she also couldn’t imagine not having him in her life.

But they were too far gone to ever be able to just be friends.

Camille spotted her and a testament to Nanette’s control of her facial expressions came in the fact that her best friend hadn’t noticed any of her inner turmoil, or maybe it was a testament to Camille’s friendship that she noticed and hadn’t said anything. Whatever the case was Nanette was able to breathe since the girls were too eager discussing the new work that had come in for them with how many of the others had agreed to get breast enlargement surgeries on the company dime.

The more modeling they did meant they had more opportunities to be picked up by bigger contracts, become more desired and maybe even get as far as being on the runway for Fashion Week in Paris.

Nanette found herself nodding and humming along where she needed to as her friends talked even with her mind miles away, trying to think about how best to approach the subject with Zach. It was possible he would be okay delaying sex, that maybe he wasn’t so traditionalist to expect it from her on the third date, but most people she’d gone out with having the intention of dating them monogamously had proven too eager and often pushed for it on the first date.

Zach wasn’t anything like anyone she’d met before though, he was down-to-earth and patient, he was kind and considerate in a way that most people she’d met weren’t. But the fear that she’d bring it up and find out he did want it, that he’d only date her exclusively if she was willing to sleep with him, kept her from doing so. When he’d called her up saying he missed her, without even being upset at her for ghosting him, she’d been -and still was- plagued with guilt.

This sweet, caring, man had wanted to see her so bad that he’d been willing to bring a salad to a photo shoot for her and the other models.

Meanwhile all she’d been able to think about was how awful she was for treating him like the men she’d been with before, guilty for trying to put him on a pedestal and running from him because her own traitorous brain couldn’t just let her have this one thing, and yet he only seemed to want to take care of her and make sure she was okay.

“So, since we have three days off please tell me you’re going to go on date three with Zach? He’s a real sweetheart, I think he’s the type to be a giver if you know what I mean.” Shaye waggled her eyebrows and Melinda burst into laughter, the raunchy grin on Camille’s face made Nanette nod even though the implication compounded the guilt she was feeling for ghosting Zach because she wasn’t normal.

“Excellent, I have the perfect dress you can wear too. When Cam drops us all off I can pop in and grab it for you.” With that said the four of them left the agency gym together and began walking toward the parking lot where Camille had her parking pass registered, it was further away but the walking was good for them and it was a gated parking lot with security on site twenty-four seven.

Nanette let the girls fantasize about what her third date could possibly be, they all agreed that it was unlikely for Zach to take her out to eat after his visit on set but the girls were quick to throw around walks on the beach or going out to the club, and Nanette knew that they had him all wrong. The beach walks were more likely than a club, Zach had proven he was very much a romantic with his picnic date, an artist with how he’d reacted to her date at the photography gallery, and it made Nanette wonder what he might have up his sleeve next.

After taking the dress Mel had for her and then being dropped off at home, which was blessedly empty since Francesca’s minor role required her to drive four hours upstate and was paying for a hotel for three days, all Nanette could do was stare at her phone and work up the will to text or call Zach again so they could coordinate a time and place. She wanted this date, she did, but it still felt overwhelming knowing that everyone was expecting her to sleep with him now that it was date three. That he might expect her to sleep with him since it was date three.

It was absolutely shitty of her, to go radio silent and use her work as an excuse for not contacting him.

The fact that he trusted her enough to know her own body had her eyes filling with tears, this was completely new to her. Even her mother and step-father had policed her diet and any sort of activities she’d done when she was shifting from pageants to modeling, and as a child growing up she’d only really known heavy restrictions and being interrogated about every little thing she did. This level of trust was… new.

Tapping out a text to let him know she was officially free for three days, sending it before she could stop herself, Nanette wiped away the tears and began the chore of cleaning off her make-up instead of dwelling on her twisted up emotions. The chime of a response made her glance at the device and smile, he clearly had it on hand if he’d answered that quickly, and she tapped the call button before throwing it on speaker since that was what he’d wanted.

“Three days huh? Well as much as I’d love to steal you away for all three I don’t want you to get sick of me either.”

“I could never, Zach.”

It was upsetting how hard on himself Zach could be, she wasn’t blind to how he seemed to not realize how incredible he was, and Nanette wasn’t going to let him keep doing that if she could help it.

“How about Saturday night I take you out?”

“I’d like that, is there any way I should dress?”

“Semi-formal, I’ll pack something to eat for dinner but I’ll keep it light.”

“A picnic at night? I’ve never done that before.”

“Good, then it’ll be a complete surprise. How was the rest of your week?”

Things with him were easy in a way Nanette hadn’t ever had before, revealing her new workload and why -ignoring how her heart skipped when he called her perfect the way she was and being upset that her agent even wanted her to undergo any cosmetic surgeries at all- and Zach told her about two new hires and how Akenlolu’s waiting paid off in being hired for an accounting job after completing the required education for it.

After putting on her moisturizer and tying her hair up loosely to keep it off her face she went to the kitchen with her phone in hand, throwing together a light dinner of whitefish over greens, and she talked with Zach well into the evening as he asked about her favorite films and music. Steering the conversation from work where they began learning about each other, like how Zach’s mother was actually from Mexico and he spoke fluent Spanish and how she was never taught any foreign languages as a kid.

By the time they were both yawning, needing to go to sleep, Nanette didn’t want to let him go. Something about him made her crave the closeness, like this, just a little longer she wanted to live in this time before she would have to deal with the physical of their relationship. But they couldn’t, both of them too tired after the day, and Nanette refilled her water bottle but paused as she looked in the full-length mirror in the living room.

Taking in her appearance, pausing on her thighs and hips, turning to the side and pressing a hand to the smooth skin of her torso.

She was in weight range, her measurements hadn’t changed, she was fine.

Just in case she was going to make sure she didn’t eat anything heavy, just to be safe.

He was excited, basically dancing on the balls of his feet as he slipped into a pair of comfortable but dressy shoes, and Zach ignored the rising nerves as he looked in the mirror at his reflection. His slacks were wrinkle free aside from the ones due to motion and wear and his button up was crisp and clean, the white fabric was miraculously stain free and he ignored the faint five o’clock shadow as he used a nice cologne and ran a hand through his hair. Leather belt through the belt loops of his pants, sleeves rolled up since the night was warm, and Zach was out the door before he could worry himself late.

The food was already packed away, no dessert tonight, and he only cursed Saturday night traffic once as he made his way to Nanette’s apartment building. He glanced at the bouquet of flowers on the passenger seat again, hoping his mother’s lessons in craft earned him something, and he hoped Nanette liked the handmade silk flowers. Recycled from silk fabric that came from clothing meant to be destroyed for small things like fraying or stains on a small area, he’d worked to reduce as much of the waste as he could and was proud of the colorful arrangement.

They were a variety of colors and fabrics, the stems and leaves were multitudes of greens while the blooms were vibrant mixes of colors and patterns, a rainbow of silk and a mish-mash of designs, but he’d been told by Hill and Mosby that the bouquet was beautiful so he was hoping they weren’t lying.

He pulled up to the temporary parking place and grabbed the bouquet, calling Nanette to come down since he didn’t know exactly which apartment was hers, and Zach felt his breath catch in his throat when she stepped out from the building. The dress was stunning in an ombre of colors like the sunrise, her dark hair pulled up in a twist with a few loose strands to frame her face, and her lips were dark and curling into a smile as she walked over.

“These are for you.” The words were just above a breathy whisper, his eyes wide, and Nanette’s smile seemed to grow into a toothy grin as she examined the silk flowers.

“This is beautiful, I love that they’re fabric so I don’t have to be afraid of them wilting.” He noticed the shiny diamond bracelet and took note of it, since he doubted she’d wear anything less precious of a stone, but he was drawn to the way her eyes were on him as she leaned up to kiss him right on the corner of the mouth. It was hard to restrain himself from capturing her in his arms and kissing her properly, the tease of her cheek was the only thing he gave himself, and Nanette giggled when he opened the car door for her before settling into the passenger seat.

He had to get moving or there was a chance he might try and convince her to have a night in.

“I hope you can dance in those.” He glanced at her strappy heels, ignoring the flash of discomfort seeing the red sole disappear as the interior light turned off, and Nanette giggled as she set the bouquet down beside his cold bag.

“Of course I can, I didn’t know you could dance. You never said.”

“My Mama took me with her to lessons when I was growing up, I used to- I had a lot of energy to burn and she didn’t want me doing it in a dangerous way.” Maria Wellison, bless her heart, had wanted him to be gentle and calm, not as angry and aggressive as his father so Zach had dance lessons after school instead of hanging out with the other military kids who started getting into trouble for fights.

Zach honestly could never thank his Mama enough for what she’d done, teaching him how to do basic needlework and make silk flowers and letting him create, and even though he’d never get her back into the States again now that she and his father were divorced he talked to her at least three times a week.

“Your mother sounds lovely, she must be proud of you.”

“She is, yea, even if it’s hard for me to believe it sometimes.”

He glanced down when Nanette set her hand on his where he was tapping the gear shift nervously, unable to meet her eyes since he was driving, but the warmth of her voice and her words made him wish he could pull over and look into her eyes.

“You don’t give yourself enough credit, Zach, you’re amazing. What you do for others is something so kind, you give them a chance to adapt and grow and find a place to belong after what I an only imagine is such a hard life.” He felt that glaring self-doubt ignite, the reminder of what he’d done during his time in lingering, and even though he knew she was right he couldn’t shake that darkness looming just out of reach.

His therapist and Justin were the only ones who knew that some nights he woke up with the phantom sensation of a gun in his hand, with blood and dirt on his uniform, and the sound of gunfire deafening him as he curled in bed. Part of him was afraid that he’d mess up, that if he pushed this too soon he’d hurt Nanette because he was stuck with his demons, but he couldn’t live in fear forever.

“Thank you, Nanette, I’ll try to remember that more.”

“You’d better, you’re a good man Zachary Wellison and I’m so happy to have been able to meet you.”

The park wasn’t even close to being full when he arrived, slinging the cold bag over his shoulder, and Nanette looped her arm in his as they traversed the stone pathway toward where a pavilion was set up with picnic benches and other people loitering around or eating. He handed his tickets to the attendant and they picked a bench to sit at, ignoring the eyes on them as he unpacked the lean meal, and Nanette was making it pretty obvious how curious she was as she looked around.

“In about an hour there’s going to be live bands playing, tonight is slow jazz and R&B.” He remembered her mentioning that she listened to a lot of Etta James, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald after moving out of her parent’s house. He knew tonight that there was a veteran he met on tour singing Andrea Bocelli covers too, which was why he’d been pretty excited that the stars had aligned for him, so it was hard to contain that energy.

He watched her eat, unable to help it now that he knew a little more about her work life and her restrictions, but clearly he’d packed the right things since she didn’t hesitate or even question it. Zach had gone for lighter and brighter greens, pickled onions, and roasted chicken with warmer spices like cinnamon and cardamom and turmeric to balance the vinegar and tangy flavors on the greens. It was hard to avoid using certain ingredients since that was how his Mama taught him to cook but finding new recipes online had worked in his favor, knowing that Nanette liked everything just made it that much better.

By the time they were done eating, with him taking the cold bag and dishes back to the car, the bands were done setting up and he spread out the blanket he’d brought so they could sit in the grass with everyone else as the benches were moved off to the sides of the pavilion to create a dance floor.

“Thank you, Zach, this is beautiful.” Nanette’s voice was soft as she slipped her hand in his and rested her head against his shoulder, the first group up leaned right into romance as the petite female singer began crooning into the microphone and her band mates began playing the bouncy melody of Ella Fitzgerald’s It’s a Pity to Say Goodnight. Nanette softly sang the words beside him, making Zach smile as she tapped her thumb against his hand in time to the melody, and he grinned before helping her up and moving to the dance floor.

He was pleasantly surprised that she could keep up with him as he free styled a dance routine, adding some jive style moves into his spins and twirls, but she kept up with him and he was reminded that she had grown up doing a variety of talents and pageants of all kinds. It made him smile as he pulled her close when the music shifted to something slower and the singer’s voice lowered, with Nanette mouthing the words and the live instruments echoing under the pavilion top.

They stopped here and there to simply sit and listen, or when the performers would switch out, and after four groups Zach smiled when he saw Guzman get up on stage.

“Guzman is good, I know him from when I was in the service, he sings Andrea Bocelli and sounds great doing it.” Nanette’s eyes twinkled and she got up, offering her hand to him, so Zach followed her to the dance floor as Guzman looked right at him and winked before spinning his guitar around his body to play. The familiar strumming as Zach and Nanette started to dance together made Zach smile as he leaned his face down enough to whisper the lyrics into Nanette’s ear.

Bésame Mucho was the one song he remembered his father ever singing to his Mama and even that was when he was very young, before the man lost all the rest of his kindness, and Zach couldn’t help but sing it to Nanette. Something about her chased away the darkness in his world, and even with the pavilion only illuminated by fairy lights the world around him was brighter with her in it, and Zach made a promise to himself that he’d do whatever it took to make sure she knew that. A promise that he’d never lose this blossoming love or any of his kindness, that he’d be patient and understanding always so that his world stayed this bright.

Like there was just an aurora around the two of them when they were together like this or something, it was cliché but the whole cartoon sparkles and bubbles were really a thing since his belly felt like he’d been filled with butterflies, and her playful smile was softened by the glow in her eyes.

His first kiss with her was there on that dance floor, her hand in his and his other hand on her back, but it was perfection as she pressed her lips to his and swayed with him to the music. That light feeling in his chest followed him all the way through Guzman’s set, all the way back to his car as the park closed down, and Nanette’s hand in his stayed there the entire ride back to hers.

“Zach? Did you- do you want to come up?” He felt the slightest shake in Nanette’s hands and heard it in her voice, unsure if it was nerves or excitement, as he reached a red light Zach glanced at her face carefully. There wasn’t anything in her expression to say she didn’t want this, that he could see in this lighting, and Zach had to turn his head back to the road before he could really examine her expression. Things with Nanette were surprisingly easy compared to what he was used to, everything he’d been through so far often came learned or acquired the hard way, and Zach wanted this to be another easy thing for them.

If they were compatible everywhere, as a couple and in bed, he’d feel much better asking her to go exclusive.

“Only if you want me to, Nanette.” He answered truthfully, that while he did want to have her under him or on him like that he wasn’t going to demand it, and he felt Nanette’s grip on his hand tighten a little only briefly.

“I want you to come up, Zach.” They pulled into the parking lot and Zach wasn’t surprised when the lot security was suspicious but Nanette cleared his car as a guest vehicle, which was a big commitment since it basically gave him free reign to come over when he wanted unless she revoked it, and he followed her to the elevator after finding her designated parking space.

But something about having her like this, in this closed space knowing what she wanted from him, created something electric in the air and Zach began noticing everything. How Nanette’s tongue darted out to wet her lips, how her pupils had expanded when she tipped her head to look at him, the way she seemed to fidget and how her grip on his hand kept shifting just a little.

Like she couldn’t contain herself with him.

He didn’t have to question it as he turned to face her, the elevator doors sliding closed after what felt like a century, because Nanette made it clear as she stepped close to him and kissed him. Zach moaned into her mouth, unable to help himself, hands dropping to her waist to hold her close and Nanette whined softly against his lips as she gripped his biceps.

He let her walk him back to the wall of the elevator, let her cage him against the solid surface, and he was just as addicted to the feeling of her lips on his as she seemed to be because even parting for air was so brief and the chime of the elevator shocked both of them when it sounded. Nanette’s face was flushed almost as pink as her dress, breathing erratic, and Zach let her pull him to her apartment while taking note of the number on the door as she unlocked it.

There was a full length mirror in the living space, the kitchen wasn’t large but it was tidy and everything looked like what he’d expect from a pretty fancy LA apartment, but her room was surprisingly small until he realized that the closet was bigger than her room when she practically tossed her heels through the door muttering something about putting them away later.

He grinned as Nanette pushed him back onto her bed and Zach let her straddle his lap as he slowed things down, one hand on the back of her neck and the other on her lower back as the kiss turned languid. He wanted to savor this, to get to watch every expression on her face when he was able to touch her bare, and Nanette didn’t fight it. The slow movement of their lips, the way her hands drifted down his chest so her nails could run along his torso over the shirt, all of it made his head hazy and the blood rush south when she bit his lower lip and rocked her hips in the same beat.

Zach found the pin holding her twist up and pulled, the loose braid dropping down her back, and Nanette whimpered against his lips as he let his tongue run against her mouth before she opened for him. It was bliss, the feeling of her wet tongue brushing his and the smell of her perfume this close, her warm body perched in his lap as she angled her head to deepen the kiss. He was content like this, sitting on her bed just kissing her, but Nanette shifted again and he could tell she was either turned on or impatient and he couldn’t decide which choice he liked more.

“So beautiful.” He traced his nose along hers before trailing soft kisses across her cheek to nip at her ear and Nanette squirmed, gripping the fabric of his shirt as she shivered, and he licked the shell of her ear in a tease as he rocked his hips up and used the hand on her lower back to hold her still.

“Can I taste you, Nanette?” Zach was a giver, always had been, when it came to relationships; his biggest problem was that he had a habit of giving too much and getting heartbroken in return when his partner never reciprocated, be it affection or time or even just being there. He couldn’t turn that off and the desire to have Nanette writhing over him as he looked up at her, as she trembled above him, it was all consuming.

“Y-yes.” Nanette’s voice had gone quiet, uncomfortably quiet, and Zach paused what he was doing to study her face. He could see it now, in the wide eyes and parted lips, the discomfort lurking in her expression. He stopped her when she tried to distract him with a kiss, with her hips on his, and the shine of tears on her face put a full stop to everything.

“Hey, easy, talk to me. What’s going on?” He softened his voice, making her sit beside him, and Nanette’s body shook a little before the tears slipped free as she smeared her make up to wipe them away.

This was not how things were supposed to go but Nanette knew she’d messed it all up and now Zach was going to leave for good.

Couldn’t just keep it the fuck together for a little bit longer, what a joke.

His eyes were wide with worry and Nanette knew he deserved an answer, as much as she wanted to just run, but her breathing and her emotions just wouldn’t cooperate. It took several long minutes of Zach just holding her, using one of her handkerchiefs to clean up her face and then hugging her, before she found the ability to even speak again.

“I’m sorry I just- I’ve been all up in my head all night because I knew I wanted this with you but it’s never… there’s something wrong with me because it’s never been good and I don’t want you to leave because I’m not good enough-“ The words tumbled out before she could filter them, needing him to know that it wasn’t him that was the issue, and she had to stop herself as soon as she admitted that she was fucked up somehow. It was officially over before it began, it didn’t matter how patient or kind a man was when it came to their work, she was going to find out that she wasn’t worth his time or effort since she couldn’t enjoy sex.

Zach tipped her chin up and pressed a kiss to her forehead, shaking his head gently and hushing her.

“If it was never good for you before it’s because whoever you were with didn’t take the time to find out what made you feel good, Nanette. Your OBGYN hasn’t said there’s something medically wrong with you, have they?” He was watching her face now and she shook her head, he was right in that because Dr. Samuels had done some pretty extensive testing when Nanette went in last year and finally mentioned the pain, and her doctor was a very sweet and thorough woman with everything before giving Nanette a clean bill of health.

