Page 14 of Picture Perfect

“Well, I’d say your work is spot on, Autumn.”

She smiles. “You really are my favorite friend.”

“You’re mine, too,” I say and yet it feels like not exactly the truth. More like a lie. She’s my friend, of course, but she’s also more than that.

6

Autumn

Being close to Rowan, something feels odd. I keep breathing in his cologne, picking up other parts of it or something. I don’t know why. He smells like the forest and fresh cut grass. Two of my favorite scents.Funny, if he were any other guy I was slow dancing with, I’d probably kiss him.

Where the hell did that thought come from?Refocus, woman,I say to myself. “I’m also doing family portraiture these days.”

“Really? I didn’t think there was much of a market for that anymore.”

“The styles have changed—a lot of people want more candid work. So, I’ll follow the family around while they have a picnic or do something fun, like hiking. It’s usually less stodgy than a formal picture near a fireplace.”

“Hmm,” he says. The quartet plays a rendition ofEverlong, and Rowan holds me closer. I lean my head on his shoulder, and we sway together in sync. We’d always been in sync—hell, we even got married the same year. Two peas in a pod, like he said.

If I were photographing our evening, this picture would give the wrong impression; a man and a woman, holding each other tight, barely moving. Breathing each other in. So close they can feel each other’s heartbeats. The warmth of bodies…

Part of me thought I should step back or interrupt the moment. This was almost too intimate. But then again, what’s wrong with a little intimacy with my favorite friend?

That’s all we are. Friends.

Besides, it feels good to be close to Rowan. He’s solid, dependable. Muscular. Strong. I can lean on him.

He has always been there for me, and I’ve always tried to be there for him.

I smile up at him and he smiles down at me. A quiet moment. Between friends.

Again, I rest my head on his shoulder, and his hand glides to my lower back. He sighs into my hair, sending a shiver down my spine. Quietly, he asks, “Are you cold?”

“No.”

“You can take my jacket—

“I’m fine, Rowan. Just a random shiver.”

“Oh. Okay.”

We sway for longer, before I realize what’s happening. Maybe it’s the night, or maybe it’s that I’ve been out of the game for so long, but something about Rowan Cargill is getting to me. The shape of his nose, the set of his jaw. Those bright blue eyes. The way he feels pressed against my body…we fit together in a thousand ways.

Because we are friends. That’s all. Get your mind out of the gutter.

I clear my throat to clear my mind, and tell him, “I could use that dessert right about now.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.” He tells the server, and we reconvene at the table. Our knees brush against each other when we sit, and neither of us moves back to prevent it. The server pours him Syrah this time. “Truly, it will go better with the dessert than your Riesling.”

I shrug and nod, and the server pours me Syrah, too, before vanishing into the cabin. In all fairness to my companion, it’s a damn good Syrah. “So, we’ve covered work and your family, but how are you doing, Rowan? Personally, I mean.”

“Honestly, I do not know. Sometimes, I feel like I’m just going through the motions. I get up, work out, shower, make breakfast for the kids, take them to school.” He sighs. “Once they’re gone, things aren’t as fun anymore. But I come here to work, and after a long day, I go home. Half the time, the kids are asleep when I get there lately. But I want to change that. I need more than weekends and mornings with them.”

“That’s a routine, not how you are doing personally.”

He chuckles. “No, that’s exactly how I’m doing personally, Autumn. I don’t have a personal life.”

“Hmm.”

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