Page 63 of Made For You
“Thanks. Even though I’m just setting up my room, I figured I’d see a few other teachers and administrators around the school.”
He nodded as he set the box on the bed.
“Is that for me?” I asked. “I didn’t hear the doorbell ring.” The delivery of my big purchase was still a few weeks off, since the camera was on back order.
“Sure is,” he said as he walked over to my closet and pulled a suit jacket off a hanger. He was already wearing suit pants and a pale-blue button-down shirt. He must’ve changed after his run while I’d been asleep.
Clapping my hands joyfully, I sat on the bed and hauled the medium-sized box onto my lap. The box was the palest ofpinks, almost white, and the ribbon was jet-black. I pulled the ribbon free, then lifted the top of the box and peeked inside, then immediately set the box on the bed and stood. “Talon.”
He turned around from where he was adjusting his tie in front of my mirror and faced me with eyes the size of saucers.
“I can’t accept this.”
He instantly relaxed and turned back to the mirror, flipping one end of the tie through a loop. “Of course, you can.”
“No, I can’t.” I wasn’t sure how he knew about my love of photography unless someone in my family snitched. It wasn’t something I liked to talk about. I didn’t even have any more of my favorite images in the house. Jeremy had been sure of that.
Once Talon was satisfied with his tie, he walked over to me and rested his hands on my shoulders. “You can accept it, because it’s a gift from me to you. Nothing more.”
“But how did you…?” I began to ask, as he lifted the Leica M6 from the box. It was a dream film-camera and highly sought after. Talon held it out to me, waiting for me to take it, but I was terrified to touch it. The relic from 1984 should’ve been in a museum.
“I assumed, based on the photos scattered around your parents’ home, that you enjoy photography. I wasn’t sure if you preferred film or digital, so I took a chance and went with the best I could find.” He was still holding the camera out to me, ready for me to take it. “If you don’t like it, I can send it back.”
“Don’t you dare!” I cried out as I finally took the silver-and-black gem into my hands. God, it was perfect. My photography teacher in high school always talked about this camera and how it was highly coveted by traditionalists.
Tears welled up in my eyes at the thoughtful gift from the man who onlypretendedto be in a relationship with me. Gently, I set the camera on my bed, then I launched myself at Talon. Thankfully, he caught me in his arms.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he said as he embraced me tightly. “There is one small catch though,” he added as he smiled. I could hear the taunt in his voice.
I slid down his body and sat back down on the bed, admiring my new toy.
“I had film already installed. I am giving you one week to fill up the reel with any pictures you’d like to take. Then I’m going to develop them.”
“Okay, what’s the catch? I’m pretty sure I can go through the film in a day.”
“I have a second surprise attached to that task, so be mindful of what you’re capturing on film.”
It was both ominous and exhilarating. I was never one to back down from a dare, which was why I was in this arrangement to begin with.
“Deal. So, where are you headed?”
“I’m going to check out the Wilder Lodge in Knoxville.”
“Okay. I hope it’s not too damaged.” I learned through a quick internet search that the original Wilder Hotel was in Knoxville, so that was Talon’s excuse to his family for coming up this way from Miami. “If you give me a heads-up, I can have something ready for dinner.”
Talon smiled, and I couldn’t help but do the same as he leaned down to press his lips against mine. “Not kicking me out yet?”
“If you can repeat last night, I’m pretty sure I’ll let you stay as long as you want.”
“Greedy wife,” he whispered against my mouth, then nipped my lip.
I watched his retreating back as he left the house, but not before he made sure to pay extra attention to Draco on his wayout. I was pretty sure my cat was switching teams and was 100 percent batting for Talon. I couldn’t really blame him.
In the living room, I looked over my swatches of paint again and finally decided on a dark-olive color for my office and a tad lighter shade for my living room. Green was one of my favorite colors when I needed to relax.
On the kitchen island, my phone buzzed with a message. Assuming it was Franny, I opened the message, only to find a screenshot of an article online about the marriage of Talon and me.
