Page 11 of Camera Shy

“Yes?” I scrunch up my face, confused at her surprise.

“Looking like that?” She eyes me up and down.

Fucking geez, Palmer. I mean, she’s not wrong. My pajama shorts are frayed a little at the bottom. My baggie beige T-shirt looks like it came from a Goodwill’s reject pile. But for the love of God, I’m in my mourning phase of the breakup. Let me mourn.

“I’m going through the drive-through,” I say haughtily and slip out the door before she can say another damn word.

* * *

The normally obnoxiously long line at the Starbucks drive-through is quick today. So quick, in fact, that after picking up a hot latte for myself and Palmer’s iced drink, I circle back to the parking lot, roll my windows down, and grant myself a moment of quiet.

I’m still agitated at our interaction and am in no hurry to run back to her apartment. I can’t go home. It’s clear I can’t keep holing away at my friend’s place unless I develop rubber skin so her bossy, passive-aggressive jabs can bounce right off of me. I forgive her because Palmer has the best intentions and she’s the only friend I have who would immediately drop what she’s doing, scoop me up from a restaurant on the opposite side of town, and hold me all night while I cried on her shoulder. She’s also the friend who thinks vodka is a perfectly appropriate way to start the morning. That’s exactly the energy I need right now after having my boyfriend of four years tell me that instead of marrying me, he wants to sample his other options.

I promised myself I wouldn’t look her up.

But dammit, it’d be so easy.

Maura…from the gym…who is a trainer. I bet I could go to Edge Fitness’s website right now, scroll to the staff page, and see her beautiful face and perfectly shaped body. There’s no doubt in my mind this woman is stunning. I bet in comparison I look like a bump on a pickle. I just didn’t know Mason was looking. I know I shouldn’t check her out. It’s only going to drive me absolutely insane. The next two years of my life will be a comparison game to this woman who will become a beauty beacon in my mind. What’s the point? Why torture myself?

Curiosity…that’s why.

I let my fingers dance over the keyboard letters…www-dot-edge—

My phone rings, startling me and yanking me away from temptation. By now I just assume it’s Mason, so I instinctively move to hit the decline button. Instead, Dexter Hessler flashes across the screen—one of my favorite long-term clients. I slap a perky smile on my face even though he can’t see me.

“Hello?”

“Avery. Helloooo.” Dex’s cheery voice is so loud through the car’s Bluetooth I have to lunge for the volume button to turn his energy down. Whew. “Sorry to call you on a Saturday. I hate being that client.”

“No problem at all, Dex. How are you?”

“Fuckin’ great! This is a happy call, by the way, where I tell you that the egregious amount of money I paid you and Mason was well worth it and I earned it back tenfold.”

I chuckle. “Glad to hear it. Care to share the specifics?”

“We booked the entire summer for guided tours. Every single slot is filled and the trip is more than funded. Not to mention the entire line of the new Aqualung fins and wetsuits are sold out. The gear hasn’t even shipped yet. My mind is blown.”

Dive and surf shops are wildly competitive. Dex needed an edge to make his little business competitive. Mason and I loved working on developing the Best Fishes brand. Dex didn’t even have a real logo and his marketing package was messy. I invented an entire new look, defined a color palette, and curated entirely new brand messaging. While I worked with Dex to increase his social media presence by making one-minute educational videos of gear care, emergency preparation, and the different types of scuba certifications, Mason dove into SEO. If you Google scuba shops in the state of California, Best Fishes now shows up on the first page, which was a nearly impossible feat for a company based in Las Vegas, over five hours away from the California beaches where they certify their students.

“Dex, I’m so happy to hear it. Where are you starting the guided tours?”

“Cozumel. Then off to the Cayman Islands.”

“Incredible.”

“Hey, I have an idea. Do you want to come on one trip? Just pay your way in travel and I’ve got you covered for the tour, gear, and everything else. It’s going to be beautiful.”

Sharks? Me in a skintight wet suit? Both comparable threats.

“No, thanks. I’m not a big water person.”

“Yet you live in California?”

“Anyway…” I take a long sip from my hot coffee. Why I’m drinking hot coffee in the eighty-degree weather, I don’t know. It’s a thing of mine. To me, coffee was meant to be brewed and served hot. I would sip on a piping hot latte in the flames of hell. “You enjoy your trip, just make sure your content manager stays on top of consistent posting. Mason and I will handle the web traffic and make sure we’re staying on top of the search results competition. But right now, social is what’s really going to continue to drive sales—brand presence. So don’t let your social guy slack, okay? You can always call me if you need a helping hand while you guys are traveling.”

“You’re amazing, Avery. You’re due for a raise—”

“You pay us plenty.”

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