“No, she hasn’t. But how can- it’s consistent, which means it has to be me-“

“That’s not true at all, Nanette, it’s not uncommon for men to ignore what makes their partner feel good and that isn’t a you problem. If you’re not ready I’m not going to push you okay? I’m not going to leave you over this either. I like you and what matters most to me is that you enjoy what I do and consent to what I do, the second you don’t want it means I stop.” Zach’s reassurance, and his firm stance, made Nanette burst into heaving sobs as it sank in that he meant what he said.

His arms around her were solid, they made her feel safe, and Nanette clung to him as she whispered gratitude into his shirt until her voice was hoarse and her eyes burned from how much she’d cried. The entire time he’d held her close, promising her that he wasn’t leaving her, and Nanette believed him. What she didn’t count on was Zach rummaging through her kitchen, the smell of something warm and sweet in the air when he returned to pull her out to sit on the couch, or for him to give her hot blueberry cobbler -which she’d admitted to having just once as a teen and lying to her mother about- with a promise that he could wait.The smell of his cologne and the cinnamon sugar crumble, the taste of his mouth and the blueberries on her tongue, all of it made her feel safe. It made her feel seen.

All Fics Taglist: @hardc0rehaylz @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @musings-of-a-rose @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @rominaszh @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry

Just Pedro Taglist: @maievdenoir @beecastle @littlemisspascal @writeforfandoms @aynsleywalker @lovesbiggerthanpride @mswarriorbabe80

You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime

[chaoticgeminate]

You're So Classic (iv)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features sexual harassment at a work function, implied bad parenting, and smut. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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Frito Pie (11K)

Anger, for him, was like fire.

Sparks that would ignite into a blaze, roaring loud and hot, and oftentimes uncontrollable. Too much like his father in that regard, he remembered his Mama and her family saying in hushed whispers when he was a teenager, and yet Zach was willing to let that blaze burn bright in this moment as his fist connected with the sandbag in another quick two-strike attack. The anger was the legacy he’d inherited from Gregory Wellison but the boxing had been all his uncle, his mother’s brother had tried her hardest to give him something that he could channel his anger into and stressed to use it as a healthy outlet.

Zach was proud to say that he had done that, never using the lessons his uncle offered as anything but an outlet against a sandbag or to defend himself or his brothers and sisters in arms. The dance lessons from his Mama kept him light on his feet and helped shake his pent up energy, the boxing let him work through his anger in a way he knew but without the consequences of hurting someone.

He never thought he’d really lean on them as much as he used to, until today.

Even after three days he was unable to get the image of Nanette, eyes red from crying and make-up smeared across her face, out of his mind. Unable to silence the reminders of just how cruel the world could be to people, unable to forget the way she sounded calling herself not good enough, and he hated that she ever was put into a position that she felt that way at all. That she was afraid he’d leave her because her past experiences with relationships had led her to believe she was the problem.

His fist struck the bag again and again, wanting nothing more than to do something other than stew in how he felt knowing that there were people out there who had been either blind or willing to ignore the obvious signs of discomfort that Nanette had when it came to intimacy, and he settled on getting rid of the anger in the only way he really knew how effectively.

He couldn’t even find it in him to bring up the topic again.

Zach couldn’t stand the idea of being the one to push, he didn’t want Nanette to think that the only thing that mattered to him was sex when that was the farthest from the truth, and yet he hated that part of him felt like he needed to talk it over this soon. He wanted to help her, to teach her how to be confident in every part of her life, and yet he knew that he had to wait until she was ready to talk and to open up to him about it again.

Trauma came in many forms, he’d learned, and this was hers.

The diner was in full swing by the time he arrived to work on inventory and bill pay, which was a bit of a blessing for him since he knew that if it was even a little slow he would end up lost in his own thoughts again, and Zach almost missed the call of his name if not for the hand that went up with it. Justin waved again and he hurried over, wrapping the other man in a tight hug, and Zach sat down with him and who he presumed to be his friend’s new wife Tyler.

“I didn’t think you’d come visit for at least another month, but I’m glad to see you.” Zach earned a chuckle and Justin tipped his head with a soft snort while Tyler laughed outright.

“After all the craziness in my life, all the drama around Tyler’s divorce finalizing, and then us choosing to get married as quickly as we did it was a no brainer to get some time away from all that. Plus I get to check in on you again.” Zach shrugged fondly, knowing that his fellow vet had been down some of the darkest paths, seeing him possibly allowed to be happy was a relief since Justin had been the one to teach him how to find that spark again.

“Then I take it rehab and therapy are going well?” Justin nodded and ducked his gaze to the tabletop, his and Tyler’s food set down by Dooley before the new employee was off to another table, and Zach felt only sympathy for the man beside him. He and Justin had both had their demons and the other man claimed he didn’t have PTSD -a lie but Zach let him get away with it since his source of PTSD wasn’t just from his time in service- but where Zach sought healing through therapy and boxing… Justin had ended up falling back into drugs.

Zach would never forget the day Justin called him crying and asking for help, not long before the diner opened, and he’d postponed the grand opening to make sure his friend was able to get into a facility and find a therapist. It was after that Justin reunited with Tyler and now he was working on his problems and with Tyler there to keep him steady, given that she’d already broke up with him once because of his addiction Zach suspected she was much more firm in keeping her now husband in line, so there was less worry that things would go south for either of them.

“Yea, they are, I’ve- there’s a lot I was dealing with and I was lucky that you came to me and decided that you needed to light a fire under my ass to get help. Proper help. So, what’s this about a girlfriend?” Justin’s redirection wasn’t subtle at all, nor was it meant to be, and Zach could only imagine how much Justin’s family had brought up the subject of his addiction and recovery on top of trying to delay the wedding. He decided to let it go for now but he’d have to make sure he got Tyler’s number before they left, that way she could get a hold of him too if she or Justin needed him.

“The loudmouths decided to tattle, eh? Yea, I’ve got a girl I’m seeing, Nanette Dougherty.” As he pulled out his phone and showed them one of the pictures he had, from their second date where he’d snapped a few sneaky candids, his friend whistled while Tyler grinned.

“I’ve seen her, she’s a model, right? They have her pictures plastered up at the Gucci place in the mall for swimwear.” Zach nodded once to confirm -making a mental note to visit the designer store some time- before he tucked his phone away.

“She came in for a meal one night and honestly? It was like, instant attraction, I feel weird saying it this way but it was almost that feeling of it being meant to be. You know? Like I thought she was cute, never would have guessed model, and she was really sweet and then when she came back I just- I had to try.” Justin nudged him and waggled his eyebrows while Tyler only rolled her eyes, the hotel manager couldn’t help but smile before she reached out and pat Zach’s hand gently.

“That’s sweet, Zach, I’m glad you’ve got someone and that you’re doing well.” He found himself unable to stop the way his smile fell, the way his brain began to return to his worries, and he almost told them what he was thinking until he reminded himself that he couldn’t share the full details of Nanette’s story with them. He wouldn’t betray her trust or consent by telling strangers -to her- such private information, his therapist was maybe the only person he’d talk to but only because she didn’t know Nanette by name.

“It’s hard, I’ve still got my own issues and dating a model doesn't really help any of them, but Nanette is worth it.” He ignored the playful gagging from Justin as Tyler breathed a soft ‘awwww’ across from him.Nanette was more than worth it and Zach would be sure to make her know how much he cared about her.

Stupid.

Nanette cursed her reflection as she put on her make-up, glancing at her phone where the text from Delaney had been received just an hour ago talking about an event he wanted her to attend, even though she felt exhausted with the workload already on her shoulders from her now full up schedule this was a huge networking opportunity. Even the smallest chance at getting an exclusivity contract with a big designer label was too tempting to pass up, slipping on her patient leather Dolce & Gabbana pumps, and Nanette looked at her reflection carefully.

The black evening gown had a flared skirt that fell just to her ankles with a thin band of leather at the waist, the cold shoulder bodice giving a very visible view of her neck and shoulders, and Nanette opened her jewelry box with some careful consideration. The white gold flexi bangle decorated with diamonds was slipped onto her right wrist, the tanzanite and diamond earrings and matching necklace were chosen since they were also a white gold base, and the blue was a good contrast to the almost monochrome look. Going for a smoky eye and demure lip by the way of her make-up, hair done in a side bun for the event, she felt like she was as good as she could get.

Francesca, from her place on the sofa, only looked up and then returned her focus to the e-reader with her newest script on it. Home from her filming upstate and she was already diving back into another project, it was good though since it meant she was around less, and yet Nanette couldn’t help but feel lonely when she wasn’t around. For all her bite and anger Francesca was fun and unless she was on a deficit she was usually always in a decent mood, and she didn’t try to pander or lie to Nanette about anything so she could at least trust her friend to be honest if a little brutal.

“Are you going on a date?”

“Networking event, Delaney messaged me an hour ago so I hope I didn’t rush too badly.”

Those sharp eyes lifted again, studying her face and the lines of the dress as Nanette grabbed one of her black clutches for her phone and wallet.

“You look fine. Let me know if you’re coming home or not.”

Nanette nearly froze as she reached the front door, hands shaking at the reminder of just how these networking events tended to go for her, but she didn’t let that deter her as she left with a soft affirmation before nervously brushing her skirt in the elevator. A low chime from her phone was the signal she was waiting on, the limo outside of her building had its door open and she could see Delaney inside with Kirsten and Summer on either side of him while Layla sat across from him.

Nanette greeted everyone warmly even though she felt really uncomfortable, she didn’t really get along with any of the other models the way she did Camille or Melinda or Shaye, and Delaney was leaning back in the seat with his tablet in hand.

“You have several high fashion designers making an appearance tonight, make sure you don’t do or say anything that can risk the name of our agency. I expect you all to make a good impression tonight.” Delaney’s warning was pretty standard by now and Nanette could only nod, looking out the window as her stomach began to wind up in knots. The last time she’d been to a networking event like this had been nearly half a year ago and she’d ended up leaving with an executive working for several fashion publications, feeling used and disgusting when she left his hotel room the following morning, and even if it had led to her being the centerfold for those publications for some time she couldn’t find any triumph in the end result.

But this time she wasn’t single, not technically, so she could stand her ground and refuse if anyone tried to come on to her. Even if she and Zach weren’t exclusive yet it wasn’t like she had to tell anyone that.

Who cared if she lied by omission, it wasn’t like they should be pressing her beyond the fact that she had a boyfriend anyway.

The assembled press were snapping pictures as the limo pulled up and Nanette made sure to put on a pretty smile after Delaney exited the limo first and began offering his hand to each of them to help them out, a few journalists even called her name so she waved and looked at them to show that she’d heard them all even if she couldn’t stop, and as they entered Candela La Brea she was whisked into conversation almost immediately by Harrison as the photographer set about introducing her to his colleagues and friends.

“Miss Dougherty, I’ve heard naught but good things about you.” Madeline LeMarc offered her hand and Nanette could only smile at the designer’s praise, a very quickly rising star in the evening gown area of expertise, considering Nanette owned a LeMarc gown that was sitting at home in her closet.

“It’s lovely to meet you at last, Madame LeMarc, I might’ve worn ‘La mer verte’ if I’d known you were going to be present tonight.” A green and blue toned gown created to raise awareness for ocean conservation, the bodice made to look like it was made of scales while the skirt was layers of green and blue recycled cotton-lined tulle for a wave effect, it had been striking and Nanette had to have it for the look and the cause.

“I should have known you were the one to buy my gown, Harrison told me all about how you prioritize charity and conservation based photo shoot contracts and I never connected the name. I’m pleased my gown went to someone who truly believes in my ideals. I must contact your agency, I’d be honored to work with you in the future.” Nanette couldn’t help but smile warmly and nod, working with one of her favorite designers -and maybe being able to get out of swim wear at long last- would be like a dream come true.

Harrison and Madeline were good company and she spent nearly an hour talking with them and the small circle of editors and magazine designers before they all needed to move on, it was an event meant for networking after all, which was how Nanette found herself trapped in conversation with Hunter Jones after going around the room and talking with a number of other designers and editors for different publications. A junior executive and shareholder for several big fashion brands, Hunter’s perfectly slicked back hair and whitened teeth had gotten him a number of admirers but not her, and despite her polite disinterest the man wouldn’t take the hint that she wanted to get away from his company.

“We’ve recently acquired two more brands and I’d love for a… stunning woman such as yourself to model a few of the pieces. If you’re willing to do underwear and lingerie that is. I can already see you in several of the designs.” Hunter was leaning against a wall and Nanette had made sure that she had her back turned away slightly from the wall, that way if he tried to make a move on her she could still get away, and she was about ready to excuse herself to the restroom. Hunter’s words wouldn’t alarm anyone given that it wasn’t uncommon for models to be spoken to like that, but the tone and his wandering eyes were clearly meant to make the remark sexual instead of professional.

“I don’t model lingerie or underwear, as I’ve specifically stated in my contract, I’m afraid. If you’ll excuse me-“ Time to go, she decided then and there, rather than listen to Hunter try and creep on her some more. But he reached out and captured her wrist, his hold firm and she knew that if she tried to wrench her hand away it would cause a scene, so Nanette pulled and steeled her expression as best she could.

“Now, Miss Dougherty, I assure you I can make the offer more than worth a modification to your contract. It doesn’t have to be professional, if you’d prefer though, we could do a private showing.” He tried to pull her back toward him but she kept her feet planted and shook her head, eyes darting around the room to see that nobody was paying attention to them, and Hunter must’ve realized it too as his lips curled up in a smile and he pulled a bit harder. The force of it made her stumble slightly and Nanette put her other hand out to plant it on his chest and keep distance between them.

“Please let me go, Mr. Jones.” A tremor of nervousness shot down her spine, this was what she’d been afraid of, the idea that someone would try to take advantage of the crowded room since she knew most people wouldn’t even give them a second glance unless she made a scene. Which she wasn’t supposed to do, between Delaney’s expectations and knowing that her mother and step-father would lecture her about unladylike behavior if she wound up on a gossip rag over tonight, but she didn’t know what else she could do.

“Don’t be like that, I’ve been eager to get you alone all night, you don’t have to be worried. I’ll take good care of you-“

“I’m not interested, Mr. Jones, and you’re being highly unprofessional. Let me go.”

His grip went slack and Nanette immediately stepped away from him, the scowl on his face was deep and Hunter scoffed before he shifted to get away from the wall.

“Very well, I’ll seek out one of your colleagues for my brand deal instead, they’ll probably fit my brands better anyway since they at least have the proper size breasts to fill out the lingerie.” Even as he walked away denied what should have felt like victory to her turned sour, her feet carrying her to the near empty bathroom where two other models from a different agency were primping their hair and fixing their make up, and Nanette made a bit of a show of reapplying her lipstick even as her heart raced in her chest.

The second the door closed as the other two left she was putting her lipstick away and gripping the counter top, staring at her reflection and distinctly minimal cleavage. The reminder that she’d turned down the company funded breast enlargement weighed on her mind, it had probably been for this reason Delaney had even suggested it, and Nanette felt sick with warring emotions. Relief that she wasn’t going to have to deal with Hunter, on a personal or professional level, mixing with the dread that he’d tell her agent what happened and Delaney would punish her for refusing such an offer.

Lurking under it all was that feeling of dread, that by refusing to do the surgery she’d potentially put a glass ceiling on her career, but she wasn’t comfortable with the idea of implants. She was perfect the way she was, Zach had told her so.

Wasn’t she?

She had to leave.

Nanette didn’t even think, her phone in hand -thankfully most modern dress makers were putting pockets in flare skirt gowns so she didn’t have to have a clutch tonight- and she dialed the first number in her recently contacted list.

“Hi Nanette, sorry for any noise, I’m at home doing dishes-“

“Zach, could you come get me?”

Anyone else she called, from her usual circle, would be influenced by who she’d been dealing with; for all the support Camille and the others always offered they weren’t against sleeping with people to get new contracts or get a leg up where they had to and tonight Nanette just couldn’t find a good way to lie about why she’d refused. Her three friends knew she wasn’t exclusive, yet, so they wouldn’t understand her refusing Hunter tonight.

“Of course I can, where are you?”

“Candela La Brea.”

She paced the length of the bathroom, relieved that nobody else had come in by now, and she looked at her reflection again to make sure she didn’t look like she was going to cry even if that’s what it felt like.

“I’ll need some time to get there, are you okay or would you like me to stay on the phone with you?”

“Text me when you get close?”

“I can do that, I’ll be there as soon as I can, Nanette.”

“Thank you, Zach.”

Nanette fled the bathroom, she couldn’t hide there forever, and she slipped into a circle of make-up artists that didn’t even bat an eye and simply included her in their conversation.

Zach wasn’t normally so reckless behind the wheel but he was kind of in a hurry, taking sharp turns and driving between five and ten miles over the limit to reduce the time it took to reach his destination, and he felt his chest tighten when he spotted the building. There were some reporters lingering outside, naturally, and Zach sent a text to Nanette that he was about to pull up since he was at a red; he could only thank the heavens that his car was in good shape and clean since it was likely that there’d be paparazzi shots of her leaving with him. But when a suit-clad man, not a valet, gestured him toward a parking lot as he passed into the main entryway Zach followed and breathed a sigh of relief as Nanette slipped out of a side door away from the public eye.

He didn’t want to be the cause of headlines that might be problematic for her down the line, after all, and he’d worried that her leaving early to get into the car with a “nobody” as far as the press were concerned would only be an issue.

Nanette’s eyes were darting around as she slipped into the passenger seat and he almost forgot to breathe seeing her dressed the way she was, he knew she was gorgeous but the black dress showed off her shoulders and neck while showcasing her narrow waist plenty, it was the expression of relief that she wore that shook him from those thoughts. He took her hand in his and felt the way she was shaking.

“Is everything alright?”

���Yes -no, I mean- I’m going to be okay now that I’m leaving and you’re here.” Zach could tell there was something wrong and he studied her face carefully, he had an ugly uncertainty blooming in his chest over what might have happened but there was no physical evidence that she’d done anything. He wasn’t naive enough to think that events like this weren’t rife with people taking advantage of their positions and power, to try and get into bed with someone -or just have a quickie somewhere- and offer favors and clout in exchange, but knowing what he knew of the woman beside him served only to turn his worry to anger.

“Did someone-“

“Zach, please, I want to get away from here.”

He bit back his retort immediately, not wanting to turn that anger onto her just because she happened to be here, there was no way in hell Zach would ever allow himself to subject Nanette to that. Choosing to hold her hand and guide the car out of the lot, the night sky overhead and the soft music filling the silence between them. But it didn’t stay silent, not with Nanette holding his hand like a lifeline, or her breathing finally growing more even and steady the further they got from that event.

“Thank you, for coming to get me and- and for wanting to try and make sure I felt safe even if it meant confronting a stranger.” Nanette’s voice was quiet but not shaky, he could tell though that she was still distressed and Zach found himself answering carefully since there was still a lack of knowledge about what happened.

