Page 27 of Accidentally Forever
“Family dinner was moved to Friday, so I don’t really have anything.”
I tilted my head, staring into those gorgeous blue eyes.The Montgomery eyes. “You want to go for a drive?”
A small smile played on her lips even as her eyes brightened ever so slightly. “You don’t have to work today at one of your many mysterious businesses? Or paint?”
I took a sip of my coffee before shrugging. “I have a few projects in various stages but I don’t have any commissions. Just doing what I feel like.”
“That must be nice,” she said wryly.
“What about you? Any projects or commissions?” I asked as if I didn’t know what project she was working on. Hell, I knew that she knew every single one of my art pieces.
I loved her photography. She could capture an exactmoment in time in a way that few others could. It wasn’t portrait work, but another type of art that was all beneath the surface.
“I just did a large spread forAdventure, and have three more coming up, but it’s the wrong time of year for what I want. So now it’s just what I can sell on the website and in-house. Thankfully my last payday was enough that I don’t have to worry for a while. Which is always a relief.”
I drained my coffee and set my empty cup in the dishwasher next to hers. I didn’t know why that sight made me so damn happy, so I pushed those thoughts away. No need to get sentimental. It was just a damn coffee cup. Just like her damn toothbrush was next to mine in the bathroom.
“Well then, let’s go get some air. We can take the convertible up I-70 into the mountains until it gets too winding for us.”
Her eyes widened. “Just like that?”
“Just like that. Bring a hat if you want, or let the wind make your hair go in a thousand different directions. Anything you want, Aria.”
“Anything?” She smiled then, before walking toward me and putting her hands on my chest. She was so damn short that she had to go to her tiptoes in order to kiss the bottom of my chin. I did not leandown to make it easier for her. I couldn’t help but relish the warmth of her. I really needed to calm the fuck down.
“Go get your shoes and stop teasing me.” I leaned down quickly and bit her bottom lip, before smacking her ass.
She yelped and glared at me, before she burst out laughing, and went to the bedroom.
I shook my head, wondering what the hell I was getting into.
By the time we were in the car, music blaring and wind in her hair, I could feel the stress and tension easing from her.
We couldn’t talk that much with the top down, but it didn’t matter. It was a perfect Colorado day. Not a single cloud in the sky, and not too hot or too cold. We’d souped up the engine of this beauty so I knew she could handle these roads as she had before. Maybe next time I would go up on my bike, with Aria on the back, legs spread around me. I shifted slightly in my seat, trying to adjust myself.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Aria give me a look, that smirk on her face making me want to kiss it off.
“You keep looking at me like that, I’m going to give your mouth something to do,” I shouted.
“Promises promises,” she called out over the wind.And then she leaned back into the seat, that relaxed smile on her face.
I hadn’t realized how fake and forced her smiles had been recently. But right then and there, this was the real her.
We pulled up to a rest area where there were a few park benches and got out. I took the cooler with me, and Aria just stared at me.
“When did you have time to pack that? And why didn’t I know you have it?”
“It took you thirty minutes to do your hair and makeup, even though you just let the wind have it.”
“It took me like ten minutes. And I had to call my dad.”
I froze in the act of unloading our lunch and tilted my head at her. “Everyone okay?”
That curious expression on her face did something to me I didn’t want to name. “Yes. I just wanted him to know that I was sorry for running out like I had.” She moved closer, and we unpacked the cooler together, acting as if we had done this countless times before.
After a moment, Aria finally let out another part of what had been bothering her. “I hate the fact I always feel weird about my dad and our work. I know that he loves me. And I know that he loves my work. And yet I can’t help but feel like the little girl standing in her dad’stoo big shoes, wondering why she keeps tripping on her face.”
When I set her camera bag next to her, she blinked down at it before running her fingers along its edge. She’d always had her camera on her for as long as I could remember. But recently, she’d stopped bringing it with her everywhere. It wasn’t my place to push her, but if I could at least show her what shecouldhave… Maybe it was for the best. Maybe I wasn’t making a mistake.
