Page 6 of Perfectly Imperfect Us
Mom nodded, nearly vibrating right out of her chair with excitement. “Yes! You’ll love her. She’s a doll. In fact, if youarelooking for a date, I’d steer you in her direction. Fine family.”
Which meant I’d be looking in the exact opposite direction if I was looking for a date. Which I most certainly wasn’t. One of the things I liked most about my time back in Nickel Bay was the distinct lack of dates, dinners, and women throwing themselves at me. Everyone around here just treated me like any other Nickel Bay resident.
I stood up, kissed Mom’s forehead, and left the room with my phone to my ear. No time like the present to get the ball rolling on finding my own place.
* * *
The woods edging in on the northern end of Nickel Bay, extending down to the ocean on one end and shading our local park on the other, were one of my favorite places to go. The trees extended up into the sky forever reminding me just how small I was in this big world. You could lie on the pine needle forest floor and watch the birds float from branch to branch for hours. Some kids lay on grassy fields and watched the clouds. My choice was always the trees. I just wanted to watch nature in general and lose myself in it. All the pressure of work, attempting to retire, the move, my parents…it all washed away with a bit of time spent with these magical trees in Nickel Bay.
Today was no different. The minute I climbed out of my Porsche Cayenne, I inhaled a deep breath of clean air, the scent of pine trees taking me back to my childhood when every day felt like an endless summer. I tied a sweatshirt around my waist, knowing it would get much cooler once the sun started to go down and the rest of the crew got here for our evening run. But for now, I had a couple hours of afternoon sunshine and nature to capture on my new camera. I’d been eager to try it out, wanting my first pictures on it to be taken in this forest.
My cell phone rang and I almost didn’t answer it. I wanted to ignore it entirely, but old habits died hard.
My agent’s name flashed across the screen and I picked it up. “Hey, Jamie.”
He launched into fifty-two urgent things he needed me to do. I could feel my shoulders pinching up toward my ears the longer he talked. I finally cut him off.
“Listen, Jamie. I can only get one thing done right now. What’s most important?”
He paused, probably trying to prioritize everything on his list and finding it an impossible task. “Um, well, let’s see here. I guess that would be an answer to the new designer that wants you in France. He’s standing firm on wanting three shoots in the next six months.”
I squeezed my eyes shut and followed my heart, not my brain who wanted to achieve everything under the sun which would require working myself to the bone. “Then it’s a no for me. Please convey how honored I am he thought of me.”
“Really, Ryder? This is a huge opportunity.” My agent sounded appalled.
Everything quieted within me and I knew it was the right decision. Saying no to all but the most bare bones of work schedules would be hard, but I knew it was what I needed to do.
“My mind’s made up, Jamie. I’m semi-retired, remember?”
He grumbled, but eventually said goodbye when he realized I had no intention of changing my mind or going over his long list of items. I turned my phone on silent and jammed it into the back pocket of my shorts.
A squirrel popped up on its hind quarters to stare at me as I walked away from my car. The minute I hit the trail that led from the parking lot into the tree line, he scampered out in front of me, my unofficial tour guide. Little did he know I knew these woods like the back of my hand. Even twelve years away didn’t erase something like that.
Not long into the hike, a rustling noise off to my left had me moving slower and choosing my steps carefully. Before my next breath, the camera was in my face, ready for the shot. The forest didn’t disappoint when a deer poked her head between two tree trunks, her ears twisting this way and that, listening for danger. The shutter depressed without a sound, photo after photo saving to the disk. The clouds shifted just right and a perfect ray of sunshine streamed down between the trees, highlighting the doe and making for a picture I knew I’d be blowing up and framing later.
She eventually darted off and I moved on too, finding the trail again and meandering closer to the cliff that would take me down to the shoreline. The craggy rocks always made for interesting pictures, and if the tide was with me, the crashing waves on those rocks would make for a dramatic background.
I found myself walking around with my head swiveling to take in all the majestic beauty of nature and a huge smile pasted on my face like a crazy person. None of the worries about my career, or fledgling retirement plans, or parental angst could affect me here. Just me, nature, and a camera in my hands. Perfection.
A voice up ahead caught my attention. Only one female from what I could tell. Normally this place remained pretty deserted during the daytime. Or at least it had back before I moved away from home. I’d hate to think that had changed.
I wasn’t trying to sneak up on her, whoever it was, but pine needle pathways don’t make much noise no matter how heavy you step. I saw a swath of bright color right before I pulled back a low-hanging branch to reveal a camera on a tripod and a dark-haired beauty sitting on a large rock hanging over the cliff. I’d sat on that very rock a time or twenty growing up, feeling invincible as I gazed out over the water crashing below.
Neither the rock nor the incredible view was what drew my attention.
It was Ava.
She sat there smiling into the camera and I couldn’t remember ever seeing a simple smile that hit me in the chest like that. I didn’t even know Ava had the muscles to form a smile, let alone one so mesmerizing.
She started to speak again and then her jaw snapped shut, her head swiveling in my direction.
“Ryder!” she gasped, lurching back.
I moved forward, a buzz kicking up low in my stomach with her out on that rock ledge. One step in the wrong direction and she’d be teetering on the edge. The ground below was a good twenty feet down with sharp rocks that wouldn’t make for a soft landing.
“Careful. I didn’t mean to startle you. Just heard a voice.” I put my hands up in the universal sign of surrender.
She opened her pink-painted lips and then closed them again. Her gaze finally left mine and she leaned forward to fiddle with her camera. She folded up the tripod and put it into the tiny case behind her.