“I will never, ever, ignore your comfort and make you be in a place you don’t want to be with people you don’t want to be around. If you go to anything like this and need to leave, like tonight, call me and I’ll come no matter how far I have to travel.” It was a lofty promise, one that could easily be taken advantage of, but Zach couldn’t stand the idea of Nanette -anyone really- being in a position where they were powerless to stand up for what they didn’t want. He felt her nodding but she was still quiet, which was worrisome, and all he could do was wait for her to open up to him.

He trusted her to talk to him, to tell him what was wrong, and her reaction made him sure that it wasn’t something minor that was wrong. He navigated much more carefully now, the streets busier as he reached a few locations where popular bars and clubs sat nestled among the other businesses, and Zach pulled into her parking garage and into the guest space. Nanette stared at the wall for a minute before she found her voice again, eyes shiny with tears.

“Can you- will you stay?” Zach turned her head gently, cupping her cheek in his hand to brush away the single tear trailing down her skin, nodding firmly and letting her lean her head against his hand with a sigh of relief. They made it up to the apartment where her roommate was sleeping on the couch, the young woman wasn’t snoring but she was breathing deep, and Nanette slipped off her heels to quiet her steps before leading Zach back to her room. He helped her out of the dress, not looking at her at all as she slipped on an over sized tee-shirt to sleep in along with some cotton shorts, and instead Zach tugged off his flannel and jeans so that he was left in his boxers and a white tee himself.

Sneakers and socks set aside with his jeans and flannel folded, as Nanette removed her jewelry and make-up after letting her hair fall loose, Zach hugged her as soon as her arms banded around his body with her routine done.

“One of the junior executives at the event tried to come onto me, even though I didn’t want it, and then he grabbed my wrist and wouldn’t let go. I was scared- nobody was paying attention to us and if I made a scene I know my agent and my mother would have gone nuclear and then when I told him he was being unprofessional he- he said that my body wouldn’t work for his lingerie spread.” Even without being there he could imagine the scene a little too well, he’d seen plenty of service members pull similar things at bars in foreign countries all the time, and Zach guided her back to the bed and let her lay with her head resting on his chest.

Trailing his hand up and down her back in a soothing gesture, that bubbling rage he’d never been able to shake from before starting to simmer under his skin, and he found himself wanting nothing more than to hide Nanette away from everything for a little while.

“First off, he was just being cruel after you turned him down, you’re perfect the way you are. Men like that are selfish and resort to lashing out when they get rejected because they don’t like being told no, that behavior is immature and you did nothing wrong by keeping your boundaries, he felt slighted so he insulted you to make you feel bad about yourself when I bet he was very complimentary up until then.” Nanette nodded against him and Zach couldn’t help the way he shifted his jaw, involuntarily letting his anger bring out some of his little tics as he kept his breathing steady.

“Secondly, who cares if your agent and your mother have a fit? You’re a grown woman with a right to say no when she doesn’t want someone making passes at her; if they’re more concerned about you making a scene than being safe, Nanette, they don’t seem to want what’s actually best for you. Model or not you still have the right to deny the attention of people you don’t like, you don’t have to lie or do what you don’t want to do just to avoid causing a scene or fitting in with people.” Zach was starting to detest Delaney more and more with each thing he heard, between the deficits and now the behavior that was almost like a legalized pimp, and he was starting to understand that things like this were common for Nanette.

He hadn’t imagined her time as a pageant kid or contestant to have affected her like this but he was starting to see the bigger picture of what Nanette saw as ‘part of the job’ and what she didn’t.

“I wanted to be here, or at least with you, the entire time he was talking to me. I- I want you but I’m scared it’ll hurt and-“ Zach shushed her and let Nanette breathe, calming her down before she could work herself up into tears, and he tipped her face up to kiss her gently.

“I will never hurt you, Nanette, okay? I promise you I can make it feel good but only if you’re willing and not tonight, not after what you’ve been through. I want you to get some rest, I want you to feel safe, and then we can talk more about being intimate.” Nanette’s eyes were wet but she nodded, relief loosening her expression from near panic to a much better calm, and Zach pulled her closer as he turned on his side and tucked her against him. He felt Nanette go lax, felt the way sleep made her soften against him, and his eyes stared at the dark wall as he fought to control his own breathing.

He went to turn his phone to battery saver, since he didn’t have a charger cord handy, and paused as he looked over his list of contacts. Bold it would be, and maybe Nanette wouldn’t appreciate it if he meddled, but Zach had two vets that used to work with him that now worked in journalism and he was sure that waves could be made if she went public with the things expected of her by her agency. He shook his head and turned on battery saver, unwilling to do something that would betray Nanette’s trust in him, but he made a note on his phone to keep their numbers handy just in case.

Come morning he woke up to the softest kiss, blinking up to see Nanette’s soft smile, and he pulled her back against him with a grumble to nuzzle his face into her neck.

“Zach, I have to go to the agency gym.” Nanette’s soft laugh was much more relaxed, a night of rest had done her good, and he blinked one eye open before pouting.

“Kiss?” Nanette giggled as she leaned down, capturing his lips in a languid kiss, and he couldn’t help inhaling deeper when she slipped her tongue against his and played with the hair at the nape of his neck. His rumbling groan was echoed by her soft sigh but she pulled back from him, eyelids half closed as she stood up, and he admired the athletic leggings and sports bra she was wearing as he sat up. Zach slipped on his flannel and jeans, socks going on but sneakers kept in hand, and he ran his hand through his hair with a yawn as they reached the door.

“I’ll drop you off at the agency, Nanette, if you want.” He wanted to be there if her agent tried to say anything about the night before, to be at her side and make sure the man knew that Zach wasn’t going to let any of his bullshit fly now, and Nanette bit her lip gently as she nodded and let him take her down to his car where she directed him to the large building. She mentioned that today was a cardio day, since she’d been on a deficit for so long with a number of models out recovering from cosmetic surgery, and Zach made sure to share stories of when he’d actually fainted during a loaded march because he’d dehydrated himself.

As they reached the gym entrance of the agency building Zach captured Nanette’s hand and smiled as he kissed where their fingers were joined, making her cheeks glow with color.

“Don’t let anyone try to shame you for standing your ground and keeping your boundaries, you did good Nanette.” He watched her eyes widen a little before she nodded, expression soft, and Zach earned a chaste kiss before she was getting out of the car and promising to call him later.

“I understand there was a… problem with Hunter Jones?” Delaney’s voice was quiet and a little tense when Nanette got out of the locker room, now wearing one of her three spare sets of clothing, but her agent’s voice made her freeze in place at the sudden anxiety that flooded her. Zach’s reminder lingered, that she was allowed to set boundaries, and Nanette steeled herself for Delaney’s sharp temper.

But her agent looked more tired than upset, she wanted to hope he was hung over since that usually worked out in her favor.

“He tried to convince me to, ah, privately model lingerie for him -which, I wasn’t interested. I told him no and reminded him that he was being unprofessional.” Delaney rolled his shoulders slightly and crossed his arms, an almost resigned expression on his face as he exhaled a heavy sigh.

“That’s what I heard from Monique Marquez, she was near enough to hear what was being said and went to fetch security, Mr. Jones was escorted off the property not long after you left. Are you okay, Nanette? I asked Francesca if you came home last night and she said she didn’t know.” Delaney’s concern might’ve been believable if there was an ounce of warmth in his tone, it was lip service and she knew that but the fact that he was actually asking made her relieved that she wasn’t in trouble.

“I had Zach come and get me, the security team let me out through the side door so I didn’t have to deal with any of the press outside, and he stayed over at our apartment last night at my request.” Delaney’s eyes narrowed and his lips flattened, that obligatory “concern” shifting to what was clearly dislike of the man she was seeing.

“I can’t believe you still want anything to do with someone like him, you could have the richest men in LA eating out of the palm of your hand-“

“Zach is kind, he’s considerate, and he cares for me as a person. I’m not just arm candy to him, I’m not the butt of ‘dumb model’ jokes, and he trusts me when it comes to managing my body for this job and even adjusts what food he makes me to support that. I’m tired of the men that would use me for looks or influence, Delaney, I may only be twenty-eight but I know that I want someone who wants me because they care about me and not because they want to use me.” Nanette watched her agent as she spoke, saw the way his expression stayed unchanged, and she shook her head when he called her name as she turned around to leave. She had two shoots to finish out today and wanted them to end when they were supposed to, the company driver greeting her as she hit the parking lot, and she stared at the text that Delaney sent her with a scowl forming on her face.

“Every person in a relationship is using the other somehow, Nanette.”

Delaney was wrong, he had to be, because she knew what it was to be used and to use someone; she wasn’t proud of it but early in her career she’d been much like Layla and Kirsten and Summer, specifically finding and sleeping with or dating the people that could get her ahead in her line of work. Zach had never once said or implied anything that made her think he was out to use her, it wasn’t like he asked her to promote his diner anywhere or even put pictures up of her, and Nanette reasoned that Delaney was just too jaded. Too paranoid since Zach was an entity he didn’t have control over, since most of her other ex-boyfriends or the people she had been involved with were tied to the fashion industry or partner businesses somehow.

Nanette refocused on work as they arrived at the first place to shoot, taking her first garment bag of five and heading into the changing tent, but she decided that she was going to do what she wanted and what she wanted was to trust Zach.

So she would.

A new influx of models had lightened the load of photo shoots distributed among everyone, nearly two weeks of long hours under scrutiny with tempers short and most of the newer girls struggling to adjust to the deficit meal plans, so Nanette was relieved that it was finally over. At least for a little bit, she had a week of a free schedule to adjust to her new suggested calorie allowance now that she was leaving swim wear for evening wear, Madame LeMarc had booked her for nearly a year’s worth of projects along with Monica Marquez and James Braxton; three of the most noteworthy rising designers for modern evening wear.

Gowns, jumpsuits, suits tailored for women, and even cocktail dresses were going to be what she wore for what she hoped was the rest of her career. Swim wear was well and good but working with Madeline was not only a style she was interested in modeling already but a means of being more noticeable to the industry eye. It was, in a way, a promotion and even though her mother and step-father had been more concerned over her calorie plan allowing for her to eat more in a day they had said they would be keeping Paris Fashion Week in their prayers for her future.

Just because she was allowed to eat more didn’t mean she would all the time, she was aware that she had to be careful with what freedoms she gave herself.

Nanette called Zach as soon as she was out of the agency doors, they’d spent the last twelve days with brief calls and numerous texts whenever she could sneak them in, and she was eager to finally see him again. He’d even surprised her by dropping by on set three times, arranging it through Harrison, with salads for the models and in return she was given an extra five to ten minutes to just sit with him and relax. Being able to spend more than fifteen minutes with him was a luxury she wasn’t giving up.

Not when she knew what she wanted. She had even gotten black lace lingerie, the redness from the recent waxing was gone, and she’d made sure to eat foods that wouldn’t make her look or feel bloated.

Louis had been surprised with her rather insistent checks on her measurements but promised her that nothing had changed.

Nanette wanted to be stunning for him, to be the only person he looked at and undressed with those big brown eyes of his.

She had to make it good for him, no matter what.

“Zach? Hey, I’m leaving now.” He had answered the phone after two rings, they’d agreed that she would spend the weekend with him at his place -Francesca had her boy something or other over and Nanette was tired of hearing them- so she had a large canvas tote with what she needed. Zach, who was at home already, sounded like he was bustling around the kitchen based on the sounds she could hear in the background. The reminder of what he was doing for her made her cheeks warm.

“Okay, Nanette, I could have come and gotten you-“

“I know but I’ll be fine, I promise, I’ve been using public transport for a decade.”

“Don’t mind me, just paranoia, and I’m just excited to see you.”

“I don’t blame you for wanting to keep me safe, Zach. Here’s my bus, I’ll be there soon!”

As she ended the call Nanette found a seat and put on her headphones, that way she could get away with ignoring people, and her eyes stayed on the scene of the city going by as she thought about what tonight would be. After a little prompting from Zach they had broached the topic of intimacy, with a promise of consent and careful handling, so Nanete was both nervous and excited. He’d reassured her over and over that nothing was wrong with her and that she could enjoy it, promising to help her do so, and that cruel dream she’d had of him before lingered in the back of her mind looking less like something to fear and more like something to hope.

Zach’s place was a separated house, a stone base and walkway with a light gray siding, she liked the pop of white from the window frames and the small awning; and Nanette was greeted by a freshly showered Zach after knocking. The white tank top he wore, combined with gray sweats, made her particularly warm in the cheeks as she followed him inside; and Zach had her set her things down in his room before she was following him to the dining room where he’d set out food.

“Frito pie, per the lady’s request.” His eyebrows wagged playfully and Nanette didn’t stop herself from capturing his cheeks and kissing him, earning a low groan as cupped her waist and smiled against her mouth. He had asked her what she wanted to eat as a celebration for her new meal plan and her week off so she’d picked another food that she’d heard most of her classmates mention as a kid, when he’d confessed to eating it often mixed in with other Mexican dishes that his Mama and her family made growing up Nanette had smiled fondly at the reminder that his family had given him something incredible in the form of recipes and hobbies.

After eating dinner Zach showed off his record collection and lured her into a dance, making her smile as they swayed together to more Bocelli, and Nanette was practically buzzing with anticipation. Zach smiled fondly and captured her lips in a soft kiss, making every part of her stand up at attention due to the sudden reminder of what was about to happen. Zach’s hands on her hips held her in place as he languidly explored her mouth, unhurried and unyielding to her own clumsy attempts at getting him off his feet and onto a bed or the couch.

He let his forehead rest against hers with a smile on his face that made her grip his biceps a little tighter, his breath was gentle and he seemed so put together while Nanette felt like she was ready to fall apart.

“You trust me? We’re going to do this at my pace, I want you so keyed up because you don’t know exactly when I’m going to give you what you need.” His voice was soft, a whisper of a promise -a threat maybe- that had her mouth going dry and that syrupy warmth of arousal starting to make its presence known. Nanette was nodding but the fact that he was going to make her wait left her buzzing with anticipation, and he proved that he wasn’t going to be hurried along as he instead gave her a tour of the house.

“This is what my employees so lovingly refer to as my fitness room.” The half finished basement was big and he had a stacking washer and dryer unit with a cabinet and folding station that took up the smallest corner of the space, a powder room, and the rest was laminate floors with some multifunction gym equipment and a hook for the sandbag he had currently not set up. Nanette found herself smiling at the more obviously used plates, even if he had four of each different weight, and Zach came up behind her and turned her head to showcase the large mirror that she’d missed.

His mouth was right next to her ear as he tilted his head down, watching her out of the corner of his eye as the hand not gently holding her chin skimmed down her back.

“Your posture is impressively perfect, though I want to see this back curved while I make you drip all over my equipment.” His voice was rasping already, the low volume and lower pitch of it making her shiver, and Nanette was ready to get down on her knees to beg this man to do something about the feeling pooling between her legs as she tried to alleviate some of it by pressing her legs together. He let her go and yet she felt the phantom warmth and weight of his fingertips resting just above the waistline of her pants, the spread of them along her lower back was a reminder of just how broad he was everywhere, and Nanette opened her mouth to protest but he silenced her with a much more intense kiss.

“Not yet, sweet thing, you’re not ready for me yet. Trust me.”

The next room was the home office, where he had a filing cabinet of important documents and all the things he needed for the diner, his desk was a thick dark stained wood with a comfortable looking leather chair, and Nanette suddenly felt her body responding as she saw herself being bent over that desk or even being under that desk while Zach was on a call. But Zach’s kiss to the side of her neck, the touch of his lips against her skin, made Nanette exhale louder than she intended as he hugged her from behind.

“Do you know how many times I’ve thought about having you sit on my desk with your legs spread so I could put my mouth on you until you begged me to stop?” His hands were pressing into her skin more insistently, his mouth opening to suck a wider area of skin in a way that she knew would leave marks on her neck, and Nanette reached one hand back to grip the back of his neck as she pressed her ass against the hard line of his cock now standing at full attention in his sweatpants.

“Tell me how many.” The words escaped her in a breathy plea, she felt powerful with the knowledge that Zach had sat here thinking about her, the usual nerves were still there but quieted by her willingness to trust that he would take care of her. That he could make her feel good during sex, that she wasn’t broken like she’d thought before.

“Every single time I’ve sat in that chair, Nanette.” His answer made her shiver before he was guiding her to the last door in the hall, skipping the open bathroom door and what she presumed was a closet, and she was right to think they’d reached his bedroom since her bag was set on the floor near the dresser. Zach tipped her head to the side and she moaned at the feeling of his teeth on her skin, not biting so hard that it hurt but with enough pressure that she couldn’t ignore the sensation.

“Do you want to know what I’m going to do to you?” The feeling of his fingers on the placket of her jeans made Nanette arch her back slightly, nodding as she tried to turn her head to look at him, but Zach kept his head close to hers so their cheeks touched as he undid the button on her pants. Nanette let out a soft whimper when his hand played with the band of the black lace she’d worn, not moving any further down, and the unfamiliar ache in her core was almost torture as he used his other hand to slide up her shirt across the bare skin of her torso before resting just below the curve of her breasts.

“I’m going to take this shirt and these pants off you, then I’m going to make you come on my fingers before I clean you up with my mouth, and you’re going to sit right here in my lap facing the mirror so you can watch my hands.” Zach knew she didn’t touch herself, it was a confession she’d whispered into his neck the morning after their first failed attempt at getting physical and he knew why, he’d admitted he didn’t quite understand the reasoning since his raising wasn’t as religious as hers but instead of shaming her he offered to teach her instead. Nanette realized belatedly, as he tugged off her blouse and jeans, that this was his lesson to teach her how to make herself orgasm.

Zach kissed her, his mouth somehow both firm and gentle, and Nanette turned in his hold to wrap her arms around his neck and cling to him; Zach’s body was so warm, his form so broad compared to hers that she felt surrounded but in a good way as one of his hands splayed across her back and the other cupped her ass in a way that made her wrap one of her legs around his thigh. He pressed that thick limb into her, making her grind against him, and Nanette’s moan was throaty in surprise at how good it felt. Zach grinned against her lips and began leaving a trail of kisses along her cheek as he helped her rock her hips against his leg.

“That’s it, that’s what I want to feel.” The hand on her back moved lower before he picked her up, her legs wrapping around him reflexively, and he sat down in the armchair that he must have moved from the corner of the room to the space in front of the mirror on the closet door. He turned her around in his arms and Nanette stared at her reflection, her hair was a mess and she was flushed down to her breasts with kiss swollen lips, and behind her Zach was staring at her with pupils blown wide enough that his eyes looked black in the light.

Nanette shivered when he parted her legs, hooking them over the arms of the chair, and she squirmed against the cock pressing into her lower back when his fingertips traced along the skin of her inner thigh. Swirling with no pattern or even any hurry, just gently touching her as he began to kiss the back of her neck and shoulders.

“Zach-“ His soft chuckle at her breathy whisper of his name silenced her, made her mouth dry and made her eyes close, but he stopped completely and tsk’ed softly.

