Page 9 of Perfectly Imperfect Us
I scoffed. “Um, hello? Yes, it’s incredible. The light hitting the top of its head and then the detail you captured of the deer’s face?” I shook my head. “Unreal.”
Ryder’s smile grew. “Thanks. I don’t normally post my photos anywhere though.”
“What? Why not?” The boy was talented with a capital T.
His gaze dropped back down to the camera, but I didn’t think he even saw it.
“I’m supposed to be on the other side of the lens,” he said simply.
I scrambled to me feet, beyond angry at the idea of someone doubting their talent. Who gave him that ridiculous belief. “Are you kidding me? You belong anywhere you want to be. You have talent, Ryder. And no, not just modeling. If photography is something you love and you’re good at it, you should be proud of it. Show the world, you know?”
Ryder slowly got to his feet, the camera back around his neck. “How about you step away from the ledge a little, huh?” He grabbed my arm gently and moved me so he was now on the outside, just a few feet away from the ledge. “And what about you? Do you have plans for your YouTube videos?”
I narrowed my eyes, hand on my hip. He was so calm in the face of my rant and I didn’t like it. I wanted to see him just as fired up about it. “I know what you’re doing.”
Ryder smiled innocently and I’d be lying if I said that smile didn’t twist my stomach into delightful knots of surprise and confusion. “How about we head back to the parking lot to meet up with the others and you can tell me all about your beauty plans to take over the world.”
He hiked my camera bag over his shoulder before I could reach for it, grunting at me when I tried to take it from him. He took off down the path and I scrambled after him, careful to watch where I stepped. Me and forests weren’t exactly on good terms. Tree roots to catch my toe, wild animals who stared me down with their beady little eyes, and flying insects that lived to suck my blood all added up to me thanking my lucky stars for my indoor job. Okay, mostly indoor. Though the outdoor setting really was pretty for making videos.
Ryder took pity on me, probably worried about my heart health when I was out of breath the first fifty yards on the trail. He slowed down and we mostly wandered back to the cars, conversation flowing easily as we talked about our favorite types of cameras, lens, and backgrounds. None of my friends did anything with photography or video, so I found it amazingly refreshing to talk at length with someone who understood me.
By the time we reached my truck, I found myself laughing like I would with my girls. Freely and openly, no second-guessing my words or how I looked or if I let out a bit of a snort with a particularly loud laugh.
“Turn around. I need to change my shirt.” I swung open the truck door to find the cotton T-shirt I’d brought for our run. The silk blend pink top had only been for the video.
Ryder’s eyes crinkled at the corners, but he turned around, giving me the privacy I needed to change. Only when I was certain he wasn’t looking and no one else was around, I whipped the blouse off and jammed the T-shirt over my head, careful not to swipe my makeup off in the process. I also had a huge patch of vitiligo on my stomach that I only covered up with tanning lotion and makeup when I wore a short shirt or a swimsuit. No one needed to glance up and catch an eyeful of that.
“Okay, I’m good.”
Ryder spun around again as Max’s truck pulled into the lot.
“This is your truck?” he asked me, his attention fully on me and not his approaching friend.
I smiled and patted Ol’ Tucker on the hood, not even worried when some paint flaked off and stuck to my hand. “Isn’t she a sight to behold? She was my dad’s and he gave her to me.”
Ryder nodded and gave it a long once-over. “She seems pretty ol— er, vintage. Does she break down a lot?”
I nodded vigorously. “Oh yeah. All the dang time. Luckily, I know my way under the hood of this beast.” I shut the door, the hinges squeaking in protest.
“Seriously?” He looked like I said I was an astronaut who’d walked on Mars.
“Our girl Ava is better than any mechanic in Nickel Bay, that’s for sure. One summer she and her dad put in a whole new engine.” Skylar climbed out of Max’s truck and hugged me to her side. “Hey, sweet girl. You ready to run like a Bigfoot’s chasing you?”
I shook my head even more vigorously, getting a little dizzy with all the movement. “No. Definitely not.”
“It’ll be fun, I promise.” Max flashed his million-dollar smile, the one he gave the paparazzi, as he walked around the front of the truck.
“Oh no you don’t with that toothy grin. I’m on to you too, Mr. Hotshot. People in excellent shape always say things are fun. Let me just tell you: no, they’re not. Not when your lungs burn so bad you think they might be on fire. Or your legs feel wobbly enough to pass as Bambi.”
Max and Ryder did some sort of handshake, back-slapping thing guys do and ignored my complaints. I turned to more sympathetic ears and grabbed Skylar’s hands. She looked so cute with her auburn hair pulled back in a high ponytail like she meant business.
“Seriously? Why do we all have to do this? Kadee hates it too.”
“No, I don’t! In fact, I’m looking forward to doing the Bigfoot race next year. This is part of my training.” Kadee bounded over, having arrived with Lacey. She came dressed in her old cheerleading top, hair in pigtails with our old high school colors streaming down in ribbons.
Skylar asked what everyone was thinking. “Kadee, honey, why are you wearing your high school cheerleading uniform?”
Kadee smiled even as she rolled her eyes. “Duh. Our ten-year reunion is coming up. Figured I’d get in the school spirit again, you know? Besides, I can still fit in it and that needs to be celebrated.”