“I want you to watch, Nanette. Can you do that for me?” Blinking to look, to see his fingers begin their motions once more, she felt an intense and sudden wave of nerves the closer he got to the black lace covering her. Zach used his other hand to free her lower lip from her teeth, eyes on her only, and Nanette shivered when he finally brushed his fingertips over her covered slit.

“You look unsure, do you want me to stop?” Zach pulled his lowest hand back and Nanette was left trembling at the loss.

“I don’t- I don’t know-“

“Is the mirror too much?”

Nanette stared back at his reflection, hands gripping the arms of the chair just above her legs like a lifeline, but it wasn’t the mirror that was making her nervous. Honestly she didn’t know why she was even nervous anymore, she trusted Zach and the fact that he’d even already been willing to stop was another sign that she could trust him.

“No, it’s not the mirror. I don’t even know why I’m so nervous-“

“You’re used to this hurting, Nanette, and if you need me to stop I will.”

Maybe it was his gentle reassurances or the fact that he was willing to put her comfort above his pleasure but Nanette took his hand and made him cup all of her, his hand was so big and she wanted him to teach her how to feel pleasure -how to feel normal- and Zach kept his eyes on her as she wiggled her hips in his lap.

“No, please don’t stop, I want this- I do.”

His expression was so gentle compared to the hardness of him against her body, the feeling of his warm hand where she left it, and Zach finally nodded before dragging his fingertips up over the lace fabric and swirling them over where she was the most sensitive. The hand he had on her chin stayed where it was, allowing her to dip her head a little and swirl her tongue around his fingers, Zach groaned before he was trading hands so that the now wet digits were pressing gently against the lace. Nanette jerked her hips when he pressed firmer against her, the texture of the lace against her core making her whine, and his answering sigh made her eyelids flutter.

But Zach continued to watch her, and in turn make her watch him, as he finally slipped the lace aside and put his hands on her bare; the feeling made her gasp but watching the way his fingertips began to glisten from her own slick made Nanette’s body clench in excitement as her grip on the chair arms tightened. Zach slipped one finger up to the bundle of nerves that she’d only ever touched once and it was like fireworks erupted across her skin, her hips jerking against his hand and a soft cry escaping her before she could stop it.

“Fuck, you’re so worked up already, do you see how wet you are?” He didn’t give her a choice to see anything but when he pulled his hand up to showcase the shine on his fingers, her eyes dropping to where she felt like she was leaking with how turned on she was.

“Please- please stop teasing me.” There was no fear or anxiety left, washed away like a tide with Zach’s gentle touches and careful handling, and he hadn’t even actually fucked her yet. Nanette was desperate to feel him, all of him, but Zach didn’t give her the option. He moved his slick fingers back to her body but this time one of them brushed against her opening, the muscles tightening in anticipation, and Nanette found herself exhaling a throaty moan as his finger pressed into her.

“I’m going to have to make you come a few times, Nanette, you’re so tight. Play with your pretty nipples for me?” He sounded wrecked just having her like this and she obliged with a nod as she brought one hand up to circle her own nipple playfully, the rosy bud sensitive and hardening under her touch and only just barely visible under the black lace, but the sound that Zach made was what made her hips roll slightly and press her body more against his unmoving hand. The sensation left her breathless, keening into the room, and Zach’s groan into her ear was loud and she swore she could feel his cock throbbing against her lower back.

“Please-“ Nanette’s attempt at begging wasn’t needed, Zach drew his finger back before slowly pressing into her again, and his unhurried touch made her legs shake. It was near impossible to watch still, head leaned back and trying to watch the way his finger disappeared into her, and Nanette kept her eyes on the sight to avoid looking at the rest of her reflection. It was enough to make her clench down on him, the discomfort of the intrusion gone, and Zach’s thumb slipped up through her wetness to circle her clit. It was all that she needed in that moment for her body to lock down, for every nerve ending to fire off, and she was shaking with heaving breaths as she tried to move.

“Don’t run from it, let go, give it to me Nanette. Let me feel you come.” Zach’s voice was tight and low and gravelly in a way that shot right to her core, she wailed her release to the room as she tried to shift and roll her hips, and only when she was left panting and trembling did he stop moving entirely. Nanette went limp against his body as the warmth of what happened worked through her, and she met Zach’s eyes in the mirror as she swallowed thickly and tried to catch her breath.

“That was- that felt- I’ve never had that happen by someone else.” Only ever in wet dreams had she gotten this feeling, this floating syrupy pleasure that made her lax and pliant, and Zach turned her head so he could kiss her gently before pulling his fingers free to get her onto his bed. The pillowy mattress was soft and having him straddle her with his body, elbows on the bed on either side of her head as he engulfed her mouth with his, all of it made her happy.

She felt safe.

She felt precious.

But her boyfriend wasn’t done, he moved down her body and left a trail of kisses and even light marks in his wake, and she hoped they didn’t go away by morning; she wanted to trace them like a constellation in her reflection and wear them for him to see. Zach’s tongue swirled around her belly button, earning a giggle from her, before he was dragging his nose against her inner thigh watching her watch him as he pulled her lace panties down her leg. One corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk and she was ready to protest when his warm tongue dragged through her slit, like he was licking an ice lolly, but when his tongue circled her clit she jerked hard from how sensitive she still was.

Zach moved lower with his mouth and Nanette’s surprised moan as he dipped his tongue into her was loud, as he circled her opening with the wet muscle before dragging the flat of it against her she gripped the sheets like a lifeline, and he avoided touching her clit as he tormented her with his tongue instead. This time he didn’t stop when she rocked her hips, when she tried to chase the spine tingling warmth, and Nanette nearly shrieked when he pushed one of her legs up by the back of the knee in a move that gave him better access to her pussy.

His deep groan when he drew back, his breaths heavy enough that she felt them against her wetness, all of it made her feel like she was going to astral project out of her own body. Nobody had ever devoted this much care to her pleasure, this much time, and when he slid two of his thick fingers into her body Nanette welcomed the feeling with a throaty cry of his name before rocking hard onto him as his tongue lapped at the slick that was squelching around where they were joined. His fingers crooked slightly, finding something that made her thighs tense up, and she bowed her back in response to the lightning strike of an orgasm that was ripped out of her.

Zach looked up at her after she managed to catch her breath, he’d sucked a dark mark onto her inner thigh as she blinked away stars, and Nanette captured his face in her hands and practically dragged him up her body to kiss him. The taste of her on his tongue wasn’t unpleasant and she knew that her wet center was going to dampen his sweats but she didn’t care, his soft hair under her fingers and the feeling of his mouth moving with hers was only keeping her hovering on that precipice of being ready for more.

A little bit of angling allowed her to push at his sweats and boxers and Zach chuckled against her mouth before sitting up and pulling his shirt off, he wasn’t completely muscular but he was on the slimmer side and soft and Nanette couldn’t help but reach out to explore the planes of his chest. He was trembling under her inspection as he held the waistband of his pants in place, eyes dark and pupils blown wide, and Nanette leaned back before shimmying up the bed more so she was able to rest her head on his pillows after getting rid of her bra. Zach stood up and she watched him get rid of his clothes, his cock was standing at attention and the head was smeared with precum, the wet spot on his sweats was definitely hers but she was proud that she’d made him make a mess of his boxers.

“Remember, tell me if its too much.” Zach grabbed a condom and she watched him as he put it on, the movement clumsy under her gaze and it made her smile, and he hummed as he pulled out a small bottle that she realized was lube. He was generous with how much he used, the rest that was smeared on his hand carelessly wiped on his discarded pants, and the haste was gone as he moved to straddle her again. Zach’s weight settled on her as one of his arms slid under her back to cup the back of her neck, the other holding himself off her enough that he didn’t put all his weight onto her, and she immediately moved one of her legs over his hip as he ran the underside of his cock against her folds.

His girth was more than what she’d ever taken before, the stretch of just the head of him making her grip his shoulders as he watched her for any signs of discomfort. But Nanette wasn’t uncomfortable, she was impatient, and she used her leg for leverage to push herself onto him more and Zach let out a soft sigh as he pressed his forehead to hers and filled her with one slow stroke. It didn’t hurt, the stretch of him made her feel full without that burning ache, and Nanette’s eyes watered from the overwhelming relief that rose up ion her.

“It- it doesn’t hurt, it actually feels good-“ Zach captured her mouth with his, the languid kiss accompanied by the slow roll of his hips, and Nanette let him lead the pace. The slow thrusts and deep kisses, the feeling of his body encasing hers and the smell of his natural body mixed with the musky scent of sex were forever marked into her memories. The hand under her moved to press into her lower back, shifting the angle of his thrusts, and Nanette’s head dropped back with a higher toned sigh as the coarse hairs at the back of his cock caught the bundle of sensitive nerves before he angled her just a bit more so that each stroke reached everywhere.

“I’m going to-“

“I feel it, give it to me Nanette.” Zach’s mouth left a scorching trail of love bites down her neck and she surrendered to it as he breathed in the skin of her neck, the tight clench of her making him shudder as his pace turned frantic for a few strokes before he was left shuddering and moaning into her skin. They laid there for a minute, breathing each other in, and only after trading another languid kiss did he carefully pull out.

“I’m going to get something to clean you up.” Zach disappeared to the bathroom and Nanette stared at his ceiling as the spots in her vision began to disappear. Everything in her body felt loose and light and she felt free, she felt like all the worry and nerves and anxiety were finally just gone, and Zach returned in time for the tears to finally spill over.

“What’s wrong, did I hurt you?”

“No, no- I’m so relieved. I thought- I thought I was messed up somehow and now I- thank you Zach.”

His eyes were soft and the warm, damp, rag was gentle as he cleaned her wordlessly; he waited until he came back, discarded clothes in the hamper now, and Zach pulled the comforter and sheet over them as he pulled her into his arms and just held her. Nanette traced the freckles on his chest with one fingertip, tears slowing as she mapped out the little marks on him, and she peeked up at his face.

“Can we- can we go exclusive?” The soft question felt heavy but she wanted to make sure that she knew where they stood.

“You beat me to asking, I was going to bring it up over breakfast. Yes, Nanette, I want to be exclusively yours.” The fact that he was calling himself hers without referring to her as his made her cheeks warm and Nanette kissed him again with a silent promise that she’d make sure that Zach never had any reason to worry about their relationship. That he would never have to doubt where her affections lay.

All Fics Taglist: @hardc0rehaylz @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @musings-of-a-rose @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @rominaszh @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry

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You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime @harriedandharassed

[chaoticgeminate]

You're so Classic (ii)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment includes dub-con and lightly described smut. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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Peach Pie (5k)

Was there a single word to describe this feeling? This sensation of lingering on the edge of what could be something incredible or something disappointing? If there was it wasn’t a word that Zach knew, not that literature was even his strong suit anyway, but his entire being was coursing with an anxious sort of energy. He knew that no matter what happened he could at least rest knowing he had tried, that he’d put himself out there, which was the most important thing.

Would it hurt if she wasn’t actually interested him? Or if she decided against giving someone like him a chance? Yes, it would hurt; while he wasn’t exactly as arrogant to think himself the hottest catch like some military and former military he knew believed, he wasn’t devoid of pride. Zach liked to think he was attractive enough, that he was a good person and would make a good partner for someone.

One thing about the diner was that with the constant fluctuation of the crowd, the constant need for clean dishes or to help get orders prepped and out of the kitchen, he didn’t have time to sit and linger with his phone in hand. No time to stare longingly at his cellphone and look for an unknown number texting him or calling him, to wonder if maybe he’d made a mistake. It was a constant in the back of his mind though, unable to keep his mind away from what her response could be.

What could he even offer her that she would find appealing? Realistically he was just a veteran who owned a diner, he wasn’t rich enough to take her to upscale eateries or buy her expensive things, so the most he could give her would be experiences and loyalty. Was that enough? Would something that little in a life like hers be enough to earn a chance? If her life was that glamorous, he supposed, since he hadn’t confirmed what it was she even did yet.

“Boss, I think the lettuce is clean.” Ramirez sounded amused as Zach sputtered a little in surprise while pulling up the bin for the lettuce to allow it to drain, face warming in response to getting caught zoning out. A nudge from the other man had Zach exhaling but even Akenlolu was wearing a look of sympathy, not mocking, and he found himself smiling at the two of them in gratitude.

By the time he was able to leave for the night -with both Jones and Burk coming in to pick up an extra shift- Zach was not only exhausted but scrambling to check his phone, teeth worrying his lower lip as he pressed the button to unlock the touch screen, and the little text icon lit up on his lock screen set his heart into overdrive. Unlocking the device and tapping the little speech bubble icon felt like it took an eternity but his hands were shaking, sweating even, and Zach sank into the office chair with relief.

Hi Zach, this is Nanette from the diner. I’d like to come back but when you have time to sit with me if that’s okay?

Nodding as if she’d see it, the motion more of a subconscious thing, he began replying before his nerves could stop him from doing so. Autocorrect was a beautiful thing as it translated all the mistakes he was making, he didn’t really like to text but his speech-to-text was pretty finicky too.

Can you come by in two days? I’m off for the day, we could meet here and I’ll pack something up so we could have a picnic?

Before he could put his phone away he spied the indication that Nanette was replying to his message and his chest swelled at the idea that she’d been waiting for his answer.

That sounds lovely, Zach, I can be at the diner around one? That will give me time to shower after my workout.

If you check the website, I have the menu uploaded, you can tell me what you’d like to eat and I’ll get it packed up and ready.

Zach put his things away, deciding to leave before he spent all night in the diner, and he ignored the chuckles from the night crew as he exited through the back. A low chime alerted him to a response and as he got in the car he bit his lip, considering just replying with a thumbs up, but that felt too impersonal. But a heart felt like way too much.

I’ll have it ready. I have to drive so I can’t text but would you like to talk? I have Bluetooth in my car.

He winced immediately after sending that, almost every car had Bluetooth now, and he felt like that definitely made him look either more broke than he was or older than he was and that self-doubt lurking in the darker corners of his mind began to make its presence known. It was definitely something to bring up with Marcy, his therapist was truly a saint of a woman with how she’d handled him when he had thought his need for therapy wasn’t so bad.

I’d love to, as long as it won’t distract you from driving, Zach ;)

Relief flooded him at the very relaxed, teasing, reply she sent as he hooked his phone up to his car; but today instead of music he used the hands-free calling feature. The soft ring of the phone lasted only twice before it connected and his face flushed as he heard the exhale and a bit of a grunt on the other end. His mind and body were definitely diving right into the gutter and the soft exhale made his heart jump.

“Sorry about that Zach, I had to get my headphones because my roommate will eavesdrop if I don’t.”

“No need to apologize, Nanette. I’ll be in the car for a little bit.”

“Oh, you have a long drive to work?”

“Depending on when I leave it can be good or bad, luckily today the traffic doesn’t seem too bad.”

“That’s good, I’ve gotten into the habit of walking wherever I can because of how traffic can be.”

“If I didn’t have to sometimes pick people up on the way in then I might walk more.”

He was feeling really lucky over the traffic at the moment, it wasn’t horrendous at all to his delight, and Zach made sure his attention didn’t drift too far from the road.

“You’re a good man, for doing that Zach, most places would just tell people to hop a cab or figure it out.”

“Well some of the people I hire are disabled veterans and it’s easier on them if I just come to get them, plus it means someone else can use that seat on the bus or trolley if I just go get them.”

“That’s really sweet of you, you’re probably a lovely boss then too. Walking everywhere helps keep me out of the gym so much and as much as I don’t mind yoga and spin classes with my trainer, well, I would much rather be out enjoying the day where I can.”

Zach hummed gently now that they were broaching the territory of work, he wanted to ask what she did but he didn’t want to risk being rude about it either. He’d already been quick to judge her before and while he didn’t want to do that again he couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit of worry that he’d somehow offend her.

“Then I know just the place to go for a picnic, since it’s in walking distance of the diner and the crowds aren’t usually too bad. Is there anything I need to know when it comes to your order? Allergies, intolerances?” He wanted to segue away from work for now, since it was a topic he wasn’t personally ready to address yet, and on the other line he heard a soft hum from Nanette along with the sound of nails tapping away at a keyboard.

“No allergies, no intolerances. I do have to make sure I limit my caloric intake though so I think something lighter and fresh would be better for me if that’s okay? I have a week break from photo shoots but I shouldn’t have something overly indulgent twice. Otherwise Louis, my trainer, might put me on a liquid menu.”

Model then, based on her comment about photo shoots, and Zach felt that rising concern begin since he only heard some really worrying stories about models. He heard all about restricted meals, bad tempers, unhealthy relationships with food… and while Nanette didn’t seem to have gotten quite that far he really couldn’t stop his brain from thinking about her starving on some set.

“I can do that, Nanette, just let me know what you think you want. I know Burk, one of the guys on nights, began doing calorie information on the website for everything so it should all be there but if you have questions he and I can figure it out together.”

“That’s sweet of you, thank you so much. I’m excited to spend more time with you, when you aren’t serving customers or cooking Zach.”

A warmth burned in his chest, the fact that she wanted to spend time with him was both exciting and baffling, but he decided that he was going to roll with it and see where this thing went. As long as he went in with an open mind, open heart, and understanding he was sure he could handle Nanette’s lifestyle.

It was unfortunately the same routine, over and over, but Nanette had gotten used to the ebb and flow of her lifestyle and how it worked around Francesca’s. After getting back from the diner her cranky roommate had barely uttered an apology, pouting as she watched some show on the couch, and that had been a sign for Nanette to retreat in self-defense. By the time she got off the phone with Zach she’d been buzzing with energy, both from the meal and her excitement over what sounded like a date, so she’d reached out to Louis dutifully.

He couldn’t get that mad if she told him right away, he’d always been pretty lenient.

While her trainer had been a little dramatic with his groaning and complaining about adding more time in the gym for her -which meant more work for him- he had actually told her he was happy to hear that she’d eaten something other than salad and seafood. Which was, honestly, probably the nicest thing anyone had ever said about when she had more indulgent food. Nanette was more used to her mother and step-father’s nuclear reactions when they found out she had something outside her restricted food allowances.

Louis had her come to the gym, putting her through a workout that was just a bit more taxing than the usual, but Nanette honestly felt incredible even after she was left red-faced and sweating with a burn in her glutes and quads. That good mood she was in carried over to a phone call from Camille, inviting her out to their usual club, and Nanette couldn’t contain her excitement as she shimmied into a sleek Michael Kors dress that Camille had given her two days ago after getting it from a shoot.

Being a ruched body-con dress Nanette found herself studying her reflection, opting for a thong and strapless bra to avoid lines, and with it being late summer she didn’t grab any jacket or cover up tonight. Simple liner and demure shadow paired with a nice mascara made her eyes pop without looking too overdone, making her red lipstick the center of the show, and black Louis Vuitton pumps pulled the look together. The dress was black but under the top layer of ruched fabric was a black fabric with patches of red sequins that only made themselves known when the light hit them at the right angle.

Nanette grabbed a small bag and was out the door before Francesca could even ask where she was going, not wanting her roommate to try and give her any kind of an attitude or smart remark about going out with friends, and Camille’s sleek blue Camaro rolled up barely minutes later.

“Looking good, Nettie, let’s get our party on!”

“Hey girl! I told Melinda to give you that dress, it looks so good!”

“Bitch, can you not look so fine every time I see you? I’m straight!”

Enthusiastic greetings from Camille, Shaye, and Melinda had her laughing as she slid into the back seat of the car and they set out. Camille was their usual designated, as a child of two addicts she’d decided to just not take any chances, and she was also the only one with a car between them all since they generally worked on most shoots together. Nanette wanted to tell them about Zach, the news on the tip of her tongue, but she stopped herself from doing so right now.

As much as she wanted to tell her friends, who had been outraged by Leon’s remarks about her and threatened to blacklist him from every social place in LA, she also wanted to keep this to herself for just a little bit.

They would only want to know if it does become serious anyway.

Walking up to the door and greeting Jade, the bouncer was the one they were the most familiar with and she was a gorgeous woman with the brightest smile, all of the models ignored the slight whining from the people in line that watched them walk into the club. It was part of the way the city worked, Delany’s agency had a deal with most bars and lounges in the area that the models and minor actors and actresses were allowed priority as long as they didn’t cause trouble, and they did use that privilege.

Nanette grabbed drinks and joined the girls at one of the standing tables, passing around glasses mindful of everyone’s preferences, and Camille launched into a story about her current fling Adrien and how he tried to tell her that she was too heavy for his preferences when she’d asked why he wasn’t taking her on dates.

“I’m sorry he said you’re… too heavy for him? Girl, he was hardly a catch anyway and I was convinced the only reason you were with him was that the sex was good.” Melinda’s remark earned a sigh from Camille as she shrugged, leading Shaye to let out a sound of near outrage.

“Girl no, if he can’t even make the sex good he’s not worth your time.”

Nanette chewed the inside of her cheek a little as the topic turned to past lovers, she wasn’t a blushing virgin by any stretch of the means but she hardly understood the obsession with it, her own experiences were never really worth talking about. Thankfully it was easy enough to lie and say she had a good time with the men -and women- she’d spent nights with, even if she was left with nothing but an ache and discomfort for a few days after, but she was more than aware that she couldn’t exactly be known as a bad lay.

The agency didn’t really advertise it, not that there even was a reason to do so, but every model and aspiring actor or actress would rate their bedfellows and Nanette was -thankfully- high on the list. People higher on the list got better work prospects, were introduced to industry leaders, and just treated better in general. It wasn’t something super official by the agency, more often worded in ways to ask if your partner respected your consent or was flexible with your situation whether it was a model on a deficit or needing to avoid marks, but it was still there.

“Hey, come on, we’re gonna dance.” Nanette nodded when Shaye gripped her elbow so that they didn’t realize she’d zoned out and the girls slipped out onto the dance floor, her phone and bag checked in at the coat check so she didn’t have that distraction either or the ability to worry about calls from Francesca, and the four women stayed together for a large portion of the night dancing and shouting encouragement at one another.

It was much later in the night, a few drinks deep, when Shaye nudged her.

“Hey, Nettie, there’s a really hot guy at the bar checking you out.” Nanette only gave the man a cursory look, not really interested in going home with someone tonight, and while he was good looking she could tell from here that he had some major asshole energy. But before she could come up with a reason to avoid it, to not go talk to the man, her friends were eagerly telling her to go for it and reminding her that she ‘couldn’t wallow over Leon forever’ and Nanette bit back a reply as she considered that she really didn’t know for sure if she had a date on the way or not.

Zach hadn’t said it was a date.

It’s not even like they were a couple, so it wouldn’t hurt to just get this over with so that the others stayed off her back.

If Zach wanted something serious she would find out, and then this could be avoided later.

Nanette made sure to take an extra shot first before slinking her way over, the man’s eyes on her the entire time, and his lips curled into a smile as he set his empty cup down to face her properly.

“A beauty like you hardly looks like she needed liquid courage to come talk to someone like me. I’m Owen.” He was taller with tanned skin and light hair, definitely a gym rat if the defined musculature was a sign, and Nanette ignored the rising feelings of discomfort and unease as she faked a giggle at the corny remark.

Lying to save his ego and avoid a possible temper tantrum would be the only way to make this remotely salvageable, it would be fine.

“You’re good looking, don’t sell yourself short, I wouldn’t have come over if you weren’t my type.” The light touch on his forearm and the playful smile, keeping her head tilted just so with her chest pushed out, all of it was the right moves that had Owen eating out of the palm of her hand as she let him tell her about his work at a local car dealership that was ‘just a temp thing’ and fought down the desire to just walk away from him completely. It took a few minutes for the shot to kick in, to fully dampen her nerves, and Nanette grabbed her bag as Owen led her out of the club.

He was handsy in the car, playing with her bare thigh, and Nanette fell into him when they reached his room with a soft crooning whine that made Owen chuckle and pull her close. His arms felt too restricting but she kissed him anyway, the whiskey kiss sloppy and hardly enjoyable, and when Owen insisted on going down on her Nanette wasn’t at all surprised to find that he was clumsy and eager and that she had to fake an orgasm to get him to stop trying.

“So fuckin pretty.”

“So tight, I’m gonna wreck this pretty pussy.”

Another liar.

Owen’s whispered promises weren’t enough to make her eager as he slipped a condom on, it was a painful stretch and she had to bite the inside of her cheek hard when he didn’t even try to give her any adjustment time, and she gripped his biceps while squeezing her eyes shut against the pain. He mistook the sounds of discomfort for enjoyment, which was fine, and Nanette couldn’t have been more glad when he shuddered and rocked his hips slower before he was pulling out and laying beside her.

The clean up was minimal and she insisted on going back to her place, kissing him so he didn’t think to ask for her number, and Nanette hailed a cab that she hunched in the back seat of with a feeling of pain and regret blooming throughout her entire body. Francesca was asleep when she got home, at least, and Nanette scrubbed her skin raw in the shower before curling under her blankets and finally letting the tears fall.

She had to be broken if it never felt good.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw her, the soft yellow sun dress she was wearing and flat sandals paired with the floral print cardigan made Nanette look so soft and inviting, and Zach slung the picnic basket over his shoulder before waving to the others and offering his arm. He watched her cheeks flush a little as she accepted, resting her hand on his forearm gently enough, and Zach felt like he could fly.

“So, any hints on where we’re going?” Nanette’s voice was soft and light, airy with notes of curiosity and teasing, it made Zach chuckle fondly and shake his head.

“No, I don’t think I’ll spoil the surprise Nanette.” He earned an exaggerated pout but that melted away instantly into light laughter and a soft ‘okay Zach’ that made his heartbeat skip again. They talked about her upcoming schedule, with Nanette confirming she was indeed a model, and about the extra workouts she’d done with week with her trainer Louis to make up for her indulgent order.

She didn’t seem to regret it, which made Zach believe she wasn’t as harsh on herself as he’d feared she might be, but he did have to bite the inside of his cheek in worry about the dessert he’d packed. Even if she chose not to enjoy it he hoped she wasn’t upset that he’d brought it, it was just something sweet to end the afternoon with, and they reached the rose garden where other people had similar ideas that he had. Nanette gasped softly as they walked through a tunnel of roses in a variety of colors, leaving the main segment of the park and hiding from the sun under the canopy of vines and roses hidden away by those who never took the time to explore.

“Oh-! This looks amazing!” The pita pocket sandwiches had been Burk’s idea, a Mediterranean salad with chickpeas had been what Nanette chose, and he had to admit that it wasn’t bad at all -he’d made himself one the day before the picnic to make sure it would taste good- and Zach had opted for a chicken salad wrap.

“I packed dessert but you don’t have to eat any if it’ll get you in trouble.” Nanette wiped her mouth with her napkin, the lemon and oil dressing smearing across her face a little, and Zach cupped her hand to direct her to clearing up the drip on her chin that might’ve spilled on her dress. He felt his cheeks warm as Nanette blushed a deeper shade of pink, her lashes fluttering slightly at the contact, but before he could say -or do- something else stupidly bold he watched her lips lift into a smile that held hope and interest in it.

“Depends on what it is, I think, Zach.”

“Can you have some peach pie?”

He watched Nanette nod, her eyes glittering with some kind of emotion, and he tamped down the nerves and worries that she was pitying him in any way as she stole a peek into the basket and giggled.

“I’ve never had peach pie but I’d love to try some.”

His heart squeezed a little at the remark, he couldn’t imagine not having something like peach pie ever, and Zach hoped that she liked his mother’s recipe.

“Well, that’s a lofty thing for me to be in charge of the first ever peach pie you’ll get to eat, I hope you enjoy it.”

“I’m sure I will, everything I’ve had so far has been amazing.”

Zach’s heart was racing now, the smallest ugliest part of his mind was convinced her praise and cheer were lip service and that he was just something to pass the time for Nanette, but he couldn’t see any signs of lying or deception in her smile. He knew it was hard but in this case he was going to trust that she was being up front with him about her feelings, that his worries were just his insecurities, and Nanette launched into a story about a photo shoot on the beach in the winter time due to a re-shoot needing to be done and how one of the models had nearly sent a camera flying into the ocean when she pitched a fit over the weather.

He was enraptured as she spoke, the careful way she held herself and her poise in general were inspirational, and he wanted his sketchbook and charcoals more than ever now. It was cheesy, and made him think of the Titanic, but Zach wanted to draw her. To immortalize the image of her, here in a garden of roses with him, smiling and laughing and looking free.

Luckily his distraction was either ignored or unnoticed, her story ending with the model being taken off the set and a backup called in, and Zach happily shared stories about some of the entitled and spoiled people he’d met during his time in service. By the time he was pulling out the pie Nanette was red faced from laughing, he had managed to avoid being too forward with touching her again, but when he offered her a forkful of pie he felt his breath catch as she closed her mouth around the fork while he held it.

Nanette’s playful look softened as she chewed thoughtfully and Zach watched the way her eyes seemed to just glow.

“That’s amazing, it’s so yummy. Does it have bourbon in it?”

“Just a splash, you have a really good taste for flavors, Nanette.”

He took a bite himself and had to admit it was his best effort yet, made in his home kitchen and brought in for everyone behind the counter to pick at once he’d taken their slice out, and Nanette went back for two more bites but he knew she was mindful of what she was eating given that she’d logged it in her food journal app almost right away. It wasn’t a total shut down though, she’d eaten it -and seemed to enjoy it- so he was definitely feeling hopeful that he could in fact handle the life she led.

Zach wanted to protect her, to help her understand that she was beautiful and that she didn’t have to restrict herself so much since there were plenty of models that did well and weren’t at near dangerous weights, but he also knew that it wasn’t his place to try and push his views about her onto her. For all he knew Nanette truly, genuinely, was both happy with what she did and fully comfortable with how she had to live her life to keep that career she chose.

“So, why modeling? If you don’t mind me asking?” They’d fallen into a conversation lull as they both paid down on the blanket he’d packed, arms crossed behind their heads, and Nanette’s hum was gentle beside him.

“I used to do pageants, my mother started doing it when I was a toddler, which is why I can do all sorts of talents like juggling and plate spinning and whatnot. My dad hated it but  because of his drug history, even though he’d been clean for seven years, when they divorced he was only given visitation rights. My mother comes from a fairly affluent family down in Texas, basically, and my dad doesn’t so the courts ruled in her favor. My step-father supported my mother doing the pageant thing when they ended up together and when I got older it just made sense to try for a career in modeling.” He supposed he could get it, going from kid pageants to beauty pageants, to modeling made sense.

“And you enjoy it? I’m not trying to down what you do but I know the industry isn’t exactly… kind.”

“Most of the time I do, Zach, and I appreciate that you had worries about it. But the good outweighs the bad.”

They fell back into silence and only when he absolutely had to did Zach begin packing up the containers, folding the blanket, and he walked Nanette back to her apartment building since it was on the way to the diner. They laughed and talked about their favorite shows, actors, actresses, and movies on the way and by the time they reached her stoop he was feeling more hopeful than ever.

“I had a great time with you, Zach, I just- was this… this is a date right?” Nanette looked almost scared to ask and he felt his chest squeeze.

“Yes, Nanette, if you want it to be. I didn’t want to assume-“

“Assume away, Zach.”

He took her hand gently and, after scanning her face carefully, pressed the lightest kiss on her mouth that he felt her return. He pulled back, leaving it chaste, and Nanette’s slightly puckered face was soft as her eyes fluttered open and pink took over her cheeks once more.

“Can I take you out again?”

“Yes, I’ll let you know the best days for me, Zach.”

“That’s perfect, Nanette, I really like you.”

Zach knew it was a juvenile way to say what he was feeling but he couldn’t find the words, and some words had too much meaning right now, but Nanette’s smile was warm and indulgent and the hard on he’d been fighting all afternoon was trying to make its presence known.

“I really like you too, Zach. Please get back to the diner safe.” “Of course. Have- have a good afternoon.” He stumbled over his words when Nanette tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and -like a cliché scene in a romance movie- the sunlight caught her form just right, making her glow. He was in real trouble, he realized that now, because he had fallen hard.

All Fics Taglist: @hardc0rehaylz @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @musings-of-a-rose @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @rominaszh @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry

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You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime

[chaoticgeminate]

Fic Update Status 💙

🌸 Whiskey Serenades (Iridescence-verse)

Coyote Shifter Jack x Foxwoman f!Reader

Half of the way through Chapter 4

🌸 You're so Classic

Zach Wellison x OFC (Nanette Dougherty)

About a third through Chapter 5

🌸 Unnamed Marcus Pike x OFC (Breanna 'Bree' Simons)

Rough outline and some writing down

[musings-of-a-rose]

The way I squeal when I see you've updated this fic! I absolutely LOVE these 2 and can't get enough!

Nanette is the best sister. Cassie is lucky to have her.

Poor Zach! I'm hoping he figures things out because he does not deserve that.

You're So Classic (vi)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features toxic level parenting, bad relationships with Christianity, and corrupt authority. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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Chicken and Dumplings (6.3k)

Zach wasn’t usually the type to buy style magazines, he hardly ever saw the need before, but now there was definitely a small stack he kept at home. All of them shared one thing, Nanette was featured in the spread somewhere, and his initial idea was to make a cut-out collage as a sort of time capsule for the growth of her career. Something tangible she could keep since the fashion world was so cutthroat, designers rose and fell in the same day even, but then he’d seen the pictures.

Beautiful, of course, there was no denying that she looked stunning. But Zach could see where the photos had been edited, where the few freckles she had were hidden with make-up and digital touch-ups, her waist was far too narrow here than what he knew it really was. But keeping these around felt like it might be a bad thing, taking into consideration her reaction to waking up bloated, he’d never forget that haunted look he’d caught so briefly on her face as she panicked about it and tried to hide it from him.

Instead he kept the magazines on his bookshelf, he knew that Nanette was aware of them since she’d giggled when she saw the first one earn its place on his side table, but she herself never looked through them so he had opted to put them up. He wasn’t going to assume the worst about what she might be going through since that wasn’t his place, but he kept those concerns in his back pocket for now until he felt they were valid or if she addressed it first.

Ramirez had seen the narrow magazine spines on his bookshelf when he’d shown up but he wasn’t willing to ask questions yet, Zach knew the other man had plenty of them but there was a lot of respect for privacy between the two of them. He’d let Ramirez disappear for two weeks, no questions asked, and just told everyone else it was a vacation when Zach knew it was much more severe than that; he didn’t know the specifics but it hadn’t been his business, and he refused to let the man go jobless because of whatever it was. Since then they’d been close, the other man had plenty of opportunities to leave and just hadn’t, and Zach knew that he had someone in his corner who would go to bat for him at the drop of a dime.

“Miso butter roasted potatoes. What do you think?” He was recipe testing with Ramirez, the other vet was not only his head chef but one of his best friends, and once a month they would spend a day or two off together to tweak the menu here and there. Ramirez hummed as he took a bite of the lightly crispy outside, fluffy inside, potato and the other man nodded in approval. Zach tried it and hummed too, putting a check onto the recipe card and dropping it into the box for approved recipes, and then Ramirez was handing him a ramekin with fish pie inside.

It was a European thing, he was sure, maybe even a specifically British thing but he didn’t know quite yet and would have to look it up later; the soft mashed potatoes and creamy filling were good, it wasn’t necessarily his taste but he couldn’t deny that it was worthy of popping up on the specials board. His diner definitely was known for American classics but LA was a food melting pot and the occasional times he offered something more international always earned new diners coming to check it out.

“This is kind of heavy but it isn’t bad, like a shepherds pie but with fish.”

“That’s what I was thinking, I put a little more mustard than what the recipe suggested to try and brighten it up a little bit. I think we should play with the filling flavor a little because we’re working with US ingredients compared to UK stuff which is bound to have even a little different flavor profiles, but I think this one works.”

Zach watched Ramirez go back to the pie filling and smiled, moving on to the next recipe on the list, and he smiled at the general peace involved with the routine of it all. A knock on the door made him exhale a little, patting Ramirez on the back after washing his hands, and Zach nearly froze at the sight of a police officer on his doorstep.

“Are you Zachary Wellison?”

“Yes, Officer. Is something wrong?”

“I need you to get down on your knees and keep your hands where I can see them. You’re being detained for questioning based on reports of assault.“

Zach found himself blindsided as he was handcuffed, though the officer did allow him to at the very least slide into his slip-on sneakers so that he wasn’t marched barefoot to the squad car, and the officer’s partner was reading off his Miranda rights. Ramirez was talking with the initial officer about options for bail if it led to an arrest. 

None of Zach’s neighbors were home at least. Maybe it was stupid but he didn’t want them to think he had actually done what he was being accused of. It was harder to prove yourself innocent than it should be in this day and age.

He didn’t ask questions, he didn’t speak up, because he knew that he needed to get a lawyer stat, but he was genuinely confused. From the wording it sounded like he was a suspect, not that it was a hard accusation, but he had no idea who would even accuse him of something like that. When he did go out to bars with others he never allowed himself to get drunk, he never allowed himself to have more than a few beers or drinks in general because he knew that he was sloppy, but even then he’d never been an aggressive drunk.

The squad car moved through the traffic with ease, finally arriving at the station, and Zach was led into a room with a metal chair and cheap table. As he took his seat the officer took off the cuffs, allowing him to rub his wrists slightly, before someone who could only be a police detective entered the room and sat down across from him.

“Hello Zachary, I’ve got a couple of questions for you.”

“I’d like a lawyer first, please.”

“Of course, there’s one on their way. I don’t want to keep you here longer than I need to, son.”

“I understand that, sir, however I will not be answering any questions until a lawyer is present as is my right.”

The detective leaned back in his seat and nodded, leaving Zach to stare at the table in silence as they waited, the ticking of the clock and the low hum of the fluorescent lights filling the void of the room with background noise. He didn’t know if it had been hours, or days, before the detective got up when a low buzz sounded and someone else walked in. The woman was professional, her salt and pepper hair in a loose bob that fell to her collar bones, and her eyes were sharp.

“Hello Zachary, my name is Margaret McCall. I am your state-provided legal representative.”

“Hello ma’am, thank you for coming.”

“Of course, young man, I appreciate your manners. Now I understand you’re being detained due to accusations of assault?”

“Yes, ma’am, that’s all I know at the moment as I refused to speak with the detective until I had a lawyer.”

Margaret nodded her head in approval before looking at the glass mirror, the detective returning and sitting down his his folder once again.

“Zachary, where were you three nights ago?”

“At work, sir, I own The Chow Hall. The diner on-“

“Ah, yes, the diner for veterans. So you’re a veteran then, thank you for your service.”

His jaw tightened as he gritted out a ‘thank you for your support’ despite wanting to be silent, the cops always seemed to think that just because he was ex-military that he bled blue, and the detective pulled out the photograph of a young woman.

“Do you recognize this woman, Zachary?”

“She comes into the diner after a night out drinking with her friends, it’s a pretty common event, usually weekly. But I only help on the floor when the servers need me, usually I’m in the office or the kitchen.”

“That’s the only place you know her from? You don’t go out partying in her circles?”

“No sir, I only know her from the diner.”

The detective put the photograph away and crossed his arms on the table.

“You have proof that you were at work, son? The whole shift?”

“Yes, sir, we have security cameras. I can access the feed and records from my phone, if you want that proof immediately.”

“Give me a few minutes, son. Let me check with the tech team.”

After he left the room Margaret hummed, scribbling something in her notebook, and Zach glanced at her as she closed the front page.

“The good news is that they have nothing to hold you here, especially with security footage proof on your end as to where you were, so you shouldn’t be detained much longer. In the event that they find something, do you have the name and number of friends or family I could call to confirm details of your week?”

“I do, would you like me to write them for you?”

“Yes, please, Mr. Wellison.”

He scribbled down the information for Ramirez and after only a moment’s hesitation for Nanette as well, though he did make sure to leave a note that she was currently visiting family in Texas and would only be available via video call if they needed to see her face for any reason. He looked up as the door opened and the detective sat down, empty handed this time, before Zach was handed his cellphone.

“If you could access those cameras for me, son, while I can watch you do it I would be appreciative. We’ll need you to send us a copy of the records from 20:00 to 03:30, unaltered. If they’re tampered with we will know.”

Zach made sure to keep his phone tilted so that the cameras in the corner could pick up what he was doing as he accessed the camera app, opening the video feed from three nights ago and creating the clipped segment that he sent to the detective’s e-mail. Once it was received, after the details were confirmed, Zach locked his phone again and handed it back. Margaret waited until the detective left to scoff.

“While I know you’re just looking to prove your innocence, they do require a warrant to request information from your personal devices.”

“I know, ma’am, I just want to go home.”

It felt like hours had passed as Margaret gave him her information, on the chance that they tried to pursue this case further, and the legal protections he had if they tried to disrupt his life over currently unconfirmed charges. He appreciated that she spoke as if he were innocent, because he was, but still with the reality that sometimes innocent people were convicted despite evidence he felt respected.

“You’re free to leave, son, your security footage is clear. Apologies for disrupting your day, thank you for your cooperation.” Zach took his phone back and Margaret led him out, making sure he had her information, and she slipped a piece of paper into his hand behind her business card as she shooed him away. Zach waited until he was in the car with Ramirez, who came to pick him up, to look at it.

Check your phone case for tracking and listening devices.

Zach hadn’t thought about that possibility and held up his finger to silence Ramirez when the other vet went to ask him what he was doing, and the man went on talking about the other recipes he’d gone over while Zach had been in the station instead. Zach found a small device tucked in the back of his case, barely the size of the top of his thumb, and he could see the microphone hole easily. There was even some sort of location tag tracker on it, no doubt they’d be trying to get it back, and he grinned as Ramirez pulled over at the gas station so Zach could drop it in the trash.

Only after he was sure his phone was safe did they head back, sharing a disgusted rant about the LA cops as Ramirez theorized someone had paid the woman to make the accusation against him, and Zach was willing to dismiss the idea. He didn’t have anyone out there who disliked him that badly, at least he hoped not, and the only thing that made sense would be someone who didn’t like that he was a veteran or that his diner was doing well.

Cassie’s nose was busted up but the proud smile on her face had Nanette grinning too, fussing with a rag to clean the blood off as her little sister cradled her trophy, and she could hear Paul’s nerves about facing her mother with Cassie this busted up. It had been right after the last game of the season ended that the goalie from the other school team had gone after one of Cassie’s smaller teammates, who had managed to get a shot past into the net, and Nanette’s sister had jumped in the second she realized Heather was going to get punched and pulled the smaller girl out of the way in exchange for a bloody nose.

“No matter what Paul or mother have to say, Cassie, I’m so proud of you.” Nanette ignored the look Paul shot her in the rear-view mirror, she’d chosen to sit in the back with her sister on the drive home, and focused solely on Cassie’s smile as the teen held the rag in place now.

“Thanks, Nana. Means a lot to me.”

“I’m serious, you’re killing it out there, I have the coolest little sister.” Watching Cassie’s smile turn shy made Nanette glance at her step-father, who was pulling into the neighborhood, and Paul scowled deeper when he realized she was watching him. He knew as well as Nanette did that her mother was going to lose it, the two of them had already been fighting over Paul allowing Cassie to pursue sports instead of pageants and débutante events, and Nanette knew it was in part because her mother didn’t want any other kids and Paul felt slighted that he’d only had one that was his to raise.

The two of them were just selfish and Cassie was being caught in the middle; Paul would always let her get the brunt of their mother’s temper for choosing sports over pageants.

Paul looked even more alarmed when Nanette’s phone rang, since he knew she wouldn’t take a personal or work call inside, and Cassie began heading in with her season MVP trophy. He knew as well as she did that without her going inside beside him that he couldn’t slip away while Nanette dealt with her mother’s anger on the subject of Cassie’s nose. Nanette answered the call and watched Paul skulk inside, hearing her mother’s shrill outrage even from out here, but she ignored it in favor of the call.

“Hi Delaney, is something wrong?”

“Do you remember Francesca’s friend, Lillian?”

“Lillian Hunt? Yes, she wanted to model but refused to follow the calorie restrictions and now she’s looking into acting right?”

“Correct, I called to warn you. Lillian went out three nights ago to celebrate getting a role in a commercial; Cheyenne called me because she showed up to film with bruises all over her and claimed that a stranger assaulted her. The man she described sounds like your boyfriend.”

For a moment Nanette felt that slither of surprise work its way through her, because that was definitely a surprise, but it turned into anger quickly.

“Delaney, first and foremost Zach would never put his hands on anyone like that and I’m insulted you would even believe that of him. Secondly, he was at work at the diner three days ago for a night shift, if the cops were called to the diner it would have been all over social media.” The Chow Hall wasn’t some massive Michelin Star restaurant but it was a very widely known place in LA being so focused on veteran hiring and rehabilitation to civilian life, the countless articles and travel blog posts about it had made it into an internet famous diner.

“As I said, I was just concerned. Please be careful trusting him.”

“Delaney, you are being ridiculous, Zach didn’t do anything like that. Now I have to go, my mother is not patient when it comes to disrupting family time. I’ll see you in a few days when I get back.”

“Of course, Nanette.”

As she ended the call Nanette sent a text to Zach first, asking him if he was okay, and when she didn’t get an answer she simply tucked her phone away. He was recipe testing with Hector today so there was a chance his phone was on silent, it wasn’t a huge deal, and her mother scowled when Nanette stepped inside.

“Was that your agent?”

“Yes, mother, that was Delaney.”

“Are you going to break up with that boy now that he’s proven he’ll run around and hurt people?”

Nanette stared at her mother in disbelief and realized that Delaney had called her already, likely during the game when she hadn’t been answering her phone, and that anger from before returned even as she fought to keep her tone level.

“Mother, Zach didn’t do anything like that and he would never do anything like that, he’s not a man that would go around hurting people. He was at work the night of the incident, if you must know, and the woman who made the accusation simply described someone that looked like him and everyone is up in arms for no reason. Do you know how many guys in LA have close cut brown hair and wear flannels? The answer is, a lot of them.” Nanette kept her tone as dismissive as possible, wanting to just cut this conversation off before it could lengthen, and a part of her felt guilty because the second she did her mother would just start in about Cassie’s nose without a care for how the injury happened.

Watching her mother’s perfectly shaped eyebrow raise and those pale pink colored lips curl into a disappointed expression had Nanette instantly on the defensive. The relationship they had was nothing like when she’d been a child now that she was living on her own and able to see how terrible the woman was. But any time she made the move of cutting her out entirely Nanette would panic and break within days. Her mother had always pushed her to do better and want more for herself, the idea of giving up her family like that was terrifying and she wasn’t brave enough to do it. Nanette’s mother wasn’t a good person but that was her mother, the woman who loved her and raised her, so instead she was as vocal as she could be trying to change her mother’s beliefs.

“Nanette Rose, I understand that you think you love him. I do, honey, I was there once too remember? But the fact that you’re willing to settle for a man that owns some diner in LA when you’re so much better than that feels like a slap in the face for everything I’ve ever done for you. I don’t mean to make you feel like I’m attacking you or your choice, God knows you’re like me and have to learn things the hard way, but I just don’t want to see you hurt or ruin your entire career over him.” The resigned tone of her mother’s voice felt like whiplash when compared against her expression, making Nanette back down since it was pretty obvious that her mother was not going to listen.

“He’s a good man, and a great partner, I hope that soon you get to see that for yourself.” Honestly she missed him, a lot, maybe it was the honeymoon phase or whatever but she really wished he was here; his comfort and care was something she could use right now. It was true that she’d begun spending a lot of time with him but Zach brought calm to her life that she hadn’t even known she’d been missing, and his consideration for her work was unparalleled. He respected her even though she was a model, not once had she heard him make any remarks about her intelligence the way others often did, and he even helped her learn about field hockey so she could talk with Cassie about it with no judgment.

Zach was nothing like some of the male authority figures she’d had in her life, who tried to talk down to her because she was a woman or act like her doing pageants and débutante events made her stupid by default.

“Alright, if you say so, just remember that you can always call if you need help okay? Now, please tell me you understand why I hate this sports thing your sister is doing, or are you delighted that her nose is leaking blood all over?” Nanette couldn’t help it, her eyes rolled and she let out the softest laugh.

“Mother, Cassie is having fun and she’s great at the sport, you have a daughter who has pursued modeling and fame. Let her live her life, please? Sometimes it seems like all you want to do is live through us.” The swat to the side of her head with a rolled up magazine was to be expected and her mother looked absolutely thunderous, the sting was just present enough to be annoying, and Nanette scowled right back.

“Don’t imply that I’m some washed up crone, I don’t live through either one of you, I only want what is best for you both. If I hadn’t taken you in after the divorce your father would have put you in an early grave with his drinking habit, all I ever did was give you opportunities.” Nanette’s ire faded as she was reminded, yet again, just how ugly the divorce had been for her mother; she’d talked to her dad who had confessed at the time he had a drinking problem. He’d told her that he didn’t know if he would have been able to step up and be the dad she needed at that point in her life.

“I’m sorry, mother. I know it wasn’t easy for you, Dad even admitted he didn’t know if he could have stepped up back then, but there was a lot of stress I was under trying to live up to your expectations that I couldn’t tell you about because I never wanted to disappoint you. Please don’t put Cassie in that position, let her play field hockey and be who she is, just let her be a kid while she still can.” Her mother’s annoyance softened to a resigned look as she shrugged, nodding and waving her hand to dismiss the conversation, it was a relief and slightly irritating that her mother would just end conversations she was tired of without a resolution but there wasn’t much Nanette could do without risking her mother getting angrier.

Cassie was sitting in bed, nose patched up and changed, when Nanette walked into the room; the three-bedroom house had one room converted into an office, for Paul, so the ‘guest’ space was the bunk bed in Cassie’s room. It was a twin over double style, so whenever there were guests usually Cassie was relegated to the top bunk, but Nanette was more than okay with her baby sister cuddling up to her so they shared happily and talked most of the night.

“Is mom really mad still?” Seeing the very worried expression on her sister’s face made Nanette immediately exhale softly and sit down, pulling her sister into a side hug gently.

“Not as mad but she’s still pretty heated about it, I’m sorry I can’t do more to help you.” It was hard to navigate standing up for her sister, and herself, while still showing her mother respect.

“I don’t blame you, Nettie, you had it worse than I did with all those pageants and stuff. I don’t know how you put up with it.”

“You’re braver than I was back then, I just wanted to make mother proud. I started to like it more as I got older but that isn’t me telling you to give up what makes you happy. You are Cassandra Dougherty, not Nanette or Marcelline Dougherty, you have to make your own way in life; as long as you’re true to who you are then I’ll always be proud.” The two of them switched to sitting on the floor so Cassie could tell her about the different plays, and how she was excited that she was set to be the Captain at twelve if she kept doing what she was doing, and Nanette helped her sister come up with easier ways to memorize the plays so that she had a better chance at achieving that spot.

If she finished out middle school as the field hockey captain for two years then it would make her more likely to get a good spot on the high school team, since Cassie was having a good time so far Nanette wanted to make sure her sister was able to do the things she aspired for. They were discussing teammates and who was cooperative for extra practice when her little sister got quiet, looking very shy, and Nanette waited for her to broach whatever topic it was she had on her mind.

“Nettie? What does it feel like to have a crush on someone?” Nanette’s brows raised a little and she felt her heart stop only momentarily, trying not to recall the days of her own youth when her mother would take her on dates with boys when she didn’t really want to. This wasn’t that situation at all.

“They make your face feel warm, your chest feels like it's exploding with butterflies, and when they’re telling you about something they really like -even if you don’t understand it- you always want to listen because seeing them happy makes you happy.” Nanette thought about Zach, about how infectious his own happiness was, and Cassie’s brow furrowed.

“Is it… is it normal to feel that way with… with another girl?”

“Absolutely, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. People around here think it’s against the word of God, that it's immoral and disgusting, but it’s not.” Nanette’s chest was tight with concern, outrage on behalf of her sister who hadn’t even figured out life but was already questioning it and would likely be mistreated for it because of how it was around here, and Cassie must have sensed it as she fiddled with her tee shirt hem.

“I don’t know if that’s what it is but I’m scared, I know that Harry’s mom kicked Mason out as soon as he was eighteen because he said he liked boys -she told the whole team all about it because she was really upset about losing her brother like that- and I think I like Nora but I don’t know.”

“Cassie, you’re eleven, you don’t need to know all the answers to everything. Did you know there are people mother’s age who realize that they’re actually gay or lesbian, that they’re trans or bi or anything people would consider ‘not normal’ in our community? You don’t need a label if you don’t want one, and there’s no rush at all to try and find one. Just be careful with who you talk to about this, okay? There’s only so much I can do from LA. Harriet seems like she’d be able to keep your secret, from the sound of it, even if it’s total nonsense that you need to keep it a secret to begin with.”

Cassie’s eyes welled up and Nanette crawled over to hug her, letting her little sister work through whatever she was feeling and glancing at her phone when it chimed. Zach had confirmed he was okay, a relief since she wanted to focus on her sister right now.

Zach glanced at Nanette as she read through articles on her tablet, ever since she’d come home she mentioned needing to do some heavy reading and he’d told her to come to his place since Francesca was doing line reads with other peers at theirs, and he had his music on very low so he didn’t disturb her. He trusted her to tell him what, if anything, was wrong when she was ready to do so and for now he focused on finishing up dinner for them both. He’d just gotten the bacon fried up when he felt Nanette’s forehead come to rest against his back, the light grip she had on his flannel making him smile, and Zach set things aside to turn around and pull her into a hug.

“Need to talk or do you just want me to hold you, pretty girl?” Nanette’s lips curled into a smile against his shirt, the very light giggle that escaped her at the pet name proved her mood wasn’t the worst it could be, and Zach wouldn’t ever be able to describe the warmth in his chest when she hummed thoughtfully since it always came with an explanation. He felt honored to have her trust him enough to share what was on her mind, good or bad, to be her safe place to just voice all the things bothering her.

“My sister thinks she might have a crush on her friend from field hockey, Nora, and I can’t begin to tell you how badly that would go over with the people in my hometown. Much less our mother and her father. I want to help her but shy of convincing mother to let her live with me, meaning I’d have to find a place to stay, there isn’t much I can do except tell her to be mindful of who she tells that she’s even questioning it.” He was floored for a moment, digesting this information, but Zach could hardly believe just how wonderful Nanette was sometimes.

“I think telling her to be cautious about who she opens up to about her feelings is the best given the circumstances, she’s really lucky to have a supportive older sister you know. I would hope that maybe your parents might think differently since it’s their little girl but you know them better than I do so I will not try to challenge what you foresee happening here.” Zach felt Nanette nod lightly, felt the way she was holding all sorts of tension over this, and made her sit at one of the tall bar stools so he could finish making dinner.

“Are you okay with telling me more about your parents? Why they’ll go nuclear about this?” Nanette looked surprised for a second and then offered a small, embarrassed, expression.

“Of course, I thought I’d told you about them already. My mother, Marcelline Dougherty, is also a former pageant champion but she never got into modeling; she became a cosmetologist and pageant coach, as soon as I was old enough to compete I was in kiddie pageants too. My step-father, Paul McReynolds, has been her husband since I was six but he wasn’t really a father to me since my dad kept shared custody and I lived with him two weeks out of the month. He lived nearby up until I was going into Middle School when he confessed to me how he wanted to move a little bit away, I gave him the green light because I just wanted him happy, so he moved to a different town in the city that was far enough that he wouldn’t see mother all the time.” He didn’t voice how odd it was to him that she used the title mother but also the title dad, all that told him was who she was closer to in terms of her parents. Zach held up an avocado after slicing up the tomato and earned a nod.

“Mother and Paul are both very religious, if I wasn’t at my dad’s house or doing pageants I was usually at church or bible studies, they don’t see their bigotry as anything but following the word of God -even if they do cherry pick what they follow and what they’re lenient about- and there are plenty of people who have straight up cut ties with their children because they ended up coming out. Cassie is terrified, and unfortunately she should be, so I’m just trying to figure out how to help her.” Zach set Nanette’s sandwich down in front of her along with a small plate of kale chips for them to share, he’d looked into some alternatives for chips and he didn’t mind these so much, but he could tell it was bothering her.

“Would you be able to get a place on your own? Or are you contracted to live where you are? If you got a house of your own, I mean, couldn’t you just tell your parents you want Cassie to get out of the local area and become a temporary guardian until she’s eighteen?” Nanette chewed on her lower lip for a second and shrugged, looking more than a little lost, and he had no doubt that her parents were the nosy type given the way she was addressing this.

“Mother probably wouldn’t care but Paul wouldn’t like it, Cassie is his daughter -his only kid since mother refuses to go through childbirth again- and he’s the reason she’s even allowed to do field hockey instead of pageants. Even if he won’t actually have her back when she needs him, which is frustrating.” Zach found himself nodding, already disliking the man for putting his daughter -and step daughter- in this position at all since it sounded like Marcelline was the worst kind of bossy Southern woman.

“Well, I can help you go over your employment contract to look at your clause for residency, if you need me to, or I can help figure out what you’d need to put down on a place. I can also just mind my business and let you handle this, I don’t want to overstep.”

“I think I’m going to just learn what I can do to support her for now and if I need to take her in I absolutely will, I don’t want to rush her into thinking she needs to come out with some sort of label right away either, Cassie is only eleven so I’m just trying to be mindful of allowing her to start making her own choices.” Zach nodded and unlocked his tablet, to flip on a video to watch while they ate at the table, before he found himself with another question. He’d left the tablet on his messages application, which had Nanette’s question if he was okay from the day of his almost arrest.

“Hey, uh, that day you messaged me? Why did you ask if I was okay? You never said.” He had confirmed he was fine and sent her a question mark in reply. Nanette blinked and swallowed the mouthful of food with her hand covering her face as she tried to eat quicker. It was a cute habit of hers, to cover her mouth before speaking if she was eating during a meal.

“Delaney called me being super annoying about a false accusation, one of Francesca’s friends named Lillian apparently described someone like you as her assailant when she went out drinking and Lillian’s agent called him so he was all worried about me. I reassured him that she was wrong and you’d been misidentified, but it’s still really annoying. He was so upset about it he called my mother while we were at Cassie’s field hockey game, I mean come on really? I knew you didn’t do what they tried to accuse you of, not only were you at work that night but you’d never do anything like that.” Zach felt torn between relief that Nanette so firmly believed in him and immediate confusion that her agent knew about the incident. He didn’t think it was totally left field for the two agents to know what another, but it didn’t sit right with him.

“Is that a normal thing, those two talking?” Nanette hummed as she looked up from the video before rolling her shoulders in a shrug.

“Kind of? Cheyenne -Lillian and Francesca’s agent- takes a lot of aspiring models that refuse to do the calorie restrictions to try and get them minor film roles. I couldn’t imagine why she’d bring it up unless Lillian’s condition is worse than what I’ve been told, and according to Francesca you wouldn’t even know she’d been hurt looking at her. I kind of think she faked it for attention, wouldn’t be the first time and her boyfriend is a make-up artist.” The food he’d eaten sank like a rock in his gut and Zach excused himself, hating what he was doing as he stood in the bathroom and messaged some of his old contacts. He’d been willing to let it go until Nanette mentioned Lillian’s condition and that she’d faked things like this before.

A confirmation and a promise to dig into it from an old commanding officer of his sent him back to the table and he hoped, against all his doubts, that maybe he was wrong.

All Fics Taglist: @haylzcyon @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @tauralmie @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry @all-the-way-down-here

Just Pedro Taglist: @maievdenoir @beecastle @littlemisspascal @writeforfandoms @aynsleywalker @lovesbiggerthanpride @mswarriorbabe80

You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime @harriedandharassed

[musings-of-a-rose]

I love these two. LOVE. So supportive of each other and they're just new to relationships.

Your Zach is easily my favorite and I just melt every time you post a chapter!

You're so Classic (v)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features sexual harassment at a work function, implied bad parenting, and smut. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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Chicken and Dumplings (8.4k)

Nanette didn’t usually remember her dreams, it was rare that she got anything aside from whatever emotions came from the images her mind created for her, and today was no different. Waking up warm and comfortable, calm in a way she hadn’t felt in some time, with only happiness and a low buzzing content to ease her into consciousness; soft breaths puffed against the back of her neck and Zach’s arm was draped over her waist and with the blessing of central air the room wasn’t too hot even though both of them had slept without clothes on.

Sometime during the night she’d rolled over, closer to the edge of the bed, and Zach had given chase; she’d almost forgotten about her habit of moving in her sleep, it was something she’d probably have to mention since she’d fallen off her bed a few times as a child. Nanette settled back into Zach’s embrace as he continued to sleep and the sun continued to rise, it was still very early -likely around five or six- so she didn’t even try to move away.

Nanette took stock of how she felt, the ache between her legs was familiar but there were only good memories attached to it, and her heart was racing when she slowly recalled all the things Zach had said he wanted to do with her. This was the first time she’d taken a weekend to herself, to just stay away from her apartment and Francesca and all of that other stuff, so there was part of her that wanted to explore all of Zach’s promises now.

But patience won out, it would be best to take this slow, she knew it was probably a dumb idea to rush into things just because she had a good time once. While she didn’t doubt Zach or how attentive he was to making her feel good it was still her own worries that she would learn something was wrong somehow, or that Zach would want to do something that just wasn’t doing it for her and he’d be disappointed in her. After exhaling softly she managed to slip out of bed, feeling jittery and like she needed to move, so she opted to go to the bathroom and then work on breakfast.

Pausing when she saw her reflection, running a hand down her stomach, Nanette bit the inside of her cheek since she felt bloated. It wasn’t a great feeling, she turned to the side to see if there was a noticeable change and tried to fight down the mild panic since she was sure there was. It just meant she’d have to go lighter on meals, which was perfectly fine, and she did have a higher weight allowance now so it wouldn’t be the end of the world if she weighed in above her usual. She stepped back, taking in the shape of her hips and thighs, just trying to remind herself that it was impossible for such drastic change to happen overnight, that she was fine and it was okay that the hefty meal she had the day before wasn’t going to ruin her life.

Tying her hair back into a messy ponytail to escape the judgmental stare of her reflection, picking up Zach’s flannel and letting it hang open, she slipped on fresh underwear and tip-toed down the stairs into the kitchen. He had a one-cup coffee maker and Nanette made a note as she rustled through his cabinets on what his coffee of choice was, that way if she ever had him over at hers for breakfast she would have some on hand, and after making sure she had what she needed for the two cups of coffee it was time to see what she could make.

Zach had a variety of things in the fridge and she couldn’t help but smile seeing it organized in clear bins with labels, things specifically set aside for different meals like vegetables he’d separated from bulk purchases or proteins for each meal, and she decided on making omelets. One cured ham steak, an onion, bell pepper, a few mushrooms, and the sliced colby jack cheese made their way onto the counter with the eggs after she found a cutting board and his knives.

Nanette had just cooked the water out of the mushrooms and gotten some color on the onions and peppers after she added them to the pan when she heard the sound of footsteps in the hall, Zach’s hair was still a tousled mess and he’d thrown on some boxers and new sweats, but his eyes landed on her at the stove and she swore they went black.

“Good morning.” His voice was soft and rasped and sent chills down her spine in a good way, it made her feel beautiful and wanted better than any camera or job offer ever could, and her lips lifted at the corners before she could really even try to play coy.

“Good morning Zach, hope you’re hungry.” The words made him groan and walk over, hugging her from behind as he looked over her shoulder, and she giggled when the stubble of his facial hair rubbed against her skin as he nuzzled her neck. Nanette swayed with him as she tended the stove top, the fact that Zach hadn’t immediately jumped to take over made her relax, it was a real calm between them and just an easy morning.

“If you didn’t have the stove on I would start with dessert and bend you over the table.”

Zach stepped away from her to start the coffee as she cracked the eggs into a bowl, her brows shooting up as her entire face flushed, and Nanette knew the sound that came out of her was garbled and not really words but she just couldn’t find a way to form words after that. The conflicting emotions raging in her heart and the thoughts racing through her mind were all over the place from dread that he’d go to make good on his word until he noticed she was bloated to excited that he wanted her still, her grip on the whisk tightened as she beat the eggs she’d cracked without another word or sound.

“Are you okay? Did I say something wrong?” Zach was leaning on the counter beside her, his coffee in hand just watching her face, and she blinked before schooling her expression into a convincing calm. It wasn’t hard since she’d been forced to do this thousands of times before, even if it felt wrong doing it to Zach, but she didn’t want their weekend together to turn into her word vomiting and scaring him off over all the superficial bullshit that popped up in her head. Maybe Leon was right about her, that she was shallow, but it had to be different since hers were usually self-targeted right?

“You can’t just say something like that and not expect me to react.”

Zach’s concern melted to something smug and she felt an ugly sense of relief crawl through her, it wasn’t fair that she couldn’t admit what she was feeling to him but she was scared that he’d walk away, and it would just be easier to hide it for the weekend and face it later when she was alone to process everything. Louis would be able to help her with date dinner ideas that wouldn’t leave her feeling so gross the morning after, she could also have green smoothies for breakfast for a few days if she had to as well.

“I suppose that’s fair, Nanette.” Zach leaned over to kiss her and she turned her head to capture his lips with hers, it was slow and deep and made her whole body ignite like kindling in a wildfire, but before it could go too far she pulled away to keep cooking, Making two separate bowls for the eggs, hers having just the whites while Zach had her extra yolks, and he didn’t say anything but she did notice the very slight downward turn at the corners of his mouth.

“So, what are today’s plans? You mentioned wanting to go somewhere? Or are you going to change your mind and request a weekend in?” His frown became more pronounced and Zach leaned over to catch her chin with a gentle hold between his thumb and pointer so she looked him in the eye.

“We’re going out, don’t you worry, as much as I’d love to keep you here Nanette there’s no way I’m going to push you into more when I can tell you aren’t ready for it. You don’t have to hide or fake anything with me, okay? If you aren’t in the mood, or something is bothering you that has you up in your head, then don’t be worried about my reaction. I’m a grown man, if I really need to get off that bad I can do it myself without forcing anything on you.” Nanette felt her throat tighten with each word, a little glad she hadn’t poured any of the eggs into the pan yet since her eyes began to water embarrassingly, and Zach pulled her away from the stove to hug her tight to him after setting his mug aside.

Nanette felt relieved and conflicted and overwhelmed at the realization that things could be easy with the right person, she’d grown up seeing her mother and step-father have their fights and she could never forget the way her mother used to scream at her dad over every little thing, and other pageant parents had been just as intense and quick to fight their partners. This easy thing with Zach was so different that she didn’t know what to do. It was so good because the weight of expectation was gone but it was making her feel like she might end up messing up, that her bullshit would be what fucked it all up.

“How- how’d you get so insightful?” Nanette wanted to feel as emotionally stable as Zach appeared to be, he was so sure of himself and aware of others, she wanted that same peace.

“Therapy, a lot of therapy, I still go. I have anger issues, still do sometimes, I’m getting better but I don’t think I’ll ever be one-hundred percent. Can I- is it too heavy to ask you what you’re thinking? If it is then we can change topics.” He was giving her an out, of all things, and Nanette leaned against him more as Zach pulled her to sit down at the table, he had her perched in his lap and was just holding her.

“I just- it’s so easy with you and I’ve never… seen that. Experienced that. I felt pretty, like you still wanted me, even without make-up or having my hair done up and it feels nice but terrifying that it’s this easy. I’m scared that my superficial bullshit will get in the way.” Nanette didn’t see the way Zach’s eyes narrowed since she was too busy looking down and away from his face, ashamed to admit this much.

Zach bumped his forehead to hers, gently, so she looked up and met his gaze again; he looked worried again but it was a subtle look hidden under his softly fond expression.

“I want you to know that I think you are beautiful however you choose to present yourself, in or out of clothes with your hair up or down, make-up or not. As for your superficial bullshit, if you’re talking about your career I’m going to do my best to adapt to it, if you talk to me and communicate with me about what you’re feeling then I can offer insight and reassurances.” Nanette was so used to keeping quiet when things bothered her, to accepting the bad in someone because the good was always enough, and that was the exact opposite of who Zach was as a person. He valued her input, wanted to talk with her about any and everything, and if she was feeling down he wanted to know.

It was a stupid way to think about it but she felt less like a doll and more like a human than she ever had in her entire life.

Zach finished making the omelets for breakfast, tasking Nanette to put together a small fruit salad, and while he put everything together he studied her. Seeing her in his shirt definitely had woken him, and his libido, up for the day; he was a simple man and there was something about seeing his girlfriend in his shirt that ticked off the boxes in his caveman brain. But more than that he was seeing the way she was standing with most of her weight on one foot, the slight turn of her body away from him, and he chose not to say anything about her choosing to give him her yolk.

It was clear that something had happened after she woke up to make her feel like she had to hide from him and Zach hoped that, soon, she would feel comfortable telling him about it. He was just as guilty for hiding things, glossing over his anger problems instead of giving her deeper details, but he also didn’t want to scare her off by telling her about something that he’d gotten mostly under control this early. Instead of making a big deal over it Zach hoped his words were enough, that she would understand that he was here for her as long as she met him half way.

They sat down beside each other and Zach flipped on Animal Planet, it was some show about an alligator rescue, and Nanette settled beside him with her own food looking a little better than she had. After a beat of silence between them, just watching the team head out to some flooded church field where two gators were at, he felt Nanette lean against him and turned his head to glance at her.

“I, uh, woke up feeling… well feeling bloated from last night’s dinner.” Zach almost asked her why that would be a problem, he caught himself at least, but it sort of clicked before he managed to make himself look like a total idiot; to him it was a non-issue but he had a feeling something like that was a bit of a hard blow to Nanette’s routine.

“Do you want some lemon water? I know that helps some people at least lessen the feeling.” Zach was half out of his seat before she even said yes and he handed her the cool beverage with a smile as well as a Gas-X tablet. It wouldn’t be the perfect solution but he had a feeling that he’d have to work around the requests she made if they were heavier foods like yesterday, choosing leaner meats or going light on certain vegetables. Like her intimacy situation there was a lot of things Nanette was still learning about her body, adding calories and food types would be no different, and Zach made a mental note to look into some more lean versions of his favorite recipes.

“Is that why you looked upset earlier?” He didn’t want to make assumptions about what she was feeling and if she was willing to tell him then it would be easier to figure out how to handle it going forward.

“Yes, I uh, I was worried it was noticeable.” Zach had to admit her worry flew right over his head for way too long, mostly because he didn’t really get it, but when it finally clicked he caught her hand in his to kiss her knuckles lightly. Nanette’s eyes went round as she stared at him and he offered her as gentle of a look as he could manage, even if he was hurting for her and what she was dealing with, and her little hints about how easy they had it didn’t spell out a good image for what she’d gone through growing up.

“Nanette, I’m going to be entirely honest, there is nothing you could really do to change your appearance that would make me want you any less. I’m not going to dictate what you have to look like to be attractive to me because you’re always attractive to me, what matters is if you feel comfortable with yourself.” He had no idea if she had ever had anyone say that to her before, he was starting to think she hadn’t, but her watering eyes and relieved smile made him brush her tears away with his thumbs and kiss her forehead gently before he kissed her on the nose.

“Thank you, Zach.” He nodded and kissed her on the mouth, deep and slow and just trying to show her how much he cared without any additional words, and Nanette was panting when they parted with a flush on her face that he knew he could get to travel all the way down her neck and shoulders.

Finishing breakfast with much lighter conversation topics, as he recognized she was a little too raw and needed a break, Zach told her to go get dressed while he put the dishes in the dishwasher so that they could go out. Nanette looked stunning in the loose sundress, he didn’t know exactly what to call the light shade of pink or what the colorful flowers printed along the skirt actually were, but it looked very pretty. Zach went upstairs and grabbed one of his gray plaid button downs, a pink tee-shirt underneath paired with his dark gray shorts; Nanette looked up from where she was braiding her hair and smiled, the shade of pink he’d chosen was lighter than the one she wore but looked like it was in the same family of pinks.

Nanette walked over and undid the buttons on his shirt, leaving only one of them done to loosely hold the top together, and he slipped his watch onto his wrist before he could really think too hard about the way her eyes had raked down his figure. After she slipped into her sandals Zach got his socks and sneakers on, making sure she had her purse and he had his wallet and keys. And instead of his car they walked the short distance to the pottery workshop he’d told her about.

The owner was another vet he’d met through the VA, she had handmade figurines and piggy banks, plates, sets of cups and saucers, and really anything you could think of. He and Nanette would be painting something and then Katherine would dry and glaze them, whatever they chose, so it was exciting since it was a chance to experience and create. Nanette was beaming when they got inside, taking in the large stock of unpainted wares, and Zach told her to look around while he greeted Katherine.

“It’s been so long, I cannot believe how far we’ve come now that we’re civilians again.” Katherine earned a nod as Zach grabbed his wallet to pay for the booking, he’d gotten unlimited time for the day and the top tier selection on what to paint.

“At least it’s things we like to do, yea? I know you have to have fun with all the kids that come in.” Kat had always loved kids, Zach remembered meeting her at the VA building when they’d been waiting for their appointments, she’d mentioned coming from a massive family and that as much as she sort of resented her parents for depending on her like a third parent she did miss when her siblings were kids instead of teenagers.

“Loads of fun, I did get lucky that Sasha -the twelve year old- wants to do more pottery stuff so she’s here pretty often whenever she can catch the bus over.” Katherine handed his card back and Zach noticed Nanette looking between a teacup and saucer as well as a mug, making him smile as he walked over to see what she was thinking.

“Mug or teacup?” He paused when she asked him, realizing she’d seen him approaching in the small mirror on the shelf, and Zach grinned as he winked at her.

“I go with mugs because they end up at the diner, I try to come here a few times a year since it’s relaxing for me and it’s fun to see what I can come up with.” He watched the realization flicker across her face, the standard white mugs mixed and matched with the very vastly different painted ones finally making sense, and Nanette’s eyes softened before she grabbed one of the larger mugs since it was the ones he used. Katherine chuckled from the register.

“If you’re both doing mugs take two each.” He knew it was because he’d paid for the most premium choice but Zach still couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the other vet, earning a cheeky wave, but he and Nanette grabbed their mugs and made their way over to the painting tables. They picked one against the window since it had the best lighting, with Zach grabbing two palettes and filling them with a little of every color paint, and Nanette was beaming as she accepted the pack of cleaned paintbrushes from Katherine and Zach took his with a wave.

“I noticed you use a lot of warm shades, fire and autumn colors, for the mugs you have at the diner that are painted. Do you not really like cooler tones?” Nanette was already at work with a pencil, sketching a really rough design onto the unpainted clay, and Zach found himself watching her make the rough outline of flower petals and leaves.

“I tend to avoid green, which you generally see paired with blue for ocean themes or other shades for floral themes.” The motion of her pencil paused before she made a soft sound, returning to her sketching.

“You were deployed then.” Not a question, then again he hadn’t really tried to hide that his time in service had left it’s marks, and Zach whispered the soft ‘yes’ as he began painting the mug in his hand. His method was more abstract than planned, random swirls and patterns of color, but the motions of the brush were soothing and Nanette leaned more against him to tap his shoulder with the side of her head.

“My dad is a vet too, it got ugly for a while and that’s why mother stopped my visits with him, you don’t have to worry about it scaring me off. You said you’re in therapy, I don’t doubt that’s part of it.” Zach let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding and nodded, the wide brush stroke that looked like a flower petal made him continue the pattern before Nanette winked and used her brush -dipped in green- to draw a stem for him.

Zach didn’t think about the fact that there were kids in the room already, he just pressed the softest kiss to her mouth as she smiled so softly at him, and Nanette pulled away first with a smile on her face that was so understanding that it made him feel like it was safe to open up more to her about his PTSD and everything he’d been through. To an extent, at least, he’d never tell her about active combat or the true horrors he’d seen but he could talk to her about the lingering nightmares and emotional baggage.

They fell into much gentler conversation after that, mindful of the giggly children and protective parents, instead talking about plays and concerts they wanted to see; Zach loved that Nanette preferred orchestral music and jazz bands, even if she did enjoy every other genre the instrumental pieces were her favorite, and decided that sometime he’d have to plan a trip to the East Coast where they could see a proper Christmas orchestra performance in the snow. His Mama had taken him to Boston once in the winter, his uncle had a boxing match there, and Zach would never forget how it felt seeing snow for the first time.

“So what’s the most exotic place you’ve traveled?” Nanette blinked at his question before turning an almost rueful gaze on her mug, the pattern was a lovely floral and he had no doubt her skill at applying make-up attributed to her steady hand as she worked over her sketch.

“I’ve only ever seen San Antonio, Houston, Austin, and LA; pageants, when I was younger, in Texas while modeling was here. Now that I have the evening gown exclusivity there’s a chance I could go to other places depending on shooting location, my goal is to be on the runway for Paris Fashion Week even if its just once.” He loved that it wasn’t a dream, that it was a goal, that she knew what she wanted and that she’d been working on the moves to get her there.

“Tell me what you need me to do, if anything, so I can help you achieve your goal.” Nanette glanced at him and smiled, the finished mug set down so she could get started on the second, and Zach felt that tension from the morning slipping away.

Katherine was sweet and she’d offered a gig to teach painting to the kids, if Nanette wanted it, but the model had to refuse. Instead she hit up a few make-up artists that she knew who specialized in costume and decorative make-up since the hours Katherine wanted were super flexible, it was a win-win for her to get steady-handed artists and for the make-up artists to find something to pad their wallet when they had no job lined up. Zach held her hand as they left, their mugs would be dried, glazed, and baked with the next batch before they were ready for pickup.

It had been a longer time than she expected but Nanette had a lot of fun, it was nice to do something creative and calming, so by the time they got back to the apartment she was no longer as anxious as she had been upon waking up. The measures Zach had taken helped too, she felt worlds better, and he led her to the couch with a promise of a light lunch; it was honestly the best she’d ever been treated by a partner and Nanette allowed herself to enjoy it.

Eventually she’d have to face the reality that for so long she’d allowed people to be awful to her, maybe with help she’d learn how to stop that from happening with people she worked with too.

A low chime from her phone made her check the device, a message from Madame LeMarc about her first contractual shoot for the Wednesday coming up, and after confirming the location and details she promised to have Louis send over her updated measurements when she got into the agency on Monday to verify that nothing had changed. That way Madeline wouldn’t have to worry if minor alterations needed to be made, or if there were touch ups to be done she could handle it before the day.

Zach set down a bowl of ramen, made with shirataki noodles instead of regular wheat noodles, and while the noodles had always failed to work as a spaghetti substitute they were great in a soup dish like this. The protein was just lightly poached eggs, so the yolk was runny, and the flavorful broth was meaty enough to not need something like chashu or chicken. He’d added mushrooms, lotus root, and bamboo shoots that Nanette had a feeling were all things he made regularly since they didn’t have the same canned taste as the few times others had made ramen from scratch.

Nanette flipped on ‘How It’s Made’ after they migrated to his dining table, sitting next to one another and trying not to stare when he sat down in a way that she would have hated on any other man. Zach tried not to manspread, she’d seen him fidget and shift in seats to avoid taking up so much room, but here at home he didn’t have the same reservations. If anything though, knowing he was hers, it made her want to crawl into his lap and straddle his thigh.

Before she could accidentally choke herself on her food Nanette turned her attention back to the screen, another chime from her phone making her glance at the device, and she noticed Zach look anywhere but the small touchscreen.

“It’s my mother, I’ll call her later.” Nanette wasn’t going to interrupt her meal to call, it’d be bad manners anyway, and there was nothing of major importance she could think of that her mother would need to speak to her about. Unless Cassandra had begun doing pageantry again, which was unlikely, her sister had loathed the dresses and jewelry and everything about the child pageant life to the point that she’d gotten banned from three for picking fights. At eleven there was probably little chance of Cassandra allowing their mother and her father to force her into that setting, if anything she was probably fighting back harder if they were persisting.

Nanette was seventeen years older than her sister, by the time Cassandra was the age to start child pageants Nanette was starting her modeling career, so most of their interaction was done through video calls. There’d been the odd visit here and there but nothing that would really lead to the two of them having a real sisterly relationship. Before she could even tell Zach about her suspicion, that it had something to do with Cassandra, her phone began to ring and he nudged her gently.

“Go ahead, if you want some privacy you can go into the office.” Zach’s offer made her nod before she was heading to the other room, not closing the door but respecting that he didn’t seem to want to get involved with potential family drama just yet. Which was fine, they’d only just gone exclusive had had only been dating for a short time.

“Mother, I was in the middle of a lunch date, is everything okay?” There was a small chance that would stop any of the long stories, since her mother was big on manners, and the camera finally loaded her mother’s face and the woman beside her. Marcelline Dougherty was the kind of woman that would go without voicing her opinion even if it was unwanted, the woman beside her was probably the exact same, though.

“Nanette Rose, are you serious right now? You’re at the biggest turning point in your career, do not throw it all away for some boy-“

“I can juggle my career and my dating life, I’m not a child and Zach has already begun asking questions to take measures to avoid problems over it. Is there a reason you’re calling?” Nanette could admit that she had a hard time talking with her mother, she’d grown up being taught to respect her mother and step-father while getting nowhere near the same respect in turn, sometimes it was a remedy for a bad mood and other times it made her want to rip her hair out.

“This is Alexandria Maldonado, she is the new chairwoman for several of the pageants you’ve won in the past, we think that it might be a good example for Cassandra if you came back and did a few of the adult pageants.” As she expected it was something to try and push Cassie into doing something she didn’t want to do, the wedge between her and her sister was already big due to the age but the fact that Nanette had done pageants and went on to be a model had caused more resentment from her younger sister.

“Why is Cassie doing pageants so important to you? Why can’t you just let her do what she wants as an after-school thing, she’s into field hockey right?” Nanette had tried to keep tabs on her sister’s hobbies so that maybe there was something they could talk about when she came to visit, the school paper had run an article that Cassie was looking at getting a spot as the team Captain next year if she played good and kept her cool.

“Nanette Rose, I cannot believe you want to allow your sister to continue to do something so crass.”

“If you force her to do things she doesn’t want to do, Mother, all you’re going to do is alienate her when she’s legally allowed to leave. Do you know how many people I’ve met that have gone no contact with their parents for the same reason?” That shut her mother up, the outraged look on her face melting to something else, and Alexandria’s smile had fallen too. As if they just expected her to try and make Cassie give up her thing just to fit into shoes she didn’t want to wear.

Nanette hadn’t wanted to be some role model for her sister, she wanted Cassie to be able to do her own thing, and it was clear that her mother didn’t agree.

“Where’s Paul in all of this? If Cassie is doing sports now then clearly someone had to sign it off, so you’re trying to go behind their backs to get your way?” Nanette didn’t mind coming back to try and cheer her sister up when she was down, to try and reassure Cassie that she was allowed to make her own way in life, but she wasn’t going to be a tool her mother could use to try and make Cassie feel like she wasn’t good enough. Nanette had plenty of her own hours crying over the harsh words her mother would throw her way whenever she didn’t do good enough at a pageant or whenever she wasn’t keen on whatever little new talent she was supposed to learn.

“I am her mother, just like I am your mother, I know what’s best for her and playing some sport with a bunch of fat teenagers will lead to her being ruined. Do you know that she doesn’t wear dresses to church?” Nanette looked up at the doorway when Zach appeared, holding up her food, and she nodded as she tapped the desk but grabbed his hand to squeeze it in gratitude before he could walk away.

“Mother, please, it’s not the nineties anymore; Cassie can wear pants and a nice shirt to church.” Zach shot her a look of full sympathy and Nanette leaned back in his chair, making sure that her mother didn’t see him at all just yet.

“Do you know she’s the only girl doing that? All the other girls her age are in pageants and doing débutante events, just like you did, but not Cassandra. No, she’s too busy beating other girls up with a field hockey stick and planning to go to university in the Northeast. All of my children leaving their poor mother-“

“Don’t you start that now, you’re the one who encouraged me to work with Delaney, as soon as I was offered a spot at his agency you were practically packing my bags for me.”

“Because I wanted you to be successful, to become famous, and now you’re going to work with designers who aren’t large names and ruin your figure. Honestly, you look like you’ve gained weight, you’re not trying to throw your whole career in the toilet for a boy are you Nanette Rose?”

“What? No, why would you think that? I haven’t gained weight either, I’ve been keeping track of my measurements and weight with Louis, so don’t try to scare me with that.” Zach was already back downstairs and Nanette barely managed to get her mother off the phone before she was escaping to the bathroom to inspect her reflection again.

She didn’t feel any bigger, she could swear she didn’t look any bigger either, but she began poking her cheeks and her hands itched for a measuring tape that she didn’t have. The tremor in her limbs faded when she reminded herself that her dress fit the same as it had the last time she’d worn it, loose only after it was past her hips as it needed to be and fitted everywhere else without being too tight. The pattern wasn’t pulled or stretched in a weird way, it’d been easy to get on and off, so she was fine.

Heading back to the study and pocketing her phone, bringing her food back downstairs, she earned a smile from Zach as he looked up from the book he was reading on the sofa. Nanette finished eating and went over to cuddle up to his side, looking over at his book before deciding that he was too far into whatever the plot was for her to pick up on it. Instead Nanette laid with her head on his thigh, just relaxing, and Zach used one hand to play with her hair as she watched How It’s Made.

Offering to let Nanette use his gym was an easy choice, it was clear she was used to exercising often, and Zach stared openly when she came downstairs in her sports bra and leggings. He helped her pull her hair up into a bun as she slipped on some flat sneakers, and he joined her in stretching out their limbs so that they were less likely to cramp up after. Nanette was slim and it was obvious, as well as what she told him, that her workout wasn’t to gain muscle but that she hated doing just cardio. Which meant stretching was a must for her since any overworking over the muscle she did have could lead to cramping if she didn’t stretch or hydrate.

The cardio thing was understandable, after his time in service and the PT tests he hated running for cardio even if he got a treadmill for that purpose, and Zach watched her get started on some dumbbell hammer curls while he decided to go for bar curls.

“Do you usually do bench press and dead lifts? Or do you skip those since you aren’t trying to build muscle?” He wasn’t sure what her routine usually was and if he didn’t have something she needed in terms of equipment it’d be no problem to get a hold of it, Zach didn’t necessarily want her to solely work out here but he wanted it to be convenient so if she had an issue like this morning she could go through her usual routines to quell her anxiety.

“I don’t, even though I know I should, my problem is that my dead lift form isn’t great and I’ll either over-correct it or I won’t correct it enough. I just tack on a few extra back exercises like rows and some push-ups to superset my workout to target my chest muscles.” Zach hummed gently and as they finished their curl sets he walked over to his rack, setting for dead lifts at her weight capacity, and Nanette came over as he beckoned her closer with two fingers.

Zach hummed and walked her through her form, to see what she was talking about, before he very gently corrected her starting stance.

“Try now.” He watched her go through to motion and hummed.

“There we go, you were trying to use a stance that was better for someone taller, that should make it easier for you to keep your stance. Do a set.” Zach focused on her back and knees, watched her run through the set of ten, and when she finished he was grinning because she’d done a really good job. Nanette set the bar down and hugged him tight, he had a feeling Louis had skipped her adapting to dead lifts since she had been willing to sub that out with additional exercises.

They worked through her entire routine, which was pretty well covered for what she needed, and Zach was definitely sweating by the time he was done since he might’ve definitely pushed himself to show off a little. After he started up the slow cooker, the meal he’d planned for dinner inside it already, Zach followed Nanette upstairs.

“Are we showering together?” Nanette’s curiosity might’ve come across as genuine if not for the glint in her eyes and Zach thought about this morning and how she’d reacted to the idea that he’d turn her down over being bloated. If there was one thing he didn’t want to do it was make her feel unattractive, even if it was unintentional, but he didn’t want to push her either. Zach nodded gently, since he wouldn’t be able to get a condom on he wasn’t going to let it go too far if she got handsy but he wanted to make sure Nanette didn’t think he was the kind of guy that had his fun and would walk away.

His shower was pretty big, perk of being able to renovate his bathroom on his own, and Zach grinned when Nanette actually chose to scrub him down first. She wrinkled her nose at his 2-in-1 shampoo and bodywash but didn’t say anything against it, he knew that it wasn’t the best thing to use but he did at least have conditioner. His sigh at the feeling of her nails lightly scraping down his chest didn’t get lost in the sound of the water and Zach almost hunched over as she got down on her knees, very carefully cleaning him up and skipping his now hardening cock as she lathered up his legs.

“Nanette-“ His attempt at getting her back up was lost when she toyed with his shaft before gripping him gently in her hand, the fact that her hands were so small hadn’t occurred to him until now and Zach throbbed as his brain finally registered the size difference between them. She wasn’t exactly petite but Nanette wasn’t above average height either, seeing her hand on his cock made him wheeze as he hunched over her with his arm braced on the tile as she slid her hand along his length.

“I want to take care of you, Zach.” The way she let her lashes flutter, the gentle smile on her face, made him surrender with a groan and fuck if she didn’t look gorgeous with water dripping down her and all her focus on him. The soap was washed away and he almost protested until Nanette’s furnace hot mouth engulfed the head of his dick, his body jerking as he immediately halted his hips to avoid hurting her, and Nanette didn’t even slow down.

He was panting hard with each bob of her head, with how she hollowed her cheeks out and licked a flat stripe up the underside of him, and Zach had his breath punched out of him when she used her hand to stroke what her mouth couldn’t reach. He cupped her cheek with his free hand, so that he didn’t tangle his fingers in her wet hair, and Nanette moaned at the gentle touch before she let him fall out of her mouth with a pop so that she could suckle at the head of him while stroking his shaft.

When her tongue brushed against his frenulum Zach moaned low and deep, the sensation making his thighs tremble. The wet and slick sounds of her hand on him, of their combined panting, the

“Fuck, Nanette, so fucking good-“ Her answering moan made him look down, her eyes locking with his as she mouthed at the side of his cock like it was an ice-pop, and Zach felt his balls pulling up before he could even try to breathe and stop himself from spilling his cum all over her face.

“Gonna cum-“

“Are you? Gonna come all over me?”

He groaned at the idea of his cum dripping down her chest and Zach didn’t even have a chance to fight it as she suckled at his head again, lines of his spend painting her skin as he moved the hand on her face to high thigh so he didn’t bruise her with how tightly he dug his fingers into his skin. Nanette was gentle helping him work through the last of the tremors, his eyes blinking open to see the line of spit break as his cock softened and the sight of him dripping down her chest.

Nanette stood up when he stepped back and Zach pulled her against him, kissing her deep and pressing her back into the tile as her hands went up to his hair.

“Let’s get cleaned up, I want you in my bed again.” Nanette moaned softly and whimpered when he slipped one hand up to feel how wet she was, her soaked folds making him change his mind, and she clearly was okay with it as she tilted her hips against his hand so his fingers caught her tight little hole.

“Too far, want you now-“

“Not going to do anything other than my hands or mouth without a condom.” Nanette whined and he used one finger first to see if she was sore from the day before, she didn’t even flinch and instead she whined like he was teasing her. Still tight as hell but no longer as cautious about being intimate with him, it made Zach groan into her mouth and slide a second finger into her carefully. Nanette gripped his hair tighter and her hips rocked back before she angled them forward again, he let her control how fast he filled her and when his hand was cupping her pussy Zach curled his fingers and smirked at her throaty whine.

“Zach please-“ He nipped at her throat as his free hand circled her lower back and angled her hips just a little more.

“Zach please~ please what, baby?” He teased her a little, wanting her to ask for what she wanted, and Nanette whined in response to it.

“Want to come all over your hand, want to go to bed so you can fuck me through the mattress.”

“Someone’s bold now that she knows how good it can be, I like that.” He began moving his fingers with them curled, pressing against that spongy part of her, and Nanette keened as her head pressed back into the tile and one of her legs reflexively lifted to wrap around his hip. Zach was mindful that she had surrendered her balance, making sure his feet were planted better, and his thumb played with her soaked folds as he pressed himself against her more.

“Do you hear how wet you are?” Nanette nodded, the very slick sound of his hand moving against her was almost louder than the shower, and Zach felt her getting close.

“Look at you, coming apart for me like this, so fucking sexy. Gonna take care of you always, gonna make you feel good whenever you want it, want you to fucking soak me until you’re begging me to stop.” His mouth was just running and his thumb pressed her clit with the intent to circle it before she was wailing his name and coming hard, panting in his ear like she’d just run a marathon, and she was so wet that he was hurrying through washing her off so he could get her to bed faster.

Nanette was giggling, breathy still, but not against his rushed shower or the way he basically carried her out of the bathroom and barely dried her off before he got her onto the bed.

Sore, in the best way, and now she was being served a lean version of chicken and dumplings; it was thick and warm and delicious, and Nanette knew that she was going to sleep like a rock tonight. Zach smiled as they sat together on the sofa but she couldn’t help the way she smiled as he turned on an old episode of Project Runway, right as the contestant was working with her model, and his eyes widened before he turned to look at her.

“You never told me you were on the show.” His grin was wide and she laughed too.

“I was still new to modeling then so I was only used twice, though it was crazy to meet Michael and Nina and Heidi in person, but that’s actually how Delaney got me into the swimsuit contracts that I had.” Zach watched them fit the cocktail dress on her, it was slinky and black leather with sharp cut-outs and had a long cape on one shoulder only, the shoes and accessories were all neon colors since the theme was city lights.

“So neither designer of yours got to do Fashion Week?”

“Nope, both got eliminated pretty early in. It was a bummer but it is what it is, I had fun and it was a great opportunity. If I hadn’t taken it there was a chance I’d been going back to Texas, since rent here in atrociously high, and then I wouldn’t have gotten to meet you.” Zach hummed and nudged her gently before the episode ended and the next one began to play.

They stayed up talking about what it was like to be on a show, Zach even mentioned he’d gotten suggested for the Guy Fieri show and was unsure of whether or not he wanted to be on it at all, and Nanette couldn’t help but smile knowing that if he was she’d have some major competition coming in. There was no way the local ladies would miss the chance to get someone like him in their lives.

“I think you should, if only to raise more awareness to the fact that it’s still a struggle for veterans to find work, but when you do warn me so I can be ready to beat off other women with a stick.” He blushed at her compliment and Nanette straddled his lap to kiss him.

“Don’t get all blushy with me, sweetheart, you know you’re hot as fuck.” The grip of his hands on her hips as she peppered gentle kisses to his cheeks made Nanette pinch his side, there was no way she could go again yet, and Zach locked gazes with her as he tapped his forehead to hers.

“I’ll take your word for it, baby.”

“Good, you should take my word for it.”

They laughed together as he tickled her and Nanette shrieked as she wiggled out of his hold, earning a laugh before he was dragging her against him to cuddle up for a movie.

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